[Archived] Rovers Vs Sunderland - Dec 28Th Preview (Well Sort Of...)

[JAL]

you have a point about Robinson. I may be suffering misty eyed nostagia but I was directly in line and yet again I was left feeling that Freidel would have been 60:40 to have saved Bent's second. Robinson was a country mile off and a decade too late anyway. He seems so slow at getting down low to either side imo. On the plus side his kicking is an excellent 'out' for us when we are under pressure .... even if clearing the lines by leathering the ball way past the halfway line is deemed abhorrent by some on here.

You want to watch what Robinson does and how he reacted to Crouches second goal from a behind the goals viewpoint - hes shockingly bad.

There was also four or five moments where Samba put in some good challenges and carried the ball up field.

But I guess they didn't show that on MOTD.

Just highlighting the inconsistencies so that if these are removed from the game then the probability of winning will increase and then we'll all be happy.

[philipl]

Grizfoot, kamy and ldrover have said all that needs to be said. We are in the need to get lucky territory and Andrews and Samba's misses show even that is not happening.

[ABBEY]

gord ...its a good job Bentley and warnock have gone because they play down the wing and zzzzam doesn't allow it as was shown yesterday when jr wad told to get in the middle as opposed to going wide and chim hold to het back instead of taking the ball down the wing.

[thenodrog]

People who are believing that Rovers are in a decent position are I'm afraid are slightly deluding themselves. Footballing wise take David Dunn out of the equation and this team is the worst team I've seen in blue and white for over 30 years.

What absolute garbage! The 80's were spent by BRFC in the 2nd div.

Also I'd wager this team would have finished in Europe in the 80's..... (even carrying the 2 passengers from yesterday Roberts and Andrews). The big media money injection over the past decade has seen Prem football move on so much through the introduction of foreign players from all over the world that 60% of players who plied their trade in the 1st Div 20 years ago would now find themselves no higher than Championship level. The other side of this coin is that the tough european opposition provided by the likes of Sparta and Dukle Prague, Anderlecht, CSKA Sofia, Gornik, Red Star etc etc has been diluted to the standard of for example Rotherham or PNE etc.

[Eddie]

It's all relative. I really think that the comparisons to the 70's and 80's need to be dropped as a defense for what we are seeing now (not that you really are theno, but others certainly have used it). Fact is that football has developed a lot since then, so has the club and we aren't in a position that cannot in any way be compared to the position we were in 20-30 years ago.

This is dire football by premier league standards. Poor team selection, subpar players and bad tactics. I just hope that what will have be taken from this game is that Roberts isn't up to it and that when we get the ball down and play we actually cause teams trouble. If we play with the same style and tempo that we did for about 30 minutes of that second half we will be fine this season. We will score goals, we will compete and we will win our fair share of games.

[Guest Kamy100]

No it isnt - but it is far from as bad as some make out.

We need more improvements, such as a creative midfielder & our strikers to start hitting the net - but overall I think we are going in the right direction.

No deviation? 4-5-1, 4-4-2, 4-3-3............

Papering over the cracks? No Samba's post and Benni's overhead at Wigan and maybe Kalinic v Liverpool would be papering over the cracks as we would be sat on 27pts and sat in 9th.

As we stand I think the cracks are being shown....and we havent got that bit of luck to paper over the cracks. I mean we hadnt scored at home for 5 hours before today and we havent won for 8, yet we still sit 13th! Does that not tell you that we are improving and that once we click we are not far of a 10th placed team.

How have we started to go backwards?! Please give me facts, not fiction...

I just watched it again.

Samba was indeed closest...however why was Nelsen about 10 yards infront of their striker, leaving just Samba?!

Robbo should of dropped further to his line as Samba had started to take BEnt wider and was closing on him. Poor keeping there!

You need to take your rose tinted glasses off for a second. I am not saying that we are going to get relegated, I am saying that the football that we are playing is ugly, we may well survive, but the fact is that the football that we play is the ugly and robotic. Constantly changing formation is not deviation because essentially the style of play has not changed, there is no variety and teams such as Sunderland who came to Ewood with a squad that was decimated bu injuries and suspensions can deal with long punts up the field.

The transfer activity this summer by Sam was bizarre, why sign three full backs and not get cover for centre midfield? He gambled that Grella, Reid and Dunn would be fit and that has backfired big time.

