v Stoke City (a) - 12/3/2025, k/o 20.00

[alcd]

We're seeing now what we expected at the start of the season. Next season is a horror show in prospect. Ismael and his side kick Whitehead clearly haven't a clue. But then their track record suggested nothing else. 

[arbitro]

Seeing Dolan and Cantwell both in the starting line-up put me on the back foot before a ball had been kicked. I knew we would be giving a lot of cheap possession over to Stoke with those two and so it proved. When we needed pit ponies we got show ponies. In fact for most of the first half I really didn't know where they were supposed to be playing as gaping holes appeared for Stoke to attack. And that really applied to most of the team. We looked unbalanced and lop sided and Stoke exploited this. For me the only player to come out of this debacle with any semblance of credit was Adam Forshaw.

The disjointed look and shape (or lack of) is on the new manager. He did an interview this week bigging Dennis up and then didn't start him. When he came on he was awful too.

The first half probably eclipsed the Derby first half and despite some second half pressure I just couldn't see us scoring. In fact I felt Stoke would get a second rather than us equalise. There was no creativity whatsoever and we resorted to aimless balls to nobody in particularly which were easily dealt with by Stoke. 

So many poor performers for Rovers tonight and on the drive home I questioned so many things and the answer to each one was usually the same. 

Whilst we are in the grip of these wretched Indians and their henchmen over here we are destined for season upon season of frustration and stagnation.

[bluebruce]

2 hours ago, martonrover said:

Someone who the players could have related to would’ve been a start!

Shouldve been Allardyce or Warnock til the end of the season.
 

Even Duff would’ve united the fan base.

Ismael felt all wrong and now looks all wrong.

Venkys and their hired goons out!

 

I wouldn't have felt united by Duff at all.

[DavidMailsTightPerm]

Another typical Championship match - decided by fine margins. What was horrifying is that Stoke are awful - and yet our disorganised tactics gave them so much space. Also, especially in the first half there was a lack of drive - under Eustace players would bust a gut to get back into shape - that edge has gone. Second half was marginally better - but we created very little.

[yankfan]

3 hours ago, martonrover said:

Someone who the players could have related to would’ve been a start!

Shouldve been Allardyce or Warnock til the end of the season.
 

Even Duff would’ve united the fan base.

Ismael felt all wrong and now looks all wrong.

Venkys and their hired goons out!

 

A care taker to end of the season would have been best. The players had a bond with Eustace, from avoiding relegation to many of them having fractured relationships with JDT. Not saying Eustace is better than others, but he was this teams leader. To leave like he did, when he did it was always going to be his team someone else took over. A new manager needs time to put his stamp on a team, bring in players to his style, etc. obviously that wasn’t going to happen so Big Sam or Warnock would have been perfect to see the season out. 

[yankfan]

We’re also seeing the farce of the “significant signings” in January. Dennis has been a waste, Woodrow, Foreshaw were cast offs from teams fighting relegation, Sanderson only here to play under the departed manager and Kargbo out injured. Might as well go back to boasting about the fancy coach 

[DackDackGoose]

I'm late to the party here, but going 3 at the back was madness right? changing formation this late in the season when it wasn't particularly broken before. Does feel like the seasons gone now and momentum lost. 

Still I believe in giving Ismael a go next season, just feels the best chance we've had in a long while as squad will be much weakened.

[SIMON GARNERS 194]

The Venkys Wrecking Ball has come out to play again.

New Manager bounce anyone?

[Mattyblue]

6th in the table with a dozen games to go and they pick this mon.

Not a lot else to be said.

[NeilInBristol]

8 hours ago, Rover down South said:

Can’t really add anything that hasn’t been said, but the future looks bleak. Two managers in Eustace & Lowe at least produced some results with these players.

They look so un-interested under Ismael and the passing is absolutely woeful.

Every time the camera panned to Ismael it looked like the tv had paused. Would have been encouraging to see some kind of fight from him. 

Poor appointment confirmed for me. 

This is so true.

The guy was just standing or sitting. 

He's not very encouraging! 

[Ossydave]

Another horror show against another awful team.

You do have to wonder just how embarrassing it may get playing a good team under this fella, he's had a very favourable set of fixtures and completely fucked it up beyond belief.

These aren't just bad performances, it's no exaggeration to compare them to Keans reign.

Thank FUCK I am working on Saturday and won't have to endure us rolling over again. These players aren't playing for the manager 1 bit, but they should at least give it a go for the poor bastards who turn up to watch.

Christ, a full season of this awaits, possibly worse as we lose anyone remotely decent in summer as well.

[Tricky]

4 hours ago, DackDackGoose said:

I'm late to the party here, but going 3 at the back was madness right?

