Toothless. Burnley at Home.

[Hoboh]

Frustrating thing is that for half an hour first half we were very good. Great space between back four and midfield that had depth, Jutkie... was buzzing up front, hit the bar, dominated the game. Almost perfect. Then we just seem to stop doing it.

Feck knows why.

But it's like this nearly every week - the belief and the discipline palpably dissipate. Our Kid, who went in my seat said "What do they do at half time? Pass a fecking bong around?"

Absolutely. It is very worrying that confidence is so fragile. Along with concentration and everything else. I think it reflects in a total lack of leadership on the pitch. And it is something that should have been addressed but hasn't, which is more frustrating.

Would that be a dig at Freedman by any chance

[jonnycooper]

Somebody has to be responsible for it!

[jaffka]

Nothing new in using the programme to gain an edge. Ian Wright did it quite famously a few years ago.

What it does show is a manager, constantly thinking, working and planning to get the upper hand on the opposition up to the kick off. His team currently sit second in the league.

Does our guy do this? Sounds like he is preoccupied on deciding the team for a match three weeks in advance.

[Dave Sutton's barnet]

I still don't buy that. Not the programme, the deciding three weeks in advance. Why would he choose (during a transfer window!) to only make one change to the XI for two hard away games in five days (QPR/Ipswich), then only two changes (one a player he didn't have three weeks before!) between two homes games in four days?

He's done very many things wrong; the teams-in-advance theory is far from the biggest stick with which to beat him. As Dr Hotdog notes, we seem to be too inflexible or non-reactive (let alone proactive) during a game, without us guessing what goes on before.

[jaffka]

Makes no sense to me but Iles is the source.

As such it is something that he can be beaten with, amongst the other stuff.

[Prufrock]

I thought it was six weeks anyway?

If you're going to make up stuff he's supposed to have said you could at least be consistent

[jaffka]

I thought it was six weeks anyway?

If you're going to make up stuff he's supposed to have said you could at least be consistent

I will have six weeks, it sounds even worse.

Thanks for that

[Dave Sutton's barnet]

Wonder if he planned to have Goran Popov at left-back last night, when he picked his team the week before Christmas?

[Hoboh]

I wonder if he's thought about a new desk for his new office at his new club at the start of the year.

Well we can but hope!

[LeverEnd]

As far as the goal goes it did look close to Boggers but someone should have picked up the crosser who ran unopposed into the box as Ream and someone marked 2 on the wing. Spearing was following him in without a great sense of urgency. Baptiste let his man go at the back post as well.
With our attack it would have flashed harmlessly accross of course, with no-one even near the back post.

[bwfcdan94]

Well that's just great masters of our own downfall as always http://www1.skysports.com/football/news ... -at-bolton

Whoever wrote that is clearly a bit dim, but I doubt it made any difference. They didn't look angry or inspired to me, actually quite mediocre, but that's all it takes to beat us.

Oi, teacher don't call me dim, it dosent inspire confidence.

[jaffka]

the goal clip doesn't show it but apparently arfield who put the cross in ran around 60m to get into that position from which the goal came

[truewhite15]

As far as the goal goes it did look close to Boggers but someone should have picked up the crosser who ran unopposed into the box as Ream and someone marked 2 on the wing. Spearing was following him in without a great sense of urgency. Baptiste let his man go at the back post as well.
With our attack it would have flashed harmlessly accross of course, with no-one even near the back post.

Agree with this with regard to their goal. Not 5 minutes earlier, a similar move was intercepted by Spearing in the position Arfield got the final cross in from.

Catalogue of errors - Chungy could have cut out the original pass, Spearing should have stopped the final cross, Bogdan should have got to it, Baptiste should have been closer to his marker.

Written in the stars though, was that if we didn't take the first half chances when we were on top, Burnley were gonna punish us. Knew exactly what was gonna happen at half time.