[Archived] Sheffield Weds At Home

[JHRover]

I agree a 0-0 or 1-1 would have been a fair result on the balance of play and chances created. Of course had we scored an equaliser then that might have changed Wednesday's approach and they might have come at us more for a 2nd goal, but as it turned out we didn't and they spent the vast majority of the game camped in their own half with 10 men behind the ball allowing us to pass it around at the back and out wide but stifling us as soon as we attempted to get the ball near their box or through the centre.

It was a defensive strategy and it worked to perfection, as other than the 'offside' goal and Emnes' chance in the first half we offered nothing by way of a goal threat.

They did what we are incapable of doing and that's going away from home, keeping a clean sheet, stifling the opposition for long periods and winning a game 1-0. Well done to them. The flip side is that they actually did very little from an attacking point of view, content to maintain their 1-0 lead and pick us off on the counter if possible. They looked more dangerous in the last 10 minutes but that was only because we were starting to commit more people forwards and left more space open at the back for them to run into on the counter. They were always going to have a chance or two late on as we tried in vain for an equaliser.

In the end it was far too comfortable for them to win 1-0. If you're going to lose 1-0 at home to a first half goal at the very least I expect them to be hanging on by their fingernails for long periods as we bombard them in search of a goal, but ultimately they defended with ease and we couldn't find an answer to it. We'd probably still be doing the same now, passing the ball around at the back before sending it straight to their centre backs.

[Lancaster Rover]

Looking around last night I thought we lacked any invention or zip in our play. Nobody looking to get at their man or be positive with the ball, I was really disappointed to be honest as I thought they might have kicked on from the two wins. Coyle will defend the performance by saying Wednesday are a top side who will push for promotion, I don't disagree with that however we made life very easily with our predictable football by numbers build-up.

[arbitro]

Looking around last night I thought we lacked any invention or zip in our play. Nobody looking to get at their man or be positive with the ball, I was really disappointed to be honest as I thought they might have kicked on from the two wins. Coyle will defend the performance by saying Wednesday are a top side who will push for promotion, I don't disagree with that however we made life very easily with our predictable football by numbers build-up.

But when Coyle was eulogising about the Rotherham performance would he have said they are favourites to be relegated and really poor? He can't have it both ways. He is an imposter almost to the degree Kean was.

[JHRover]

Looking around last night I thought we lacked any invention or zip in our play. Nobody looking to get at their man or be positive with the ball, I was really disappointed to be honest as I thought they might have kicked on from the two wins. Coyle will defend the performance by saying Wednesday are a top side who will push for promotion, I don't disagree with that however we made life very easily with our predictable football by numbers build-up.

Thing is Wednesday aren't a top side. They might improve as the season progresses but up until now they've been distinctly average in the league. They were winless away from home before last night, and certainly didn't strike me as a side that would be pushing for automatic promotion. Top six maybe, but certainly not top two material. They were well organised and handled being 1-0 up very well. They looked a similar standard to Fulham when we played them the other week. Miles off what Norwich were when we played them.

Coyle is just desperately searching for excuses. Basically anyone in the top 10 is 'pushing for promotion'. We're going to have to find a way to beat some of them otherwise we'll be getting relegated. We can't rely on just beating the poorer teams, as our results against Burton and Cardiff have shown.

[Tom]

Looking around last night I thought we lacked any invention or zip in our play. Nobody looking to get at their man or be positive with the ball, I was really disappointed to be honest as I thought they might have kicked on from the two wins. Coyle will defend the performance by saying Wednesday are a top side who will push for promotion, I don't disagree with that however we made life very easily with our predictable football by numbers build-up.

It's blatantly obvious that nobody other than the wingers has an ounce of creativity so we pass aimlessly until it gets to one of them who might be brave enough to try something.

As it happens it wasn't Conways best night delivery wise so we created nothing

[yoda]

The total football didn't last long

[Lancaster Rover]

I'm not defending Coyle here, I'm stating what he will trot out as the excuse for losing.

It's blatantly obvious that nobody other than the wingers has an ounce of creativity so we pass aimlessly until it gets to one of them who might be brave enough to try something.

As it happens it wasn't Conways best night delivery wise so we created nothing

Totally agree and as Marshall doesn't look like he could beat an egg at the moment it's all falling on Conway's shoulders to inject a bit of impetus into proceedings.

