Derby v Boro (Saturday 21/8/21 15:00)
So as the games come thick and fast, fortunately, to forget the shambles of Wednesday night we turn to a new game on Saturday.
Boro are facing Wayne (Mooney) Rooney’s Derby County on Saturday who have endured some bum comments from their fans since the start of the season, butt a win against Hull on Wednesday brings them fresh hope.
Their manager Wayne Rooney as the head ‘Ram’ faced criticism after photos emerged of him a few weeks ago in a hotel room with three 21 year old scantily clad women. He partied into the early hours with three 21 year old girls. He was seen in a photograph they had taken of him passed out in a chair as they cavorted in their undies at their £60-a-night room in Manchester. One flashed her bottom next to him then posted the photo online, captioning it “Mooney Rooney”.
I suppose one of the advantages of having a septuagenarian manager like Neil Warnock means that we won’t be seeing headlines like this about the Boro Manager. Hopefully the only flashing we will see on Saturday is when the Boro hit the backside of the net to score (a goal!)
Even further behind (sorry I must stop putting these bottom references into this post) behind the scenes at Derby things seem to be in disarray. Derby County owner Mel Morris is allegedly ‘stalling’ over giving assurances to the EFL over his financial backing. They are apparently looking for a guarantee that Derby will be funded for the current Championship campaign before a green light can be given over new signings. Derby are currently under a transfer embargo, meaning they have to get approval from the EFL before they are able to add new players to their squad.
The Rams currently have 23 players of ‘professional standing’ on their books meaning Wayne Rooney cannot sign anyone else during the transfer window, despite having new players ready to join the club. The EFL are restricting the number of transfers Derby can make this summer and the wages that can be offered to any new players.
Mooney (sorry Rooney) is quoted as saying on this subject “I don't know the details of what it is that needs to be sorted out. All I can say is us as coaches, and the players as a group, need help. It is as simple as that. There is nothing we can do, there is nothing I can do to make sure that happens. That is on other people to try to give us that help.”
Apparently restrictions will stay in place until guarantees are given over the money available for both tax bills and payments to former club employees. It is also reported that an US group are in talks with Derby about a possible takeover at Pride Park and are watching developments
Derby players who have come in for some butt comments on their performances are Stretton, Festy Ebose and Max Bird. However, the worst of the performances was reserved for 29 years old Nathan Byrne, who received an extremely disappointing rating in a recent game.
The situation worsened last Saturday when striker Colin Kazim-Richards left the field on a stretcher in the second half of the Rams 2-1 defeat against Peterborough United and is expected to be out for three months.
A statement this week quoted that the Rams have successfully applied to the EFL for special dispensation from the league to replace long-term absentees Colin Kazim-Richards and Krystian Bielik with free agents Sam Baldock and Phil Jagielka.
The Rams surprising win over Hull away has given them some encouragement even though they were missing key players. Skipper Tom Lawrence and Festy Ebosele missed the 1-0 victory over Hull City last night due to injury. Lawrence has a groin problem and Ebosele has a knee injury.
Liam Rosenior Derby Assistant Manager provided an update on the two players. “Festy Ebosele had a knock on his knee in pre-season against Notts County and it just flared up again. That's a minor knock and hopefully we will have him available for Saturday and Tom Lawrence had some discomfort with his groin in training on Tuesday, so we couldn't risk him.”
That means Derby may have a stronger team available on Saturday to play the Boro and will have been heartened by our poor display on Wednesday against QPR.
Boro need to reassess their tactics and regroup for Saturday. We are not a team who can constantly attack and cause teams problems. Warnock is more schooled in a “backs to the wall” policy and hitting teams on the break.
I expect that Tavernier will return to the team as he has been greatly missed and replace Spence on the right wing. Although DJed has improved he still has a long way to go to prove to be an effective player up front.
I also expect Morsy to replace Howson as it was obvious on Wednesday that his legs cannot cope with two or even three games a week and Warnock should have noticed that before selecting him.
Boro have to find a way to protect the glaring hole through the centre where teams have found that they can run straight through us and of this means we move Paddy McNair into a more defensive role then that is what Boro have to do.
