Tyking the Mickey? Home to Barnsley, Boxing Day, Dec 26th 3-0'clock

[GhostoftheBok]

He's far from perfect as a manager, but he is continually being let down by the players on the pitch

Both sides are letting the other down.

He's not giving them a platform to win games. They're not showing up often enough.

[Dave Sutton's barnet]

∆ press conference write-up here: https://www.theboltonnews.co.uk/sport/2 ... -reaction/
...and he's now definitely distancing himself from the players, some of whom he's naming.

• "Aaron [Collins] has to score, it’s a simple opportunity and it has to be a goal"
• "all the things we speak about [at half-time] and all the messages I hear in the changing room – they're just words and we don’t see enough actions."
• “We have two or three opportunities in the second half where we get free and speak about switching the play quickly and getting wing-backs in on goal. But, again, we try and force things through the centre."
• "...George (Thomason) then passes on his man to Will (Forrester) for no reason and he runs off the back of both of them and we concede a crazy goal."
• "I don’t think any of us are accepting responsibility (for the inconsistency). I try to as much as I can but that is my team and they represent me, we are in this together and we have to do this together."
• "...we have to perform better and stop with all the right noises and messages and go out there and transfer it on to the pitch. We have to accept as a group that we are nowhere near where we should be. That is my team, so I have to take responsibility for it.”

In those latter quotes you can see him being angry with his players then reining it back in with we're-in-it-together. But I fear it might be too late. Once things get like this it very rarely recovers. As I've said, the only thing that might heal this situation is a long unbroken winning run (including against rivals) and that doesn't seem likely at all. It's very sad.

[truewhite15]

If a player makes a bad decision, or has a bad game, then it's on the player himself.

If a group of players are continually making bad decisions or having bad games, then it is, undoubtedly, on the manager. When under pressure, this group makes poor choices on the pitch all the time. That's because the manager has created a way of playing that is too complex, and forces his team into decisions and thought-pathways they wouldn't ordinarily follow.

Our game needs to be simplified, massively. Two centre backs whose only job is defending. Two full backs who have the primary job to defend, but can create overlaps. Three midfielders who press, win the ball back and transfer it. Two wide attackers who support the striker and offer width. One striker whose job it is to stick the ball in the back of the net. Simplify the bloody game.

[Worthy4England]

Far too simple. We'd get found out!

[boltonboris]

Too many sub-standard players and the players who aren't sub-standard are not showing the right mentality. That second half was pathetic yesterday and there are a good few players I'd quite happily see shipped off in January, along with the manager.

Pulling out of tackles, misplaced passes, kicking the ball out of play for absolutely no reason, lack of pace, lack of aggression all over the pitch. It's a mess and big changes are due

[dave the minion]

Too many sub-standard players and the players who aren't sub-standard are not showing the right mentality. That second half was pathetic yesterday and there are a good few players I'd quite happily see shipped off in January, along with the manager.

Pulling out of tackles, misplaced passes, kicking the ball out of play for absolutely no reason, lack of pace, lack of aggression all over the pitch. It's a mess and big changes are due

Agree with a lot of this, but the bit I'm struggling with is that the majority of us (and others I presume) were more than happy with the last couple of windows, so it can only be that these too many sub-standard players have become sub-standard since joining us, rather than us signing sub standard players.

Maybe my increasing years is addling my memory, but I seem to recall people being pretty damn pleased with the recruitment of McAtee, Collins, Schon, Matete, Osei-Tutu, to add to the proven quality of your Sheehans, Santos-es (Santi?), Baxters, Johnstons, Charles , Thomassons, etc etc. You can therefore make a supposedly strong 1st XI from the names above that most of us would have been more than happy with.

Now, its easy to say they are sub-standard now they're not showing up, but at the time the recruitment department delivered what we all thought was a strong set of signings.

What's gone on since is the mystery....

[Abdoulaye's Twin]

To be fair, out of that lot I'd only heard of McAtee and Matete. We were told these were good signings and thought great. So far they've been less than great, but I think at least a large part of that is Evatt rather than the players (even if I'm not sure they are all great).

We'll never know for sure, but the biggest issue is Evatt can't get a song out of these players rather than the players all being shit bottle jobs.

[DJBlu]

Too many cherries for a cake made with plain flour.

[irie Cee Bee]

Its a poor workman who blames his tools for his failure.

[TANGODANCER]

Too many cherries for a cake made with plain flour.

That's a petty fair sum-up as to where we're at now, Jdblu, and it's also a true one between our expectation and the reality. Yesterday we had a rea chance to jump the fence for 45 mins, then blundered into it from there on. All that proves is for all the debate and wise-after the event words, the most basic rule of football (sport), "It's goals that count, Actions speak louder than words etc, etc" applies. We're the "Tiger Woods of the game in this league and only results matter. The rest is just so much hyperbole.

[TANGODANCER]

Its a poor workman who blames his tools for his failure.

Or in the words of the auld song;

"Pxxxy wrote a letter to his darling Molly O
Saying "if you don't receive it, write and let me know.
If I make mistakes in spelling, Molly dear," said he:
"Remember it's the pen that's bad, don't lay the blame on me"