[LDRover]

Anyway, how is it that we have 3 loan signings (all announced by fanfare by our 'manager') that get little to no time on the pitch?

What kind of a transfer strategy is that? And how does it fit in with the supposed remit of having a track record of bringing young players through when dogsh1t Feeney gets on before them?

[JHRover]

Its a scattergun transfer strategy. Filling the squad up with loans to replace outgoings. Gambling our season on 5-6 players from other clubs, most of whom are either kids who are developing or people recovering from long term injuries.

Mainly Venkys fault as they won't spend any money, won't sanction proper contracts and as such the manager is having to sign what he can when he can when the Indians can be bothered to get round to authorising a transfer.

The flaw is that clubs like West Ham won't tolerate Samuelson sitting on the bench every week. They haven't sent him here to save money on his wages, they've sent him here so he can play Championship football this season. If we aren't giving him that then the whole thing is pointless. They might as well recall him and send him to a League One club who will play him every week.

[Lancaster Rover]

The total lack of game time for Samuelson makes no sense at all.

Hendrie is garbage, he looks like West Ham just wanted him off their books to be honest.

Byrne looks neat and tidy and technically a gifted footballer but we don't appear to have anyone who can shield a player like him, who although tries hard on the defensive side of the game isn't great largely due to him being about 5'7 and 10 1/2 stone.

[tomphil]

From what I can gather from the games so far it doesn't sound like there is much difference in Coyles approach to games than Bowyers. Obviously the squad has undergone another massive down grade since then but sounds like he has them stood off and trying to play it safe just hoping something comes off or falls our way or someone pulls something out the bag like Conway has done a time or two.

No real plan on how to go about trying to win games or grind out results just go through the motions. It's not looking good.

[Al]

Another game lost because Lowe continues to back off instead of tackling to win the ball. He should have at least tried to win the ball way before the scorer was in shooting range. Even if he had missed the tackle he would have stopped his progress sufficiently to have prevented a shooting opportunity. Lowe is a liability as is the completely useless Liam Feeney.

[Ivorsemion]

Can't comment on the Derby game as I wasn't there, but against Rotherham I thought their 2 central defenders were garbage and gave Emnes & Gallagher way too much space, and Evans & Guthrie just did the usual sideways & backward passing routine as they did last night.

We had two wins against teams that are struggling, but last night against a better (but still not great) team we looked poor and incapable of mixing it up.

The one sub who may possibly have been able to run at them with some end product (Samuelson) didn't even get a chance.

We look like a team that is made up of free transfers & loan signings, and Marshall, Conway & Graham each look to be carrying too much timber.

[booth]

Another game lost because Lowe continues to back off instead of tackling to win the ball. He should have at least tried to win the ball way before the scorer was in shooting range. Even if he had missed the tackle he would have stopped his progress sufficiently to have prevented a shooting opportunity. Lowe is a liability as is the completely useless Liam Feeney.

Coyle is the liability because he keeps picking him.

[davulsukur]

Samuelson must be wondering what he did in a past life to deserve being behind Liam Feeney in the pecking order.

In fairness, i'm thinking the same......

[Colt Seavers]

Some really poor decisions were made last night. I assume we swapped ends at the start because the intention was to flat out attack and get a quick goal or two which is easier in front of our own fans than the large noisy away support. It didn't work! Lowe again cost us the goal with his inability to mark tightly. Gallagher was removed too early purely because it worked at Derby to get Graham on. It didn't work!

Feeney was brought on to inject pace but he hadn't really got any and it didn't work! It should have been Samuelson who could have brought something entirely different as our tactics weren't working.

We had no answer to Wednesday's approach. Listening to their manager afterwards, it is clear that he had a specific plan to beat us but our plan was to pick the team that beat a totally different team the other day. When that failed we had no backup, and no insight from the manager as to how to adopt a different approach.

It's not good enough to merely put a team out and hope they prevail. I think we will be safe this season but Coyle is certainly no improvement on recent managers from what I have seen so far.

We are likely to lose at the weekend and he could be back in trouble.

[dinglebasher]

IMHO the reason we lost last night was down to our poor fitness levels. If you compare us to Wednesday, they closed us down much more effectively in midfield, and their forwards continued to make runs up to the final whistle. We were much less able to press and harry their players, particularly in the second half.

