Operation ‘Treading Water’ is Going to Plan - Notes for Cardiff Friday, 30th Oct 2015 10:30 by HarryFromBath HarryfromBath assesses the mood in the opposition camp ahead of Saturday’s game at Portman Road by delving into their forums. “A very decent start”, “We are looking like a mid-table side, which is where a lot of us thought we would be at the end of the season. Considering the resources which manager Russell Slade has available this season, a mid-table position will be a fair achievement.” The Bluebirds arrive at Portman Road on a five-game unbeaten run but the manner of achieving these results hasn’t set any pulses racing. Monday evening’s goalless draw against Bristol City followed a victory by a solitary goal over Middlesbrough and a scoreless encounter at Preston. “We have got the blue kit back and have a trimmed squad with millions off the wage bill. We haven’t spent millions on new players and have a fixed and stable starting XI rather than a different team every week. Team performances are better. We are more organised and much better defensively.” “We are a mess but we were a lot worse. Malky Mackay and mainly Ole Gunnar Solskjaer got us into this pickle and we still have a way to go. Russell Slade has done well and we will emerge next season as a Championship club with a better balance sheet and a much reduced squad.” “At the minute we seem hard to beat and I don’t think teams fancy playing us either”, “Credit to Slade and the players for continuing to grind out results but my goodness it is not a thing of beauty to watch”, “If we had a couple of decent strikers I think we would walk this league.” Russell Slade“Russell Slade is slowly winning me over”, “I had my doubts but he has done very well so far without spending millions”, “He should be given credit for getting results and producing a team that is hard to break down, have a good spirit and togetherness and who all fight for each other.” “There seems to be a new attitude in the squad and they all fight for each other. Slade has proved me wrong so far and I will eat a slice of humble pie.” Many who wrote their manager off now admire the stability has brought to the team but some are suspicious that he may have reached his limits. “While we are cutting costs and bringing players in on the cheap, I don’t think we will likely get better than Slade”, “He will keep us up no question but he is tactically limited. As long as he is here we will be a mid-table team at best”, “I have no confidence in his ability to maintain a top six place.” Some Bluebirds believe that fellow supporters will simply never take to the former Orient boss. “The thing I find funniest is that the doom and gloom brigade who predicted relegation are now complaining that we are eighth in the table and it is still not good enough. It’s just laughable.” Formation“We are not a free-scoring team but we are very organised, difficult to score against and we are grinding out results where last season we would probably have lost”, “We haven’t been hammered or outplayed and we are a lot more organised and have become tough to beat.” “We are set up to defend and not to go forward. We are always looking to go square or back to keep possession. The result is that we don’t take the opportunity to go forward when it arises”, “We go so far forward and then turn and play the ball back. We are too safe at times.” Marshall (c)PeltierMorrisonConnollyFabioNooneWhittinghamGunnarssonDikgacoiRevellMason
City’s starting XI on Monday night was unchanged from that which previously beat Middlesbrough. Bluebirds were critical of the lack of creativity from a defensive central midfield pairing and the lack of quality from the strike partnership shorn of the injured Kenwyne Jones and Federico Macheda. “Slade doesn’t trust the central pair to cope on their own, so Ralls or Whittingham on the left have to tuck in leaving a lopsided three in the middle”, “We had two holding midfielders against Bristol City and neither of the wider midfielders were comfortable going wide in the final third.” Marshall (c)PeltierMorrisonConnollyFabioPilkingtonWhittinghamGunnarssonRallsAmeobiMason
“My worry is that we are slipping into last season’s style.” City finishing XI for Monday evening’s Severnside derby (above) had the same midfield pairing which many saw as misfiring last season. “The defence is okay. The issue is going forward where we really lack creativity. There are no ideas.” A Lack of Pace“Can’t Slade see that we are lacking pace up front?”, “Our lack of pace and creativity is appalling”, “We say it time and time again but the obvious lack of pace is restricting us from being a half-tidy team. We find ourselves in great positions but then can’t surge forward or behind. It is all held up.” “We have no pace to turn defence into attack quickly.” Fans have regularly referred to the team emphasising shape and retaining possession but the lack of tempo out wide and creativity through the middle have also led to them being regularly described as being ponderous in attack. “We have an issue actually creating anything from open play. We are far too slow in possession and out set-up and tactics are far too predictable and we don’t know how to adapt during the game”, “I think the patient passing game is fine but we lack pace when we break. This is our main weakness.” Cardiff 0 - 0 Bristol City“This is grim”, “The most dire and passionless Severnside derby ever, what a load of turgid junk that was”, “The