Thought it looked pretty good v Derby....

Can't believe we've given him a job FFS 

[joey_big_nose]

4 hours ago, DackDackGoose said:

I'm late to the party here, but going 3 at the back was madness right? changing formation this late in the season when it wasn't particularly broken before. Does feel like the seasons gone now and momentum lost. 

Still I believe in giving Ismael a go next season, just feels the best chance we've had in a long while as squad will be much weakened.

I dont think theres anything wrong per se with any formation as long as you have a clear system everyone is signed up to and you know collectively how you are going to defend and create chances. But we didnt seem to know our plan to do either. 

[Gamst]

8 hours ago, alcd said:

We're seeing now what we expected at the start of the season. Next season is a horror show in prospect. Ismael and his side kick Whitehead clearly haven't a clue. But then their track record suggested nothing else. 

He’s someone who accepted the Venkys plan to reduce costs, ‘develop youth’ and battle bravely against relegation. No decent manager would accept such constraints. He was awarded a long contract for being complicit. 

[Penwortham Blue]

Four wins in sixteen, two of which we have David Lowe to thank for ! As Spring approaches, the seasonal death spiral is once again in full bloom.

[martonrover]

14 minutes ago, Penwortham Blue said:

Four wins in sixteen, two of which we have David Lowe to thank for ! As Spring approaches, the seasonal death spiral is once again in full bloom.

Yes, although Mowbray outstayed his welcome, (and could be bloody annoying), I think we owe him an apology for the term, "Mowbray death spiral".

I think  the term "Blackburn Rovers death spiral" should now be included in diaries and calendars on January 1st.

[HowzBRFC]

9 hours ago, RevidgeBlue said:

As the Chief critic of Eustace's decision to up sticks and leave for Derby, what do you make of our Club's decision not to offer him an extension on his deal which ran out at the end of next season, but to give the current bloke a 3 and a half year deal?

Personally I doubt Eustace really wanted to extend. He was just trying to appease the fans by saying that. He knew there were wouldn't be any guarantee of funds as he has just been through two transfer windows.

Having said that the club should have proactively been offering him an extension and we need to understand why we werent at least offering... on realistic terms. 

The best chance of contract extensions for players, playoffs or champ stability I feel was under Eustace. A new deal and some funds would turn out to be cheaper in the long run than the potential disaster that is heading our way. Bad decisions will eventually catch up us. 

It was going to be hard for any manager to come in get more out of that squad than Eustace. Rovers have put terrible midweek performances in under Eustace, JDT, Mowbray too but last night morale looked very low and concerning 3 games into a new managers reign. 

[Old Codger]

14 hours ago, OsloRover said:

Tonight is the time for Ismael to show what he's made of. Galvanise the players and get a win against a nervous Stoke side, or another game where we are outfought and out-willed all over the pitch. Make or break time.

Yup. Break time, as we suspected. Whatever hope we had that VI might galvanise these players into remembering what it means to play as a team together, seems to have been lost somewhere in translation, either at Brockhall, or in the dressing room. Last night was as plodding and incoherent a game plan as I've witnessed in many a year - just no discernable plan to break a way through what was a largely dreadful set of opponents huffing and puffing their own miserable way to victory at any cost.

What a crock.

What a waste.

Here's a blast from the past, to take your mind off things, as we abandon hope of any crescendo at the end of this miserable season.

 

 

[Gav]

1 hour ago, Mattyblue said:

6th in the table with a dozen games to go and they pick this mon.

Not a lot else to be said.

I understand the sentiment Matty, but the bottom line here is, sign players to contracts, give the manager the budget he was promised, extend his contract for the superb job he's done and lets have a crack at the playoffs.

But oh no, running Blackburn Rovers like a real football club, why on earth would we do that........

VENKYS OUT - NOTHING ELSE MATTERS.

[TimmyJimmy]

The formula for beating us is widely known. High energy full on pressing coupled with bulldozing Orks who collapse at the first opportunity looking for set pieces.

Why? Because our players think to slowly and you can't coach that away.

We don't have the quality of player full stop. Who's that down to (?) Correct!

We are no longer Blackburn Rovers, they died long ago when Big Sam got fired and he who shall not be named took over. We are Blackburn Venkys and I'm not supporting them anymore.

When they've gone and we've got our Rovers back then I'm there but until then no. Enough has to be enough.

[...]

7 minutes ago, TimmyJimmy said:

The formula for beating us is widely known. High energy full on pressing coupled with bulldozing Orks who collapse at the first opportunity looking for set pieces.

Why? Because our players think to slowly and you can't coach that away.

We don't have the quality of player full stop. Who's that down to (?) Correct!

