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Thread | West Ham.
at 21:59 6 Jan 2026
It looks like West Ham are going to be joining Burnley and Wolves in the Championship next season. I'd already make West Ham favourites to win it. Burnley also have a very good record of winning Championship titles.
This is probably the weakest Championship of recent years. It's going to be harder next season to get promoted. |
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Reply | It's clear
at 19:30 6 Jan 2026
It's clear. You don't rate Shea Charles. Fair enough. Everyone's entitled to their opinion. |
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Reply | It's clear
at 13:55 6 Jan 2026
He was a consistent defensive midfielder controlling central midfield. Without him, the opposition take control of it easily. It's a pity he got injured because Flynn Downes hasn't been as good.
Defensive midfielders rarely score goals. They're there to prevent the other team's attacks developing. [Post edited 6 Jan 13:59]
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Reply | Doncaster On Saturday
at 11:18 6 Jan 2026
You'd think that the Eco-Power Stadium would have undersoil heating, but it doesn't. Not a great advert for its sponsor if a game gets cancelled. |
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Reply | It's clear
at 10:47 6 Jan 2026
Our team has the weakest spine in the Championship. Managers of other Championship clubs would not want it in their team. Would they swap their current goalkeepers for Bazunu, McCarthy or Long? Would they want Downs or Archer instead of their current centre forward? If he weren't always injured, Ross Stewart might find a taker. Our full-backs/wing-backs are 2 of the poorest defenders in the Championship, and opposition managers know that and are taking full advantage of their weakness.
You could see from the results last season, just how weak this squad was and it hasn't got any stronger with the loss of our 2 best players, Ramsdale and Fernandes. We are where Derby were when they went down with an equally weak squad in 2008: lower mid-table, hovering above the relegation zone. [Post edited 6 Jan 11:06]
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Reply | It's clear
at 10:34 6 Jan 2026
"They have shown that they are very good players."
I haven't seen that. Very good players consistently play well above average, average players occasionally do, below average players almost never do. What I've seen in our team is a mixture of below average and average players. The worst of them are in the most important positions: goalkeeper and centre forward: Bazunu/McCarthy, Archer/Downs.
Our most consistent player was Shea Charles, until he got injured. We miss him because our central midfield is very weak. But, even he isn't much above the Championship average. Scienza and Fellows gave a few good performances but they are inconsistent and neither stop nor score many goals, which is what really affects results. As for the rest.....no one has consistently played well above average.
I don't think they are skiving; they are just playing how they would normally. The underlying problem is that Sport Republic's recruitment has been below average, especially in the key positions. As saint 04 says, they have left us with a mediocre squad. [Post edited 6 Jan 10:44]
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Reply | Middlesbrough Game Matchday Thread
at 09:49 5 Jan 2026
"A tough ask today but I have a feeling we might just get something"
You were right: a free pie and a programme! |
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Reply | Middlesbrough Game Matchday Thread
at 09:47 5 Jan 2026
Brereton Diaz's goal was pretty good too. I didn't see Sam Gallagher's - I still remember his goals in the 7-0 thrashing of Pompey in the FA Youth Cup. He's never really lived up to his early promise, but he's still probably better than any centre forward we've got now. [Post edited 5 Jan 9:47]
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Reply | A free pie and a programme
at 09:39 5 Jan 2026
At least they got to see Middlesbrough.
They used to say, "See Middlesbrough and die" But I don't think the chemical pollution is quite so bad now. [Post edited 5 Jan 9:57]
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Reply | F@cking Ashamed / Embarrassed
at 17:40 4 Jan 2026
No, we don't. It's January: we need to buy a better goalkeeper or get one in on loan. We'll be spoilt for choice as most professional goalkeepers out there are better than him, including the 3rd choice goalkeepers at most Premier League clubs. We also, of course, need a better centre forward.
