16 Sep 2024 23:19:49
I'm not tech savy enough to paste the photo here but if you either find it on social media or simply freeze frame the coverage of their second goal just before Barnes hits it you will see that:
We have 9 men in the picture - only Cunha and Johnstone out ouf frame.
We seem to be set, i.e. players are standing still not rushing to get into shape.
We have 5 across the edge of the box and Lemina and Hwang some 15 metres ahead of the ball - Doherty is battling/failing to stay with Barnes and Larson is looking lost behind Doherty.
Sadly this means that there is a gap bwetween our back 5 (why a back 5!) and the mid 2 large enough to drive the M1 motorway through and Barnes exploits this.
If Doyle was 5 yards further forward rather than sitting between Yerson and Dawson on the edge of our box marking no one/doing nothing and/or Lemina was 5 yards further back Barnes wouldn't even attempt to come inside and get a shot off - if he did he would run staight into Doyle/Lemina and as he is a clever player he wouldn't do that.
Doherty therefore possibly has assumed that Barnes will, as he should if we are set up correctly, try to go round/outside him get behind our defensive line and drive into our box to cross/cut back the ball with all of off our defenders turned and running back towards goal! This is something he can't allow so has he forced/allowed/encouraged/failed to stop Barnes to/from go/going inside into the traffic/Doyle/Lemina.
Except there is no one there and Barnes gets a free hit from 25 yards out and the rest is history.
Basically our defensive alignment is awful either because GON doesn't know what he is doing/ Doyle doesn't know what he is doing or the team is shattered and are sitting deep to take a rest.
None of this is acceptable!
We didn't play badly but missed chances and after 65 mins became far too passive/deep and paid the price
Are the players not fit enough/ does the system force them to run too much/ is our bench too weak/ is GON too conservative.
Clearly this is a new system and at the moment it isn't working but with what we have left not sure how else he sets up.
Thoughts on this perhaps in another post
A point maybe 3 thrown away. We can't afford to do this.
It may not be pretty but we must learn to close out games/stop giving away cheap goals.

1.) 17 Sep 2024
17 Sep 2024 07:20:31
Tfig, I agree wholeheartedly heartedly. I havnt seen the game as such as I went out sun night, (pre arranged, tickets bought) but did sadly catch a glimpse (pub tv ) of both their 2 goals. I stood there willing a wolves player to come forward and wondering why we were all on the 18yrd line. I'm not doom and gloom yet, arsenal away not many teams will get anything there. Chelsea, a crazy game in which we imploded, again points wise thyll take off many others.
Forest I think will turn out to be avoid away point and Newcastle, unbeaten, we drop to two accurate long range strikes.
It'll be an interesting line up and approach at Brighton tomorrow, obviously mindful of the league challenges to come but a resounding win may instil some much needed confidence back in the lads and maybe surprise results in the next 2/3 weeks. Cheer up chaps.

2.) 17 Sep 2024
17 Sep 2024 07:55:12
That should be a good away point at forest. Incidently, on a fast forwarded replay of the game and pausing at what seemed an exciting point, we didn't seem to be too direct in getting forward when we needed it. Maybe it's just my impression, maybe it was legs or personnel changes but we needed someone who could run at them.

3.) 17 Sep 2024
17 Sep 2024 09:40:03
TFIOG as well as accounts and economics do you have a sideline in Uefa Pro license courses! On a more serious note I haven't actually seen any highlights. I've had other things to deal with but it looks like we need to work on team defence at the very least.

4.) 17 Sep 2024
17 Sep 2024 10:16:31
Good post Futureisgold.
As you say, Harvey Barnes is an intelligent player and he knew if he got a shot on target there was only an ageing Sam Johnstone in goal and chances are he would be nowhere near it.

5.) 17 Sep 2024
17 Sep 2024 15:30:54
Sam Johnstone ageing, really?

We should have tried the same against the geriatric Nick Pope on Saturday.

6.) 17 Sep 2024
17 Sep 2024 16:10:20
Give E some slack, Wandering. Everyone is ageing. Even I'm older than when I started reading his nonsense.

7.) 17 Sep 2024
17 Sep 2024 16:10:33
Sorry, I meant Sunday

8.) 17 Sep 2024
17 Sep 2024 16:51:06
Thought we did try to beat geriatric Pope but he managed to keep out a header from Larsen and a volley from Cunha proving that a geriatric is better than our new keeper.
Our defenders were sitting deep as they have no confidence in SJ who almost cost us when trying to dribble out a couple of times.

9.) 17 Sep 2024
17 Sep 2024 18:47:38
To be fair, some of Johnstone kicking was borderline scary. The defence as a whole needs to be sorted as we just gave Newcastle too much space.

10.) 17 Sep 2024
17 Sep 2024 19:33:11
Old Wulf remember Peter Shilton in the play off semi vs Bolton?
A good keeper is worth how many points over a season?
I think we have a top championship keeper in SJ but like the Doc his best days are behind him.

11.) 17 Sep 2024
17 Sep 2024 20:10:22
To suggest a keeper is over the top at 31 is simply ridiculous, E.

12.) 17 Sep 2024
17 Sep 2024 21:16:07
Alisson Becker, Ederson, Nick Pope and Emiliano Martinez, All aged either the same as Jose Sa and Sam Johnstone or older. All considered to be in their prime, but no, our fans think 31 years old is 'past it'.

13.) 17 Sep 2024
17 Sep 2024 21:52:07
To pay £10 million for a keeper who Palace paid £6.5 million two years ago and he only played 29 games for them with worse stats than Jose Sa in his all time Premier League appearances is also ridiculous Old Wulf.
Not saying SJ is over the top but that he never reached the top.
He’s a good championship keeper.
We were linked with Ramsdale who is on a different level to SJ.

14.) 17 Sep 2024
17 Sep 2024 22:33:38
You said he was ageing, E. Irrespective of what you may think of him ability wise (he couldn't do anything about Newcastle's goals) he's hardly old for a keeper.

15.) 17 Sep 2024
17 Sep 2024 23:04:01
Aaron Ramsdale really isn't any better that Johnstone.

Personally, the keeper I would have preferred to sign was Bazunu in the summer of 2023 but alas, he is out till next February. If he is available next summer then we should snap him up.

16.) 18 Sep 2024
17 Sep 2024 23:33:16
Sorry Old Wulf and WS it was WBA who paid £6.5mill for SJ and he went to Palace on a free.
Didn’t realise that.
He couldn’t really do much about N’castle goals but I think he will cost us points and how is he worth £10mill now when he is older than when he went for 6.5 and then for free?