Championship 23/24

[JHRover]

Surprised at the timing with Pearson. They've spent the last 2 years under him floating around mid-table and the bottom half and never really threatened so to get rid now claiming to want promotion seems odd. 

Suspect they've got someone lined up - perhaps now that Rowett or Beale have recently come available - and are moving in response.

[Tyrone Shoelaces]

3 hours ago, JHRover said:

Surprised at the timing with Pearson. They've spent the last 2 years under him floating around mid-table and the bottom half and never really threatened so to get rid now claiming to want promotion seems odd. 

Suspect they've got someone lined up - perhaps now that Rowett or Beale have recently come available - and are moving in response.

Maybe they’ve heard other teams are looking at Nathan Jones.

[chaddyrovers]

34 minutes ago, Tyrone Shoelaces said:

Maybe they’ve heard other teams are looking at Nathan Jones.

Surely your first choices would be John Eustace who did an excellent job at Birmingham or Gary Rowett who did similar at Millwall

 

[Tyrone Shoelaces]

2 minutes ago, chaddyrovers said:

Surely your first choices would be John Eustace who did an excellent job at Birmingham or Gary Rowett who did similar at Millwall

 

Maybe, both have decent records. If JDT got knocked down by the proverbial No 17 bus we could do a lot worse.

[roversfan99]

The same managers will naturally go onto the merry go round. For Eustace's reputation, he may well have been sacked at a good time for him personally as his stock is now very high. They were in the top 6 of a league that is still obviously forming at an early stage with a lot of similarly average sides split by not many points and with a few tricky games after his departure. But naturally he will be seen as a good option.

Rowett has always been mediocrity personified really but he is a steady and safe pair of hands. Nathan Jones (besides being a bell end) is a strange one in that he worked wonders at Luton yet his terrible personality saw other clubs he has managed sink.

[Hasta]

Who would have thought it - Ben Whiteman is a bit shit after all.

[DeeCee]

Their Joseph Davenport 

[simongarnerisgod]

the cheating **** wilson makes a lovely big  mistake for coventry,west brom 1-0 up

[NeilInBristol]

Queens Park Rangers have appointed Hammarby boss Marti Cifuentes as their new head coach.

The 41-year-old replaces Gareth Ainsworth who was sacked on Saturday after a sixth straight Championship loss left them 23rd in the table.

Spaniard Cifuentes was in charge of the Swedish top-flight side for two years.

 

Perhaps we aren't at risk of losing JDT after all, clubs will just go to the Scandinavian leagues now 

 

[neophox]

QPR taking a huge risk on Cifuentes....bigger risk than Tomasson was by miles....

 

[davulsukur]

Sheff Weds owner is telling the fans to raise £2m to pay wages and HMRC to save the club. 

He told The Sheffield Star: "With HMRC, if we don’t pay until, say, November 5, then that means it's been 14 days, but if we don’t pay wages as well then that's five days - that means a total of 19 days. Each issue counts separately.

"If 20,000 people gave £100 then it's £2m, and it'd be clear - so we can finish it. That would cover everything, HMRC and the wages. That would need to be done before November 10 if they don't want to pass the 30 days, but that means that there can be no next time. It'd need to be before to make it safe - if it was on the fifth then there would be 10 days left… If we were to hit 30 days then we'll get a ban for three windows."

Chansiri added: "They (some fans) want to protest and for me to leave, but nobody comes to save the club. The more positive ones, who backs me up? Then show me, back me up. We don’t have money. The first thing you need to do is save the club. If we don’t pay in 30 days we have a big issue. 

"If you want to save your club, this is your chance. Do not protest, save your club. If not, we will get a transfer ban over three windows, there’s a possibility we will go to League Two or the National League. Maybe the negative fans would be happy, they wouldn’t be able to moan that things are too expensive. 

"So now you have the right. If the positive fans want me to stay, then this is their chance to save their club

[Tyrone Shoelaces]

1 minute ago, davulsukur said:

Sheff Weds owner is telling the fans to raise £2m to pay wages and HMRC to save the club. 

He told The Sheffield Star: "With HMRC, if we don’t pay until, say, November 5, then that means it's been 14 days, but if we don’t pay wages as well then that's five days - that means a total of 19 days. Each issue counts separately.

