[Archived] Rovers V Birmingham 3-3 (phew)

[RoyRover]

The team showed great 'bouncebackability' in the second half, but I'm still disappointed that we only got a draw. After the great start that we had, we should have built on it and not have conceded so soon after it. Then in the second half, we had Ferguson'effort, which was tipped over by Taylor, Thompson's volley, Reid's shot which no one followed in and Dickov's chance in the last minute. These were all great chances which would have won us the game and got us off the bottom of the table.

Our defence looked dodgey again and I thought that they were playing alot better, I just hope that we aren't returning to the defending of old. Reid was my MOTM. I always believed that he was up to Premiership standard and it has taken time, but his performance over the last couple of games have been very good and today was a real break through. He took his goal very well, he set up Jansen and could have scored again with a great effort from outside the area. I thought that Tugay had a poor game and the way that Thompson performed when he came on, he should start the next game. Ferguson had another great game, as did Dickov. However, sometimes I feel that Dickov takes shots when they aren't really on.

Well at least we didn't lose which would have been a nightmare.

[McClarky]

all hughes can do till jan is try and juggle his defender's and find a sound unit.you cannot suddenley make bad players good,all you can do is coach them to the best of your ability.all the brum goals were at the far end from me,they looked very soft goals,but the 2nd half the defence played reasonably well

Reasonably well in 1 half isn't good enough though is it. We played well today and yet only got a point because we gifted them 3 goals. If we have to score 2 or 3 goals to get a point we are down. We need to be more determined and better organised at the back and we need to stop playing the foooking off-side trap whicxh seems to cost us a goal every week. For that 1st goal today why weren't the defence marking their men rather than claiming fior a non-existant off-side.

On saying that it was quite encouraging because we looked good going forward but we are saying that every week at the minute and are geting nowhere. I would try Short and Todd next week but it doesn't seem to matter who plays at the back.

Good to see Thommo back and Reid was great.

[philipl]

Blackburn Rovers v Birmingham City

3 Goals 3

10 Shots on Target 4

3 Shots off Target 5

3 Blocked Shots 0

6 Corners 9

14 Fouls 10

3 Offsides 2

1 Yellow Cards 1

0 Red Cards 0

74.8 Passing Success 68.8

59 Tackles 54

57.6 Tackles Success 57.4

53.2 Possession 46.8

51.3 Territorial Advantage 48.7

These are the Opta stats.

75% of Brum's on target efforts resulted in goals whereas only 30% of our's did. Shows what a good game Taylor had in the Brum goal.

[RoyRover]

Just wondering what people's take on Jansen going off at half time is? Does anyone know the reason? Maybe his injury allows him to play only 45 mins.

[Rovermatt]

So folks- all that £xm has got to go on defenders in January and I don't mean players we all have to kid ourselves could be good enough but I am talking serious long term quality. Definitely a central defender of real class and a right back who can push Neill out of the side if he doesn't rediscover the way he was playing two seasons ago.

Exactly. Essential.

[DP]

Interesting stats there. What a crazy game...

Great start, well taken goal and I thought we started well all round. The goal we gave away for the equaliser was sloppy in that we tried to play offside (I think it was Todd) and got bitten in the arse. Good finish from Anderton.

Then the midfield fell apart. Tugay was woeful, and Fergusson appeared to be huffing and puffing his way around but to little effect. Jay was skinned by Melchiot for the second, but where was his support from our left winger (think it was Emerton at the time)? Melchiot in the same situation and Reid was exposed in the same way but this time McEveley was to blame as he stepped up far too much. Also Fergie has to take some of the blame for Dunnie's goal as he sloppily gave the ball away and then un-necessarily dived in and got himself booked. Awful - halftime.

Didn't think Jansen had played any worse than the other front 5 players but someone had to be withdrawn at halftime and so it was him. What a turnaround. Reid aweseome, Fergie suddenly played like a £7m player, and the introduction of Thompson meant we had real control of the midfield.

All of a sudden the defence looks a lot more solid, and Jay was also allowed to roam forward as it appeared that Emerton had been well drilled to put the pressure on the ever dangerous Melchiot and kept him pinned back.

