What does Deeney actually bring to the team? If Gray doesn't start or at least come on next time out then I may start creeping into the Gracia out camp.
Deeney wasn't good but what's this about him doing "nothing". If I remember correctly he played the neat one-two with Hughes for Pereyra's goal. Other than that, yes total trash.
I don’t know how we contrived to lose that. So comfortable until their first goal. It looks like another season petering out, but we’ll at least have survived again despite the Silva fiasco and an unreal injury crisis. Looking ahead to next season I am very optimistic if we can strengthen that defence and sign a new front man. That attacking midfield three of Femenia, Hughes and Pereyra were excellent, all three of them class players with loads of time on the ball - and with Richarlison now taking a much needed rest we have an option on the bench.
I didn't check the stats as I thought the guy who posted it sounded right. But upon looking at it: Kabasele signed on July 1st, 2016 which is before the period (last 2 seasons) of when we started to leak goals for fun (assuming you count us as having been defensively solid under Flores). Kaboul signed on the 19th August 2016 - 6 days after the season started (13th August) - we'd only played one game at that point, and let in 1 goal. Janmaat signed on 24th August 2016, 11 days after the season started. Mariappa signed on 30th August 2016, 17 days after the season started. So I think what the Twitter poster is saying regarding our defence is that since the start of the 2016 season - (the beginning of our change from defensively sound to the current shambles) only Wague, Zeegelaar and Kiko have been added to to improve it. And as he points out - one isn't in the squad, one can't displace the very temperamental Holebas, and the real quality one is now playing as a winger. Whatever way you look at it - quality defensive recruitment has been nonexistent for nigh on 2 years; and the three signings that have been made don't currently feature at all (albeit one plays in a different position now). Whether the recruitment team believed the players we had were good enough, or they just couldn't get deals done for targets they wanted - it's costing the team points and the club lots of cash in terms of prize money for finishing higher in the table. * all data from Wikipedia
This is a good point. There is no doubt about it, but our shambolic defending has directly cost us a top half finish. I believe we are good enough to finish 7th had our defence been even competent. That equates to a lot of money in league placings. So money saved on not spending on the defence, is related to prize money not won. This season 7th place wins you £137m. Coming 17th, which is where I think we'll finish, will earn you £103m. It's still a lot of money, but we would have missed out on £33m. https://www.totalsportek.com/money/premier-league-prize-money/
All financially responsible owners will have a league position which is mission accomplished & will tend to manage towards that. Arsenal’s has been 4th, ours staying up. Life will get tougher in future seasons as we start to sell our better players. Ironically, I would think we will invest more in defenders as/when we flirt more with relegation.
We are getting worse season after season, or so the stats will tell us. Points after 33 games. 2017/18 - 37 2016/17 - 40 2015/16 - 41 Goals conceded after 33 games: 2017/18 - 59 2016/17 - 54 2015/16 - 37
To be honest only conceding 37 under QSF was proof that we had a coach who knew how to build a defensive unit. We can have that again - with the right signings. Gracia if course sets up the team but let’s be fair he is fielding a defensive back three who would never get near our fully fit first team. In saying that we really do need to build from the back. Stop letting late goals on first then concentrate on the other end.
The usual story, ace midfield let down but appalling defence and attack. Hard to see where our next point is coming from. Every end of season is the same. Oh well
Not sure why Deeney is being criticised by some. He's more than good enough for the level we're at. The problem isn't Deeney, it's the fact we're playing a lone striker formation and he can't play that role. For that matter, neither can Okaka or Gray. Deeney is only good with a strike partner, a mobile/tricky finisher in the Vydra or purple-patch Ighalo mould. He's completely unsuited for the way we're trying to play at the moment. That's not his fault; the fault lies in the match tactics, the squad recruitment, or both. Deeney looked more than acceptable at this level when he had Ighalo as his regular strike partner (until the second half of the QSF season strangled our forward play and Ighalo suddenly became incapable of hitting a cow's arse with a banjo). It's great to aspire to play a certain way and with a certain tactical approach, but if you don't have the players to execute that plan you need to build around the players you have instead of trying to make them perform roles they're not suited to. It's a real shame we pawned Vydra off, as I think he could have done very well alongside Deeney in the Prem, but that ship has long since sailed.
right from "Zola out, through to Gracia out," I never recall anybody calling for the Joka's head? Great to see Fulham had another result today and that the automatics are still within reach for them...maybe that £2m a year wasn't too much to pay for him after all?
We've hired some totally forgettable coaches in the past, but two names stick out as ones we should have kept. They are Dyche and Joka. The club made a mistake in not retaining these guys when they had them. Our loss is another club's gain.
Guess the defense has always been good enough if the main aim has always been to stay up. Just saying.
Here is the winning goal. Yet again Burnley have 5 players against 2 of ours, plus the keeper. All other players are well back just watching the action. We had our entire team in the box, but only two outfield players were marking the Burnley ones. This is just not good enough.
You can make excuses for him all day long, but his lack of mobility, his inability to find space in the box and his rock solid belief that he’s a top striker in the absence of much evidence make him a total liability. Why change formation to mask his shortcomings? A complete busted flush. And no, we don’t have a lot of other options.
Another 3 points thrown away - how many goals have been scored by our supposed strikers? Thank God for Doucoure.