"If 20,000 people gave £100 then it's £2m, and it'd be clear - so we can finish it. That would cover everything, HMRC and the wages. That would need to be done before November 10 if they don't want to pass the 30 days, but that means that there can be no next time. It'd need to be before to make it safe - if it was on the fifth then there would be 10 days left… If we were to hit 30 days then we'll get a ban for three windows."

Chansiri added: "They (some fans) want to protest and for me to leave, but nobody comes to save the club. The more positive ones, who backs me up? Then show me, back me up. We don’t have money. The first thing you need to do is save the club. If we don’t pay in 30 days we have a big issue. 

"If you want to save your club, this is your chance. Do not protest, save your club. If not, we will get a transfer ban over three windows, there’s a possibility we will go to League Two or the National League. Maybe the negative fans would be happy, they wouldn’t be able to moan that things are too expensive. 

"So now you have the right. If the positive fans want me to stay, then this is their chance to save their club

I hope the Chicken Chokers don’t see this !

[Guest]

35 minutes ago, Tyrone Shoelaces said:

I hope the Chicken Chokers don’t see this !

We might struggle to find 20,000 people to put their hand in their pocket to save Rovers if they did 😉

There's no club, business or organisation that is 'too big to go under', especially when football is infested with so many utter spoons who have neither a clue nor a care about the real fans.

[Sweaty Gussets]

43 minutes ago, davulsukur said:

Sheff Weds owner is telling the fans to raise £2m to pay wages and HMRC to save the club. 

He told The Sheffield Star: "With HMRC, if we don’t pay until, say, November 5, then that means it's been 14 days, but if we don’t pay wages as well then that's five days - that means a total of 19 days. Each issue counts separately.

"If 20,000 people gave £100 then it's £2m, and it'd be clear - so we can finish it. That would cover everything, HMRC and the wages. That would need to be done before November 10 if they don't want to pass the 30 days, but that means that there can be no next time. It'd need to be before to make it safe - if it was on the fifth then there would be 10 days left… If we were to hit 30 days then we'll get a ban for three windows."

Chansiri added: "They (some fans) want to protest and for me to leave, but nobody comes to save the club. The more positive ones, who backs me up? Then show me, back me up. We don’t have money. The first thing you need to do is save the club. If we don’t pay in 30 days we have a big issue. 

"If you want to save your club, this is your chance. Do not protest, save your club. If not, we will get a transfer ban over three windows, there’s a possibility we will go to League Two or the National League. Maybe the negative fans would be happy, they wouldn’t be able to moan that things are too expensive. 

"So now you have the right. If the positive fans want me to stay, then this is their chance to save their club

Where would historic football clubs be without the 'fit and proper' owners test?

Similar characters to that chap could be our next owner. 

[NeilInBristol]

2 hours ago, davulsukur said:

Sheff Weds owner is telling the fans to raise £2m to pay wages and HMRC to save the club. 

He told The Sheffield Star: "With HMRC, if we don’t pay until, say, November 5, then that means it's been 14 days, but if we don’t pay wages as well then that's five days - that means a total of 19 days. Each issue counts separately.

"If 20,000 people gave £100 then it's £2m, and it'd be clear - so we can finish it. That would cover everything, HMRC and the wages. That would need to be done before November 10 if they don't want to pass the 30 days, but that means that there can be no next time. It'd need to be before to make it safe - if it was on the fifth then there would be 10 days left… If we were to hit 30 days then we'll get a ban for three windows."

Chansiri added: "They (some fans) want to protest and for me to leave, but nobody comes to save the club. The more positive ones, who backs me up? Then show me, back me up. We don’t have money. The first thing you need to do is save the club. If we don’t pay in 30 days we have a big issue. 

"If you want to save your club, this is your chance. Do not protest, save your club. If not, we will get a transfer ban over three windows, there’s a possibility we will go to League Two or the National League. Maybe the negative fans would be happy, they wouldn’t be able to moan that things are too expensive. 

"So now you have the right. If the positive fans want me to stay, then this is their chance to save their club

That's appalling. Blimey. football owners should not be allowed to do this 

[wilsdenrover]

I’m not sure he’s going to be inundated with donations…

https://www.owlstalk.co.uk/forums/topic/325991-oh-no-chansiri-asks-fans-to-pay-to-save-club/

[DE.]