All in all I do believe we should stay up, but it's going to be a long hard slog. Still convinced our back four isn't that bad and it's often poor defending from midfield that presents a lot of our problems.

Keep within touching distance of 17th by the new year, avoid bottom spot at Christmas (the dreaded curse) and a couple of shrewd signings in the new year and we will be ok.

Good support from the crowd BTW.

[Brownie]

Just wondering what people's take on Jansen going off at half time is? Does anyone know the reason? Maybe his injury allows him to play only 45 mins.

According to my mate who was writing a report for a Birmingham website, the injury he has was giving him problems.

[den]

Just wondering what people's take on Jansen going off at half time is? Does anyone know the reason? Maybe his injury allows him to play only 45 mins.

According to Matty himself, he got a kick just above the knee which has been causing the recent problems.

He is hoping it was only a dead leg.

[Manchester Blue]

Just wondering what people's take on Jansen going off at half time is? Does anyone know the reason? Maybe his injury allows him to play only 45 mins.

According to my mate who was writing a report for a Birmingham website, the injury he has was giving him problems.

He was limping around when he came out in the 2nd half.

[tashor]

Defence bloody awful.

Bring back Gray. Short fit soon? and even Amo??

Tugay and Ferguson cannot play together.

Central mid with Ferg before signings? At least Thommo looked good. Is there a role for Douglass??

And don't we need a target man up front...

......4:5:1 anyone?

Emerton now a huge star. Reid very good today.

Hughes changed things and they worked. I like the cut of his jib ......

[AndreasG]

You should not mainly blame the defence today. Did you see the gap between the back four and our midfield today? HUGE! Where the hell were Tugay and Ferguson? Awful defending from those two. I hope I will not see Tugay anymore in the starting 11.

I think Johansson played very well today. He won almost every header and made some important interceptions. McEveley had a though game and hasn't Premier League qualty yet, but he's learning and will get better for every game.

[bellamy11]

If the defence remains unchanged for a period of time and Hughes keeps plugging away with them in training then we will reap the rewards.

Nissa is a quality player. I've said this pretty much since the day he joined the club. Play him at centreback and he'll do the business. Yet people seem so apprehensive about him. I'm not expecting a catastrophe from him at any moment because he's never given me reason to whilst playing at CB. He makes no more mistakes than Craig Short. He's mobile, reads the game well, a good header of the ball, strong in the tackle, and has youth on his side. No problems there at all. Two years ago I expected Nissa and Tiny to be the backbone of our team for years to come. Obviously this wasn't to be, but Nissa is miles ahead of Tiny at the moment.

Jay is inexperienced and naive, but at the same time he is a big prospect and everybody has high hopes for him. He's not afraid of anybody and mixes it up with the tackles. His positional play will get better with time. It's worth keeping him in now and giving him confidence because we don't have any better long-term options. Like with Nissa, I'm convinced that if we give him the chance to prove himself then he'll be a mainstay in the team for a very long time.

I don't know what to think about Lucas. His distribution is absolutely appalling. He can tackle and he's willing to go forwards. However, he's very prone to bad matches and very susceptible to mis-controlling passes and misreading the game. I wouldn't be adverse to Hughes finding his own man, but at the same time we all know there is potential in Lucas. If only we could sort out that bloody passing.

Nissa needs a partner and at the moment Andy Todd is the man. The more they play together the more they will know each other's strengths, weaknesses and quirks. Whether or not this will develop into a long-term thing is up to Hughes. The most important thing is not rocking the boat. Pick your men and stick by them. The best defences are the ones which the manager doesn't even need to think about. Irwin, Pallister, Bruce, Neville. Every week (taking United for an example). Stability would help us no end I reckon.

[92er]

Some good posts-the last one and DP as well as Jim, as usual.

Todd-out of position quite a few times,Ferguson often does not seem to be working hard enough,Emerton had a poor game compared with recent performances,Thompson was knackered by the end.

So, to get a point after the half-time score-and not to lose it as we did so often last season after coming back-was good.But we're still bottom.

We need to start winning.

[John]

I agree with Jay having a lot of promise but at the moment his mistakes are costing goals, so recalling Gray may be an option as he wasnt doing that bad.

Thought Thompson was class when he came on. Also lucky he was there after Savage's shot hit the post.

