Dusic

The club already addressed this with Parsons confirming they feel he is doing a good job and has driven a lot of promising change, so zero chance we would be actively looking to make a change regardless of what happens next Sunday. Hopefully Brighton are looking elsewhere as, if we don't go up, the last thing we need is another change.

Tactically superior to the supposed king of tactics over these two legs despite no Adams or Stewart for the majority. Pragmatic subtle changes e.g use of Stephens tonight and good subs.

Good to see @franniesTache get involved in the stuff before the game. Get that gear in the wash asap bro.

Goats Manning and Stephens are good at escaping from a press.

He might though. Especially with a euros on the horizon.

If Adams is out and Stewart (as expected) not fit enough to start then IMO its a no brainer to go back to the 4-3-3 that beat WBA twice and start Fraser and Brooks either side of Arma, with Edozie, Kamaldeen, Stewart (and maybe Che) as sub options.

I think Downes potentially more attainable than THB, especially as he has a very strong link to RM, but agree its pretty unlikely - and I think both City and WH will want to sell rather than another loan anyway. Fraser we could probably sign if we don't go up, but I wouldn't be signing him if we did get promotion.

From the horses mouth, if we go up he is signing permanently and is more than happy to. Been a great signing, likely driven by Jason Wilcox.

Funnily enough, @Fitzhugh Fella posted a very similar thought on Twitter at about the same time earlier today - two minds and all that. I'm sure Blackmore will have a chance to ask about that once the season is over.

Lallana wants to go into coaching and his family home is still in the area so pretty sure he would be keen on moving back here. I think he would be a great asset and certainly someone we should be looking to bring back in some form of role. I know some are still bitter from when he left but at some stage you have to move on and his more recent comments suggest he probably realises he didnt go about it in the best way. Clearly a leader, has played and learned from some top coaches (Poortvliet, Poch, Klopp, Potter, De Zerbi etc) and knows how to transition from youth to mens football as well as what creates a good culture (they really valued his off the pitch impact at Brighton) If he wants to continue playing and is sensible about cash he might be worth a year with the thought that he would likely just be coming off the bench. His main influence would be as a senior player/assistant coach. If he is done with playing and wants to coach then its a no brainer to try and pair him with an experienced coach in one of the academy sides.

I think it was the games we lost either side of it that did that, specifically the 3 in 4 vs BC, Hull and Millwall after having got back in contention following the run of losses after the window shut. I get we could have won a couple more of the games in that run rather than having drawn them but thisnis the Championship and overall its clearly something to celebrate (as happened at the time) as is clearly very rare to achieve. That some will use it as a stick to beat the manager is quite telling.

Interesting listening to the Blackmore and Tessem pod in which AB says the start of the game on Sunday was up there with the best home atmospheres he has witnessed. It clearly had a big impact on WBA's fast start and they stayed with the team throughout. Can our fans create similar (following our away fans lead) on Friday and make being at home 2nd leg a big advantage? Or will there be moaning and exasperation as soon as we play the same way we have in every game this season and pass the ball inside our own area? On sky after the game Jobi McAnuff said its often easier being away 2nd leg as the home fans can get on the backs of their team whilst the away side has no pressure. Hopefully our fans can avoid that trap and make it a great night under the SMS lights.

Parsons sounds like a common sense guy in all the interviews I have heard so far. A very underrated trait in football leadership. Good to end the (IMO ridiculous) speculation that a manager who achieved 87 points in his first season, including a club record unbeaten run and who still may achieve promotion, could or should lose his job if potentially a couple of one off playoff games don't go his way.

No, he wasn't in the club video of the players arriving.

Will be an interesting selection. Could either play Mara or Sulemana with Arma in the 352 or add Brooks and Fraser in the 433 but would likely mean either Stephens at LB or THB at RB as am sure that all 3 CBs will be in the line up.