The one thing about Burnley we should emulate is the concentration and organisation when defending set pieces. Deeney shot cleared off the line, is just one example where Burnley preparation contributed toward the result today. They get everyone quickly in position. Last week Okaka waving his arms about, let Bournemouth get set and they score, But it also gave us time to get sorted. A couple of other points. Kiki toward the end of the game looked woeful defending as right back. I swear he stands still at least three times as a Burnley player charged forward. Fortunately they were more interested wasting time taking the ball into the corner. Also Karnesis looked dodgy today. To blame him directly for the goals is probably harsh. But he made a coup,e if flapping punches and got himself in a horrible mess early in the second half. We need three points to match last seasons total. But the QSF benchmark finish looks unattainable. This team won't get two wins and two draws or better from the last five games.
Driving home from the game today I put on 3 Counties radio, only to hear Derek Payne and Tommy Smith purring over Watford’s “scintillating football” up until Burnley scored. Sorry, but in the game I watched Watford put in a very stop-start performance, peppered with many poor quality dead ball restarts. Their play recently is not a patch on how they were performing at the start of the season, when there were discussions as to whether this was Watford’s best ever team!
Anyone who thinks Dyche is a good manager is delusional, coaching players to fall over at the moment of being touched isn’t what football is about and he is not being true to his own ethos, without doubt the worst team I have seen at vicarage road in the 45 years I have been going. Thank f he isn’t our manager. Like stoke but worse. Grips my sh!t how bad the prem game has become about wasting time and faking play. That said, basic facts are to pick up the sub when he runs on and accept responsibility so we were poor then but by fck I have a new found hate for Burnley. What an embarrasment for the game are they are. Enjoy mediocrity you canuts. Ref was spineless. As a team and individuals we did ok and looked good at times, wish I could put on my old puma kings and get on the pitch to show what having cohojnes is all about tho! I reckon at 47 I’d give Carrillo a run!
They weren't a joy to watch for sure but chill out FFS. Worst in 45 years? Farking ell you've not been many times in 45 years.
Yeah true maybe not the worst, lol. Maybe just the worst I’ve taken my boy too recently so dad got a bit animated I’ve been to plenty enough tho tks.
You have clearly been on the sauce ! Your team cannot defend simple crosses...if this Burnley team is the worst team seen at Vicarage Road in 45 years, then you should perhaps be asking your Management and Coaching team how you lost ! Given your revered Club's storied history of achievements with both those 3rd Division titles & the 4th Division Championship, I'm not entirely sure what you expected..... You are a minor Club from a London overspill area, remembered mostly for your sobbing Chairman sitting next to his, ah..hem " Wife " , at the 1984 Cup Final and very little else ! Thanks for the points, and Good-night !!
You can tell times are changing in the cess pit that is Burnley - the homophobia is getting more subtle
Not Dyche no Otherwise that would have been us yesterday playing one dimensional league 2 hoof to the big men up top No thanks
Fair play to Dyche, he's created a side in his own image that grind out wins. He would never have been able to achieve that here though, and that's why Gino was spot on to let him go. I personally find him tedious, and his rhetoric to the press is along the Fat Sam lines of "I'll never get a big job because I haven't got a foreign name". I guarantee he'll never be a success if he leaves Burnley, and I doubt he will any time soon
Dyche is simply the next generation of Pulis manager Burnley will go well with him for a few years, then the fans and board will start to demand sexy football (because fans and board of direct teams always do) he will get binned, and Burnley will find you can't just change style like that... and end up dropping out the prem Meanwhile Dyche will earn a living going from club to club saving them from relegation and wrecking them at the same time, finishing as a part time pundit on talksh*t in 2050
Jokanovic..... Honestly the bloke gets so much praise for completing one of the easiest tasks. He took Anya off in a game once and suddenly he's the next Rinus Michels Colin is currently smashing the Championship. Its not a difficult league to look great in when two out of every three sides are rubbish
Some sour grapes about Dyche here ? Mind you he didn't want to stay and work with the Pozzo model so no real point in complaining about him not getting a chance .. They did time wasting naturally but I didn't think we were exactly in a hurry when losing to take throw ins and free kicks taking out time to decide who was going go take them! The main disappointment was not having a chance really when falling behind .
Shut up mate. Do we go on your forum and gloat if we win against you? I doubt it, because we are mature adult fans who care about our club. Remember when we beat you 7-4? Oh sorry was that immature of me to dig up a win? Get off your high horse and go back to your boring football. I would rather play nice football and lose than play park the bus football and grind out results.
I know. I’ve been really disappointed with Prodl this season. Why he’s been given a new 4 year deal is anyone’s guess. Even in the opening minutes of the game, he allows a routine cross to go over his head and Burnley score. Luckily for us the linesman spotted a marginal offside, so we got away with that one. A few minutes later a low cross comes in and goes to Barnes, who is totally unmarked. Another let off as he miskicks the ball. It breaks to another Burnley player who fires in a shot, and Prodl turns his back, not wanting to get hit, but again we get lucky as the ball hits his standing leg and goes to safety. It’s a massive contrast to how Burnley defend. They take pride in blocking the ball with their body. They did this several times yesterday. Our players always turn their backs. This is a big difference in attitude and why Burnley have one of the best defences in the league and we have one of the worst.