@deleriad A good post.
I saw the match and for their opener we made four tackles and still the Huddersfield defender went on and scored. For the one they scored from corner, the scorer wrestled Tommy Smitch down to the ground - a free kick was due to us.
One of their goal took a huge reflection from our defender before landing on for a free Huddersfield striker on the other side penalty area.
So some funny and lucky goals but anyway, this happens in football. We had 76 % of possesion, had 20 shots against their 13 and we had 6 shots on target with Huddersfield having 5. So they practically scored with every shot they had on goal!
As you said, these things happen in football. I do not think we should sack neither Carrick nor Woodgate just yet.
Some people might expect us to defend like Karanka's team or attack like Woodgate' team - I think Carrick is somewhere in between. And very entertaining to watch. And winning a lot of matches, too.
I am happy what we have and enjoying the season. Up the Boro!
Even if we fail to gain promotion automatically or through the playoffs this season, I have no doubt that Micheal Carrick will be Boro manager next season and vying for a top two position. Can you imagine where we would be now if MC had been manager before preseason 2022.
Come on BORO.
@exmil - In the circumstances you have proposed, Boro would have been with Burnley, the two teams running away with the league with the play-off hopefuls almost out of sight behind us.
And can I just put in my apologies for the predictions submitted? I think basically people should look at my predictions and use them as a guarantee that the opposite will happen!
@k-p-in-spain Thank you for the link KP.
However I do not believe I have ever had an account with WordPress direct, only through DiasBoro. (unless I am mixed up)
Anyway, there was an unsubscribe button hidden at the bottom of the notification emails. Clicked it and that appears to have solved the issue. 😊
Many thanks for your help. appreciated.
Warnock 1 -0 Carrick
Reflecting on the game I’ve concluded that Neil won the tactics battle as he got his tactics spot on by getting 11 players behind the ball and allowing Boro possession well into Town’s half of the pitch. All the players were very close to each other making passing to a teammate very difficult.
He also limited attacks down the wings and so the attacks were all through the middle of the pitch.
I also think he highlighted McNair as a weakness as in the first half 3 high balls were played towards him. He failed on all 3 occasions to head them away and only succeeded in heading them out of play and so Town moved 50 yards up the pitch.
I am hoping this was a blip and Carrick learns from the defeat - the next game will be an excellent test on how he and the team come back after a poor performance.
I am sure MeGee will start. I hope Fry plays instead of McNair and I’d like to see Barlaser start the game at the expense of Hackney.
Finally, my Town friends rated the second half as their best by miles performance .
Philip of Huddersfield
I hope this won't happen in my view.
Middlesbrough are willing to offload right-sided ace Isaiah Jones this summer amid interest from elsewhere, Football League World has claimed.
I hope this won't happen in my view.
Middlesbrough are willing to offload right-sided ace Isaiah Jones this summer amid interest from elsewhere, Football League World has claimed.
Difficult one this. I think he's suffering second season syndrome and will come good but Carrick isn't setting us up with traditional wingers and he doesn't use wingbacks. Jones, at the moment, doesn't really fit into the system that well so you can see that if we don't get promoted that it might make sense to sell him if we get a decent offer.
Personally, I would like to see us keep him and work on him but I won't be manning the barricades if we sell him. Selling him would reflect well on our system of sourcing players from non-traditional backgrounds, developing them and then selling for a good return.
I think that the only real issue is 'how much can we sell him for'. He is a quality player but clearly not essential for our current strategy. Therefore, if someone offers an appropriate amount of money, we should take advantage of that and pocket a good profit. The real mistake would be to say that because he desn't have as much value for us, we can sell him for a low price.
UTB
@selwynoz The difficulty is that if he is not playing, his value goes down, too.
I think the real problem in here is our system. We do not play wing-backs nor wingers. Even though I wonder sometimes why he would not be used like Giles ...
But definately he has a second season syndroma. He is not playing well enough now. Or should he be tried at right back for a while?
Up the Boro!
@jarkko I think that is a fair question Jarkko. When he was playing well, he was also one of our best defenders at times, making tackles when our other defenders had gone missing.
As for right back, well he certainly has more pace than Smith and probably would not get caught out by the balls over the top as does Smith.
Unfortunately I do not think he could defend as well as Smith generally throughout 90 minutes. He also tends to give away too many fouls.
However, I doubt he could be any worse than Giles at defending.
I think the real problem in here is our system. We do not play wing-backs nor wingers. Even though I wonder sometimes why he would not be used like Giles ..