missus had a go at me earlier as she was missing Corrie and EastEnders so I could watch the game. She was bored senseless and couldn’t believe she missed the soaps for that rubbish.” “I think it will be Bristol who think they threw two points away today.” While Sammy Ameobi missed a terrific chance late on, the Bluebirds failed to land a shot on target in a game which was largely controlled by the visitors. “That was the worst game I have seen us play this season.” “Bristol missed chance after chance and we were very lucky to even get a point”, “To be honest we are a very average Championship side with a good goalkeeper. I’m afraid we have no chance of the play-offs on that showing”, “If we play like that against Ipswich, we will be defeated for sure.” Cardiff 1 - 0 Middlesbrough“Great to see the Bluebirds win”, “It was far from great football but we did what was needed. We nullified the Boro attack. David Nugent and Stewart Downing did pretty much nothing”, “So much better than last season. I am watching a team who wants to put the effort in and play for the club.” “This team are proving a lot of people wrong and I love it.” City won an evenly contested game last Tuesday week with a late goal after Boro defender George Friend deflected a parry from keeper Dimi Konstantopoulos into his own net after a goalmouth scramble four minutes from the end. “I’m not sure how we won that game but we did”, “I thought we were poor except for some resolute defending. We had nothing up front at all”, “It was a strange match which never sparked into life”, “We seem to be a far more efficient machine, not great to look at but getting the job done.” Preston 0 - 0 Cardiff“A dull game played in a dull atmosphere”, “We did a good away job and battled well but created very few chances”, “That was an absolutely dire display of boring football against a poor team with no inspiration from the management or players. There was virtually nothing to get excited about.” “Is anyone at the game?”, “I am, unfortunately, and this game is the worst”, “It was the most boring half of football ever, please let the second half be better”, “Our midfield was anonymous, Preston walking through it and playing football around us”, “We are as dull as ditch water.” Defence“Our defensive performance so far this season has been the biggest area of improvement over previous campaigns”, “We have conceded two goals in five games and are incredibly hard to beat”, “We still have not conceded in three games.” David Marshall“Another clean sheet and it was mainly due to another couple of brilliant David Marshall saves.” The 30-year-old former Canary has been regularly praised for his shot stopping. “Steve Cotterill just said he is the best keeper in the league by a mile and he can’t believe he’s not at a Premier League club.”  “Thank God for David Marshall”, “He makes good saves when needed”, “He made a superb save to deny Albert Adomah and showed superb reactions to stop Grant Leadbitter against Boro”, “He could not have asked for a less stress-free day after returning from suspension for our game at Preston.” “The thing is that he did react to Matt Derbyshire at Rotherham and it added to the case that he is captain.” Marshall was red-carded against Rotherham and has missed six games in total this season through suspension having been dismissed in City’s final game of last season against Forest. “Sean Morrison is stronger than Matthew Connolly in the air and Slade obviously thinks a lot of his leadership qualities.” The 24-year-old ex-Reading centre-back “does make some silly errors but he wins his headers”, “He is good in the air but terrible at passing along the ground and often hoofs it.” Morrison is seen as a threat from set-pieces. “He scored a great header in the win over Charlton having been at fault for their goal, waiting for the ball to come down rather than attacking it”, “He puts in great blocks but his clearances can be poor, often going to opponents instead of Row Z.” “We are playing the ball from the back more and having Matthew Connolly there helps.” The 28-year-old former QPR centre-half “won almost everything in the air against Bristol and made some nice turns to bring the ball out of defence. He was the only player I felt safe with in the game.” “Connolly is far more consistent than Morrison”, “He has been outstanding this year and made some crucial blocks but I would say he is more of a ball-playing centre-back”, “He puts his body on the line and his passing and dribbling have improved considerably this season.” “Lee Peltier is about the best proper out-and-out defender we have at the moment.” The 28-year-old ex-Leeds right-back “is a warrior and has been one of the best players this season. You very rarely see a chance created from down our right side”, “Our best defender at actually defending.” “Peltier is exactly what we need, solid and up for it but won’t set the world alight”, “If we want the team to perform we need more from Peltier going forward especially with our wide players tucking in and Dikgacoi holding”, “Full-backs have to do more than Peltier does in this day and age.” With centre-backs Bruno Ecuele Manga and Ben Turner injured, former Millwall left-back Scott Malone is the only other defender to have recently played. “Malone was back against Preston with Fabio suspended but failed to grab his chance, being tentative and caught out of position too often.” Fabio“Fabio is our main man at creating something. How can that be the case from a left-back?” The 25-year-old ex-Manchester United man “just brings that attacking threat that our midfielders and strikers do not”, “I can’t understand how anyone cannot rate him as the best player in the division.”  “Fabio’s energy was excellent and was our main threat in the first half”, “We all dream of a team of Fabios.” The former Brazil international stood out against Boro but struggled defensively against the Robins. “Fabio was the worst player on the pitch, too many missed tackles and misplaced passes.” “Fabio had a shocker especially in the first half when skinned and beaten by Elliott Bennett every time”, “His positioning was atrocious. Every time he had the ball he gave it away or put a team mate in trouble”, “He’s great going forward but it isn’t worth unbalancing a team to accommodate him.” Central Midfield“We need a more influential midfielder”, “With no drive from midfield whatsoever and absolutely toothless up front, we were completely tepid against Bristol City”, “Our midfield was exposed by Bristol’s extra man.” Most agreed that the visiting Robins won the midfield battle on Monday night. “We should all know by now that Aron Gunnarsson isn’t good enough as part of a midfield four.” The 26-year-old ex-Coventry man and Iceland international “admittedly battles and get stuck in but his distribution is poor and he is not quick enough”. “The truth is that we cannot afford to play him.” “Gunnarsson is a decent and vocal leader on the pitch and he will perform to an acceptable level when required”, “He was awful against Bristol. He gave the ball away all the time and went around fouling players in a desperate attempt to get it back. He offered nothing and was very poor.” Peter Whittingham“We need pace on the left and playing Whittingham out there doesn’t work.” The 31-year-old ex-Aston Villa man “has no pace and ability to get past a man on the wing and is not creative enough in the middle. Perhaps he can play in a more advance role behind a quicker strike force”.  “We need pace and playing Whitts on the left does not work”, “He is way too slow to be out wide and he doesn’t cross the ball in when he has the chance”, “His best position is orchestrating play like Michael Carrick in a three-man midfield but we’re not going to get that with Russell Slade in charge.” Things didn’t improve when he moved into the centre against Bristol. “Central midfield was doing a half-decent job until Whittingham was moved to the middle. We got overrun from that point”, “We had no threat from the centre. I counted one through ball from Whitts and even that was poor.” Kagisho Dikgacoi“We looked clueless against Bristol once Dikgacoi went off”, “I have yet to see someone boss him in the centre midfield battle zone. He has massively reduced the number of shots the opposition are getting in”, “He doesn’t panic or give the ball away. He shoves his backside in the way and keeps it.”  “While he remained he reassuring presence he has been in midfield, the enforcer was far from his best at Preston and failed to provide the platform we needed”, “I was disappointed with his use of the ball and he was off it again against Boro. He looked unable to impose himself on the game.” The 30-year-old ex-Palace man “looked particularly sluggish and done by about 70 minutes against Middlesbrough.” Several Bluebirds highlighted his struggling late in games. “Dikgacoi’s replacement against Bristol was so quick to come on that I wonder if they expected him to go off at some point.” Wide Midfield“We never had any wingers go past Middlesbrough’s full-backs and get good crosses in to give Alex Revell opportunities. Our total lack of pace out wide made their job of defending a lot easier”, “With the left side tucking in, the burden of attacking out wide inevitably falls on whoever is on our right.” “Anthony Pilkington works and battles against workmanlike midfields and on narrow pitches but lacks Craig Noone’s pace.” The 27-year-old ex-Canary “is technically good, and can pass and move well which helps us keep the ball and play good football”, “He isn’t even fast and he is a winger.” “I was against Joe Ralls being on the wing but I can see why he plays there now. He is good at attacking and defending and covers well in the centre when Whittingham is further up the pitch.” The 22-year-old youth product “has a bit of pace and attacks well when given the opportunity.” “I like the way Ralls looks to burst forward and attack the box or cut inside the full-back”, “He offers youth and energy and combines well to give our left-back the freedom to get forward”, “He’s not a natural pacey winger like Ameobi but he has a fair bit of skill as well as a good shot and cross.” “Sammy Ameobi has pace but is not a 90-minute, 46-game player”, “His fitness is a problem as he runs out of energy.” The 23-year-old “is more effective at making things happen when coming off the bench than when he starts”, “He beings much needed pace to the team when he comes on.” “That was the miss of the season by Bambi at the end”, “His late miss against Bristol doesn’t get much worse”, “Slade has to realise Ameobi is a winger and not a striker”, “He is in no way a striker and has never played there in his life”, “At least he gives our toothless attack some urgency.” Craig Noone“Who was our main attacking threat against Bristol? It was Craig Noone and Craig Noone alone. Our entire midfield and attack revolved around him doing something. When he didn’t, we did nothing”, “He showed flashes of brilliance at Preston but gave the ball away and picked wrong options.”  “Noone has a great footballing brain and knows where to run but lacks the physicality to back up his good footballing instincts.” The 27-year-old ex-Seagull “is a clever player with good movement who gets on the end of chances and makes space for himself and others.” Some feel that he gets insufficient support from team-mates. “Noone is one of our few attacking players with drive and pace but can look isolated with little help from Peltier on the right”, “When he gets the ball there is often a yawning chasm between the other three midfielders and the strikers.” Strikers“Oh for the days of Chopra”, “We have hardly looked like scoring from Day One this season. You don’t need to know much about football to see we lack the pace, creativity and a natural scorer and to realise that this was always going to be an area where we would struggle.” “I can’t wait for Kenwyne Jones to come back. I thought I would never say that”, “We will struggle to score goals when he is not around.” The 31-year-old is a doubt for Saturday having injured his leg on international duty. No City player has scored in the three games he has missed since being injured. “Alex Revell works harder than Jones but simply doesn’t provide a threat in the penalty box.” The 32-year-old ex-Rotherham man “wins everything in the air but apart from that I’m not sure. He doesn’t have the quality of a clinical striker”, “He is a workhorse who flicks the ball on a lot.” “Combine Revell’s attitude and work rate with Jones’s ability and you would have a very good striker”, “We love a trier but the quality isn’t there”, “Out of his depth”, “He is so predictable, a long ball for him to flick on and inevitably we give away possession”, “Playing him is totally pointless.” Joe Mason“If you don’t have pace or strength you have to make up for it with your footballing brain. Mason is currently failing to do this. He is now easy to play against”, “He doesn’t have the pace to make runs to beat defenders”, “Mason and Revell as a duo are about as frightening as custard.”  “People are being harsh on Mason. He is our top scorer.” While Bluebirds have been very critical of the 24-year-old ex-Plymouth man, he has bagged five goals in the campaign so far. “He loses the ball too easily and looks for a pass when he should be shooting”, “He is a passenger in this team.” “I want the old Mason back. The Mason who first joined us was fearless, raw and pacey and so could go past players and create something out of nothing. He is now a predictable one-footed footballer who has lost his pace. He can’t run in behind defenders or hold the ball up, constantly outmuscled.” Bluebirds’ Thoughts on ITFC and the Game“After the awful performance Monday it is difficult to be optimistic about this one. However, Ipswich haven't won for ages and seem to be in worse form than us. I think we have only lost two of our last 14 away games, one of them to Ipswich who were having a good run at that time.” “Ipswich are built on the same pragmatic principles as us”, “Clearly a low-scoring game, how about another thrilling 0-0?”, “I very much doubt a classic. In fact 0-0 is written all over this but going on how bad were on Monday and how lucky we were, sod’s law will intervene and it will be a 2-0 loss.” Bluebirds’ pre-match forecast polls have 46 per cent predicting a draw and 32 per cent a home win with a 0-0 draw unsurprisingly the most popular predicted score by a distance. Every Bluebird forecasting a Town win expects us to keep a clean sheet while 2-1 was the most popular away win score predicted. “It’s been a disappointing start to the season for Mick McCarthy and his Tractor Boys. He has recently mentioned that he is worried by his team’s form and rightly so. They haven’t won for [six] league games and have just two wins in their last 10 games.” A preview piece on one forum seemed to lose both a sense of perspective and a sense of geography when looking at our current situation: “The pressure is now starting to build on Ipswich and indeed on Mick McCarthy who may be fighting for his job if the current run of form continues. “Cardiff may look at Ipswich as an easy three points but with the run of results the Norfolk [sic] team have had, travelling to Portman Road suddenly becomes a difficult fixture because there’s no doubt they’ll be giving everything to get back to winning ways in front of their home crowd.” One fan has his Saturday well mapped out: “We never do well at Ipswich and played poorly against Bristol on Monday night and McCarthy was in the stand taking note of all our weaknesses, yet I'm going against convention and think we can it win 2-1 and I will be in the Railway Pub at 1pm.” WebsitesThere are two active and informative Bluebirds’ message boards. The Cardiff City Forum carries threads which link national and local news stories along with general discussions while Cardiff City Online is another useful source of interesting and entertaining debate.
Photo: Action Images Please report offensive, libellous or inappropriate posts by using the links provided.
You need to login in order to post your comments |
   Blogs 295 bloggersIpswich Town Polls[ Vote here ] |
By continuing to use the site, you agree to our use of cookies and to abide by our Terms and Conditions.We in turn value your personal details in accordance with our Privacy Policy.
