Millwall 3-2 Saints - Match Thread

[saintant]

1 minute ago, Morse said:

So Tonda isn't the Messiah after all, and our defence is genuinely shite. Shocking. 

Listen, he's got us 12 points out of 15 with a combination of luck, very good play, poor opponents and periods when we just looked hopeless. The points tally is great but after the setback today it's quite tricky to work out whether he's as clued up as many of us were saying (me included) just yesterday. A defeat off the back of another good performance today would have been acceptable but now I'm just totally confused. What does Spors do now because we were led to believe Tonda was going to be given 5 games including this one? He's got 4 wins which is hard to argue with. I think he'll be told to carry on and see how we do against Birmingham but he needs a bounce back after today.

[macca155]

Subs killed that game, Romeu not really up to speed. Aribo a disaster. Conceded the midfield, very lucky to get to 2 2.

Absolute worldy from their CB. Tonight Matthew I will be 'Roberto Carlos'.

4 4 2 at the end would have stopped their momentum. Wellington on for Robinson, Romeu for Stephens. It's so bloody obvious 

Bazunu kept us in that today , pretty much no chance on the goals.

[Lighthouse]

Trying to keep level headed about it, I think we were just missing one player too many, away to a decent side. We fought hard and came up short, even if the performance was substandard. If Downes and Charles were available, Aribo and Romeu don't get onto the pitch. Then it's a completely different result. Leo is obviously THE big miss but Stewart and Jelert would also have been handy to bring on.

C'est la vie, the test will be to see how Tonda reacts to this.

[saintant]

1 minute ago, Lighthouse said:

Trying to keep level headed about it, I think we were just missing one player too many, away to a decent side. We fought hard and came up short, even if the performance was substandard. If Downes and Charles were available, Aribo and Romeu don't get onto the pitch. Then it's a completely different result. Leo is obviously THE big miss but Stewart and Jelert would also have been handy to bring on.

C'est la vie, the test will be to see how Tonda reacts to this.

I take your point about injuries but I think Millwall have had it worse than us.

[The Wyvern]

5 minutes ago, Sergei Gotsmanov said:

Well they were good enough for Barcelona

Spanish football slower than Championship. How many minutes did Romeu play for Barcelona last season?

[Themotherfunky]

Matsuki and Welington must be absolutely dogshit in training if they can't get ahead of Aribo and Manning. 

 Joe must only be on the pitch to get eyes on him for January. 

 Manning must have pictures of someone on the board. Has he ever stopped a cross, or made any defensive contributions? 

[Lee On Solent Saint]

Think seven minutes injury time was a bit over the top. Even so, should be able to hold on to the draw from the position we were in. 

[Ekelund]

1 minute ago, Lee On Solent Saint said:

Think seven minutes injury time was a bit over the top. Even so, should be able to hold on to the draw from the position we were in. 

TBF, I took that as a positive, having just equalised but we didn’t push on.

[badgerx16]

Unlike having an experienced manager, Tonda is on a learning curve. Hopefully today will teach him a few things about certain players, tactics, and game management. He should also be working on his plan for the January transfer window.

 

 

Edited 1 hour ago by badgerx16

[Saint86]

19 minutes ago, StrangelyBrown said:

Until something is done about crisp packet hands and captain shoehorn we'll continue to be soft at the back.

You can't blame bazunu for any of those goals. Bizzare narrative. He also made 2 very good saves and a great rush of his line to cover another awful back pass.

[Dr Who?]

I still do not know why we got a penalty. Also they should have had one later on. Still off day today to a very good team especially at home, who are 3rd in the league. We only lost in the 7th minute of injury time. I think battled well even if the balance seemed to be off. 
 

2 big home games coming up, 6 points are a must. 

Edited 1 hour ago by Dr Who?

[die Mannyschaft]

19 minutes ago, Morse said:

So Tonda isn't the Messiah after all, and our defence is genuinely shite. Shocking. 

Charlton game made us look top 4, but we are a one man team. Subs are terrible I thought we were playing with 8 at one stage

[saintant]

3 minutes ago, Themotherfunky said:

Matsuki and Welington must be absolutely dogshit in training if they can't get ahead of Aribo and Manning. 

 Joe must only be on the pitch to get eyes on him for January. 

 Manning must have pictures of someone on the board. Has he ever stopped a cross, or made any defensive contributions? 

Who'd buy him? I think if we want to sell him we're better off taking him out of the shop window.

[badgerx16]

Just now, Dr Who? said:

I still do not know why we got a penalty. Also they should have had one later on. Still off day today to a very good team especially at home, who are 3rd in the league. We only lost in the 7th minute of injury time. I think battled well even if the balance seemed to be off. 

Clear shirt pull - the sort of thing that goes on in every game, and should be punished but isn't. Perhaps it was just too blatant for the ref to miss.

[Convict Colony]

4 minutes ago, The Wyvern said:

Spanish football slower than Championship. How many minutes did Romeu play for Barcelona last season?