[American]

You should not mainly blame the defence today. Did you see the gap between the back four and our midfield today? HUGE! Where the hell were Tugay and Ferguson?

I was just about to say that. 3 Brum players against the 2 central defenders for the first goal. No support.

Ferguson was great second half, but pulled a Flitty (who usually does it at the beginning of the second half) and disappeared during the last 20 minutes of the first. Almost forgot he was playing. I expect that out of a player of Flitty's caliber, but not out of our 7 million pound man. This isn't the first match he's done that in. MORE CONSISTENCY!!

Dickov was a pest, but also a bit of a whiner. Cmon Paul, point 2 fingers towards your eyes again, the officials have never seen you do that. Every time he went down he was complaining and cursing (if my lip reading was accurate).

Reid was excellent, my MOTM too, but partly to blame for one of the goals. I think with that performance he showed he deserves to be in there. However, Emerton did have an off day and I wouldn't have been upset to see him subbed for MGP at the end.

I almost gave up at the end of the first half, and only came back in as Emertons? shot got pushed over the bar. Didn't expect that kind of comeback, and was quite happy and impressed. However, we never should have been in that situation.

[92er]

I think their goals were all scored by midfielder players.

[Eddie]

Dickov was a pest, but also a bit of a whiner. Cmon Paul, point 2 fingers towards your eyes again, the officials have never seen you do that. Every time he went down he was complaining and cursing (if my lip reading was accurate).

It's part of his game, that is why he is so annoying. Lay off, you should stop having such a whine.

As for the shouldn't be in that position, it's football, it happens. We play open attractive football, went behind, through a combination of errors and skill by the opposition, but managed to keep the same style and have the grit and determination to fight back. It's one game, doesn't mean anything really, but that was excellent, and this game, I, and it seems the rest of this board, are pretty happy with.

[American]

Happy with a point at home against a struggling side? Sad how our expectations have fallen.

[tcj_jones]

Well what a game, the second half was just superb from Rovers. Pretty much everything has been said but...

First half we just did not close them down and Tugay was absolutely appauling, his pass for the goal aside and he only seems to be able to play the ball backwards and sideways and he put Todd and Nissa under all sorts of pressure in the process. Silly mistakes, poor accuracy, putting the defense under pressure, not getting stuck in, getting sucked out of the middle of the pitch EVERY time the ball was played wide and he's surprised when he's subbed? He was just as much to blame for the third goal as jay because he wasn't tracking Dunn who ran about 20meters untracked to score.

Jay's lack of pace was exposed today, it's a shame because I think he is a good player. He is also so one footed it's unreal. Also,when going forward seemed very reluctant to cross, something Hughes should work on.

Brad - I don't care how good a shot stopper the man is and how many good performances he has put in, by not coming to the edge of the box, by not closing down the angle and by not collecting crosses and corners, he just invites the opposition to score. We always concede goals from crosses and corners and I want to know why he, nor the manager(s), will address this.

Now the positives - Reid was outstanding. Jesus what a transformation. Everything in his game today was exemplory, especially his response to Gronkjaer - nice and discrete and showed him whos boss. I like it. Not much more to say

But more importantly... THOMPSON. Are there still any questions whether this man can play in the centre? As soon as he came on he gave the team an edge, a new dimension. Two assists, countless decent and probing passes, ability to run at players, a cracking shot, pace, tenacity... His appearence was worth more than the point we got today and perhaps even three. Bring him in for Tugay immediately.

Todd and Johansson were good today, I just don't know who to blame for the goals. We had the numbers but seemed incapable of just simply booting it clear.

Gallagher was good upfront as was Jansen I thought. Nice to see the two appear and I think Jansen will be high on confidence scoring again. I'd play him again next week.

Freidel - 5 - not much to do other than the goals, doesn't fill me or the defense with any confidence when he doesn;t come to claim anything.

Neill - 6 - perhaps a little harsh, didn;t think he did anything wrong, apart from some wayward passing. Good option going forward and defended much better than usual.

Todd - 7 - Pretty solid and tough tackling today. I feel fairly confortable when hes playing. A couple of crucial tackles.

Johansson - 7 - again, stable at the back. A couple of "nissa," moments, but good in the air and some very well timed and crucial tackles.