As for papering over cracks, if you can't see what is happening then there is nothing I or anyone else can say to you, in terms of facts we have NO WINS from the eight games below, these were teams that we should be beating but haven't and questions have to be asked:

Fulham A

Stoke H

Liverpool H

Hull A

Birmingham A

Spurs H

Wigan A

Sunderland H

Sam needs to take a good look at things, whatever he is asking the players to do at the moment is not working and that is a FACT.

[thenodrog]

It's all relative. I really think that the comparisons to the 70's and 80's need to be dropped as a defense for what we are seeing now (not that you really are theno, but others certainly have used it). Fact is that football has developed a lot since then, so has the club and we aren't in a position that cannot in any way be compared to the position we were in 20-30 years ago.

This is dire football by premier league standards. Poor team selection, subpar players and bad tactics. I just hope that what will have be taken from this game is that Roberts isn't up to it and that when we get the ball down and play we actually cause teams trouble. If we play with the same style and tempo that we did for about 30 minutes of that second half we will be fine this season. We will score goals, we will compete and we will win our fair share of games.

It's like we have to wait for the gloves to come off before we will have a do at someone. A dominant influential midfield driving force could see that corrected. Trouble is that we seem to have had years of difficulty finding that type of player. Since Sherwood left in fact.

[Eddie]

Agreed, although I can't help but think it is also the instructions. If Allardyce told the team to go out there and play (as they were clearly told to do in the Chelsea cup game) I think we'd see a different team. I know that even I like to harp on about how the midfield isn't up to it, but the midfield isn't that much worse than it has been at any point since we lost Savage. If the midfield was actually invovled in games it would look better. It's hard for any of them to impress when most of our play starts with a lump forward from one of our defenders.

If we had got the ball down and taken the game to teams I have no doubt that we would have more points now than we do. Games like Sunderland, Hull, West Ham, Stoke and even Birmingham (there are probably more) all seem like games where our ineffective tactics, rather than lack of class, have lead to dropped points.

[booth]

The manager plays them differently in cup games so there's no reason why they shouldn't play more positively with better football in the league. I don't expect that every game but the amount of points we have lost time and time again against terrible teams, or teams that aren't on top of their games (Man Utd away and Liverpool at home for example) has got to be unprecedented. I can't remember us playing this many below average teams and playing so negatively. He only allows them to attack teams when we go a goal down (sometimes it takes two).

How narrow were we yesterday? Almost everything down the middle. Why does he keep changing the strikers around? They are never ever going to get going if they don't get time to gel with their strike partner, and Roberts has had enough opportunities. They were far better with Di Santo and Kalanic.

Start Kalanic for goodness sake. And what was taking Hoilett of all about? He was one of the only players willing to take defenders on and get forward.

As for the boo's, from where I was sitting it seemed people were boo'ing at the managerial decisions and tactics, not the players. The only time that happened was when we went 2-1 down and Andrews restarted play by kicking it backwards to Robinson (which deserved a slap not a boo).

[CrazyIvan]

As for the boo's, from where I was sitting it seemed people were boo'ing at the managerial decisions and tactics, not the players. The only time that happened was when we went 2-1 down and Andrews restarted play by kicking it backwards to Robinson (which deserved a slap not a boo).

That boo was actually after we'd gone 1 - 0 down and EVERYBODY was upset about it. Weirdly it worked because we scored immediately!

[thenodrog]

gord ...its a good job Bentley and warnock have gone because they play down the wing and zzzzam doesn't allow it as was shown yesterday when jr wad told to get in the middle as opposed to going wide and chim hold to het back instead of taking the ball down the wing.

How do you know that for sure Abbey? That would only have been said in the dressing room and you sit on the BBE.

Anyway if true surely it's only for a second or two to keep balance and cover for other players who might have got out of position for a time. Happens all the time during a match.

[sambo]

That boo was actually after we'd gone 1 - 0 down and EVERYBODY was upset about it. Weirdly it worked because we scored immediately!

Correct - even MOTD highlighted it :!:

[thenodrog]

How narrow were we yesterday? Almost everything down the middle.

Rubbish. We attacked plenty down the wings and especially in the second half. Both goals came from the wings, as did Andrews woeful attempt that should have been easily headed in and Samba's disasatrous miss.

[Hughesy]

centre midfield? He gambled that Grella, Reid and Dunn would be fit and that has backfired big time.

these were teams that we should be beating but haven't and questions have to be asked:

Fulham A

Liverpool H

Birmingham A

Spurs H

So Fulham Away (Possibly 1 of the most tricky away games in the league), an established top 4 side, a team on their best run since 1902 (including a 0-0 with Chelsea, a draw with Liverpool & a win at Stoke, and Spurs who are on fire - WE SHOULD BE BEATING?!?! Yeak ok then! That is the exact sort of mentality that has brought the booing - we have no right to believe we SHOULD be beating them!

