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[philipl]

I broke my duck of starting match threads which produce a win with our 3-2 victory at Cardiff in the twilight zone in May so I hope I am not resurrecting previous perennial bad luck by starting this thread...

Being a contrarian..

Forest changing Managers at least means TM won't have spent two weeks obsessing about what Forest are going to do and disappearing up his own tailpipe producing a team and tactics that totally bemuse the out of position Rovers players. Unless he is Mystic Mog, he won't know what Hughton is going to conjure up from that huge Forest squad which will most likely include at least two new signings making debuts.

His only option is to concentrate on what Rovers are going to do and hopefully formation and tactics are a given. We will have 4-3-3 with players in their natural positions again please Tony.

However, choice of Personnel could be a bit more tricky.

Hopefully we will only have Travis, Dack and Butterworth unavailable which means Stergiakis, Rankin-Costello, Lenihan, Ayala, Evans and Gallagher should all be available and that is without reckoning on one or more AN Others signed before the transfer window cut-off to be available for selection.

Established players are not going to be in the matchday 18, quite apart from getting a starting slot. It would be really cruel to see Buckley and Chapman not making the bench but that would seem likely for at least one of them.

Big decisions will need to be made selecting between Nyambe and JRC, Ayala, Williams and Lenihan, whether to bring Evans in especially if he has two more good games for Northern Ireland, and one from Gallagher and Dolan. I suspect if an AN Other signing is a left back with a sweet cross in him, Gallagher will get that nod in the expectation he will nod in a cross or two coming in late at the far post... Equally I expect Gallagher will be ineffectual and replaced by Dolan before the 70th minute.

I just hope Mowbray doesn't overthink permutations and starts saving players for the journeys to Watford and Coventry which happen within seven days of the Forest game.

 

We know Forest will come to Ewood all fired up wanting to start their season five games late under their new boss. We know they have some very good players. We know Kaminski is going to have to be outstanding to keep his run of clean sheets going. We know Rovers are going to have to be at their best in taking their chances to win this one.  

Deep down we also know if 20/21 is going to be a very special season for Rovers, this is the sort of game we have got to be winning.

 

[simongarnerisgod]

forest are in right state and it`ll take hughton months to sort them out,our biggest danger is mowbray messing about with the line up and changing formation,if we keep a settled side im`e confident we`ll win easily

[Tyrone Shoelaces]

It's going to be harder than it would have been two weeks ago. We'll need to be sharper than we were against Cardiff.

[SBlue]

2 hours ago, simongarnerisgod said:

forest are in right state and it`ll take hughton months to sort them out,our biggest danger is mowbray messing about with the line up and changing formation,if we keep a settled side im`e confident we`ll win easily

Disagree. They’ve got a squad with a lot of quality and two weeks on the training ground with Hughton will make them a force to be reckoned with,

I’d take the point right now - they’ll rocket up the table.

[Hoochie Bloochie Mama]

The Franz Carr derby.

[simongarnerisgod]

6 minutes ago, S8 & Blue said:

Disagree. They’ve got a squad with a lot of quality and two weeks on the training ground with Hughton will make them a force to be reckoned with,

I’d take the point right now - they’ll rocket up the table.

i think this season they are completely unbalanced and still have that play off nightmare in their heads,never a better time to play them i think

[SBlue]

2 minutes ago, simongarnerisgod said:

i think this season they are completely unbalanced and still have that play off nightmare in their heads,never a better time to play them i think

A better time would’ve been last week ?

[joey_big_nose]

Two interesting selection dilemmas for me - Lenihan Vs Ayala Vs Williams. Which two start? And Nyambe Vs JRC?

For me team to start :

                            Kaminski

Nyambe.       Lenihan.    Williams.   Bell 

           Holtby.    Johnson.   Rothwell

           Dolan.   Armstrong.   Brereton. 

Team to change to around 60 mins second half if they sit deep like Cardiff (a tactic which Hughton is fond of), and we struggle to break them down. Really wish we had someone better than Gallagher to bring on, but we don't.

                       Kaminski.

JRC       Lenihan.    Williams.   Bell 

       Holtby.    Johnson.   Rothwell 

                         Buckley

            Gallagher   Armstrong. 