This week's round of Championship fixtures spanned from Saturday to Monday, so let's see how the competition's teams fared.

After celebrating Huddersfield's first win under his stewardship last Saturday, Darren Moore has now watched his side ship four goals in two consecutive matches, as they went down 4-1 to Leeds at Elland Road. This Yorkshire derby was a one-sided affair with all of Leeds' goals coming in the first half. Huddersfield's consolation goal in the 70th minute did little beyond slightly ease their battered goal difference, which has nosedived to -13, placing them alongside the bottom three teams in terms of being in double negative figures. The lowest GD above 21st is -3. Leeds bounced back from a loss in midweek, but remain a whopping 14 points behind top of the table Leicester and 9 points behind second placed Ipswich - which could become 12 points if Ipswich win their game in hand. Nonetheless, outside of the top two, Leeds have the best GD in the division with +9. 

Southampton's upturn in form continued at the expense of Wayne Rooney's Birmingham City™ as the Saints recorded a 3-1 home win to lift them into 4th place in the league. It should be noted however that Birmingham had a blatant penalty turned down and one of Southampton's goals was offside - so they can feel genuinely aggrieved by sub-standard officiating. Or what would more accurately be described as just another day at the office for Championship officials. Despite Leeds and Southampton both having rocky starts, both now sit in the top four, with Ipswich being the only team standing between the relegated clubs and Championship dominance. Rovers' old boy Adam Armstrong netted Southampton's third, which was his eighth goal in fourteen matches. Arma may not be PL standard, but this league evidently suits him perfectly. Despite now being six games unbeaten and sitting in 4th place, Southampton still have the fourth worst defensive record in the division. As far as Birmingham are concerned, it's a third defeat in a row and drops them to 14th in the table. Rooney's arrival has thus far heralded a string of defeats and a goal difference of -5, with six goals conceded and one scored.  

Rovers' did not extend their run of victories to four, as a desperately poor performance at Ewood allowed Swansea to depart with a 1-0 victory. It was, worryingly, a fourth defeat at home for Rovers in what has been an extremely inconsistent season thus far. Despite not playing well after the first twenty minutes or so, Rovers had chances to score but did not take them. The Swans were slightly more clinical and thus walked away with all three points. Swansea had lost their previous two matches prior to this, so they will be happy to have gotten back on track. The result leaves Rovers in 12th, whilst Swansea jump up to 13th, snapping at our heels. 

Cardiff's fine home form continued in earnest as they beat Bristol City 2-0 at the Cardiff City Stadium. It's now five wins in seven home matches for the Welsh side, who are making their home ground a genuine fortress. It was a second win in a row for the Bluebirds after a poor run of form, and moves them back into the playoff spots in 6th. The result would have big consequences for Nigel Pearson, who found himself removed from his position within twenty-four hours of this match. He leaves with Bristol City in 15th place, having won five, drawn one and lost six this season. They have an okay defensive record but have struggled with scoring, with only the bottom four clubs netting less often, and Millwall level with fifteen goals. Based on what I read on the Bristol City forums, their fans are appalled by the decision to sack Pearson, feeling he had done a lot of good at the club and been operating with his hands tied, as the club sold their best players and failed to bring in adequate replacements (sound familiar?). It remains to be seen who will take the manager's chair, and whether they'll receive more backing than Pearson got this summer.

Preston's horrendous slump in form continued as they were beaten 1-0 by Hull at the MKM Stadium. Preston have now failed to win in seven matches and finally drop out of the playoff spots, plummeting down to 9th place. Just to note Preston have picked up three points from a possible twenty-one. A good thing for them that they had a bafflingly strong start to the season, or they'd be fighting it out at the bottom right now. It was a second win in a row for Hull who, despite a recent drop in form, have only lost three times in fourteen matches. Five draws, however, means that they sit in 7th, just outside the playoff positions on goal difference. 