I don't think you would use him and Giles in the same team. He could play Giles' role but on the right if Bola played left back. Like Smith, Bola is reasonably comfortable tucking into a back three.
Putting Jones and Giles as full-backs in a back four is something you do in an emergency.
@pedro I suspect he’s not as good as Giles at providing assists though. I think he needs to mature a bit. He gives far too many fouls away, particularly when he’s lost the ball upfield, although I accept that he does regularly get back to put a tackle in.
If he doesn’t fit our system we maybe need to cash in but I’m not sure how much we’d get for him. As @Jarkko says, if he’s not playing regularly, his value decreases.
I don't think you would use him and Giles in the same team. He could play Giles' role but on the right if Bola played left back. Like Smith, Bola is reasonably comfortable tucking into a back three.
Putting Jones and Giles as full-backs in a back four is something you do in an emergency.
yes, I agree with all that. Perhaps it is not wise to field two very attacking-minded full backs at the same time. And Giles is better in supplying the ball to Chuba - so centering the ball very well, indeed.
But of course we do not know where Giles will play next season. There is no hurry to off-load Jones now. Let’s give him a proper pre-season first and let Carrick decide in September.
Up the Boro!
Given that his crossing isn't great and that his strengths are his pace and dribbling, I suspect that Jones' best position is as a left winger cutting in and creating havoc - basically where Warnock played him.
It's unfortunate for him that Carrick's Boro just don't play with those sort of natural wingers and so he'll always be filling in to some degree. If we had a couple of injuries to say McGree and Forss, you could play him on he left and Ramsey on the right. Jones' ability to chase back could actually help Giles defensively though it makes for an inexperienced flank.
I think he has to adapt his game if he wants to succeed here now. The raw ingredients are there but he's been fast-tracked from non-league all the way into quite a sophisticated tactical setup now where footballing intelligence and technique trump pace and athleticism.
Whether we should sell or not ultimately comes down to whether we get a tempting offer and what the player himself wants. I can't imagine he's costing us much in wages whilst he's hanging around.
Reference Jones, looking at the importance of our last 7 fixtures (and possibly the playoffs) which match(es) would anyone take a chance on playing him. As someone said previously, let Carrick look at him in next preseason and then decide, given his age and still two years left on his contract, I don’t see him being sold cheaply, especially (if as reported) Bournemouth, Palace, West Ham, Millwall, Norwich and Sunderland are all showing an interest.
Come on BORO.
Hard to imagine him starting any, Exmil.
He could be a useful sub though. Perhaps if we're 1-0 or 2-0 up and looking to protect what we have, you could sub Giles for Bola for the extra defensive cover then put Jones in front of him wide left for his pace on the break, knowing we have cover behind.
Hard to imagine him starting any, Exmil.
He could be a useful sub though. Perhaps if we're 1-0 or 2-0 up and looking to protect what we have, you could sub Giles for Bola for the extra defensive cover then put Jones in front of him wide left for his pace on the break, knowing we have cover behind.
Probably not going to happen unless we have a series of injuries. As it stands, if you think of the first 11 as:
Steffen, Smith, Fry, Lenihan, Giles, Howson, Hackney, Forss, Akpom, McGree, Archer
then the outfield subs are:
McNair: RB, CB, anywhere in midfield at a pinch
Bola: LB, LM, LW
Barlaser: CM
Mowatt: CM, AM
Crooks: anywhere upfront, midfield in a pinch
Ramsey: Anywhere in attacking midfield
In theory you could replace Mowatt with Muniz as midfield is well covered but Carrick seems not to rate Muniz while being quite happy with Mowatt
Jones might come in if one of Ramsey or McGree is out. Given that Finch got on the bench ahead of Jones, you have to figure that Jones is really poor in training right now.
Dijksteel comes in if McNair is out or is replacing one of the 1st 11.
So far, Bola has never replaced Giles despite it seeming like an obvious sub. He usually comes on for McGree or Ramsey.
I wouldn't write-off Jones but he faces a real battle to even make the bench for the rest of this season. You probably need at least 2 of Ramsey, McGree and Forss to be unavailable.
We went through a period of thinking Jones was something special, then he turned out to be, shall we say. 'lightweight', harsh?, yes, but he constantly got into a cluster of opponents, escaping in a dishevelled state, getting tripped, and another attack ended. Sell'.
Interestingly, the teams that exmil stated as rumoured to be interested in Jones, all generally play with 4 at the back and then assorted line ups in midfield and upfront. None with 3 at the back where he excelled under Wilder.
