I’ll be honest this week’s column is a hard one to write.
Last week’s defeat away at Nottingham Forest was poor but was against a decent side and not wholly unexpected. Saturday’s loss to Birmingham City, a win that the Blues thoroughly deserved, was hard to take.
Lee Bowyers side are ravaged by defensive injuries and not in great form and yet they came away comfortable winners and had it not been for some exceptional Dan Bentley saves it would have been even more comfortable for them.
Whilst this column is always my thoughts, I listen to what fellow fans say and write and so try to balance those views. I could trot out the same as Nige, “look, we are where we are…” etc but it’s beginning to wear a bit thin.
Something that the manager admitted himself after the game, was that he was bothered by what fans think and that they must be sick and tired of him spouting the same stuff.
I’m very much on a rollercoaster with Nige and the current situation. One minute I am on the up and thinking that there are definite signs of improvement, that the future is bright and with the right changes in the summer, we will see a different side and improved set of results next season.
Then a performance and the tactics of a game like against Birmingham has me plummeting down the track on the other side and I start to question everything.
I absolutely get that it’s a three-year plan and that Nige has been given very little funds in which to work but that can’t excuse the fundamental errors made on Saturday.
In his post-match press conference, he said that the shapes complimented each other with both sides playing similar formations. I just didn’t see that! We played a 4-3-1-2, whilst Bowyers Blues played a 5-3-2.
Pearson selected Sam Bell in the right-back position, a player who has spent his formative football years playing as a forward, a position he was sent out on loan to earlier in the season to Grimsby.
I just can't fathom it; Robbie Cundy who showed up well last week when coming on at the start of the second-half, wasn’t in the match day squad, and Cameron Pring and Rob Atkinson were both on the bench, defenders by trade and yet a forward was played at right-back.
Bell was horribly exposed against Onel Hernandez and time and time again was left 1 on 2. As the half wore on Bell lost confidence and still was continually afforded no support from his teammates. All too often senior pros in the side were quick to point the finger at the youngster and yet did nothing to help. I only saw Andi Weimann put an arm around Bells shoulder and give him any kind of moral support.
The two goals that we conceded in the first 13 minutes were shambolic. A clearance from a Blues defender found Tahith Chong and he outpaced the returning Matty James before turning back inside on him and curling a shot past the helpless Bentley.
The second goal was even worse, from a corner we were caught flat footed with Antoine Semenyo losing his man and putting in no sort of challenge on Nico Gordon who headed home. Another goal from a set piece that had we had a defender on both posts would surely have been cleared.
The first half was dreadful, I was embarrassed at just how lacklustre and poor we were and yet unbelievably we had something like 65 per cent possession and yet I can’t really recall any chance of note. Another example of stats not painting the true picture.
Bell and the injured Timm Klose were withdrawn at half time with Pring and Atkinson coming on and we changed shape. Pearson said after the game that it was no reflection on Belly who was exposed as being a young player cause his teammates don’t help him and that he was really irritated by it.
The second-half was better, and Alex Scott pulled a goal back early after a fine ball in from the left by Jay Dasilva. Bentley, Scott and Dasilva were the only players that could really come out with any kind of satisfaction from their own performances.
We did create openings, but Birmingham keeper Neil Etheridge didn’t really have a save to make while, at the other end, Bentley made two or three exceptional saves to keep the score down to two.
Pearson talked afterwards of players who can’t string two performances together of huge inconsistencies and that it would be nice if we had enough players who could put back-to-back performances, in which were relatively consistent.
He went on to say that every time we reconvene having lost a game, they go through a process of asking if whoever isn’t playing are they the solution. Perhaps more worrying was the comment that we don’t have enough reliable players, who are committed enough or able to produce performances.
This was another unacceptable game and it saddens me when I hear fans say that they can’t wait for the season to end. We spend all summer counting the days down and now we are wishing games away.
Our 3 Peaps In A Podcast ratings were: Daniel Bentley 7, Jay Dasilva 7, Cameron Pring 6, Sam Bell 5, Tomas Kalas 5, Timm Klose 5, Rob Atkinson 6, Matty James 5, Joe Williams 6, Alex Scott 7*MotM, Andi Weimann 5, Antoine Semenyo 5, Chris Martin 5. A team average of 5.69 for the game.
For Nige, it’s 3. He got it wrong, wrong selection and wrong formation. The current team average for the season is 5.85 with an expected performance rating of 6.
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