Forum
Reply
Rest of the Championship thread 25/26
at 20:14 26 Oct 2025

Not championship related for 25/26, but it is refershing to see how all the promoted sides are faring, to date, in the premier league.

Personally hope it continues and that it leads to the relegation of West Ham and Forest in particular.
Forum
Reply
Young team?
at 19:39 26 Oct 2025

Agree entirely. Which makes the ostracising of Kolli, for that's what it is, all the more baffling.

What he achieved as a 19-year old last season in very pressurised situations/games is evidence enough that he has the ability and temperament.

Currently, none of Vale, Dembele or Saito are on course to replicate Kolli's numbers in 21 games last season: 5 goals and 2 assists. Nobody is saying that he should be starting, but he is just as good as the abovenamed in my opinion and is younger. Even this season, he has scored one goal in 6 games, which is still better than Dembele.
[Post edited 26 Oct 19:51]
Forum
Reply
(No subject) (n/t)
at 22:13 25 Oct 2025

Exactly this. It may be en vogue but I fail to see any real merits to it from an attacking perspective.
Forum
Reply
Dembele?
at 19:36 25 Oct 2025

Indeed this. From memory, his best game for us this season was against Preston when lo and behold we played him on the left. He managed to create a goal by going to what is now a no-go area for all our wide players: venturing anywhere near to the by-line and delivering a cross. Smyth was just as reluctant on the left today. Saito has the ability to do it, but is way off it at present in terms of game consistency.

Unless you're as gifted as Bukayo Saka or Olise who are very adept in the inverted role, just stop persisting with it, or at least resort to it sparingly. As none of our wide players are any good at playing in that role. It just makes for a very easy afternoon for the opposing defence, as it's all very predictable. They also aren't very good at manipulating the ball in the manner that Chair and Willock used to do, even when the latter was past his peak form.

For mine, Smyth/Saito on the right and any of the others on the left, by all means swap at times. However, until this lot become more adept at being able to master the most basic of skills i.e. cross accurately with their weaker foot, let's revert to what was convention in football for many years.

Many players from yesteryear had no problems in being adept to go either way and deliver a cross with their weaker foot. Dave Thomas, Andy Sinton, Wayne Fereday, Trevor Sinclair all spring to mind. There are no excuses for the current crops' patent inability in this regard.
[Post edited 25 Oct 21:10]
Forum
Reply
Love watching...
at 08:29 22 Oct 2025

Equally as reprehensible by every measure. Yet..
Forum
Reply
Lyndon’s goal
at 09:53 11 Oct 2025

Very true.

Midfielder J McGinn has a superior goals to games ratio than him: 20 goals in 80 games. That was Dykes's first goal for Scotland in about 15 matches, well over 2 years, which closely mirrors his excruciatingly barren spells with us.
[Post edited 11 Oct 9:56]
Forum
Reply
Kone/Burrell-the New Allen/Goddard?
at 19:50 8 Oct 2025

Dream on
Forum
Reply
COOK
at 00:01 6 Oct 2025

No need to change that pairing. They were both solid, tackled determinedly without being rash, didn't lose concentration and were calming influences overall.

The fact that they played together yesterday is of Mbengue's making and he has to now bide his time and hopefully learn from this, as five yellow cards in just 8 games, 2 of which could have led to a second red card against Charlton and a straight red against Stoke, is reckless beyond extreme and will cost us in the future if he continues in this vein.
[Post edited 8 Oct 7:49]
Forum
Reply
Brentford v Manchester City
at 20:00 5 Oct 2025

Bit harsh.

Few points shy of teams like Newcastle, about the seventh-equal highest scorers in the league and have a striker on 4 goals already, making him third highest goal scorer in the league to date.

It will be a tough year for them, especially after losing Frank, the biggest loss, and two goal scorers who got circa 20 goals each in the premier league last season.

All told, they're not doing badly at all. Losing to financially-doped and serial FFP violaters: City, will hardly define their season. Wish it were us going into our fifth consecutive season in the Premier League.
[Post edited 5 Oct 21:21]
Forum
Reply
Shipshape and Bristol Fashion Match Thread
at 14:00 4 Oct 2025

That's not good news. I fear for Esquerdinha and how he fares defensively, especially if targeted. Dembele starting away from home, not for me. Looks too brittle a line-up for an away game. Hope I'm wrong of course.
[Post edited 4 Oct 14:02]
Forum
Reply
M40 pile up Witnail and I edition - Qpr vs Oxford Match Thread
at 09:05 3 Oct 2025

Totally agree. I'm in no doubt that if he were playing against the last two teams we have faced, even more so with Hayden & Field starting, he would have come off the wing to link up play or even take the ball off either of them by moving more centrally.