Ipswich extended their unbeaten run to 11 games in all competitions as they beat fellow newly-promoted side Plymouth Argyle 3-2 at Portman Road. Plymouth finished above Ipswich last season, but the teams have had contrasting fortunes this season, with Ipswich riding high in 2nd place, whilst Plymouth struggle at the other end of the table in 19th. George Hirst bagged his third goal of the season, for anyone interested. It was a fourth win in a row for Ipswich and keeps them five points behind Leicester in 1st, although they have a game in hand on the leaders. They are nine points clear of Leeds in 3rd. Alongside Leicester, Ipswich are the competition's top scorers with 29 goals to their name, averaging more than two goals a game at present. For Plymouth it was a third loss in five matches, but they still remain six points clear of the drop zone. 

Middlesbrough's fine run of form came to an end as they were beaten 2-0 by Stoke City at the Riverside. Six wins in a row had catapulted Boro from the depths of the division into genuine playoff contention, but it had to end at some point, and Alex Neil's Stoke side were the ones to finally inflict defeat upon an increasingly injury-ravaged Boro side. The Potters have kickstarted their own revival after a dismal start to the season, and this was a third win in a row for them - the first time they've won three in a row in nearly two years. It lifts them into 11th place, just a point behind Boro in 10th position. 

QPR gave a spirited performance at Loftus Road against league leaders Leicester, which suggested their players had not yet given up on Championship survival. The game was tied at one each before Harry Winks broke down QPR's resistance in the 80th minute and consigned them to a sixth defeat in a row. This was apparently the tipping point for QPR's owners, as they dismissed Gareth Ainsworth the next day. Ainsworth departs with the club having only won two out of fourteen matches this season, losing ten and boasting the worst goal difference in the division with -16. QPR have since appointed relative unknown Spanish manager Martí Cifuentes, a 41 year old whose recent career has seen him touring Scandinavia with jobs in Norway, Denmark and Sweden. It's a risky move for a side that are in desperate trouble, but he realistically can't do much worse than Ainsworth. QPR are still only six points adrift of Huddersfield in 21st, which is not an insurmountable amount of points by any means. Leicester remain top having lost one match and won the other thirteen. They are joint top-scorers alongside Ipswich and have the best defensive record in the division by far, with a meagre eight goals conceded in fourteen matches. 

Sunderland ended a run of three successive defeats with a 3-1 victory at the Stadium of Light against a Norwich side who are in absolute freefall. Norwich had gone 1-0 up with a goal that should have been ruled as offside in the build up, but Sunderland came back to comfortably earn a victory and all three points, moving them back up to 8th position. It's been a brutal couple of weeks for managers in the Championship, and one has to wonder if David Wagner is next to get the boot. This defeat is the fourth in five matches for Norwich, with the other being a draw. Stretching further back, Norwich have lost six of their last eight games, one of which was a 6-2 humiliation against Plymouth. Norwich have the joint-worst defensive record in the division, conceding 27 goals alongside Huddersfield. This is even worse than the hapless bottom three. Norwich's only saving grace has been their goals scored, with 25 still being the second highest in the division (Leicester and Ipswich sharing joint-first), but this counts for nothing when matches are regularly being lost. Norwich fall to 17th in the table and it seems inevitable that Wagner will be removed from his post if this continues for much longer. 

Watford and Millwall shared the points with a 2-2 draw at Vicarage Road. The game had a nice symmetry with two early goals for each side in the 7th and 12th minute followed by two late goals for each side in the 85th and 92nd minute. Millwall remain without a manager and also without a win in four games, picking up three points from the last twelve available. They are in 18th place and remain eight points clear of Rotherham in 22nd, which might be why the board have not rushed into making an appointment. None of the bottom three will be giving them cause for concern, if staying in the division is the objective, and the inconsistency of the rest of the division means Millwall are still only six points away from the playoff positions, so a good run of form under a new boss could easily ignite a playoff push. Watford would have wanted to win this one to record a third victory on the bounce, but have to settle for a point which extends their unbeaten streak to four games. They reside in 16th place.

