Take a trawl through most football club message boards when their season isn’t living up to expectations, and the picture will be pretty similar.
After failing to score against another dogged, cynical, but effective side, the critics were only too happy to wade in. We all understand where they are coming from.
They pay good money, watch 90 minutes of football without an end product, seethe in the car on the way home, then let rip.
But I’ve often found that my perspective of a game, or situation, changes once I’ve been to the press conference afterwards and then had time to sleep on it.
The message board culture is, by its very nature, knee-jerk, with posts written straight from the heart. And I’m often as guilty as the rest at full time.
With no goals in three games, a faltering start to the season and ‘Tinkerman’ accusations, it has gone into overdrive.
Uwe Rosler, to a large extent, made a rod for his own back with last season’s dramatic change in playing style and ensuing success, and is now coming under pressure because we are not seeing an instant repeat.
Brentford are tucked in at 10th, a win and a bit off the play offs and – here’s the good bit – they haven’t really got going yet.
Sure, no goals in three home games is a worry and suggests, at first sight at least, that teams have sussed us out. Rotherham boss, Steve Evans, admitted as much when I spoke to him after the latest disappointment.
“We did our homework on Brentford and knew that if we pressed them high up the pitch, stopped them playing, won the first and second balls and then worked hard up front, we would have a chance,” he said.
In reality, Brentford’s approach play was far too ponderous and predictable to cause Rotherham any real problems… but much of that is down to confidence.
When you think too hard about what you are doing with a football, you become too precise, and the spontaneity – and then confidence – disappears.
Rosler has been hampered by injuries to pivotal players, and it’s a concern the scouting network has so far failed to replace them.
Playing McCormack on the left-wing and Saunders – a player more about guile than pace – on the right, was never going to unlock a no-nonsense five or six-man defence
Brentford, minus McAleny, have stopped getting behind defences. In short, we lack pace on the flanks and that quick-out-of-the-blocks striker in the box who finishes off any loose balls.
Fillo looks a decent squad player and is intelligent, but pace isn’t his game, while Dallas doesn’t look ready. The quality of the final ball from wide has also been a big issue for me this season.
When Harry Forrester left I wasn’t too fussed as I felt he had only eight or so blinders last season. Maybe I underestimated the effect his presence had on the pitch.
Because of the lack of width, Rosler has sometimes been forced to go narrow as he did against Rotherham after the break.
The result is Forshaw, outstanding this season, has been the only one looking to play in the front pair through the middle.
Watching the game from the end rather than the side, as Uwe does, it was interesting to see the lack of options open to him time and again from a static forward line.
Rotherham’s strikers were constantly on the go, while Trotta, Grigg and Donaldson repeatedly received the ball with their backs to goal. Only once did we see an incisive through ball and Clayton almost scored!
Steve Evans summed it up: “In the end Brentford made it quite easy for us to defend. On the other hand I have told our front men to watch all the great centre forwards who have one thing in common – they never stop working.”
Visiting defences will always be happy with safety first, sideways possession up to the edge of the box, so maybe it’s time for the players – and the management – to be a little bolder.
Uwe is right when he talks about “thin margins” deciding games – the width of a crossbar even – which is why I still believe a few minor tweaks will turn things round.
He has turned Brentford into a good footballing side and it is quite rightly a principle he says he doesn’t want to abandon.
The weight of expectation is inevitably higher this season because of the bigger budget, but knee jerk reactions will help no one and will, I believe, set us back.
Uwe needs to be given this season free from fan hassle to get it right and I hope Matthew Benham will not bend to the vociferous masses.
Bottom line is we are not creating enough clear-cut chances, but it’s a problem I believe one quality winger with pace could solve.
Oh, and by playing Clayton through the middle.
But then that’s the beauty of football. We all have opinions and we all think we’re right… all the time.
One thing is certain though – I wouldn’t want to go back to the kind of football we played a few seasons ago.
Jim Levack
Spotify
Apple Podcasts
CastBox
Acast
TuneIn
Google Podcasts
I have been posting on gig for weeks now about the effect saving the manager has on team performance. Looking at the weight of statistical evidence available sacking a manage my improve performance for about five to six games, then results return to what they were before the sacking. In sacking the manager the structures they have put into place are put into doubt and existing players unsettled. Furthermore luck plays such an important part in a run of performances we often attach the blame or plaudits go to the manager, when in fact it is just luck. Injuries and suspensions are important in determining performance. And controversially managers may only have a relatively low effect on team performance.
By posting this sort of evidence many fans dismiss the stats and say statistics can prove anything. But increasingly clubs are using such insights to gain the competitive edge.