Freedman out!

[BL3]

As bad as we are, the proof in the pudding with Coyle is how his actually quite expensively assembled Wigan side is doing in this league right now... They've spent as much as QPR or at least in the same ballpark, haven't lost much (made £14m on McCarthy which is ridiculous) and they're still wank.

They're seven points ahead of us with a game in hand after only nine games. They haven't spent anywhere near as much as QPR, in fact their overall outlay is closer to ours than QPR's. Their net spend is way below ours.

[BL3]

Now then, if Freedman recognises at that point that our best chance of scoring a goal is to go 4-4-2 then why aren't we playing 4-4-2 from the start every game? Or, at the very least, why didn't we go 4-4-2 as was expected at substitution time and player Beckford and N'Gog together? Anyone?

I'm not sure there's much logic to anything he does. Playing one up front and expecting the strikers to feed on scraps every game is bound to have an adverse effect on their confidence. How has Beckford gone from scoring one goal every three games in a struggling Huddersfield side, to being unable to hit a cow's arse with a banjo for us? He didn't join us lacking confidence but Dougie has successfully managed to rotate every last ounce out of him.

[BL3]

I know I wasn't the only person left vexed beyond belief when he swapped Beckford and N'Gog one for one and kept the same formation. What was he hoping for here? Something other than more of the same? How?

Give the guy some credit. It's old school mentality of building from the back.

I don't think that's a school Dougie attended.

[Worthy4England]

Have you seen our strikers?! Why the feck anyone wants any of them playing is beyond me. Seems pretty obvious that our main (only?) goal threat is Eagles. Currently getting him as close to goal is our best option, and that really means playing him off a 1.

I don't think there's any problem with the shape, it's a mentality thing. Whether that's through confidence, or as others have suggested over-complication from the manager and a focus on a clean sheet first. I think there is a time and a place for that, but it's not at home to Yeovil.

That said, from the highlights and reports that I've seen, we created enough chances to have comfortably won the game.

I had a weird moment after playing yesterday when I came in from a post match faaag to find myself celebrating at a last-minute equaliser at home to Yeovil

^^. I could have honestly seen me starting with a 4-6-0, regardless of home or away. I'm sure out of 6 we'd be better able to find someone more likely to score than N'gog or Beckford (Beckford looks slightly more likely to me)

[mlloyd1965]

Prufock shoudn't rely on highlights and reports. Today we looked like a school boy team all running around clueless no shape.

[officer_dibble]

How long?

[ChrisC]

Prufock shoudn't rely on highlights and reports. Today we looked like a school boy team all running around clueless no shape.

I must have been at a different game. We was fine yesterday in most things until we got into the final third. We just lack the confidence and creativity to get shots on goal.

[CrazyHorse]

Has the useless feck gone yet?

[TANGODANCER]

Must confess I'm struggling to make sense from some of the things he says. All this talk of knowing how to fix it makes us sound like a tap leak instead of a football team.

[Tombwfc]

We did look untroubled in defence, and we created chances going forward.

Both of those things say more about the level of opposition than any improvements in us. We created chances against Tranmere and Shrewsbury too.

Ultimately, even against a League One team that has somehow found their way into the league (and what a fantastic achievement that is) we still conspired not to win the game. Of course we were the better team, half our players could probably buy Yeovil Town FC if they felt like it, but we still didn't win. Maybe you could write it off as unlucky had we not accumulated three points from eight games previously.

People have been falling over themselves for months to make excuses for how bad we are ("Pre-season doesn't count, it's all about fitness", "It's only a couple of games into the season, they're just short of fitness", "They're probably fit, but now it's been so long since we won they're short of confidence") but the fact is that Dougie Freedman's Bolton are a million miles from being as good as they need to be.

I have no animosity towards Dougie at all, but it hasn't worked out and there's no reason for him to be in a job anymore.

[Abdoulaye's Twin]

So when we're shitter in defence and not creating chances that is Dougie's fault. When we do better in defence and create chances that is nothing to do with Dougie and just a fluke? If he's to blame for everything shit then he has to be to blame for when it is (slightly) better.

I think it is just shit with Dougie AND the players to blame.

[BL3]

I think it is just shit with Dougie AND the players to blame.

But half of them are his players and he prefers to start the ones that aren't ahead of the others he signed.

[officer_dibble]

We were playing yeovil. If we had a banker 3 points it was yeovil at home. Its an absolute joke that we cannot win in 9 games and we fluked a last minute equaliser.

The clubs become a joke.

[Abdoulaye's Twin]

I think it is just shit with Dougie AND the players to blame.

But half of them are his players and he prefers to start the ones that aren't ahead of the others he signed.

So the players are in no way to blame whatsoever? Really?

[BL3]

I think it is just shit with Dougie AND the players to blame.

But half of them are his players and he prefers to start the ones that aren't ahead of the others he signed.

So the players are in no way to blame whatsoever? Really?

I'd say his judgement, not to mention his managerial ability, is more of an issue.

[Ianmooreslovechild]

Strikes me a lot of folk are looking purely at the result here. We had enough chances to bury them and gave them a fluke.I dont agree with the tactics being so negative for a home game but I do think they worked in this case,a 442 with Beckford and Ngog up top isnt going to produce any more goals than a 451,infact being as neither are much good at attacking a ball we may awell not be bothering to put croses in! Had we had a striker who believed they could score it would have been different. I imagine DF will have until xmas at least,I'm happy that we dont just ditch managers.

[Abdoulaye's Twin]

I think it is just shit with Dougie AND the players to blame.

But half of them are his players and he prefers to start the ones that aren't ahead of the others he signed.

So the players are in no way to blame whatsoever? Really?

I'd say his judgement, not to mention his managerial ability, is more of an issue.

Ah, so the players are to blame in addition to Dougie. I would say both are a big issue, you know, what with both making cock-ups, poor decisions and in some cases seemingly not giving a shit.

[Tombwfc]

So when we're shitter in defence and not creating chances that is Dougie's fault. When we do better in defence and create chances that is nothing to do with Dougie and just a fluke? If he's to blame for everything shit then he has to be to blame for when it is (slightly) better.

I think it is just shit with Dougie AND the players to blame.

I didn't say it was a fluke, but the level of opposition clearly has something to do with it. In my opinion there is a clear difference in quality between Yeovil and all the other teams we have played so far this season. It's not surprising that we looked better against them than we did against those other sides.

As I said, we also created hat-fulls of chances against Tranmere and Shrewsbury that we didn't create against the likes of Leeds or Brighton. Why was that? Our personnel, Dougie's tactics, or the level of the opposition?

[Abdoulaye's Twin]

So when we're shitter in defence and not creating chances that is Dougie's fault. When we do better in defence and create chances that is nothing to do with Dougie and just a fluke? If he's to blame for everything shit then he has to be to blame for when it is (slightly) better.

I think it is just shit with Dougie AND the players to blame.

I didn't say it was a fluke, but the level of opposition clearly has something to do with it. In my opinion there is a clear difference in quality between Yeovil and all the other teams we have played so far this season. It's not surprising that we looked better against them than we did against those other sides.

As I said, we also created hat-fulls of chances against Tranmere and Shrewsbury that we didn't create against the likes of Leeds or Brighton. Why was that? Our personnel, Dougie's tactics, or the level of the opposition?

All 3.

[Bruce Rioja]

Dougie shouldn't be held accountable for the fact that Bogdan lets a simple chance in and Beckford can't put past a keeper one on one.

And where exactly is anyone doing that? I'm blaming him for the formation. At home against Yeovil do you honestly say that it's acceptable for us to be worrying about them rather yhan vice versa? Really?