McEveley - 5 - Unfortunatly not a good game for Jay today. His lack of pace was exposed by their wingers and his strength wasn't enough to deal with them. This will no doubt rattle his confidence. Otherwise he was looking to have real promise.

Reid - 9 - everywhere today. Absolutely everything in his game was spot on. He covered well, showed real confidence, ran at the defense... Very pleasing

Ferguson - 6 - Not a bad performance but gave them way too much space and time in the first half. Not enough probing passing or tough tackling.

Tugay - 4 - i'm afraid to say he was just woeful today. See above.

Emerton - 8 - another very pleasing performance

Dickov - 7 - ran his heart out and had a good game. Deserved the third goal but any quality forward should have finished the chance he had at the end. Unforgiveable.

Jansen - 6 - took his goal well and did a couple of nice moves. Unfortunately the service in the first half was pretty poor and he had very few opportunities to shine. Very promising though.

Gallagher - 7 - solid performance and gave something going forward. Nice linking, nice runs and good vision.

Thompson - 9 - See above. What a way to make your return.

Hughes - 6 - didn't take Tugay off at half time, unforgiveable. However, did bring Thompson on his place. Switched Reid to the left wing to protect McEveley at times after his mistakes in teh first half.

Team for next week...

Freidel

Neill / Todd / Johansson / McEveley

Reid / Ferguson / Thompson / Emerton

Dickov / Jansen

Edited November 21, 2004 by tcj_jones

[AlanK]

Thats some upheaval, changing a whole 2 out of 4

[The Harwood Yankee]

Well what a game, the second half was just superb from Rovers. Pretty much everything has been said but...

First half we just did not close them down and Tugay was absolutely appauling, his pass for the goal aside and he only seems to be able to play the ball backwards and sideways and he put Todd and Nissa under all sorts of pressure in the process. Silly mistakes, poor accuracy, putting the defense under pressure, not getting stuck in, getting sucked out of the middle of the pitch EVERY time the ball was played wide and he's surprised when he's subbed? He was just as much to blame for the third goal as jay because he wasn't tracking Dunn who ran about 20meters untracked to score.

Jay's lack of pace was exposed today, it's a shame because I think he is a good player. He is also so one footed it's unreal. Also,when going forward seemed very reluctant to cross, something Hughes should work on.

Brad - I don't care how good a shot stopper the man is and how many good performances he has put in, by not coming to the edge of the box, by not closing down the angle and by not collecting crosses and corners, he just invites the opposition to score. We always concede goals from crosses and corners and I want to know why he, nor the manager(s), will address this.

Now the positives - Reid was outstanding. Jesus what a transformation. Everything in his game today was exemplory, especially his response to Gronkjaer - nice and discrete and showed him whos boss. I like it. Not much more to say

But more importantly... THOMPSON. Are there still any questions whether this man can play in the centre? As soon as he came on he gave the team an edge, a new dimension. Two assists, countless decent and probing passes, ability to run at players, a cracking shot, pace, tenacity... His appearence was worth more than the point we got today and perhaps even three. Bring him in for Tugay immediately.

Todd and Johansson were good today, I just don't know who to blame for the goals. We had the numbers but seemed incapable of just simply booting it clear.

Gallagher was good upfront as was Jansen I thought. Nice to see the two appear and I think Jansen will be high on confidence scoring again. I'd play him again next week.

Freidel - 5 - not much to do other than the goals, doesn't fill me or the defense with any confidence when he doesn;t come to claim anything.

Neill - 6 - perhaps a little harsh, didn;t think he did anything wrong, apart from some wayward passing. Good option going forward and defended much better than usual.

Todd - 7 - Pretty solid and tough tackling today. I feel fairly confortable when hes playing. A couple of crucial tackles.

Johansson - 7 - again, stable at the back. A couple of "nissa," moments, but good in the air and some very well timed and crucial tackles.

McEveley - 5 - Unfortunatly not a good game for Jay today. His lack of pace was exposed by their wingers and his strength wasn't enough to deal with them. This will no doubt rattle his confidence. Otherwise he was looking to have real promise.

