Only took 30 mins for it to be at 2-1. Was 2-0 (J. Edmondson and O'Grady-Macken) until Clinton Mola decided to show why he doesn't get in the first team and scored an OG. Not that I know it was really his fault tbf, I'm not watching.

Well you're not helping your argument there...

Dan Pike going to Fylde on loan again seems pointless, at least from our perspective. 21 years old now and returning to a National League North side for the third time. Obviously isn't going to make any real development by going there, clearly doesn't have a future here. One of the only (relatively) experienced players in our U21s, many of who are stepping up to a level they're unfamiliar with and are struggling. I'd definitely be keeping him here until the summer to help our U21s try to stay up, then he can go where he likes. And before anyone bothers, no I don't care about the player's career as much as the wellbeing of Rovers. But it's just a few months, he can go there permanently in the summer if he likes. His contract is up...we have an extension option that I can't imagine we will be activating.

I'm more concerned by comments from a couple of players since Saturday that we feel invincible, the game being on Sky, and JDT being nominated for Manager of the Month, than I am by XG. Those are the usual omens of our imminent demise! The Sky curse has been less prevalent lately, but I certainly hope JDT doesn't actually win Manager of the Month...

(Nevermind, misread the post I was quoting)

Some bad news for you...if you're vulnerable to that, it's pretty much our strong point. Sounds like if we score first we will win. On the other hand you'll be happy to know we are pretty dreadful at getting back in the game if we concede first. This has improved slightly recently though.

Yep, creating chances is only as useful as the players on the end of those chances. Making loads of chances but having Chris Brown taking them isn't gonna help. I also see lots of games with less XG than actual goals, sometimes games where any watcher would say there should have been more. It's a load of rusty old bollocks as far as I'm concerned. No stat should be used in isolation without wider context and analysis as you say.

If a full season is still a small sample, that only goes to emphasise how it isn't that great a predictor. And recent matches suggest JDT already has improved our processes. We absolutely battered Leicester. I don't know what our XG was for that game, but there is a post on here showing a Leicester fan on their forum saying we should probably have been 6 or 7 up. I'm only worried for next season if JDT leaves or isn't backed. If you expect a defeat why were you puzzled by our positivity?

'Won't somebody please think of the XG?!?' No. I'm a fan of stats and data, but I think XG is the most useless one around (well, after possession). Imagine saying 'Yeh you're in 4th and we're 16th, but what about the XG?' I mean come on. If it was so important, we wouldn't be 4th would we? There was an argument to point to our low XG earlier in the season, when league position can be a bit deceptive, but for crying out loud it's March! We're where we are because we've been one of the better sides in the league over the course of 35 games. You're where you are because you haven't. We're positive because we're on the back of two excellent performances and a 5-game winning streak that includes a Premiership scalp. We're talking about the playoffs because we are in the playoff spots! You're in quite good form too, and you have home advantage. So if you do edge a win, or we do, or it's a draw, none of those outcomes should be a surprise to anyone. Either team winning by more than one would be a bit surprising, this should be a tight game that could go either way. My feathers aren't ruffled btw, I just thought it was rather silly to talk about XG given the greater context, or to be puzzled why we might be in a positive mindset. Sheff United fans were puzzled by our positivity too, then we beat them. With respect, they're a lot better than you are. But as I said, this will be a tough game, and you've probably as much chance at the 3 points as we do. All depends which Rovers and which Stoke turn up on the day, as usual in this league.

That last part shouldn't need saying. We shouldn't ever put a release clause in for anyone unless we are pretty much forced to

Yeh they've recalled a keeper from Southend because of it. Seems premature to me as they have two other keepers apparently. Believe you can't normally end a loan outside of a transfer window, presumably it's ok either because they're non league or some sort of special rule for emergency goalkeeping requirements. I can't imagine he's the best of the three backups if he was off on loan at Southend, and until Sarkic signed in Jan, another guy was their main keeper. The recalled guy is likely to just sit the bench at best for a few months and Southend will be short their keeper.

I don't think it necessarily was a mis-control. Possible, but I read it as setting up to take the shot. Left enough space for a slight run up to build some power, but then the defender had it blocked off and he very quickly decided to lay the pass to Pickering instead, even though he only saw him side on running behind him. Fine assist. Unlucky not to score later too, was a good effort. Overall it wasn't actually one of his better games, some of his passing wasn't on point, but still an assist and if not for the woodwork a goal.