Sunday's match saw two of the worst teams in the division go head-to-head. Sheffield Wednesday, who were yet to win a match, faced Rotherham, who have nearly played a full season's worth of away matches without winning. Smart money would have been on a draw, but alas, Rotherham once again failed to show up on the road and gifted Wednesday their first win of the season - a comfortable 2-0 win. These were also the first two goals the Owls had scored in six matches. Rotherham's lack of fight against the division's worst team - in turmoil on and off the pitch - was shocking to see. The Owls new boss Danny Rohl will be delighted with his team's performance, regardless, and grateful for his first three points, having lost his first two matches in charge. Bucko got on as a sub on 73 minutes, whilst Rotherham new boy Ayala did not get on at all. Wednesday remain at the foot of the table, but three points moves them to within two points of QPR in 23rd, although they are still eight points adrift of Huddersfield in 21st. Rotherham remain in 22nd on 9 points, but do have a game in hand owing to the postponed match against Ipswich last week. Should they take three points from their postponed fixture they would be within two points of Huddersfield, although their absolute inability to win away from home will make it extremely difficult for them to avoid dropping back into League 1.  Whether this result marks a turnaround for Wednesday remains to be seen, as victory against a Rotherham side who turn to dust away from home does not necessarily prove much. That aside, there are some major problems beyond the pitch which may derail Wednesday's season regardless of the good work Danny Rohl and his team may achieve. Speaking of which...

Special mention has to go to Wednesday's off-the-field drama, as chairman Dejphon Chansiri quickly squashed the positivity of a first league win by declaring on the Tuesday that the fans would have to foot a £2m bill to HMRC or risk the club being sanctioned. He belittled the same fans he was asking money from, which seems counterproductive. How he was able to afford to sack one management team and hire another, yet remains unable to pay an HMRC bill, is as of yet unexplained. One can only imagine what the new management team at the club makes of this - but then, they would surely have known about the turmoil at the club, punctuated by a increasingly impenetrable divide between the owner and the supporters, before taking their roles. For now it seems the brief ray of light from Sunday's result has once again been snuffed out by the ever-present black clouds circling around Hillsborough, as the club stares down the barrel of an unpaid HMRC bill, missed wages, and the host of consequences that would likely follow from these failures. 

The weekend's final match took place on Monday as Coventry's downward spiral continued, as they were defeated 2-0 at home by West Brom. It's a third defeat in a row for a Coventry team who have only won three matches all season. Adding to Coventry's concern will be the fact they've scored no goals in these three defeats, and have actually only scored twice in five matches. The Sky Blues drop to 20th in the table as a result. No such problems for WBA, though, who recorded their third win in five matches and who have overall gained ten points from the last fifteen available. The Baggies also boast the second best defensive record in the division, with their fourteen goals conceded second only to Leicester. The overall goal difference is also joint-fourth best in the division, alongside Sunderland with +8. So yeah, things are going well for WBA right now and they occupy 5th spot in the division. 

Edited October 31, 2023 by DE.

[Tyrone Shoelaces]

50 minutes ago, DE. said:

This week's round of Championship fixtures spanned from Saturday to Monday, so let's see how the competition's teams fared.

After celebrating Huddersfield's first win under his stewardship last Saturday, Darren Moore has now watched his side ship four goals in two consecutive matches, as they went down 4-1 to Leeds at Elland Road. This Yorkshire derby was a one-sided affair with all of Leeds' goals coming in the first half. Huddersfield's consolation goal in the 70th minute did little beyond slightly ease their battered goal difference, which has nosedived to -13, placing them alongside the bottom three teams in terms of being in double negative figures. The lowest GD above 21st is -3. Leeds bounced back from a loss in midweek, but remain a whopping 14 points behind top of the table Leicester and 9 points behind second placed Ipswich - which could become 12 points if Ipswich win their game in hand. Nonetheless, outside of the top two, Leeds have the best GD in the division with +9. 

Southampton's upturn in form continued at the expense of Wayne Rooney's Birmingham City™ as the Saints recorded a 3-1 home win to lift them into 4th place in the league. It should be noted however that Birmingham had a blatant penalty turned down and one of Southampton's goals was offside - so they can feel genuinely aggrieved by sub-standard officiating. Or what would more accurately be described as just another day at the office for Championship officials. Despite Leeds and Southampton both having rocky starts, both now sit in the top four, with Ipswich being the only team standing between the relegated clubs and Championship dominance. Rovers' old boy Adam Armstrong netted Southampton's third, which was his eighth goal in fourteen matches. Arma may not be PL standard, but this league evidently suits him perfectly. Despite now being six games unbeaten and sitting in 4th place, Southampton still have the fourth worst defensive record in the division. As far as Birmingham are concerned, it's a third defeat in a row and drops them to 14th in the table. Rooney's arrival has thus far heralded a string of defeats and a goal difference of -5, with six goals conceded and one scored.  