Reid - 9 - everywhere today. Absolutely everything in his game was spot on. He covered well, showed real confidence, ran at the defense... Very pleasing

Ferguson - 6 - Not a bad performance but gave them way too much space and time in the first half. Not enough probing passing or tough tackling.

Tugay - 4 - i'm afraid to say he was just woeful today. See above.

Emerton - 8 - another very pleasing performance

Dickov - 7 - ran his heart out and had a good game. Deserved the third goal but any quality forward should have finished the chance he had at the end. Unforgiveable.

Jansen - 6 - took his goal well and did a couple of nice moves. Unfortunately the service in the first half was pretty poor and he had very few opportunities to shine. Very promising though.

Gallagher - 7 - solid performance and gave something going forward. Nice linking, nice runs and good vision.

Thompson - 9 - See above. What a way to make your return.

Hughes - 6 - didn't take Tugay off at half time, unforgiveable. However, did bring Thompson on his place. Switched Reid to the left wing to protect McEveley at times after his mistakes in teh first half.

Team for next week...

Freidel

Neill / Todd / Johansson / McEveley

Reid / Ferguson / Thompson / Emerton

Dickov / Jansen

Very good post, pal. I agree with your comments, particularly regarding Tugay who, with the welcome return of Thommo, may well be on his way out in January. I'd also agree with your starting line-up for the next game, but its a tough call for Hughes on who to start out of Gally or Jansen, both of whom performed well this afternoon.

[Scotty]

I'm sure I read someone earlier say that midfield was not a problem for Rovers today. Good grief, how badly can you read a game? All Birmingham's goals came as a result of their midfield running past ours into space. Ferguson and Tugay were pathetic defensively in the first half. They may be quality when they have the ball but without it they are a liability.

Sorry, had to get that off my chest! Anyway, we started the match like a house on fire. Some terrific football saw Reid attacking down the right (a recurring theme this) and playing a clever low cross into the middle. Dickov's step-over bought enough space for Jansen to smash the ball in and put us 1 up inside 5 minutes.

For a while we looked as good as we have all season. We looked confident, knocked the ball around with no small amount of skill, and had the likes of Emerton, Reid and Dickov making driving runs at the Brum defence.

Just as I was starting to enjoy myself Birmingham scored from their first real attack. A decent ball to Morrison caught our defence square. His cut-back found its way to Anderton on the edge of the six-yard box who finished easily. Anderton had run 30 yards to get into that position and no Rovers player came even close to tracking him.

Suddenly we looked a different team, all our early confidence drained away and we started losing possession and our composure. Birmingham stepped up a gear and got at us down their right. Melchiot ran past McEveley like he wasn't there for Birmingham's second goal, crossed low into the box, Reid ballsed up the clearance, and Savage finished in style. It was noticable how many players Birmingham had in the box compared to us. Again, none of our midfielders (except Reid) bothered to track back.

Five minutes later they got their third in an almost carbon-copy manner. Melchiot again ran past McEveley (who'd decided to go on a wander), again he crossed low into the box, but this time it was Dunn who applied the finish. He had masses of space.

Half time was a relief, it could have been any score if the half had gone on much longer.

Gallagher replaced the injured Jansen at half-time and we started to look better straight away. Dunn had dropped deeper into midfield at the start of the second half and you sensed that Birmingham were happy to protect what they had rather than kick on and put the game safe. This played into our hands as it meant that Ferguson in particular could get a grip on the game without having to worry too much about defending.

Still, it took the substitiution of Tugay for Thompson to act as the catalyst for our recovery. Thompson's first touch put Reid away clear on the right. He took his time and hit the shot well, but the goal owed a lot to a deflection. Who cares - we were back in the game.

It was all Rovers now and it was no surprise at all when the equaliser came. Thompson hit a long ball through the centre of Birmingham's defence for Dickov to run onto. Dickov got there first, held off the defender, but scuffed the finish. No matter, Gally was on hand to force the ball over the line from about a yard out.

We continued to dominate and Thompson, Reid (twice) and Ferguson all had chances to score. About ten minutes from the end though we started to look nervous, as if we weren't sure whether to defend what we had or push on for another goal. This allowed Brum back into it and the last few minutes were just like schoolboys football. Savage hit the post, both teams had numerous corners and free-kicks, and the ball flew from one end to the other with increasing speed.

