No title this season

[BlackSocksRedTops 3,752]

12 minutes ago, MacK1950 said:

One of the big issues is the lack of the proverbial"no.10"but i belive he could be already playing every game----TAV.

Move him into play in that area and play McCrorie/Flanagan at right back,with rein to attack on the wing without straying inside,as Tav does too much of that IMO.

To do this would then negate Coulibali who seems to have lost his way.

My dad and I have said the same thing all season. When Tav is on it, all his best work is when we are attacking. Try Flanagan at RB and either play Tav wide right with Candeias just inside or vice versa. 

[Franc Ergs 1,653]

17 minutes ago, MacK1950 said:

One of the big issues is the lack of the proverbial"no.10"but i belive he could be already playing every game----TAV.

Move him into play in that area and play McCrorie/Flanagan at right back,with rein to attack on the wing without straying inside,as Tav does too much of that IMO.

To do this would then negate Coulibali who seems to have lost his way.

Absolutely , but I'd prefer not to have Flanagan at all, though we could put Andy Halliday there as he seems to have played everywhere else apart from there ?.

 

There was a period a while back of some great interplay between Tav and Candeias, that seems to have disappeared in most recent weeks.

That interplay contributes to part of the whole creativity thing that we've been sadly lacking.

[ranger_syntax 4,328]

2 hours ago, gisabeer said:

your[sic] failing so badly Stevie boy.   your[sic] making Warburton look good mate.

Spoken like someone who has never watched a match.

[Gribz 850]

Refering the title, was the title the actual expectation this season? For me it was all about closing the gap and that has obviously been done. The fact we are in an actual title race is a bonus. Its certainly still a possibility but we have to dig deep and win on Saturday - end of. SG is still learning as a manager.

[der Berliner 3,747]

Any title challenge is over when it is mathematically over.

 

They have hardly set the heather on fire, despite having their full squad ready and available for the whole season.

 

We sure need some more folk - which hopefully will arrive during the window - and a bit of luck every now and then would be welcomed too. I would hazard a guess that we might well end this year 6 points behind the Scum and perhaps even in 3rd place, which will cause some nervous breakdowns here and there. And honestly, given our form of late and the schedule, I had expected worse at the turn of the year.

 

That said, the form book goes out of the window for an OF game and jsut in case we snatch 3 points on Saturday, the world might look somewhat different ... if not to say totally different.

 

Wee sidenote, a bit astonished that Killie is this close to the top 2 still ... and given that they play at home against St. Mirren, there is every likelihood that they remain up there for a month more.

[DMAA 3,658]

1 hour ago, der Berliner said:

They have hardly set the heather on fire, despite having their full squad ready and available for the whole season.

They’ve had plenty of injuries all season. They had a defensive crisis early in the season that cost them points before Benkovic came in and they’ve had terrible luck with their best goal scorer not himself most of the season and Dembele leaving too late for a replacement to come in. We’ve had more as usual but they’ve had their own problems. 

 

 

[RabiDuck 89]

37 minutes ago, DMAA said:

They’ve had plenty of injuries all season. They had a defensive crisis early in the season that cost them points before Benkovic came in and they’ve had terrible luck with their best goal scorer not himself most of the season and Dembele leaving too late for a replacement to come in. We’ve had more as usual but they’ve had their own problems. 

 

 

Hence the fact that despite all the doom and gloom we're only 6 points (theoretical on them winning their game in hand...) behind them.  As it stands, at least until Saturday, it's still in our hands to win the league.  Given some of the negativity (and yes, there are things that need to be addressed) we're not in such a bad position in the league, and a couple more transfer windows and time for SG to learn the trade (still his first year as a manager!) and we should be lining up a serious title shot next season, this season is about consolidating, pushing them as close as possible, and lining up another profitable European run next season.

[JFK-1 1,693]

I’m certainly not giving up on the title while sitting second at the halfway stage and a transfer window coming up.

[trublusince1982 243]

We were never going to challenge this year or next. Our wage budget is miniscule compared to theirs. Not even close to being competitive.

 

We need to focus on euro runs and getting merchandise sorted before we can give any real thought to league titles.

[JohnMc 2,754]

I understand the sentiment of the thread, if not some of the comments. We don't currently have a title winning squad, and if we don't find some creativity in the transfer window, we won't win the league. But if we do, and we can keep Morelos fit (and playing for us), and someone else can contribute goals we'll still be in the hunt come March and April. We're not that far from having a good side. I disagree with those that say they can't see what the side is trying to do, for me it's pretty clear what we're trying to do, we're just not doing it very well. A midfield 3 of Coulibali, Jack and McCrorie isn't going to create many chances or contribute many goals. With Arfield, Kent, Grezda, Dorrans and Murphy unavailable we're struggling for creativity and goals from midfield. Currently everything gets shuffled wide to Candieas and Middleton and it's eventually crossed into the box. That's because we've no midfielders capable of putting their foot on the ball and picking a pass. We're also reliant on full backs overlapping, but with Barasic out we lose the left hand side. Flanagan and Halliday simply aren't left backs. You do wonder just how pissed off everyone must still be with Wallace that he can't get a start currently. In all honesty if we can get away with a draw on Saturday I'll be fairly content. Let's see what we look like at the end of January.