trousers

I guess it's human nature to take form and 'momentum' into account when expressing a gut feel opinion. Around a month ago, when we were still on the crest of a wave and before the 3 'unexpected' defeats, I countenanced the possibility that we might catch Leicester, whilst still feeling it was more unlikely than likely. I don't think it was unreasonable or bizarre to have kept that possibility on the table at that point in time. To me, it wasn't unreasonable a month ago to believe that we could/should beat Bristol City, Hull and Millwall. Had we done so then we'd now be sitting in second place 2 points behind Leicester and 4 points ahead of Leeds and Ipswich. (Yes, I know.... "If this"..."if that"... blah blah blah... but taking those 3 games in isolation, I'd like to think we could agree that expecting to win them wasn't such a bonkers notion a month ago...?)

That was 4 defeats and 12 lost points #mathsinnit (I don't recall anyone thinking we could still go on to win the league after the woeful September games)

3 defeats (and 9 lost points) ago, to be precise.

One would hope that RM will pick him on merit rather than just to stick two fingers up at the keyboard warriors

It's ok to offend others when you're defending the offended though... #goingaroundincircles

173 #whataboutnathanjonescounter

Surprised that we haven't "kept the opposition guessing" for another 12 hours.... And the club announcing this on social media at bang on 10:30pm makes a bit of a mockery of the 'printed press' embargo...

Nor was he suggesting that there are people who are against playing out from the back in any circumstance, which is your interpretation of what he was saying....

Name someone who is against playing out from the back as an optional tactic?

Is this one of those @hypochondriac type posts where you've got some inside info but put it across as a question or suggestion in order to avoid making an overt 'ITK' post...?

Agree that he's never going to be overtly critical of individual players, but I'd expect him to at least acknowledge the issues we clearly have in the depth and quality of our strikeforce overall, which was clearly exposed in Wednesday's game, rather than just saying that everything is rosey. That said, I acknowledge that he's got to focus on the positives, of which there are many, to galvanise the players for the run-in, so, yep, it's a difficult balance to strike as a manager I accept.

Why not "keep them guessing" until 1 hour before the game rather than 10:30pm the night before in that case....? #logic (Sorry to bang on about this but I'm just highlighting an inconsistency in the questioning at today's press conference. Just chewing the cud on an internet football forum. That's all....)

Indeed... and that's exactly my point, why not ask the obvious question given there's no reason not to...? It's not me generating conspiracy theories, I'm simply highlighting that it doesn't make sense not to ask about the latest fitness news on one of our key players. Adam has asked at all previous press conferences, why not this one? No conspiracy, just an observation about which I'm a bit curious.

I don't get this embargo. What's the point of it when all media outlets are pumping out stories online 24/7 these days? Where's the logic in fans having to wait an arbitrary 12 hours to find out whether one of theirs team's key players is able to play in tomorrow's game or not? I get there might be an argument for keeping the opposition 'in the dark' as long as possible but, surely, if that was the case then why not keep it quiet until 1 hour before the game, not at some meaningless/archaic deadline later the same day...? Usually when players are back in contention it gets sung from the roof tops in the live press conferences... The fact that Adam Blackmore didn't ask the obvious question about Downes this morning smacks of him being told what he can and can't ask about... (Yeah, conspiracy territory I know... But why wouldn't Adam ask this obvious question otherwise..?)

I suspect this morning's press conference is going to wind up some people. All about how "brave" we were versus Liverpool but not a single question or reflection on how awful our decision making was up front. Felt a bit head-in-sand territory to me. Conspiracy theory alert but I'm wondering if Adam Blackmore is a tad wary about asking 'home truths' type questions these days after his mini 'spat' with Russell earlier in the season...? Roy Keane and Ian Wright called it out on Wednesday night, saying that the manager should be furious about how wasteful we were in the final third, but I'm not seeing any sign of that viewpoint being addressed in the press conference(s)... Anyway, positivity is never a bad thing so maybe I'm wide of the mark in highlighting these observations...?

RM: "KWP won't be out for long but this game is too soon. Hoping he'll be ok for the next two" Did anyone hear him say anything about Downes? (Adam Blackmore mentioned Downes but I don't think he asked a direct question about his fitness?)

Does that plan involve buying a non-injury-prone/clinical/prolific striker, just for a change...?

Yep, and for the rest of the season... No more tinkering with team selections... Start with the best players in each and every game.

I'm sure there's a punchline there somewhere but can't put my finger on it...

Make up your mind(s) Charlie....!

Could be urban myth territory but don't we usually have a poor track record in games follwoing an international break....? (It doesn't follow that history is certain to repeat itself, of course....)

I'm not sure but I can't ever remember a game being rescheduled for a date before the original game was due to take place.... I think the earliest possible reschedule date is Tues 23rd April (11 days before the end of the season....)

The average age of each team was pretty similar... (That said, probably a wider age gap in the second half...?)

Yep, probably our best starting 11 on paper. I guess we'll play Stephens and Charles in place of KWP and Downes if they're not passed fit to play though