What confuses me the most about bfc at the moment

Is apparently we were chasing DKD all summer so how come we seemingly haven't got a clue where to play him?
If you were so keen on signing someone that you spent all summer trying you'd think that you'd be absolutely certain where you want to play him.

Unless of course spreadsheet Jimbo wanted him more than the head coach did

 

Is James still involved in recruitment?

 

Yep, after all the hoopla about his arrival, and Mansfield apparently holding out for a bigger fee than we were initially prepared to offer (and than he was worth, perhaps?), he's been quite the let-down for me. The odd flash of promise, but looks lost in games - last night a case in point. I can only hope, like most of the squad, he's fallen prey to the manager's haven't-got-a-fu4king-clue system.

 

It confuses me that we've spent by our standards a lot of money on a guy who cannot play adequately in more than one position, so when we don't play him in that one position he looks rubbish.

 

When we were first linked with DKD, I had the same thoughts as I do now. DKD is here as layering for when Phillips is sold. That will be either January or the Summer I reckon.

 

It’s too obvious to me what we need to play but I’m only a fan.

3-4-1-2

DKD the one in behind the striker. If it means dropping either DKD or Phillips to make this work then so be it.

I can’t help but think that we are in a similar scenario to what Sven Goran Eriksson was with England back in 2002 to 2006 with Gerrard and Lampard. Us similar with DKD and Phillips.

If they both play then one of them suffers by being out of position and not playing to their strengths. Both are brilliant at what they do.

Barnsley for me are trying to find a system to fit certain players in instead of finding the players to fit a system.

The main thing I’m more worried about is the lack of pace in this team and also not one player being able to beat a man. The recruitment team for me have made a total balls up this season.

I know some will defend them but for me there is a massive question mark.

 

We really need a coach and recruitment team singing from the same hymn sheet.
Will it ever happen though as we lurch from one season to the next with the same failed model?

 

In fairness to DKD, in the last couple of games we've barely been able to string 2 passes together before losing it and have mainly just lumped it forward. For a lad like him that isn't going to suit the strengths he has so is hardly going to be tearing it up as a result.

The complete lack of passing ability and decision making was frightening last night and on Saturday. When we tried to pass it was either a backwards one to our centre halves or just rushed to anyone without any thought. There was also a lack of movement to help anyone out. It was frantic and massively low on skill.

The manager's comments suggest it's the players not performing which I'm sure is correct. However, it looks like he's told the players to play a high tempo game which is contributing to the hurried passes we're making.

 

It’s very early days in fairness. Plenty of our best players over the years took a while to get going.

I’m of the opinion that playing both of Connell and Craig is unnecessary. The latter should be - at best - a substitute. You don’t need two deep-lying midfielders with pretty much the same positive attributes and weaknesses. It seems to me that DKD, like Phillips needs to be given the ball more, and to feet. Get him on the ball deeper, with the final third in front of him. Too often the last couple of games he’s having balls rapped into him with his back to goal. I sort of get that with Cosgrove, but even he can’t hold the ball up either. In fact, he’s way more of a conundrum in my opinion.

Find a shape, fill it with the right personnel and then we can better judge what’s going on. Picking six defenders and two holding midfielders should be a red flag immediately.

 

On Dunn, the last two games, the first 5-10 minutes he's looked really quite sharp. Won the penalty v Stockport, had a good shot deflected and saved last night. But after that initial flurry he's been pretty anonymous, but if you watch him, he seems to expend a lot of energy chasing from one player in possession to the next for absolutely zero result.

I don't know if there's supposed to be some sort of collective press going on, but it doesn't look that way, just individuals deciding to close down at times, but in the case of Dunn (and I think Humphreys and Cosgrove did similar later on) by charging around like that, they are breaking the shape of the team and placing pressure on others to cover.

Pines did similar by trying to win every ball ahead of the attacker and getting turned, or not getting it cleanly and requiring a team mate to deal with it. Like DeGevigney when losing the ball running it out, or some of our midfielders just failing to screen the ball well or turning into trouble.

As I think about it, it feels like some of the issues could be resolved either quickly, or through a short period of coaching. But I think to do that, we need a period of consistency of coaching, selection and tactics.

 

Very similar to Philips then?

 

I don't think so but it still gets thrown around regularly.

 

Is it a monstrous lie?

 

Patrick said that Einstein said:

"The definition of insanity is doing the same thing again and again, and expecting different results."

Wise words from James' dad, will his son finally take heed one day?

 

I don't know. I'm not sure what, if any, his involvement is these days. I just seem to remember it being mentioned that he no longer has much input.

 

Cotter had the beating of the Wycombe lad all night.

 

Yes it is a concern why he did that but there'll be reasons why he did so. Clarke isn't an idiot just as Collins wasn't an idiot (and I wasn't a Collins fan). It may be the case that he's nervous to play different players in certain roles and/or he still isn't sure of his best team yet. The manager does need to decide on his best 11 pretty soon though, try and keep a settled side and try and stick to the tactic/gameplan that his settled side are comfortable with. He has to make a committed decision soon and stick to it, trust the players to implement it and only make marginal changes over time. Constant changing of personnel, tactics and substitutes in game are not good. I'm sure he must know this himself so as I say, he needs to get the structure and personnel correct going forward. If we're still faffing about with formations/players/substitions/tactics by December then I would say the manager isn't very good regardless of any criticism of the board I may have.

 

EXACTLY like Philips!

 

---------------------GK
------Roberts-Pines-Earl------
MadBaz-----Connell-----Lofthouse
------------DKD---------Phillips
--------Humphreys---Jalo

Get both our 10s in the side. Width with the wing backs. 1 defensive midfield.

 

For me it's about balance in the whole squad we only have two natural left sided defenders, Earl has to play no matter what sort of form he his in which is madness. The pivotal positions are the wing backs we knew Cadden was leaving why on God's earth we left it so late to sign a replacement is beyond belief then we sign a player the head coach clearly doesn't fancy. I love the effort of Cotter but when he doesn't tie himself up in knots and he gets in good positions his final ball is awful.