3 full backs was a strange one - granted

Centre midfield - we didnt have much option - dont think their would be much interest for MGP, Reid or Grella with the injuries the 2nd n 3rd have had + the lack of contract & form on the 1st! Hands tied! Midfield has to be sorted this summer when we will have MGP, Reid & Dunn all out of contract & to consider their futures.......Unfortunatley we dont have masses of money and therefore it takes time!

[Guest Kamy100]

There is no point arguing with you.

Home games against Stoke, Liverpool, Tottenham and Sunderland, we have every right to expect at least 7 points from that lot, instead we have been served up with mind numbingly boring football, this added to our away, so questions have to be asked, where exactly are the points going to come from and how exactly is the club moving forward.

I am not going to get into an argument with you because you have your viewpoints and that is fair enough, however many many fans left the ground yesterday disillusioned by what they have seen yesterday and for most of this season.

[Ozz]

The first half was utterly utterly bad. There was not one moment of any real skill, or ability. Cannot remember a worse half of football. In the Best League In The World.

It took us to go a goal down before we started playing, again.

MGPs corners were better, but no good came of them as Samba cannot head a ball.

Chimbomda was the worst player on the pitch too.

I was sat at the back of the Darwen End, and it got increasingly heated as the the goals were exchanged with the travelling fans upstairs, a number of objects got thrown at us, including coins, and there were a number of arrests/ejections made. Got quite tasty at one point.

[TimmyJimmy]

Two things to add to the above :

Firstly, no one has mentioned the abysmal standard of the officials. Sunderland were simply awful and totally without talent (Bent excepted) so they resorted to cynical fouling at every opportunity. Mostly they just charged into people and barged them over, occasionally they were flying in with studs up, but mostly pushes in the back plus the odd elbow. The number 19 and 8 were principal offenders. It was all intended to breakdown any promising movement, just when we looked like creating an opening - crash - we get flattened. What did the ref do - zippo. IMO his lack of backbone encouraged Sunderland to keep doing it because they knew they would get away with it. They even got away with one in the box FFS. When you're struggling as a team - as we most definitely are - then the last thing you need is a ref allowing the opposition to cheat whenever we do the odd positive thing. This is the second dummy in a row we've had at home over Christmas and it's unacceptable in my eyes.

Secondly, as the thread has been reflecting positives and negatives from the game I'll keep the trend going ...

Positives

a) I believe ALL the team are trying their hardest, I didn't see any shirkers

b] the attitude of the players is right, they all looked tormented when we conceded so I think they care

c) The Kalanic / Di Santo is THE partnership but they need either Hoilett, Dunn or Emo to supply them - given the perpetual sicknote situation of some my attacking three would be Kalanic, Di Santo and Hoilett

d) We played "aimless" long balls yesterday only to escape from pressure in our box, for the most part we tried to play football until we got flattened every time we got on the ball

e) We have some, not many, but some, very good players and given a good dose of confidence we can become a successful team again

f) We know who the expensive sh!ts are and if we sell them in January and free up a bit of money then the odd well chosen replacement may well fire the rest of the team into being a half decent successful side, it's not that far away right now IMO.

Negatives

a) We are in serious danger of relegation, the position in the league masks the distance we are from the drop zone and I guess we look away and choose not to notice the games in hand many of those beneath us have

b] there are worse sides in the EPL than us but unfortunately success for the rest of the season will be about which teams we all have left to face, I think that taking today as a starting point then we start in a much worse position than many of the other worse teams out there

c) Sam's become the tinker man, stop it now please, play the guys who are staying and play them consistently (eg the Kalinic, Di Santo, Hoilett combo)

d) First prize in the no-brainer awards but, the injuries are killing us, buy a midfielder of quality

e) the boo-ing that is becoming very fashionable.

I hated this game and didn't manage to cheer any of our goals as I was disgusted that we were playing catch up all the time to that talentless pub team, I just knew though that they would likely score again so what was the point of getting excited. I was angry with the ref. I was gagging for the winner which never came and left the ground in a daze drained of any emotion other than frustration and muttering that we need a break, just something, anything to go our way. But I didn't boo, why? Because it's wrong, it's spinelessly reactionary, it's corrosive to team spirit and it only makes matters worse not better. All in all - if you want us to go down just keep on doing what you're doing boo-boys, you'll have the satisfaction of saying you were all seeing and wise. Please just put yourself last for once will you and even though it hurts like hell just try a bit of mindless applause, cheering and chanting - it's the right thing to do.