Rovers' did not extend their run of victories to four, as a desperately poor performance at Ewood allowed Swansea to depart with a 1-0 victory. It was, worryingly, a fourth defeat at home for Rovers in what has been an extremely inconsistent season thus far. Despite not playing well after the first twenty minutes or so, Rovers had chances to score but did not take them. The Swans were slightly more clinical and thus walked away with all three points. Swansea had lost their previous two matches prior to this, so they will be happy to have gotten back on track. The result leaves Rovers in 12th, whilst Swansea jump up to 13th, snapping at our heels. 

Cardiff's fine home form continued in earnest as they beat Bristol City 2-0 at the Cardiff City Stadium. It's now five wins in seven home matches for the Welsh side, who are making their home ground a genuine fortress. It was a second win in a row for the Bluebirds after a poor run of form, and moves them back into the playoff spots in 6th. The result would have big consequences for Nigel Pearson, who found himself removed from his position within twenty-four hours of this match. He leaves with Bristol City in 15th place, having won five, drawn one and lost six this season. They have an okay defensive record but have struggled with scoring, with only the bottom four clubs netting less often, and Millwall level with fifteen goals. Based on what I read on the Bristol City forums, their fans are appalled by the decision to sack Pearson, feeling he had done a lot of good at the club and been operating with his hands tied, as the club sold their best players and failed to bring in adequate replacements (sound familiar?). It remains to be seen who will take the manager's chair, and whether they'll receive more backing than Pearson got this summer.

Preston's horrendous slump in form continued as they were beaten 1-0 by Hull at the MKM Stadium. Preston have now failed to win in seven matches and finally drop out of the playoff spots, plummeting down to 9th place. Just to note Preston have picked up three points from a possible twenty-one. A good thing for them that they had a bafflingly strong start to the season, or they'd be fighting it out at the bottom right now. It was a second win in a row for Hull who, despite a recent drop in form, have only lost three times in fourteen matches. Five draws, however, means that they sit in 7th, just outside the playoff positions on goal difference. 

Ipswich extended their unbeaten run to 11 games in all competitions as they beat fellow newly-promoted side Plymouth Argyle 3-2 at Portman Road. Plymouth finished above Ipswich last season, but the teams have had contrasting fortunes this season, with Ipswich riding high in 2nd place, whilst Plymouth struggle at the other end of the table in 19th. George Hirst bagged his third goal of the season, for anyone interested. It was a fourth win in a row for Ipswich and keeps them five points behind Leicester in 1st, although they have a game in hand on the leaders. They are nine points clear of Leeds in 3rd. Alongside Leicester, Ipswich are the competition's top scorers with 29 goals to their name, averaging more than two goals a game at present. For Plymouth it was a third loss in five matches, but they still remain six points clear of the drop zone. 

Middlesbrough's fine run of form came to an end as they were beaten 2-0 by Stoke City at the Riverside. Six wins in a row had catapulted Boro from the depths of the division into genuine playoff contention, but it had to end at some point, and Alex Neil's Stoke side were the ones to finally inflict defeat upon an increasingly injury-ravaged Boro side. The Potters have kickstarted their own revival after a dismal start to the season, and this was a third win in a row for them - the first time they've won three in a row in nearly two years. It lifts them into 11th place, just a point behind Boro in 10th position. 

QPR gave a spirited performance at Loftus Road against league leaders Leicester, which suggested their players had not yet given up on Championship survival. The game was tied at one each before Harry Winks broke down QPR's resistance in the 80th minute and consigned them to a sixth defeat in a row. This was apparently the tipping point for QPR's owners, as they dismissed Gareth Ainsworth the next day. Ainsworth departs with the club having only won two out of fourteen matches this season, losing ten and boasting the worst goal difference in the division with -16. QPR have since appointed relative unknown Spanish manager Martí Cifuentes, a 41 year old whose recent career has seen him touring Scandinavia with jobs in Norway, Denmark and Sweden. It's a risky move for a side that are in desperate trouble, but he realistically can't do much worse than Ainsworth. QPR are still only six points adrift of Huddersfield in 21st, which is not an insurmountable amount of points by any means. Leicester remain top having lost one match and won the other thirteen. They are joint top-scorers alongside Ipswich and have the best defensive record in the division by far, with a meagre eight goals conceded in fourteen matches. 

