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Duvel

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Posts posted by Duvel

  1. I don't think you can over analyse Carrick or his tactics just yet, its still very early in his reign and he's still learning on the job. His tactics have been fine all season and tactically I don't think he was bad over the two legs. 

    The problem for me is that we just had two many players off the pace, I mentioned Archer last night and you look at his movement compared to what it was like a few months ago. If you remember the Watford game he was making these long bending runs across the back line whereas last night he barely moved. Akpom is miles off the pace and how many crosses did we just overhit out of play. 

    I know you sometimes need a spark off the bench, we made subs and even tried going to 3 centre backs but when you're playing that badly as individuals there's not much else Carrick can do. 

    The only criticism for me is that we were crying out for a different option upfront and we didn't even have Muniz on the bench. I know Carrick doesn't rate him but with 10 minutes to go he might have been a different option. Crooks is not a striker in a million years. 

    • Like 3
  2. To the Cov fans reading, well done and good luck at Wembley. You were deserved winners tonight. 

    I don't know whether we were tired or just didn't handle the pressure, I think it was probably more the former than the latter. 

    Looking at players like Akpom and Archer today and they were a shadow of the players they were a couple of months ago. What's happened to Archer's movement where he was making those diagonal runs across and in behind the back 4? The last couple of games his movement has been none existent. I'm guessing we just ran out of gas as the season ended. 

    And one last thing, I've been building the fans up all week but we were really poor tonight. Apart from the first 15 mins the fans were flat as a fart for long spells. They were loads of fans sat around me who barely got out of their seats all game and quite a few spent the 90 minutes with their heads in their hands. I know people are nervous but if you can't get behind your team on a night like tonight then you've bottled it as much as the players have. 

    We needed a Brighton performance from the players and fans tonight and we got neither. 

    • Like 1
  3. 16 minutes ago, Old Codger said:

    Know that he has taken a step out of the limelight under Carrick, but wonder if anyone has had the notion that it might be a crowd pleaser if Leo became visible in the pre-match build up? 

    Rumour has it the club will play the power game at 7.55 and Leo will ride topless onto the pitch on the back of a white horse, whilst carrying a giant Boro flag. 

    Just to get us all going I suppose

    • Haha 2
  4. Sacking Mowbray seems completely disrespectful after what he's done this season but the owners have to do what they think is best for the club. 

    Who knows the new man might take them on to another level and get them promoted, not every new manager is a downgrade. 

    Obviously they'd look daft if it doesn't work out though. 

    • Like 2
  5. I never actually said Stewart is worth 30m by the way, I used Chuba as an example and said if someone offered 30m then we'd sell him. 

    It doesn't even matter about the amount, I just used the 30m as a ball park figure to illustrate that Sunderland are not really in a strong position to fend off clubs if he goes into the final year of his contract. And we'd be the same. 

    • Like 1
  6. 10 minutes ago, Georgewhitt said:

    Why would he leave us to go to another championship club though mate?

    He will only go to a Prem side if we want to sell mate.

    Personally, if we got the right money, whatever that is, I would be happy for him to go.

    Because a Leicester/Leeds/Forest Everton would look (on paper) like a better proposition of going up. Even if those clubs sold half of their team they'd still have a better 11 than you and most of the division. 

    Then throw in the money they'd spend on new players and the wages they'd pay him those clubs would be seen as a good career move for him. 

    If he's going into a final year of a contract then you'd need to sell him and he'll want to get paid. Its just a business decision. 

    This isn't a 'my club is bigger than your club' discussion its just where you are as a club and your good players will be for sale. We'll be no different if we get beat tonight as well. If a relegated Everton offered 30m for Akpom I doubt we'd turn it down, especially if he only had a year on his contract. 

  7. 7 hours ago, Georgewhitt said:

    He doesn't get a choice mate. He agreed to it, we just have to trigger it, which we will, even if he wants to leave, as we will get more money for a longer contract. All done mate. All the rest is just pure conjecture mate.

    I imagine what will happen (if he's fit for the summer) is you'll offer him a new 4 year contract on improved terms. If he refuses to sign it then you'll activate the extra year and then start shipping him around to other clubs. 

    He might not be ready for the Premier league but there'll be clubs with parachute payments and money to spare. 

  8. 1 minute ago, Bosco's Tuft said:

    Insisting on 'playing the right way' no matter what has always been Mowbray's eventual downfall. Apart from when he plays Boro. Then he is happy for his players to kick the sh1t out of us. 

    With the players available he probably didn't have much alternative tonight.

    • Like 2
  9. Sunderland have some nice technical footballers and Mowbray tries to play the game the right way but there's so much more to the game than that. 

    You've sometimes got to go up against big physical teams and match their intensity and physicality, not only that but you've got to be able to defend set pieces. 

    If we get past Cov we'll have the same challenge to face at Wembley but I don't know whether Luton can press like that on a Wembley pitch.  

  10. 45 minutes ago, RiseAgainst said:

    Chelsea in the FA Cup last season was a weird one. It was as if the fans expected defeat. It felt oddly flat throughout, and yet after the two previous games, I thought the atmosphere would be electric.

    That game isn't in the same stratosphere as tomorrow night though, it was a game where the fans knew we'd lose 9 times out 10 in a competition that we were never gonna win. 

    I'm thinking of games/nights like Brighton, Brentford, the big European nights, Liverpool in the Cup semi final in 98'. 

    I suppose there's the occasional one where it hasn't been the best, I can think of Cardiff in the cup quarter final where we were 2 down early and the team stunk the place out and Stockport in the cup semi where we expected to roll them over and then went behind early, that was a tense night. 

    But usually when its a huge game and it looks like a pretty even game on paper then fans generally turn up. 