Certainly as MB said. he does not provide the assists or type of crosses that Giles does. At his best, he does score more goals.
However, it is all good fill-in chat and opinion.
If we make it to the EPL, there would have to be more changes than Jarkko likes. If we do not, and are still in the Championship. then there will probably still have to be many changes given the number of "Loanees" we have, who we sell or move on. I would assume Akpom being sold to a lower EPL club or even possibly to one of the relegated sides. Speculation I know, but we could see possibly up to 10 player changes.
I would hope not, Pedro.
I would like to think that Akpom would still be here regardless but he may feel he has to cash in on his form, understandably.
I’d be fairly confident of getting Ramsey back on loan next season and think there’d be a chance of Archer doing the same, though less likely than Ramsey.
Giles is an unknown but there again what Premier League team would take him? I don’t see him breaking into a Premier League XI as a left back or left winger to be honest - he’s a bit of an inbetween player that suits us but maybe not a higher level side, though I’m sure Raul Jimenez at Wolves would dearly love his crosses. I’d like to see him signed permanently if possible but am not sure what kind of fee or wages would be required.
Then there’s Steffen. I imagine he would be happy to return but his wages are a problem. He’d either have to take a big cut or have City pay a substantial percentage. We do have keepers out on loan but I’m not sure if they’re ready or if they fit the playing style.
Muniz and Mowatt are no concern.
I feel like whatever happens, the prudent move would be to bring as many of them back as we can afford, thereby continuing the momentum and having a full season with a well-bedded, settled squad.
Coburn and possibly Coulson return to bolster the numbers.
It is easy to forget players like Coburn and Coulson, both young and out on loan. Carrick will hardly have seen them or know what they are capable of. Maybe Coburn up front with Akpom playing the no 10 role? I can't see Steffen remaining beyond this season. On the wages he receives he should be head and shoulders our leading player with most influence on the game, and since we are third in the table you'd expect such a highly-paid player to be a shoe-in for the Championship Team of the Year. He isn't. Anyway my cardiologist has recommended some relaxation therapy for me when Steffen is trying to gain that extra half-second when an opposition player is closing him down.
@forever-dormo The current trend for goalkeepers to play out from the back is so alien to the what us old timers have experienced throughout our football watching (and playing) lives, that it makes for many potential heart stopping moments.
It’s the modern way and if your manager believes it’s the way to play, as a goalkeeper you’d better comply, even though, I suspect not all GKs have the skills to do it. I’m not sure Mark Schwarzer could have done it, although tbf his kicking distribution upfield was no great shakes either. It seems that being a shot stopper alone doesn’t cut it in today’s game
@forever-dormo. I think Coburn will need another season on loan getting in more games than he would possibly get here.
Coulson, is not so young anymore, I believe he could be 24?. My concern about him, is defensively probably better at defending than Giles, but not as good on crosses and assists. Then he has a history of injuries, though I think he has fared better at Aberdeen.
I noticed Jason Steele dong a great job of it for Brighton as late. He's now their first choice keeper due, primarily, to his distribution.
I think I'd prefer to have Schwarzter in goal (for all that he is apparently much better thought of now than he was at the time) than Steffen. Jason Steele and Steffen might be a closer call but maybe Steele.
Coburn - I get the "he needs more games" argument. Until he plays more at Boro's level, let alone the level the club aspires to, we will not know how good he is. He looked OK last season but I appreciate that a short run of games in a player's "first season" may play out differently than a concerted run the season afterwards. The problem is that if a player is loaned out, he may be "out of sight, out of mind". Stewart Downing very much profitted from being loaned out at Sunderland, who wanted to buy him before he returned triumphantly to Boro and showed himself to be maybe the best ever of our Academy Graduates. Have many (or any) of our other players loaned out to other clubs for experience/game-time/whatever returned in glory to Boro following a successful period on loan?
I’m always intrigued by the number of idioms we English use everyday, especially “out of sight, out of mind”. I imagine foreigners might translate that as “blind and insane”.
"I’m always intrigued by the number of idioms we English use everyday, especially “out of sight, out of mind”. I imagine foreigners might translate that as “blind and insane”."
That just about sums up being a Boro supporter I think: blind and insane 😉
@forever-dormo Chuba Akpom 🤔.
Come on BORO.
I’m always intrigued by the number of idioms we English use everyday, especially “out of sight, out of mind”. I imagine foreigners might translate that as “blind and insane”.
The French equivalent would be, “loin des yeux, loin du cœur”, best translated as “away from the eyes, away from the heart”