Matchday Thread: Sheffield United v Port Vale

[Santa]

I'm not defending anything as I didn't see anything untoward....hence the question as to what they were doing.

The only incident I saw was when the stewards started throwing people out for persistent smoking in the toilets. Loads of people waded in and it got pretty heated.

[Conrad]

The only incident I saw was when the stewards started throwing people out for persistent smoking in the toilets. Loads of people waded in and it got pretty heated.

 

I've been to every away game this season and Sheffield is the only one where they don't let you out at ht for a smoke, so it's little wonder people sneak a fag in the toilets. It's like being back at school.

[soothsayer]

The only incident I saw was when the stewards started throwing people out for persistent smoking in the toilets. Loads of people waded in and it got pretty heated.

 

I'll raise that by the mindless lout who threw a plastic bottle from the back of the away stand hitting a young child sitting with his parents.

[man in the pub]

Agree that playing one up front equals no shots on target and barring penos means no goals scored. Need 2 upfront to give our strikers a chance, they need plenty of chances because they are not the calibre of striker to get 1 chance and score. Thats why they are at the Vale.

[Tenement Funster]

For only about the third time in my life I walked out early on Saturday. Not out of particular disgust but just at the fact I didn't want to watch us painfully cave in. For the second game in a row we were slaughtered but this time we came across a side that knew how to make good chances and put them away. Add in the fact we looked a shower at the back then that equals 4-0 which could and maybe should have been more. We cannot grumble at losing to Sheffield but to lose 4-0 is an issue. No one should mind a fair few losses away from home over a season when you consider the position we're in, but when we lose we seem to lose badly either in scoreline or performance. If it's our aim to make the play offs this season then goal difference could be crucial.

 

That said it's no time to panic yet. We said there would be ups and downs with such a new squad and there is plenty of reason for optimism. The league position is good and a good chunk of the new players look like they are capable at this level. My two fears are this, one is easy to explain, the other not so much so.

 

Firstly we seem to have brought in a number of players who aren't ready or aren't good enough at this level. Santos, Mac-Intosch, Ferguson, Shalaj, Mbamba, and Cicilia strongly fall into this category whilst Kiko isn't far off. Also Pereira, Tavares and De Freitas all have much to prove despite showing flashes of promise. Had we bought a little more wisely maybe we wouldn't have the issues we have with no real target man or no decent right winger.

 

My second fear is more a gut feeling. Since Dicko left we have a major lack of leadership on the pitch and I wonder what it's like off the pitch. Something just doesn't feel quite right in the squad to me. I've heard plenty of rumours suggesting the language barrier isn't as bad as some would make out, but also that there are certain players who aren't feeling at home right now. Tavares seems a prime example. A 30 year old bloke moving to Burslem can't be easy and with him being perhaps of an older generation than the other foreign boys I can believe the rumours about him not being too happy here. With Grant being Grant he's not a leader for me, far too firey. Purkiss is too quiet and Alnwick too young. Supposedly Thomas is a good character but is he a leader, can he pull the squad together. You need someone in the dressing room to look after the players whose not part of the coaching side. Maybe I'm wrong but it's a gut feeling as I said.

 

Back to Saturday and it was just a shambles. The system doesn't work because Paterson becomes isolated and it also says a lot that by the end we have a left back at left wing, a centre back at left back, a left back in centre mid, a striker on the right wing and a kid up top. Is that really going to work? We need to change the formation and I'd seriously have a look at:

 

...........................Alwnick............................

 

...............Smith.......Streete.....Knops..................

 

Purkiss...................................................Hart

 

.....................Amoros......Grant........................

 

............................Foley..............................

 

.....................Jones........Paterson.....................

 

 

That gives Paterson some support, strengthens us in the air at centre half with an extra body whilst Purkiss and Hart should both have the assets to be decent wing backs. With the solidity of the centre of the park even Thomas could probably play as wing back once fit.

 

Whatever happens we need to change the way we play. We don't have that bit of flair or creativity in the centre of the park to play a counter attacking game, particularly as our wingers aren't wingers so why play with them?

 

Tomorrow is a big game now and we need to bounce back. 6 points over the next few days would be a real boost and keep the haters at bay for a little longer.

[PV1973]

We played 5 at the back at the end of last season and it worked well for a short while. I definitly think we need the ability to change things around formation wise because at the moment we are too ponerous and predictable.

[Tenement Funster]

The only incident I saw was when the stewards started throwing people out for persistent smoking in the toilets. Loads of people waded in and it got pretty heated.

 

From what I understand there was a fair bit of smoking going on so an asian steward asked them to leave. It got a bit heated and I gather a young lad (15/16) was pulled out. A few fans then surrounded the steward and a number of other stewards had to step in and get him out of the way.

[Heatwave]

.....My second fear is more a gut feeling. Since Dicko left we have a major lack of leadership on the pitch .........With Grant being Grant he's not a leader for me, far too firey.

 

Grant more fiery than Dicko? Not sure about that.

[Tenement Funster]

Grant more fiery than Dicko? Not sure about that.

 

Different kinds of fire. Grant tends to be more introverted with it. You don't see him going around rollocking people but neither do I feel he's as much of team player and his fire tends to see him having the wrong reaction to situations where as I felt Dicko was a more approachable character. Grant gives of this aura of 'I'm good and you're all rubbish' at times. I have nothing to back this up by the way, just a gut feeling on how you see him react with other players on the pitch and historical opinions of fans at other clubs he's been with.