He wasn't just picking out the worst (Murphy) of the dross we signed under Kean. He said 'and the list of expensive has-beens we've had' with Prem experience. Here's a few more off the top of my head: Etuhu Guthrie Rodwell (ok at times, but still, a very much faded force and a liability at times too) Wes Brown DJ Campbell Peter Whittingham (RIP, no disrespect intended, he was just past it at that point and it wasn't even the Championship) Elliott Ward Kilgallon I can't say they were all expensive as I don't know wages, but I'm sure none of those were worth what we paid them (possible exception of Rodwell if he was mostly pay-as-you-play, but he cost us in games at times and left for free shortly after). There's some others I'm perhaps being generous by not including, and doubtless some I've forgotten. Ignoring the list of Premiership youngsters with a few Prem games of experience who have flopped majorly too. There are some successes too, but you have to choose carefully when buying Prem players. Playing at or being on the books of a Prem club doesn't automatically make you good enough for this level, let alone the one above.

I suppose though, it might be considered that we didn't find enough targets that we wanted. You can't only come up with 5 players (not saying the list was that small, it won't have been) and expect to land them all. You need a decent-sized list as the law of averages in this game suggests you won't be able to sign most players you attempt to. Not with our budget anyway...with a much bigger budget we could probably say 'it's this guy for that position' and stand a good chance of getting him.

I would, but only because he's in charge of the one company I'd work for almost regardless of who is in charge. And I'd still resent it. If he was in charge of anywhere else, hard nope.

Agree. The only exception I'd say is if the backroom team feel somebody's workload has been too high and their body is feeling the stress in a 3-game week. We do have a fairly small squad and need to manage it carefully, avoiding too many injuries. We've been close to being stretched too far at times. I'm not advocating excessive caution with this, results come first, but the staff should have an idea of when players are on the verge of a problem. JRC in particular is one I worry about picking up an injury, as he's had such problems with them in the past. Apart from that, everybody should be in the team on form and form alone, not reputation. Of course, Dack, Diaz and other outfield players can have opportunities from the bench in the meantime. It's up to them to show they're playing better than the lads named in the starting 11. Until they do, there's no reason for them to return to a starting berth while the boys are doing well.

If you're ignoring hitting the woodwork, you might as well ignore the entire performance of both sides and look at one thing only: Blackburn Rovers 1 - 0 Sheffield United. Nice passing doesn't count any more than hitting the woodwork. Hitting the woodwork shows you came very very close to more goals, which is far more important than general play. Goals are what count.

I think more than a couple of overseas recruits would be good business. We haven't really been able to use Europe very well since Brexit, and apart from TK, simply failed to prior. Having Prem money and status would enable us to be able to secure players from a much wider pool, and it's a better value market.

Entirely possible. The short length of Phillips' deal does cause me concern. We pretty much need to begin negotiating a new one in the summer, already. I'm glad we tied it up but he or his agents obviously don't see him being here for very long unless there's a significant pay rise in it (if then). Sort of understandable, given how highly he is rated and predicted to go, but I'll be concerned about his future until we can tie him to a longer deal.

Finished 1-0. Valuable win for the U21s, as Leicester are bottom of the league and we were sliding a bit too close for comfort. This opens up an 8 point gap between the two sides, and I believe only the bottom side gets relegated. Only 7 games remaining, so you'd expect us to be able to avoid relegation now. I suspect this entered into the thinking when naming a strong side, although some players need fitness anyway of course. Surprised we didn't go on to win by more considering the experience and the early lead.

Hedges scored after 6 minutes. Leonard assist. Tried to find a stream somewhere but no joy. I'm sure Leicester used to let you watch u21 games if you had a free account on their site.

In a heartbeat. Won't happen though, not yet, and the article talks about more like 5 million (it's a figure this source seems to have plucked out his arse though, given the phrasing in the quote).

Yeh like Joey said, the transfer debacle will be basically nothing to do with him. The only conceivable reason to release him over the window would be if he was unable to find any strikers within budget that the management team wanted (that's find, the actual negotiations are the club's problem). I find it a bit concerning that turnover in recruitment staff seems so high in recent times. It's not a good way to build a coherent plan for the future. Whether it's our fault or not. I wasn't particularly impressed with Williams' CV, as I had doubts how well his experiences at international level would translate to club level. Good to read that we're already looking at the replacement. If it's all true, that's more proactive than we've been in the past. The report linked at the bottom of that though, about Spurs still sniffing around Phillips, isn't good to read.

Sorry about what happened to Bury, it was a sad thing. But on the other hand, welcome to the Rovers! Like any club you'll have your ups and downs with us for sure. 1) Unfortunately not! For most of the season it hasn't been, but recently things have massively improved. Not just the results but the entertainment value. We are playing better, and we're all hoping it's a sign things have finally clicked together under JDT. Considering how many points we've picked up playing poorly at times, we could really kick on now if that's the case. Fingers crossed! 2) Yes I'd say it's the best view. It isn't the best atmosphere though, that would be the Blackburn End. Usually, anyway...in recent years the atmosphere overall has really declined, although our away followings are always in magnificent voice. There are signs the home atmosphere is improving in line with the football though, it was nice to hear the BBE singing again on Saturday.

Wasn't that a 'Bennett at RB' phase too? Captain Fantastic never got dragged over the coals for his blunders though.