[Hoochie Bloochie Mama]

Will BB score against his old club? Will they regret cashing on for only £6m?

These are the questions. 

[Tyrone Shoelaces]

1 hour ago, Hoochie Bloochie Mama said:

Will BB score against his old club? Will they regret cashing on for only £6m?

These are the questions. 

I think I'm pretty sure what the answer to question 2 will be.

[Ossydave]

This game will let us know Mowbrays plans regarding Gallagher, as you'd assume he will be 100% fit by then. I think most of us will be extremely pissed off if he starts.

I can see a very open game with a decent number of goals, 3-1 Rovers*

*Based on Gallagher not being in the starting 11 

[islander200]

Rumours that Williams is the Republic of Ireland player who has tested positive for Covid

[windymiller7]

1 hour ago, islander200 said:

Rumours that Williams is the Republic of Ireland player who has tested positive for Covid

Looking that way - not in the 18 for today's game

[philipl]

Pinched this from Bavarian Rover..

Don't exactly know how they create this category of Big Chance 35%+ but it rather suggests we should stuff Forest.

[Ossydave]

23 minutes ago, philipl said:

Pinched this from Bavarian Rover..

Don't exactly know how they create this category of Big Chance 35%+ but it rather suggests we should stuff Forest.

The top 2 in that are a direct result of us panning them....

[philipl]

Five players including Williams out of the RoI squad today but only one is Covid positive.

Looks like Del is quarantined through contact at least which I guess rules him out next Saturday and solves Mowbray's back line conundrum.

[islander200]

13 minutes ago, philipl said:

Five players including Williams out of the RoI squad today but only one is Covid positive.

Looks like Del is quarantined through contact at least which I guess rules him out next Saturday and solves Mowbray's back line conundrum.

Or gives him a headache as Lenihen isn't guaranteed to be fit

[StaffordRover]

4 hours ago, philipl said:

Five players including Williams out of the RoI squad today but only one is Covid positive.

Looks like Del is quarantined through contact at least which I guess rules him out next Saturday and solves Mowbray's back line conundrum.

He's not named as one of the 4 who are quarantined, which I guess makes it increasingly likely that he's the one who's tested +ve. If he is I think that means he only has to isolate for 10 days from date of test rather than 14, which the quarantiners will have to do. 

[Guest]

If Gallagher starts I will be frustrated. Forest under a new manager should be much more expansive than Cardiff, and if we score first I have faith in our ability to control the game. Big if though.

[Hoochie Bloochie Mama]

7 hours ago, JoeH said:

Forest under a new manager should be much more expansive than Cardiff,

Hughton has never been 'expansive'. 

[philipl]

If Williams is Covid positive.

Did he get it at Rovers???

Will be very nervous about Rovers (and Cardiff and officials) players and staff testing positive before the Forest game.

Fortunately, he has been with the RoI squad just long enough to have caught it on the journey to Ireland.

[Paul Mani]

Same 11 as started vs Cardiff for me bar the cb’s. If Del is out then we start with Lenihan and Ayala.

[Guest]

2 hours ago, Hoochie Bloochie Mama said:

Hughton has never been 'expansive'. 

Forest will not be sitting back in their first game under a new manager, they’ll be in our face, pressing, winning every ball they can and fighting to get 3pts. If you think it’ll be anything different then you’re in for a shock come Saturday 5pm

[Hoochie Bloochie Mama]

Just now, JoeH said:

Forest will not be sitting back in their first game under a new manager, they’ll be in our face, pressing, winning every ball they can and fighting to get 3pts. If you think it’ll be anything different then you’re in for a shock come Saturday 5pm

You said 'expansive'. That isn't what 'expansive' means. 

 

[Tyrone Shoelaces]

3 hours ago, Hoochie Bloochie Mama said:

Hughton has never been 'expansive'. 

He'll definitely want to start off by getting a result to stop the rot. I'd expect him to be happy with an away draw and I'm expecting Forest to be set up to get one. If they can pinch a win all the better from his point of view. He's had long enough to put a bit of his stamp on the team.