Lighthouse

We’re talking about the end of the season. We’re quite fortunate at the moment in that there’s no Ipswich and Leicester running away with it and everyone is quite bunched up, the flip side of that being we’re closer to being 13th than we are to being 5th. Based on the table so far, Brum will be Champions on a fairly low 87 points, instead of the usual mid-nineties, whilst we’re going to end up on 80. We need to improve. Watford, Lincoln, Bolton, Wrexham and Preston were not good enough, that’s a third of the games we’ve played and not counting the atrocious first half at West Brom and two substandard cup games. I’m confident that Tonda is the right man for the job and that he can get us playing at our best a bit more consistently BUT he does actually need to do that for me to be upset that he’s off to Eintracht Frankfurt.

That would be moderately busy for a summer window, it’s not happening in January. I’d set your hopes on one or two loaned in and one or two loaned out. Ramsdale and Fellows loaned out, Mubama sent home and replacements loaned in for AM and ST would be at the top end of what I’d hope for.

It’s not too long ago everyone was insisting a proper keeper was worth 15 points a season. There’s no way Larin, JWP, Scienza, Bree, Slot, Azaz and Matsuki are 15 points worse than the players you mentioned. I’d say they were pretty even overall. This squad should be in the hunt for the autos. Third or fourth and just missing out I can live with, a distant sixth not so much.

Well, I guess the whole, "only picking on Brand because he dared to criticise the vaccines," argument didn’t really pass muster did it?

Nobody is talking about sacking him now but if he finishes the season 5-7th and loses in the playoffs, I won’t be sad if he leaves and no Bundesliga giants will be coming in for him. If you think he’s being held back by injuries now, then I’m afraid Jander, Azaz and Downes are going to be injured for the whole of next season. By injured I mean; f**ked off to a PL team and replaced on the cheap.

The replacements for the injuries we’ve sustained recently are Lewis Dobbin, Nathan Wood and JWP. They would start most games for at least half the teams in this league, probably more. Three years ago we (apparently) achieved the bare minimum of winning the playoffs with Bazunu, Smallbone, Aribo and Edozie making regular starts. Our only striker off the bench was Sekou Mara because our big summer signing was injured for literally the whole season. You can’t be doing worse than that, then getting worried someone is going to poach the manager. Like I said, if he doesn’t take this season’s squad up, he isn’t taking next season’s up either.

If we don’t go up, he’ll be a significant part of the reason and I won’t be sad to see the back of him. If he doesn’t take this squad up, he isn’t taking anyone up, so I’m not sure why we’d want to keep him.

So you think our current coaches are telling players to shoot directly at the keeper and that we need Rickie Lambert to come in and correct this?

I think if I were to choose, Fellows would be the midfielder I would loan out and bring a replacement loan in. I still think he could have a future here, or at the very least command a reasonable fee, he just needs some game time. I’d keep Edozie for the rest of the season, then let him leave on a free in summer.

I've never done any time personally, but my advice would probably be to button his shirt up and get a haircut. Looking like nineties Meredith Brooks from behind is probably not advisable.

I highly doubt that Beattie, Tiss or any of our other previous strikers have some special secret that our current coaches are not aware of. Larin was the league's top scorer before his injury and Azaz has hardly struggled either. Our coaches are generally speaking fine, it's a combination of natural talent and confidence.

He had a bad injury last year but AFAIK has been available for the majority of this season, just not selected. I doubt we’re looking at RBs for January, unless MR wants first team football elsewhere and we’re looking for one in, one out.

I fear you may be grossly overestimating the money we’re going to be spending in January. If we do get another striker it’ll most likely be another loan with DM going back.

If he’s looking for a chance to play in the PL then this is as clearasil get for the foreseeable future.

Nobody's arguing that. The assumption you're making is that Abbott must be the replacement for THB specifically. It's a squad game and overall we're no worse off at CB than last year.