We are no longer Blackburn Rovers, they died long ago when Big Sam got fired and he who shall not be named took over. We are Blackburn Venkys and I'm not supporting them anymore.

When they've gone and we've got our Rovers back then I'm there but until then no. Enough has to be enough.

I think the most frustrating thing is seeing these teams that are in the league positionally worse off than ourselves pinging the ball about moving forward running at our back four one touch balls and we get the opportunity to break and it breaks down slows down before the half way line. Where has all that surging football gone from the start of the season splitting passes, and drive? 

Was honestly deflated lastnight and still am at work today. 🙄 

 

[joey_big_nose]

10 minutes ago, Gav said:

I understand the sentiment Matty, but the bottom line here is, sign players to contracts, give the manager the budget he was promised, extend his contract for the superb job he's done and lets have a crack at the playoffs.

But oh no, running Blackburn Rovers like a real football club, why on earth would we do that........

VENKYS OUT - NOTHING ELSE MATTERS.

Yeah Im not sure I really blame Ismael... Hes come into a really strange situation with no pre-season or any of his own players. Potentially it looks like maybe he is confusing them more, but I don't really know the template for a manager to come in and completely mimic what went before. Ultimately the manager will try and do things their own way, and that might work quickly or more likely not.

The avoidable issue here is 100% the owners not being able to put basic long term planning in place. Its not really about huge investment money,  its just the ability to be clear on what the plan is over the next couple of seasons. Not being able to do that has lost us both JDT and Eustace.

A decent owner with much less money than Venkys would be better if they just had an ability to be engaged with the club and create a plan.

[Mattyblue]

31 minutes ago, Gav said:

I understand the sentiment Matty, but the bottom line here is, sign players to contracts, give the manager the budget he was promised, extend his contract for the superb job he's done and lets have a crack at the playoffs.

But oh no, running Blackburn Rovers like a real football club, why on earth would we do that........

VENKYS OUT - NOTHING ELSE MATTERS.

That’s my point.

No other football club in that scenario would have appointed this guy. Just think of the interest for such a gig, just think of the incentives an ambitious club could have put under the nose of a potential quality manager.

Not a serious football club and this is the latest manifestation of it.

[jim mk2]

7 minutes ago, joey_big_nose said:

Yeah Im not sure I really blame Ismael... Hes come into a really strange situation with no pre-season or any of his own players. Potentially it looks like maybe he is confusing them more, but I don't really know the template for a manager to come in and completely mimic what went before. Ultimately the manager will try and do things their own way, and that might work quickly or more likely not.

The avoidable issue here is 100% the owners not being able to put basic long term planning in place. Its not really about huge investment money,  its just the ability to be clear on what the plan is over the next couple of seasons. Not being able to do that has lost us both JDT and Eustace.

A decent owner with much less money than Venkys would be better if they just had an ability to be engaged with the club and create a plan.

The owners and Waggott and Co are the ultimate cause of our downfall (as we all know) but Ismael is the manager of the team and is responsible for results and he has to take the blame for the lamentable performances since he came in.

With Rovers in the top 6 when he arrived his job was to coax the team along to the end of the season, not indulge in wholesale disruption to tactics and formations to try to make the team play his way. He's actually achieved the seemingly impossible and made the team worse. 

What he's done is poor management

 

. 

 

[booth]

10 minutes ago, joey_big_nose said:

Yeah Im not sure I really blame Ismael... Hes come into a really strange situation with no pre-season or any of his own players. Potentially it looks like maybe he is confusing them more, but I don't really know the template for a manager to come in and completely mimic what went before. Ultimately the manager will try and do things their own way, and that might work quickly or more likely not.

The avoidable issue here is 100% the owners not being able to put basic long term planning in place. Its not really about huge investment money,  its just the ability to be clear on what the plan is over the next couple of seasons. Not being able to do that has lost us both JDT and Eustace.

A decent owner with much less money than Venkys would be better if they just had an ability to be engaged with the club and create a plan.

He's not the manager I'd have picked but we clearly dropped in quality in December due to injuries. We weren't able to put out the same team that got us into the play off positions. There was an ideal opportunity to try and rectify this in January but Maggott and Spunkhail took so long to bring in a bunch of relative unknowns. We've now lost Danny Batth and Carter so far has been a big downgrade. Hyam seems to lose his head without a reliable CB beside him. Travis hasn't been the same since he came back and Tronstad and Ohashi are still getting back up to speed.

Changing the manager at this stage hasn't helped. But let's not ignore the fact that Eustace wasn't doing much better with this Waggott/Suhail created shitstorm. And he'd have struggled without that pairing of Batth and Hyam.