It’s not all doom and gloom as Jones, Crooks and Uche are all willing workers for the team and we have the nucleus of a good side.
Our defence needs work and young Fry need to look at his performances as he seems to have switched off on Wednesday for at least one of the goals.
So come on you Diasborians let’s have your views on Mooney Rooney and his team.
Let’s face it Boro are not playing Arsenal are they ?
OFB
Thanks OFB.
For me, despite last night's disappointment, we're in decent shape. Central midfield needs looking at but I'd be amazed if there wasn't at least one change to the line-up in that area for obvious reasons. There are no other areas for major concern in my view but we can certainly improve in goal and on the right wing if and when Tavernier or Watmore are available. Spence has done an admirable job whilst filling in but isn't natural there and doesn't have the attacking threat we need.
I fully expect Morsy to come in for Howson and would like to see Payero given a start ahead of McNair for this one but am not sure that will happen just yet.
Still, Derby are there for the taking and their defeat of Hull doesn't change that. I'm going for a Boro win, 2-0.
Thanks OFB for your latest cheeky thread.
Its as difficult as ever to decide which Boro will turn up or not!
I agree with you on the changes needed after last night's diabolical defensive display but not sure if Tav will be played from the start.
As far as a score is concerned, given our inability to keep the back door closed then I will take a punt on 1-1 but who knows.
Let's hope NW has given them a rollicking and we see a positive reaction on Saturday. CoB 😎
One interesting point about the Derby team that played last night was that It saw Mooneys side shift to a three-at-the-back system where the 'three' - Jagielka, Davies and Stearman - were aged 39, 36 and 34, respectively.
Hopefully the energetic Crooks, Muscle of Uche, the skill of Tav and the pace of Isiah Jones will prove too much for the creaking defence to play two games in a few games.
OFB
Right all you Diasborians you’ve all been moping about the last game. Let’s concentrate on the Derby result I’m going for a 2 0 win to Boro
OFB
I have suitably recovered from my disappointment Wednesday night, a friend from Bahrain actually went to the game and said we hadn't a clue 2nd half.
I was actually quite pleased with the team and the result apart, thought that it was very entertaining.
So here's hoping for Saturday and I think with our defence still not really up to it we will concede at least one goal, but we have goals galore upfront so I would think Boro to win 4-2.
All this talk about ‘moonies’ seems appropriate for me at the moment as my posterior has been red for about 10 weeks now with a viral infection and a district nurse came to take a photograph of it and it’s now on my medical records at my Doctors surgery but not for public viewing. The redness seems to be less colourful now but I sometimes I have to walk around the house ‘mooning’ or just wearing a silk dressing gown. Now I’ve got shingles, it’s driving me crazy.
Although Derby will probably do better than people expect (unless a points deduction happens) because there'll be a certain amount of backs to the wall among the players, this absolutely is a match we have to win if we are to seriously aim for a top 6 spot.
I don't know what team Warnock will put out. McNair has looked off the pace but the same thing happened for a few games the last time he was moved into midfield from defence. To an extent the team picks itself. If he goes 3 at the back then the only question is whether Bamba comes in or McNair drops into the back 3. In midfield it depends on whether he thinks the bigger risk is Morsy getting himself sent off or Howson passing to the wrong team.
My cheeky prediction is 2-1 to the reds.
Cheeky it is !
Not a bum selection or prediction methinks …
OFB
Derby County and Middlesbrough will battle out a 1-1 draw at Pride Park Stadium on Saturday, according to EFL pundit David Prutton.
Derby recorded their first league win of the season in midweek when debutant Sam Baldock scored the only goal in a 1-0 victory over Hull City at the MKM Stadium.
Middlesbrough, who lost 3-2 at home to Queens Park Rangers, are on the same number of points as Derby, four, after three matches.
OFB
Thanks for the opener OFB and getting to the bottom of those Rooney revelations - I suspect out of sympathy Boro may opt for a rear-guard action and hope to hit the Rams on the counter.