Sunderland ended a run of three successive defeats with a 3-1 victory at the Stadium of Light against a Norwich side who are in absolute freefall. Norwich had gone 1-0 up with a goal that should have been ruled as offside in the build up, but Sunderland came back to comfortably earn a victory and all three points, moving them back up to 8th position. It's been a brutal couple of weeks for managers in the Championship, and one has to wonder if David Wagner is next to get the boot. This defeat is the fourth in five matches for Norwich, with the other being a draw. Stretching further back, Norwich have lost six of their last eight games, one of which was a 6-2 humiliation against Plymouth. Norwich have the joint-worst defensive record in the division, conceding 27 goals alongside Huddersfield. This is even worse than the hapless bottom three. Norwich's only saving grace has been their goals scored, with 25 still being the second highest in the division (Leicester and Ipswich sharing joint-first), but this counts for nothing when matches are regularly being lost. Norwich fall to 17th in the table and it seems inevitable that Wagner will be removed from his post if this continues for much longer. 

Watford and Millwall shared the points with a 2-2 draw at Vicarage Road. The game had a nice symmetry with two early goals for each side in the 7th and 12th minute followed by two late goals for each side in the 85th and 92nd minute. Millwall remain without a manager and also without a win in four games, picking up three points from the last twelve available. They are in 18th place and remain eight points clear of Rotherham in 22nd, which might be why the board have not rushed into making an appointment. None of the bottom three will be giving them cause for concern, if staying in the division is the objective, and the inconsistency of the rest of the division means Millwall are still only six points away from the playoff positions, so a good run of form under a new boss could easily ignite a playoff push. Watford would have wanted to win this one to record a third victory on the bounce, but have to settle for a point which extends their unbeaten streak to four games. They reside in 16th place.

Sunday's match saw two of the worst teams in the division go head-to-head. Sheffield Wednesday, who were yet to win a match, faced Rotherham, who have nearly played a full season's worth of away matches without winning. Smart money would have been on a draw, but alas, Rotherham once again failed to show up on the road and gifted Wednesday their first win of the season - a comfortable 2-0 win. These were also the first two goals the Owls had scored in six matches. Rotherham's lack of fight against the division's worst team - in turmoil on and off the pitch - was shocking to see. The Owls new boss Danny Rohl will be delighted with his team's performance, regardless, and grateful for his first three points, having lost his first two matches in charge. Bucko got on as a sub on 73 minutes, whilst Rotherham new boy Ayala did not get on at all. Wednesday remain at the foot of the table, but three points moves them to within two points of QPR in 23rd, although they are still eight points adrift of Huddersfield in 21st. Rotherham remain in 22nd on 9 points, but do have a game in hand owing to the postponed match against Ipswich last week. Should they take three points from their postponed fixture they would be within two points of Huddersfield, although their absolute inability to win away from home will make it extremely difficult for them to avoid dropping back into League 1.  Whether this result marks a turnaround for Wednesday remains to be seen, as victory against a Rotherham side who turn to dust away from home does not necessarily prove much. That aside, there are some major problems beyond the pitch which may derail Wednesday's season regardless of the good work Danny Rohl and his team may achieve. Speaking of which...

Special mention has to go to Wednesday's off-the-field drama, as chairman Dejphon Chansiri quickly squashed the positivity of a first league win by declaring on the Tuesday that the fans would have to foot a £2m bill to HMRC or risk the club being sanctioned. He belittled the same fans he was asking money from, which seems counterproductive. How he was able to afford to sack one management team and hire another, yet remains unable to pay an HMRC bill, is as of yet unexplained. One can only imagine what the new management team at the club makes of this - but then, they would surely have known about the turmoil at the club, punctuated by a increasingly impenetrable divide between the owner and the supporters, before taking their roles. For now it seems the brief ray of light from Sunday's result has once again been snuffed out by the ever-present black clouds circling around Hillsborough, as the club stares down the barrel of an unpaid HMRC bill, missed wages, and the host of consequences that would likely follow from these failures. 