That said we are in the sh!t and it will be a real struggle to get out of it, we all have our jobs to do so let's play our part and get on with it.

[modes98]

Re Nelsen and Samba being at fault.

It was actually Givet - for some reason the left back had gone on a diagonal run and was on the right hand side of the centre circle. Once the ball past Givet, Nelsen had half the Blackburn end to cover and he couldn't get as close to Samba as would have been ideal as there was 1/4 of the pitch totally exposed. Samba was trying to minimise the gap but wasn't successful.

Nelsen didn't spot that Samba was covering out right, he should have moved across to the centre to try and decrease the Bent threat. There was no way that a striker with 12 goals (at the time) should have been left free in the middle of the park. You have someone on him like glue.

Rubbish. We attacked plenty down the wings and especially in the second half. Both goals came from the wings, as did Andrews woeful attempt that should have been easily headed in and Samba's disasatrous miss.

For once I agree with you. We used the wings very effectively and produced some good crosses. If Keith Andrews had taken the sensible divind header option rather than the lunging foot we would have got all 3 points.

The second half was a display in how good we are at making things harder for ourselves than they need be and then coming out with a point rather than the 3 we deserve.

Robinson: couldn't really do much more for the first goal, maybe just parry it out straighter. The second is a precise finish with no real power. I have watched it back in slow motion on Sky+ and Robbo gets the faintist touch and should really put it wide. His diving technique was very strange to say the least.

Chimbo: did well apart from being done for the first

Samba: caught out on a couple of ocassions

Nelsen: caught napping for the goal and caused a couple of incidents through bad communication

Givet: did well for me and even contributed going forward

Hoilett: Needs to learn the art of the early cross. Spends to much time on the ball thinking about crossing and looking for a short pass

Nzonzi: Tidy, unlucky not to score but really needs to know who he is marking when the opposition attack

Andrews: See NZonzi

MGP: new signing? decent crosses and a goal

Roberts: Same old same old. Sell sell sell

Benni: A bit tired but put in a good shift

I thought we could have looked to use the subs earlier but that they all did well.

I would still be in favour of dropping Nelsen for Givet in the middle and putting Chimbo and Jacobsen in the full back slots. Givet is more dominant than Nelsen and fills me with more confidence.

Time for the board to check the sofa and break out the pennies. We need a good striker.

[EnglishChris]

It looked that way from where I was stood too but just watched the replay and Nelsen was nowhere near Bent, if anything Samba was the closest player to him, still think Robinson should have done better he wasn't even in the centre of the goal, his positioning was poor.

In my view they were both at fault for the goal not just Samba as they both left the huge cape in the middle which let Bent in to score. Wouldn't really expect you not to blame Nelsen he can do no wrong in your book can he lol

[AggyBlue]

Just highlighting the inconsistencies

Yeah that's all you seem to do, in every post.

Why not spend a day posting the positives that you've seen. Do you even notice them?

[AggyBlue]

It's all relative. I really think that the comparisons to the 70's and 80's need to be dropped as a defense for what we are seeing now (not that you really are theno, but others certainly have used it). Fact is that football has developed a lot since then, so has the club and we aren't in a position that cannot in any way be compared to the position we were in 20-30 years ago.

Bollux.

Fans that saw the dire football when we were down the bottom of the third division are naturally going to compare those dark days to todays status.

I know where I'd rather Rovers be.

[AggyBlue]

I was sat at the back of the Darwen End, and it got increasingly heated as the the goals were exchanged with the travelling fans upstairs, a number of objects got thrown at us, including coins, and there were a number of arrests/ejections made. Got quite tasty at one point.

Never took you to be a hooligan Ozzie

[No Nay Never]

Keith Andrews had a better game than N'Zonzi yesterday although I don't expect anyone to admit it as Keith isn't the next Patrick Viera !!!

[Amo]

Keith Andrews had a better game than N'Zonzi yesterday although I don't expect anyone to admit it as Keith isn't the next Patrick Viera !!!

I think we can cut Nzonzi some slack. He's a 21 year old pulled up from the French lower division, who was never intended to be first choice. He has scope for improvement, unlike Andrews who has surely peaked.

[AggyBlue]

I think we can cut Nzonzi some slack. He's a 21 year old pulled up from the French lower division, who was never intended to be first choice. He has scope for improvement, unlike Andrews who has surely peaked.

Who was pulled up from the English lower division and was never intended to be first choice.