I agree with Deleriad that this is something of a must-win game if Boro want to avoid falling off the early pace - especially after the unfortunate display in midweek that should have seen three points rather than none.
I'd expect a few changes with Morsy most likely to return - not sure about a back three as that would probably mean losing one of our wide players to fit everyone in - though Crooks could drop further into midfield.
Predictions: Maybe a 2-1 but it's important Boro don't go behind to Rooney's side...
I really can't call this one. I suspect Rooney has a backs to the wall, they all hate us mentality with his squad. We know from 86 that type of mindset can be powerful.
Regarding Boro, Warnock needs to address his defensive frailties. Put simply it isn't working and hasn't worked since the turn of the year so it's nothing new plus apart from the Keeper it's the same players so he can't use "settling in" or "understanding" as an excuse.
On the subject of the Keeper we know that a top class Keeper makes a world of difference to how a team defends and the level of confidence and understanding they have. Randolph has been a huge miss as was Schwarzer and even Dimi when we swapped him out for a has been with a huge ego. Bettinelli never convinced and to date Lumley looks like an even poorer replacement. Daniels may be an upgrade but our problems are far greater at the back than just the Keeper.
Midfield cover for the defence seems to be disjointed and I suspect this is down to the man marking which allows opponents to deliberately and purposely drag our defenders all over the place leaving huge chasms let alone gaps that the midfielders have no idea which gap to plug. Of course giving the ball away cheaply in the first instance doesn't help.
As dour as Karanka's methods may have been he started with a rock solid defence, a stable and protective midfield and looked to sneak goals from mistakes and set plays. Hoof ball is perhaps a little unfair on Warnock but whatever his methodology it needs to improve and by now should look settled and understood by players and fans alike. If anything our midfield and defence look more lost and confused than ever.
Our threat has been distinctly poor for a few years now but visibly improving thanks to Jones, Crooks and Ikpeazu. Our midfield is questionable and looking ponderous, slow, predictable and porous while the defence behind is a confused shambles backed up by a Keeper very few have belief in hindered in no small part however because of what is in front of him.
Our squad may not be the best but it should be too much for Derby. My worry is that NW's tactics and in game management are looking questionable and easily dissected by a half competent manager then I am not convinced that we will get something from this game. My head says a win by two clear goals but if we continue with this man marking disaster and a midfield that doesn't fit together let alone dovetail with their defensive team mates behind I fear a frustrating defeat which will of course be the Referee's fault.
Time for NW to do his talking out on the pitch.
OFB,
Thank you for writing about the bottom line on the Derby match, see the way I resisted using 'headline? Anyway a great opener and as for the score I haven't a clue. Can't see an 'eyes in the sky' and I reckon it's which Boro get's out of bed.
Will it be Typical Boro, going two up and losing with the last kick of the match? Will it be sleepy time Boro who take half an hour to realise they've licked off? I hope it's the snapping, snarling 'Beastie Boro' with Ikepeachu knocking lumps out of the opposition and dishing out the bruises and Morsy playing like a Jack Russell who wants the ball no matter what. I so hope that the latter turns up.
Derby 1 - 3 Boro.
More optimism or is it confusion? We'll never get to the bottom of it.
UTB,
John
Ref to goal keepers. Scotland's current one is David Marshall, who pulled off some great saves during the Euro's but who has now been dropped down the pecking order by Mickey Rooney at Derby. At 36 he would have better at Boro than Lumley.
Really sorry to hear about your latest ailments. You have to put up with so much, and I really admire your resilience and determination to keep on going. I’ll give you a ring for a chat next week, if that’s ok?
All this talk of Rams and bottoms reminds me of an old Lancashire joke.
Meeting an old friend in the pub after some time without seeing him, Bert asked his old pal where he had been.
’I recently moved to Upper Ramsbottom,’ came the reply.
‘That’s nice,’ said Bert. ‘And what’s it like, Upper Ramsbottom?’
‘Well,’ said his mate, ‘it’s a bit dark and smelly really.’
Given that Derby’s obscure financial dealings in recent years have given off a decided stink, you could argue that they too have been dark and smelly.