Last season he played 31 games on loan with Girona.

Played against, PSV, AC Milan, Liverpool, Arsenal and others in champions league so think he can do enough in the champoionship.

[rooney]

They do not look like a top 4 team but then neither do we today.

[Lee On Solent Saint]

2 minutes ago, Ekelund said:

TBF, I took that as a positive, having just equalised but we didn’t push on.

Think we were rocking by the 90th minute. Would have been happy at that point for the point. Think a lack of someone to hold the ball up for us in those final minutes cost us. For all the good he does, that's not Armstrong game. 

[Number9]

Clearly missing Leo Scienza today, the only player that would leave everything on the pitch for the Saints.

(I can see a big offer coming in for him in January to test the resolve of SR).

[badgerx16]

4 minutes ago, Saint86 said:

You can't blame bazunu for any of those goals. Bizzare narrative. He also made 2 very good saves and a great rush of his line to cover another awful back pass.

He was also very weak in coming out for crosses and corners. Too many times he commits and completely misses, and their disallowed goal was a bit dubious.

[Convict Colony]

[Willo of Whiteley]

Wow there are some absolute fannies on here. At a glance of the goals:

Saints first: good penalty
Millwall first: abysmal closing down. There isn’t on Bazunu, not his fault the entire defence and midfield was five metres to the side allowing a clear shot at goal.
Millwall second: Again, not on Bazunu, terrible closing down, again!
Saints second: fortunate but well taken.
Millwall winner: Shambolic on all fronts. Bazunu and defence.

[badgerx16]

Whilst Romeu will never win a sprint competition, I think his main issue today was simply match fitness.

[OttawaSaint]

Massive issue if we have to bring on the likes of Aribo, Fraser, and a 50% Romeu.

Cost us at least 1 point today.

[die Mannyschaft]

4 minutes ago, Saint86 said:

You can't blame bazunu for any of those goals. Bizzare narrative. He also made 2 very good saves and a great rush of his line to cover another awful back pass.

21 shots so 3 or 5 are going to go in. We don't have a battling midfield and no defence.  WBA, Birmingham,  Coventry,  Stoke and Boro will tear out team apart. We need to stop playing RM football at back. Get out of our own half.

[Harry_SFC]

I said it previously at QPR but why oh why are we bringing a lethargic Aribo on ahead of an energetic Matsuki in a game where we need lots of energy. Absolutely baffling. 

[badgerx16]

4 minutes ago, rooney said:

They do not look like a top 4 team but then neither do we today.

8 points between 3rd and 17th.There are a lot of mediocre teams which are very similar. Every set of games will see 'churn' in the table.

[badgerx16]

2 minutes ago, Harry_SFC said:

I said it previously at QPR but why oh why are we bringing a lethargic Aribo on ahead of an energetic Matsuki in a game where we need lots of energy. Absolutely baffling. 

We ahould not be bringing Aribo on at all.

[Ralph Fastenbüttl]

22 minutes ago, Lighthouse said:

Trying to keep level headed about it, I think we were just missing one player too many, away to a decent side. We fought hard and came up short, even if the performance was substandard. If Downes and Charles were available, Aribo and Romeu don't get onto the pitch. Then it's a completely different result. Leo is obviously THE big miss but Stewart and Jelert would also have been handy to bring on.

C'est la vie, the test will be to see how Tonda reacts to this.

Dude, this post is far too rational and nowhere near sensational enough to meet the requirements of this board. The Tonda bubble has BURST and the dream is OVER, got it? We are the WORST team EVER in recorded history. Understood?

[SNSUN]

Tough game next, it’s how we bounce back that will be a measure of how good an option Tonda is going forwards. Another abject performance against Brum and maybe he isn’t the messiah. Win and it shows he can change it up. It also highlights how important Scienza is to us.

[LuckyNumber7]

Please get Welington in next game. Manning is absolute dogshit, a few goals and assists doesn't change that.

[Micky]

23 minutes ago, rooney said:

They do not look like a top 4 team but then neither do we today.

We are not in the top 4, we are in the bottom half, and that's what we looked like, a bottom half team. 

[Thinwhiteduke2]

 I reckon Eckert’s been told he’s not getting the job now, and player power has started again, that performance stank of player power, no direction from the bench at all, the last 4 games the players had specific roles and orders today they just did whatever the fuck they felt like, maybe they heard he wasn’t getting offered the job too and this is their way of showing it 🤷🏼‍♂️

[redandwhitey]

It was clear watching that, the coach felt possession deep in our half may stretch the game and open up the spaces further up the pitch. It worked a few times but Millwall generally stayed tight in formation and wouldn’t be drawn. A tactical battle that they won today.

it looked worse than it was but it was possession with a plan I thought not possession for its own sake 

[LaptopSaint]

Great atmosphere, proper stadium, lethargic performance at best. We need to wrap Leo in cotton wool - boy did we miss him. 