The spine of our team is one of the weakest in the Championship. With our resources, it shouldn't be difficult to improve if anybody involved in our recruitment department has a clue what he's doing. [Post edited 4 Jan 17:49]
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Reply | F@cking Ashamed / Embarrassed
at 17:31 4 Jan 2026
We got a very good new manager bounce, as the first few teams we played under Eckert weren't prepared for his tactics of counterattacking down the flanks; they are now, and they are exploiting the spaces our wing-backs leave behind them.
The players are what they are: mediocre Championship players. We are especially weak in the most important positions: goalkeeper and centre forward. But, we also need better full-backs and a ball-winning central midfielder. Shea Charles' return might help a bit. Until he got injured, he was our most consistent player.
Quite honestly, our entire recruitment department needs replacing from top to bottom and so do most of our coaches. [Post edited 4 Jan 17:34]
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Reply | Bournemouth v Arsenal
at 19:03 3 Jan 2026
The Pompey fans will soon be cheering the Arsenal goals again, and asking Declan Rice for his shirt. I already see more Arsenal shirts than Pompey ones in Portsmouth.
The Bournemouth fans are certainly noisy now. Their scouts keep unearthing new gems like Kroupi. Their recruitment is so good. [Post edited 3 Jan 19:09]
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Reply | FRASER FORSTER SIGNS!!!!!!!!!
at 11:21 3 Jan 2026
37 is a good age for goalkeepers. They reach their peak in their 30s nowadays.
Boruc was 35 when Bournemouth took him from us, and he played an important part in their rise over the following 5 years.
From what we've witnessed in recent years, Bournemouth's recruitment is a lot more sensible than ours. [Post edited 3 Jan 11:25]
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Reply | Southampton Set to Take Keeper On Loan
at 15:51 2 Jan 2026
Bazunu's save percentage this season is 64.6%; McCarthy's is 56.5% . Bazunu also averages more saves per game, with 42 saves in 18 games, than McCarthy who's only made 13 saves in 7 games, yet McCarthy has been tolerated here for years. Of course, for a top goalkeeper it would be over 70%. Pity we couldn't have kept Ramsdale. I hope Peretz turns out to be good. [Post edited 2 Jan 16:16]
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Reply | Southampton Set to Take Keeper On Loan
at 14:48 2 Jan 2026
One thing those stats do show is just how few saves McCarthy makes. I don't know where this myth that McCarthy makes more saves came from.
No matter how bad you think Bazunu is, McCarthy is clearly much worse. He should have been released at the end of last season so that he could never appear for us again.
https://fbref.com/en/comps/10/ [Post edited 2 Jan 14:51]
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Reply | Sheff U
at 09:46 2 Jan 2026
Yes, opposition defenders are so sure now that it's going to be yet another high one lobbed into their box, that they leave the near post totally undefended. A quick forward, if we have one, could dart forward unchallenged for an easy tap in from a corner played along the ground to the near post. |
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Reply | Sheff U
at 09:30 2 Jan 2026
Yes, even when Walker-Peters was our right back, opposition managers knew the way to beat Southampton was to attack our right flank, often by doubling up, and put crosses into our box. They all do it now. We do the same at the other end but have no centre forward to get on the end of the crosses. Why we persist in sending in high crosses and corners is beyond me as much as it is beyond our aerially challenged strikers. Every time our corner takers put their arms up to let the opposition know that it's going to be another high one, I groan - I groan a lot. A few low crosses and corners to the near post would be far more effective for us and would really surprise them. [Post edited 2 Jan 9:49]
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Reply | Sheff U
at 09:10 2 Jan 2026
That's probably the one area where we are showing improvement. Harwood-Bellis and Wood are winning more in the air. We lack full-backs to stop wingers getting the crosses in though, especially on our right flank which opposition managers target, and, above all, we miss a big centre forward who can head the ball into the net. About the only time we threaten is when Harwood-Bellis and Wood come up for corners, but that leaves us exposed to counterattacks. |
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