He has done this on a number of occasions in the past. I don't understand why others: Dembele, Saito, Vale don't do similar to try to effect change.
[Post edited 3 Oct 10:00]
Forum
Reply
Loans
at 08:22 3 Oct 2025

This is my concern with the players that we have loaned out. If they're as good as we have been led to believe, then surely a few more of them would have been loaned to sides in the top league at non-league level: National League, a very good standard, and getting decent amount of minutes.

Even Aaron Drewe's playing regularly in the National League with Woking and Joe Gubbins is playing some games at Southend.
[Post edited 3 Oct 8:31]
Forum
Reply
Well 95 minutes of my life I won't get back !!
at 11:26 2 Oct 2025

But we were equally as bad against Sheffield Wednesday with the so-called A team in full effect, where they were all outshone by a 35-year old Barry Bannon.

I personally am quite happy about that, as it appears that players like Bannon who have a football brain, have that ability to find space even under pressure and are seemingly always available to receive/offer themselves as a passing option, still have a key role to play in the helter-skelter of the modern game. Yesterday, like Saturday was dire and it's clear that we still have problems playing any semblance of coherent football if a team decides to apply the high press against us.
[Post edited 2 Oct 11:27]
Forum
Reply
Could this be the most open Champ season for years...?
at 17:02 1 Oct 2025

I suspect that they'll fancy their chances tonight against us after drawing games against Leicester and Coventry as well as winning away at Bristol City in their last four games.

We can't take them lightly, as they have enough to beat us. The young forward they've signed on loan from Spurs: Lankshear, and Brannagan spring to mind.
[Post edited 1 Oct 17:03]
Forum
Reply
RND
at 16:11 22 Sep 2025

Exactly. Wrexham wasted no time in exposing him and he was found wanting; being easily beaten by their wide player and appeared to panic on occasions thereafter. He does have ability and is the next in line from the development squad after Kolli and Morgan.

Norrington-Davies is an excellent loan signing and is very solid defensively. This team has enough offensive options in other positions, starting and from the bench, so it's not a major requirement for him to figure as prominently in attacking areas.
[Post edited 22 Sep 16:13]
Forum
Reply
Bircham isn’t happy
at 15:17 22 Sep 2025

Very much this. Had he have been sent off in either of the last two home games, which should have happened, he would not be viewed in such a favourable light.

Unhinged is the word you used to describe him in your match report and its very apt.

The league this season looks like it's going to be wide open. We now have a competitive team, decent bench and still have some key players to return. Calm heads on the field and playing with a full complement will go a long way in our aim to finish as high up the table as possible.
Forum
Reply
QPR's newly acquired strike power downs Disney FC - Report
at 15:32 17 Sep 2025

I'm getting the LF comparisons, albeit premature and only a nascent championship career to boot, but can he actually head the ball in the manner that LF did in the premier league? Genuine question, as I haven't seen it happen yet, but like many, I like what I have seen thus far.
[Post edited 17 Sep 15:34]
Forum
Reply
Sam Field
at 13:41 17 Sep 2025

The way that some on here have already consigned, disgracefully in my view, the likes of Field to the knacker's yard, you would have thought that we've beaten some of the best teams in this division.

We've only won two games against newly-promoted teams, both welcome victories, yet we were hardly convincing in either game. Yes we won, but on occasions we were porous in defence and midfield. If we fail to address those frailties, we won't be so fortunate going forward against more clinical opposition.

Field and others are still an integral part of this squad and shouldn't be dismissed as surplus to requirements on account of victories against two teams promoted from division one.
[Post edited 17 Sep 13:50]
Forum
Reply
Rest of the Championship thread 25/26
at 11:35 15 Sep 2025

He divides opinion, but should never have been sacked in the first place. Especially being replaced by a coach whose "achievement" last season was to retain Hull's league status by virtue of a negative goal difference being better than Luton's.
[Post edited 15 Sep 13:06]
Forum
Reply
Rest of the Championship thread 25/26
at 21:10 12 Sep 2025

It'll be well before October. The manner in which that second Ipswich goal was conceded, suggests that the current coach's tenure is drawing to a close. That was appalling.
[Post edited 12 Sep 21:17]
Please log in to use all the site's facilities

Loyalitat


Site Scores

Prediction League: 0
TOTAL: 0
About Us Contact Us Terms & Conditions Privacy Cookies Online Safety Advertising
© FansNetwork 2025