And given Steve Gibson’s drive to punish the rule-breakers, I don’t expect Boro to be the most welcome of visitors tomorrow. Might be a good day not to wear red? I’ve also been trying to imagine the meeting in the boardroom between Morris and Sir Steve. It probably won’t be cordial.
I’m going for a hard-fought 1-0 win to Boro.
Thanks for a great opener OFB.
I detect a common thread in here so far, that for NW the clock not only ticks but tocks, as we need to see he really does have a decent gameplan that won’t get lost down the crack and which the defence won’t Rs up. We certainly don’t want this season to turn out like her majesty’s annus horribilis.
Boro’s travelling army also need to be reminded to head south for shepherding into the Riverside-lookalike Pride Park, and not west to the innovatively named Harry Williams Riverside [sic] Stadium*, despite loose talk in Diasboro about the fixture actually involving Ramsbottom.
So, to my thoughts of the fixture. It really is hard to tell. It is the kind of fixture that we could seriously blow, but I am going to let my heart take the lead and have faith in our new found confidence going forward and that even though I suspect another Lumley bumley display we will capture all three points….. 3 goals to 2 as Boro fixtures untypically become the ones the neutrals love for all the goals!
* Home to the mighty Rams of the Northern Premier League and, for the record, which has never been the subject of any bespoke lease back arrangement.
Ref to goal keepers. Scotland's current one is David Marshall, who pulled off some great saves during the Euro's but who has now been dropped down the pecking order by Mickey Rooney at Derby. At 36 he would have better at Boro than Lumley.
I've mentioned Zander Clark at St Johnston before. I am certain he will end up at one of the Old Firm in due course if no one down south picks him up.
(Up here "Down South" means England by the way !!!)
Clive, you just got in before me with the Ramsbottom angle ! Well done.
I noticed in the press conference that NW didn't seem too happy with Lumley's performance on Wednesday night. He suggested that Lumley was partly culpable for Howson's own goal due to a lack of communication and that he should have saved Dykes effort at his near post.
Clive, you just got in before me with the Ramsbottom angle ! Well done.
Maybe, but I didn’t know anything about the Harry Williams Riverside. Good obscure footy knowledge there!
As it happens Clive, we have family just down the road from Ramsbottom. We have visited there since I was a very wee lad and would often attend church there on Sunday morning....
It feels like quite a big game today. Of course, it isn’t really with so much of the season to play and so many twists and turns to come but having won one, lost one and drawn one, the result against Derby - a side you’d expect to be struggling come the end of the season - may well set the mood as it helps us get a better feel for where we really are.
With Fulham arguably the division’s best side and QPR thought to be among the best of the rest, our record so far is perhaps what we could have expected and hasn’t really indicated if we’re a little better, or indeed a little worse, than we thought.
Defeat today would be deflating and put question marks against us I think. A draw would be disappointing too and add more weight to pre-season thoughts that we’re a mid-table club this season. A win gives hope that maybe, just maybe, there’s a little more to us.
I’m optimistic and think Uche and Jones will be too much for them but we have to improve defensively and I’m hoping that the chaos on Wednesday night will be the catalyst for improved control and composure.
I’m sticking with Derby 0-2 Boro.
@andy-r I pretty much agree with that summary but poor game management cost us the QPR game especially when they went down to ten men. I don't think Warnock can just let that second half shambles go without redress so I expect to see a few changes (as many as 4 or even 5) this afternoon as he shuffles his pack, including one or two surprise ones.
I have seen nothing this season to indicate that we are any better than we were last season which was/is a mid table side who have a tendency to inconsistency.
It remains to be seen that once NW has got all his new recruits on board if he/they and those returning from injury can make the difference.
One problem which RR has alluded to is that other manager's seem to have worked NW and his team out and we do not appear to have any thing different to offer so it will be interesting to see what happens in a few more weeks when I expect we will have a clearer idea as to our fate.
Defeat to day really puts a spanner in the works and I can see the likes of PM, DF and MT beginning to have eyes for other horizons. CoB no more typicals please. 😎
I can't stand Mickey Rooney, so I am looking for us to hammer them 1-0 😀 😀