The weekend's final match took place on Monday as Coventry's downward spiral continued, as they were defeated 2-0 at home by West Brom. It's a third defeat in a row for a Coventry team who have only won three matches all season. Adding to Coventry's concern will be the fact they've scored no goals in these three defeats, and have actually only scored twice in five matches. The Sky Blues drop to 20th in the table as a result. No such problems for WBA, though, who recorded their third win in five matches and who have overall gained ten points from the last fifteen available. The Baggies also boast the second best defensive record in the division, with their fourteen goals conceded second only to Leicester. The overall goal difference is also joint-fourth best in the division, alongside Sunderland with +8. So yeah, things are going well for WBA right now and they occupy 5th spot in the division. 

I don’t know where you find the time to do the research but I’m really glad you do. This weeks edition is especially excellent.

[chaddyrovers]

6 hours ago, neophox said:

QPR taking a huge risk on Cifuentes....bigger risk than Tomasson was by miles....

 

Yes huge gamble by them. Surprised move by them as everyone thought Warnock had the job in the bag

2 hours ago, NeilInBristol said:

That's appalling. Blimey. football owners should not be allowed to do this 

Sheff Wed owner has deffo lost the plot again. 

[SIMON GARNERS 194]

2 hours ago, wilsdenrover said:

I’m not sure he’s going to be inundated with donations…

https://www.owlstalk.co.uk/forums/topic/325991-oh-no-chansiri-asks-fans-to-pay-to-save-club/

Disgraceful individual...has his name plastered all over Hillsborough too.'Fit and Proper' Conman.

Then again it does appear he engages with the fans unlike our gobbins!

Edited October 31, 2023 by SIMON GARNERS 194

[wilsdenrover]

1 hour ago, Tyrone Shoelaces said:

I don’t know where you find the time to do the research but I’m really glad you do. This weeks edition is especially excellent.

I hope he’s not using AI 😁

[lraC]

16 minutes ago, SIMON GARNERS 194 said:

Disgraceful individual...has his name plastered all over Hillsborough too.'Fit and Proper' Conman.

Then again it does appear he engages with the fans unlike our gobbins!

If the vultures are circling, he needs to look elsewhere for funds, not ask the fans ( some of whom he has been abusing) to bail him out.

A cretin on the highest order.

https://footballleagueworld.co.uk/sheffield-wednesday-owner-dejphon-chansiri-net-worth-business-interests-owls-plans-and-more/

[wilsdenrover]

1 minute ago, lraC said:

If the vultures are circling, he needs to look elsewhere for funds, not ask the fans ( some of whom he has been abusing) to bail him out.

A cretin on the highest order.

https://footballleagueworld.co.uk/sheffield-wednesday-owner-dejphon-chansiri-net-worth-business-interests-owls-plans-and-more/

Another one whose money seems to have come from being in the family business.

[DE.]

1 hour ago, Tyrone Shoelaces said:

I don’t know where you find the time to do the research but I’m really glad you do. This weeks edition is especially excellent.

Thanks again, to be honest it's mainly just summarising/analysing the data and stats from the BBC pages for the league table, the games themselves and every so often digging back through the actual team pages to see results through the last month or two. Nothing too strenuous - every so often I need to head outside of the BBC to wikipedia or google, but the majority is all on the BBC somewhere. 

4 minutes ago, wilsdenrover said:

I hope he’s not using AI 😁

Sadly no, but in theory it would be possible to train an AI to do something like this. You'd just need to feed the results in based on specific team names (that match with the names given on the BBC web pages) and then set some rules for how to summarise the data. For example, check and confirm recent form, goals scored in the last five matches, goal difference, and so on. It would probably be a little less spontaneous and personal, but you could definitely build something like that. 

[Upside Down]

7 hours ago, Sweaty Gussets said:

Where would historic football clubs be without the 'fit and proper' owners test?

Similar characters to that chap could be our next owner. 

Still a step up from.what we have now.