Thought we might escape with a point, but we managed to screw that up. Joe Aribo was bafflingly bad as in how can a man paid that much money to play football be unable to run, trap a bag of cement or look like he gives two fucks? Next time bring the young kid on up front and stick Arma out wide. Or just play with ten. Still, we managed to belt out the Spandau Ballet anthem for someone who hasn’t had a decent game in two seasons. 
 

Game management in training this week please. 
 

We march on. 

[Sheaf Saint]

Ok so on reflection, it wasn't quite as bad as our worst performances under Still. If we'd played like we did against Blackburn or Preston today then Millwall would have absolutely torn us a new one. No way we would have still been in the game going into injury time. 

Just too many players not on top of their game today. THB is so inconsistent it's infuriating. Stephens is his usual ball-watching self and Manning is such a liability, it's no wonder they targeted us down that side all afternoon.

As for Aribo, what an utter waste of a shirt. Clearly far too scared of getting injured and scuppering any January transfer to bother putting in any effort at all. We completely surrendered the midfield when he came on. Shame because a motivated Aribo would have been good to have in midfield and hold the ball up and take pressure off the defence. Get rid ASAP.

[die Mannyschaft]

1 hour ago, Morse said:

So Tonda isn't the Messiah after all, and our defence is genuinely shite. Shocking. 

QPR,  Charlton and Sheffield Wednesday were easy games against bottom 10 teams. Any team fast and physically fit we will lose to. We cant defend everyone knows that but add in being very slow and cant compete for second or even first ball and you get what happened today at millwall 

[die Mannyschaft]

8 minutes ago, LaptopSaint said:

Great atmosphere, proper stadium, lethargic performance at best. We need to wrap Leo in cotton wool - boy did we miss him. 

Thought we might escape with a point, but we managed to screw that up. Joe Aribo was bafflingly bad as in how can a man paid that much money to play football be unable to run, trap a bag of cement or look like he gives two fucks? Next time bring the young kid on up front and stick Arma out wide. Or just play with ten. Still, we managed to belt out the Spandau Ballet anthem for someone who hasn’t had a decent game in two seasons. 
 

Game management in training this week please. 
 

We march on. 

We have 2 non league players. How do they get on the pitch?

[saintant]

Just watched the highlights and the defending for their winning goal was horrific. Bodies have to be put on the line at that stage of a game but Manning was half hearted at best. Bazunu should do better with Millwall's first goal for me - a quality keeper does not let that in. The worldy from their centre back was just one of those things. Learn lessons, draw a line and move on to the next game.

[badgerx16]

2 minutes ago, saintant said:

Just watched the highlights and the defending for their winning goal was horrific. Bodies have to be put on the line at that stage of a game but Manning was half hearted at best. Bazunu should do better with Millwall's first goal for me - a quality keeper does not let that in. The worldy from their centre back was just one of those things. Learn lessons, draw a line and move on to the next game.

Manning's best IS half hearted.

[badgerx16]

Things could be worse, we could be Welsh rugby fans.

 

( Wales 0   South Africa 73 )

[Andy Hill]

When we are under pressure then there is no outlet and there has not been for years.  So nothing new.

[East Kent Saint]

1 hour ago, Sergei Gotsmanov said:

Well they were good enough for Barcelona

Well it seems a different league in Spain or Italy means that Prem players can extend their career . 

It would be good if he can enhance our defence but I feel he is past it 🙂

[Football Special]

1 hour ago, saintant said:

I take your point about injuries but I think Millwall have had it worse than us.

Yep, no excuses,  Millwall were the better side today 

Disappointing,  but we all know the areas we lack strength in 

[lambtiss]

4 minutes ago, East Kent Saint said:

Well it seems a different league in Spain or Italy means that Prem players can extend their career . 

It would be good if he can enhance our defence but I feel he is past it 🙂

I don't think we can judge from fifteen minutes at the end of a match when the whole team looked leggy and he had Aribo alongside him.

Definitely needs more match time and fingers crossed 

Edited 15 minutes ago by lambtiss

[maysie]

4 minutes ago, East Kent Saint said:

Well it seems a different league in Spain or Italy means that Prem players can extend their career . 

It would be good if he can enhance our defence but I feel he is past it 🙂

Based on 20 mins after 6 months out of competitive football. Seems like sound judgement.

[HnycS]

1 hour ago, Themotherfunky said:

Matsuki and Welington must be absolutely dogshit in training if they can't get ahead of Aribo and Manning. 

 Joe must only be on the pitch to get eyes on him for January. 

 Manning must have pictures of someone on the board. Has he ever stopped a cross, or made any defensive contributions? 

Yes I wondered if Aribo was being "put in the shop window", if so I think it should be stopped because it has to be impacting his value in a negative way.

[Badger]

Out of interest, how did Bragg play today ? Was he flagging when he came off?

Bringing Fellows off on a yellow card might make sense. But a shame Aribo and Romeu were not up to speed.