Hoban and Greer get stick for their distribution, which is partially justified, but there were so many times where they brought the ball out and no one was making a run. That just resulted in us passing it sideways or smashing an optimistic long ball 70 yards.

Fitness comes from discipline, and it's clear that Wednesday are superior in both.

[Parsonblue]

I agree a 0-0 or 1-1 would have been a fair result on the balance of play and chances created. Of course had we scored an equaliser then that might have changed Wednesday's approach and they might have come at us more for a 2nd goal, but as it turned out we didn't and they spent the vast majority of the game camped in their own half with 10 men behind the ball allowing us to pass it around at the back and out wide but stifling us as soon as we attempted to get the ball near their box or through the centre.

It was a defensive strategy and it worked to perfection, as other than the 'offside' goal and Emnes' chance in the first half we offered nothing by way of a goal threat.

They did what we are incapable of doing and that's going away from home, keeping a clean sheet, stifling the opposition for long periods and winning a game 1-0. Well done to them. The flip side is that they actually did very little from an attacking point of view, content to maintain their 1-0 lead and pick us off on the counter if possible. They looked more dangerous in the last 10 minutes but that was only because we were starting to commit more people forwards and left more space open at the back for them to run into on the counter. They were always going to have a chance or two late on as we tried in vain for an equaliser.

In the end it was far too comfortable for them to win 1-0. If you're going to lose 1-0 at home to a first half goal at the very least I expect them to be hanging on by their fingernails for long periods as we bombard them in search of a goal, but ultimately they defended with ease and we couldn't find an answer to it. We'd probably still be doing the same now, passing the ball around at the back before sending it straight to their centre backs.

Totally agree. I thought last night highlighted some of the limitations within the present squad. Wednesday's defensive formation meant we were never going to pass our way through them and needed something different. I thought we needed a really quick winger who could get round the back of the Wednesday defence but, sadly, we only had Feeney. As you say, we had too many passes going back and sideways and when we did play it into the front men they were soon crowded out. Hopes that Byrne or Samuelson might offer something different seem to have faded after their indifferent performances at Leeds last week. I know Mahoney was injured on Monday but surely as soon as he is fit again he must be a better option than Feeney on the bench.

[Lancaster Rover]

On the fitness front I think we expend so much energy running around with no purpose, we don't press effectively, I think our players actually run quite a lot, they just do it into the wrong areas and at the wrong times.

Wednesday looked compact last night and pressed as a team, they worked as a unit, each player knew his individual role and how he contributed to the teams success. Coyle isn't capable of that level of coaching, he sticks a group of footballers out with the hope that a vague gameplan of getting it out wide will be enough, it isn't.

[Parsonblue]

Another game lost because Lowe continues to back off instead of tackling to win the ball. He should have at least tried to win the ball way before the scorer was in shooting range. Even if he had missed the tackle he would have stopped his progress sufficiently to have prevented a shooting opportunity. Lowe is a liability as is the completely useless Liam Feeney.

It was the old fashioned mantra for full-backs - the ball can go past you, the man can go past you, but never the two together. As you say, a tackle, even if had resulted in a free-kick, would have stopped that move before Fletcher had the opportunity to shoot. I don't expect us to turn up another Keith Newton but I would willingly settle for a right-back in the John Bray or Wally Joyce mould.

[ABBEY]

Anyway, how is it that we have 3 loan signings (all announced by fanfare by our 'manager') that get little to no time on the pitch?

What kind of a transfer strategy is that? And how does it fit in with the supposed remit of having a track record of bringing young players through when dogsh1t Feeney gets on before them?

ask Jerome

[47er]

I was expecting posts from all those fans who allegedly dance for joy when we lose.

I don't see any!

[booth]

I was expecting posts from all those fans who allegedly dance for joy when we lose.

I don't see any!

Chaddy's not here to make stuff up, expect service to be resumed next week.

[K-Hod]

It was the old fashioned mantra for full-backs - the ball can go past you, the man can go past you, but never the two together. As you say, a tackle, even if had resulted in a free-kick, would have stopped that move before Fletcher had the opportunity to shoot. I don't expect us to turn up another Keith Newton but I would willingly settle for a right-back in the John Bray or Wally Joyce mould.

Or just an actual right-back, not a central midfielder stuck there.....

[booth]

And a bad central midfielder.