Just as we'd settled for a draw, Dickov was put through at the death one-on-one with the keeper. The keeper saved but Dickov really should have done better. It would have been hard on Birmingham though - perhaps a draw was a fair result.

We defended shockingly at times in the first half, but to just blame our defence misses the point. After saying that though, our defenders were poor today. McEveley can only be in the team ahead of Gray because Hughes and his staff think he's a better defender, as McEveley gives us very little going forward. Well today McEveley gave us very little in defence. He looked very raw and inexperienced today and was at fault for two of Brum's goals.

All three goals were scored from the centre of the penalty area, an area of the pitch where our centre-halves should be dominating. And as I've said previously, all three goals came either directly or indirectly as a result of their midfielders running off ours. Oh, and Neill was as pants as ever.

Ferguson went some way to redeeming himself in the second half with a superb display. He controlled the tempo and flow of our game in that second period and all our good work went through him. Tugay showed some good touches but all too often he also showed some poor ones. He's not consistent enough for the Premiership anymore.

Reid was superb throughout - my man of the match. In the past few games he's given us some much needed solidity in midfield but today he also added a real attacking threat to his game. Their left back had a torrid time. He fully deserved his goal. Emerton continued to look like a quality player and was a threat every time he had the ball. His work-rate going forward is outstanding. If I had to criticise one thing though it would be the lack of help he gave young McEveley at left back.

I mentioned a couple of days ago that I'd seen nothing from Thompson to convince me that he could play centre-midfield. Well, maybe I did today. He looked class when he came on and gave us some much-needed creativity. However, this was against a team who were sitting back and defending for most of the half - it might be a different story if he plays there against a team who are committed to attacking us. Is he good enough defensively? Only time will tell I guess although I still have my doubts.

Jansen took his goal well but looked a little sluggish I thought. Maybe his injury was troubling him. Dickov worked his socks off as ever and improved as the game wore on. He should really have got the winner at the end though.

Overall you have to be happy with a point after coming back from two goals down. However, it's wins we need. The team showed it's got a tremendous amount of heart and committment today, but we still lack quality all over the pitch and we're still making daft mistakes that cost silly goals. If we win next week at Fulham then we can say we're on a decent 5 match unbeaten run. Lose and it's a long run without a win - and our confidence will be dented accordingly. It's that tight at the moment.

[colin]

Tugay - 4 - i'm afraid to say he was just woeful today. See above.

Emerton - 8 - another very pleasing performance

Funnily enough, I'd swap those markings.

Toogs pass out right for Jansen's goal was sublime.

Whereas Bert was about 30% (and I've measured this scientifically, with a ruler) "on top of his game." When he is on form, defenders are soiling their pants. Today there was no need for the placcy bag in the Brum dressing room, that's for sure.

[LeChuck]

I'm suprised at how much praise Steven Reid is getting, he cost us two goals today and his goal was down to a deflection. If Pedersen finds some form I would still move Emerton back out to the right to make room for him.

Can't wait for Thompson to get fully fit and start games in the middle with Ferguson, I think that could be a very good partnership for us. I would also persevere with the Todd/Johansson partnership, I don't think we can get any better until the January transfer window comes along.

[USABlue]

I'm suprised at how much praise Steven Reid is getting, he cost us two goals today and his goal was down to a deflection. If Pedersen finds some form I would still move Emerton back out to the right to make room for him.

Can't wait for Thompson to get fully fit and start games in the middle with Ferguson, I think that could be a very good partnership for us. I would also persevere with the Todd/Johansson partnership, I don't think we can get any better until the January transfer window comes along.

Are you being serious or just trying to back up some prior claims you have made. I don't see how he cost us two goals today. If you are talking about the fluffed clearance in mid air because he was the only Rovers player who seemed to know what was going on then you are really streching it.

Jay McKevley is responsible for one of the goals in my mind, he got completely lost on Melchiots run. Embarrassed is most like.

Could every one including the nice Norwegians that come on here please get of the bloody MGP thing I am sick to the bloody back teeth of hearing about him. When Hughes deems him ready he will play.

You would persevere with the defensive partnership that went missing for almost the whole of the first half?? Sad truth of the matter is, you may be right.