    Obviously the team need to play their part as well the players feed off the fans and vice versa but I don't expect anything less than a very loud Riverside tomorrow night. 

    Even if Coventry score early I don't think it'll particularly silence the crowd for long, they'll then need to survive an onslaught for the majority of the game. 

  11. 29 minutes ago, SouthernSmoggie said:

    Riverside atmosphere is a weird one for me. There's times where as you say, the crowd almost drags the team over the line. I'll never forget that Brighton game in 2016...

    But I'd also say the Riverside can be very quick with the moans and groans compared to many other grounds. Expectations are high (even when you could argue they shouldn't be) and we often 'need something' from the team to respond in kind.

    If we start well I'm confident it'll be more like the former. 

    On the big nights the fans turn up more often than not, I don't remember many really big games where the atmosphere hasn't been great. 

    • Like 4
  12. 1 hour ago, MarkT73 said:

    Just read through the Cov forum match thread. Few takeaways from it -

    We are over confident - err 99% of our fans certainly aren't. More bricking it. Typical Boro still haunts us.

    Riverside no atmosphere - Last game of season shouldn't be a measure, we were in friendly mode. When it counts the ground is a cauldron and will be tomorrow.

    We purposefully fouled Hamer - replays showed Hamers leg hit Mcgree and no intent at all from the Aussie.

    Pressure all on us - Carrick or the team doesn't feel the pressure from a boisterous crowd, they'll feed off it. It's the reason we score goals quickly one after another.

    Flag Night taking the p out of it - whilst can sound a bit naff it does create a sense of occasion and adds to the vibe. Anything will be better than the beach towel they had in  circulation on Monday. 😂

    Personally I can't wait for Wednesday night. Atmosphere will be loud, hostile and epic.

    As all clubs, most the fans are top drawer and they were good at the Riverside too. So should be crackling come tomorrow night.

    They play to their strengths and are dangerous, great defence and in Robins have a sound tactical Manager.

    Hope we will have enough though on the night and most importantly play well in the style of the 2 home games before Cov (5-1 / 3-1) If we do we will win and deserve it. And if Cov do do a job on us, so be it and will wish them well as the better team on the night.

    Best team wins. No referee foul ups etc

    #utb

    I don't like the old 'our fans are better than your fans' argument, its playground level. Saying that I hope they come here expecting a quiet atmosphere, the Riverside will be absolutely electric tomorrow night and they're going to need to be very strong on the pitch to stand up to it, they're also going to have to hope the ref can stand up to it. 

    I've seen us beat far better teams than ourselves at the Riverside over the years where the fans have lifted the team to a result. 

    • Like 2
  13. 39 minutes ago, Dan1234 said:

    Big problem I'm seeing is the combination of Jones and Mcgree. They both bring there own positives but neither really provide a goal threat with Mcgree only scoring the odd screamer and Jones having little goalscoring ability. 

    Forss and Ramsay both bring a huge goal threat, I think a mixture of Jones/Mcgree with Ramsay or Forss works fine, but we lose too much edge to our attacking play with neither of the latter two involved. 

    I'm still also in the Djiksteel camp over Smith. Did ok in first half because we had no defending to do but with the ball in the second half he was absolutely woeful. I've accepted the fact he obviously has incriminating evidence on Carrick so he's likely to keep starting. Luckily McNair turned into prime Maldini for the day so we didn't need Smith to do much. 

    Think I'd still bring Howson back. Mowatt to be fair did ok I just think Howson has been better all season and him and Hackney have a great partnership.

    Maybe just trust that Carrick knows what he's doing with team selections. He hasn't done too bad since becoming our manager.

    • Like 2
  14. 24 minutes ago, Cov1987 said:

    I was sat dead in line with the offside goal, it wasn’t tight, the shot that hit the bar was never going in and akpoms header went wide, so our keeper like yours never had to make a save, not exactly clutching at straws, if we were both still playing it would still be 0-0 , anyway, if your that confident you’ve got nothing to worry about😉

    I'm not worried pal 👍🏻

  15. 25 minutes ago, Cov1987 said:

    Pressure was on us today, it’s on you weds, can see this going to penalties, I don’t think either team was good today, we were quite happy letting you have the ball as you didn’t really trouble us I think we’ll have gykores up front on his own weds with an extra one in midfield, if there is a goal on weds whoever gets it first wins it, and hats off, you made a fair bit of noise for only 2000, 

    We didn't trouble you? We hit the bar, had the ball in the back of the net after a very tight offside call and Jones could have scored on another occasion in the first half with a bit more composure. Not only that but Akpom's header went narrowly wide in the second half. 

    Robins adapted his tactics and you closed our space down in the second half and we didn't threaten you late on but to say we didn't trouble you at all is clutching at straws. 

    Pressure is what you make of it, I'm sure it means a hell of a lot to both teams so I don't see how the pressure suddenly goes onto us. Our ground will be really hostile on Wednesday and they'll be behind our team not turning on them so I don't see how the pressure goes onto us. If away goals were a factor then you might have a point. 

    Let's see how your team cope at a noisy Riverside, I thought Luton wilted in the second half at Sunderland last night, it just shows what a difference it is going away from home. Your team are coming to a completely different Riverside to what you experienced last week. 

    • Like 3
  16. 2 minutes ago, TLF10 said:

    Fair point. But this is now a one off game where winner takes all.

    Some teams previously come here happy to take a draw but that mentality wont do on Wednesday. Coventry are coming here to win whereas some teams before have come here happy to try and contain us. 

    Disagree, I think they will be coming here to keep things 0-0 for as long as possible and hope they nick something at the other end. I don't think we'll see an open game from their perspective. 

    • Like 1
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