Saint Fan CaM

Rothwell should have scored there…as usual straight to keeper.

We’ll be losing this game. Just so predictable in every move forward even the Millwall thugs can stroll to a win.

Thats the Millwall massive.

Oh fook. AA on for Che and Aribo gives way to Rothwell. Positionally we’re all over the place.

Well Swansea warned us. Kept them in the Championship for how long? And they’ve not recovered since.

To be fair to Millwall, like below average sides before them, they’ve played the perfect game. When was the last time we scored two in the first half playing with a very low percentage of possession? Some of our play is sublime but ann unacceptable amount is slow, ineffective and frankly uninspiring.

Pass. Pass. Pass. Run a bit. Pass. Pass. Pass. Pass. Run a bit. Pass. Lose the ball. Rinse repeat.

Oh fuck. Millwall are a bunch of lucky lucky cnuts!

Excellent goal !!!! Che!!!

Smallbone did a good clearing up job there. Edozie lots of movement - no end product.

We still don’t have a decent striker - someone who knows where to be at the right time in the box.

Can see a red card coming and it could be anyone’s.

We’ve said it before but now it’s clearer than day. We’ve been found out big time.

Terrible foul on Edozie and no card. We get nothing from the FK.

Very soft freekick - gash from Baz

Brilliant from Stu

With AA dropped looks like RM had to shoehorn in Stephens at LB, hence Manning on the bench ( I can imagine that’s how Russ spun it to his mate). Thankfully I think Stephens can bluff his way through the game better than Manning. Concerned about Downes to a degree…you’d think he’d be on the bench for some minutes if he was close. Now a start against Liverpool looks unlikely.

For a player that is in the team because he’s great at Russball, he is positionally inept often getting caught out forward. Less so nowadays, but early in the season he often got caught wandering around trying to be the lauded inverted FB or whatever it was called (he was shit at that too). Putting all this together he unbalances the defence in my opinion and as such is a liability. At best, you could argue he’s just not suited to the system RM is now expecting of the team - Russball has moved on since Swansea…Manning hasn’t.

Maybe, but I was not advocating that he replaced a DM (or CM), but put him in front the CB’s to provide extra defensive cover across the width of the pitch wherever he was needed.

Difficult to disagree with this, although there is an interim position in that you bring in the loan players in the expectation that the run in will need extra decent players waiting to go. Problem is how to manage (a) getting players match fit and up to speed with the system and (b) actually being able to attract the right level of player in the first place, knowing that they’ll be bench warming until they’re needed. Plus there’s the decent academy players not getting a look in. Personally I don’t have a problem with that scenario - our established first team should have first nod if they’re performing well, which as you say, they were in early January.

You’ve mixed DM and CM up there…of course Stephens is not a CM, but he’s as capable of performing at DM as he is at LB, RB or indeed CB. He doesn’t have to be a silky smooth passer…he needs to use his experience and muscle to support the full-backs, break up play and put the fear of Jesus into forwards. Not sure Charles has those attributes in his locker yet or at least he’s not displayed them particularly well.

Great result for SKD and Eastleigh tonight!

I would have more faith in Djenepo putting in a defensive shift than this poor excuse of a defender. Both Bree and Meghoma have been streets ahead of Manning and yet if you’re best mates with the gaffer you get the nod it seems. I’m just surprised it’s not caused squad unrest.

This needs to be an emphatic win…it certainly should be, but something tells me a wheel has come off somewhere. Can’t see Manning being replaced, so if their RW forwards are half decent they’ll suss out that we’re weak down that side and capitalise. If Russ is really on his game and gets the starting selection right, we’ll win but it’ll be tough against another load of cloggers. 1-0 Saints. COYR!

I’m surprised at the lack of imagination and flex in RM’s team selection. He has 3 CB’s at his disposal to compensate for a weakened defensive midfield, so why not get Stephens into a back three or play him between the CB’s and CDM’s? I’m not a huge JS fan, but he can pass reasonably accurately and has confidence to turn with the ball. The best RM seems able to muster is consistently selecting his mate Manning with typically terrible consequences.