Well, what a few weeks
that's been eh? As there are a total of seven games in February and a
whole lot of things to talk about off the pitch I've decided to split
it into two blogs this month. As per usual it'll be more a ramble
than any sort of structured piece. No real insight just the opinions
of a fan.
The
Matches
Millwall
We started the months with a visit from Millwall, it was a game that
we needed to see a reaction to after the disappointing result and
performance at Wigan. That might become a theme over the next few
games. Millwall to be fair to them are a decent side under Gary
Rowett and I don't think a point against them is the worst result
ever. It was a fairly uneventful game with a large lack of quality
but there were a couple of sparks, Alessio De Cruz made his debut off
the bench while there was a return to the squad for Fernando
Forestieri. Both offered something different and while it was 0-0
there was a slight sign of progress.
Barnsley
Following the Millwall game we made the short trip to Barnsley who
aren't having the best of seasons. New signings Connor Wickham and
Josh Windass made their debuts from the start and Alessio De Cruz
made his first start and Fernando Forestieri also started, I was
pleased with the line up as Barnsley defensively have been lacking
and Wednesday looked on paper to be going for it. It started fairly
well with a debut goal for Windass but after than Barnsley were the
better side and deserved to win the game. Yes there was an error from
Cameron Dawson and while it was an error that cost us the criticism
for me was over the top. Dawson actually made a couple of very good
saves to keep us level. It was a poor display and worrying that we'd
gone out to attack and done very little of it. I felt for the front
players as there wasn't a lot being created for them. Wickham's best
chance was created pretty much all by himself. We need to do more in
the middle of the pitch and give the forwards something to work with.
Luton
Following the disappointing displayed at Oakwell, Luton represented a
chance for Wednesday to get a result on the board. No disrespect to
the Bedfordshire side but they were bottom of the league having not
kept a clean sheet at home all season. Were we actually that
surprised with what was served up? I can't say I was, I try to be as
positive as possible and if it was a one off I'd be a lot less
worried by it but it isn't it's too often now that these players have
let the fans down. We were hopeless, no ideas, not a great deal of
effort from some. Yes the formation change probably didn't help but
in fairness to Monk at least he's trying to find something, his
players aren't helping him out much. From the moment Luton kicked off
they caught us cold and won a penalty after 15 seconds, it sums the
recent run up. We've become easy to play against, no confidence, easy
to break down. It was a really bad night for Wednesday.
Reading
So now we come to Saturday's game against Reading, Reading not in
great form themselves turned up and I must admit I didn't feel
confidant at all, I'll touch on this more in a bit but the mood
around the club is awful. The game itself probably wasn't as bad as
Luton, conditions were awful, swirling wind and rain. Reading
deserved to win no doubt, there was some effort and commitment and I
will point out one positive was seeing Liam Palmer as captain, a
player who's come through the ranks and does give everything he has.
We actually did OK in the first half but switched off to allow
Reading in for their first. The 2nd goal killed the game
really and after that it was an inevitable slide towards the third. A
bad day but one that was expected, people are staying away and it's
hard to fine much to be positive around the club at the moment.
Garry
Monk
I'll start this bit by saying that I'm no fan of sacking managers and I don't think we should sack Garry Monk. He's inherited a bad situation for me, this squad needs gutting and rebuilding. Monk deserves the chance to do that in the summer. We can't keep lurching from one thing to the next, as much as the situation is bad it really would just be ignoring the wider issues at the football club. Yeah we're on a bad run and Monk has to take some responsibility for that but is it not maybe better to stick with a manager for a while rather than constantly changing, it hasn't worked for a long time now has it? Is that all on the managers?
What
needs to change?
Firstly I think it's important to acknowledge that I respect Mr Chansiri and the investment he's put into our club, I get that some people will not agree with that but for me it's worth respecting. In terms of what he can do to try and move the club forward I have a few thoughts on it. I'm by no means an expert on how to run a football club but I do feel as though there are some obvious areas we need to improve.
Firstly a director of football or a sporting director, whatever the title bring someone into the club who understands football and the different nuances that come with it. It isn't like any other business, it's constantly changing and we seem to lack that football person within the club who might just made a small difference in a number of ways. We also need a commercial director, personally I don't think the club has moved with the times enough over recent years and the only period I thought we did was when Katrien Meire was here, people might disagree with that but at least she seemed to understand what fans wanted from the club off the pitch. Both these I'm sure aren't too hard to find.
As for the overall club, we need a plan. What is our recruitment policy at the moment? Nobody seems to know and I think that's down to the fact we haven't had one for a while. Admittedly the recruitment has been better over the last year or so. Iorfa, Borner, Harris all good examples of this. The profile of the players at least now seems to be right so credit must go to the club for doing that but that still doesn't mean we don't need a long term strategy. If we do come out and tell us, I think part of the reason Chansiri doesn't communicate as much as the fans would maybe like is that he feels that the reaction won't be good. I actually think he'd gain a lot from telling the fans the plan and to communicate with us more. I disagree that there is apathy around the fans at the moment, I think they want to support they just aren't sure what it is they're supposed to be seeing.
I'm not saying we have to be a Brentford who are probably 'too good' at it or Barnsley who stick too much to one plan that has cost them but we need to know the vast majority of our signings are of a certain type. Regardless of what happens this season or with the EFL we have to put a plan in place. Spending big and gambling didn't work and we have to lay that one to rest and build back up again. It might be a process that takes a few seasons but I think most fans would be willing to get behind that if they knew what the eventual end goal was.
Another thing that need addressing is the pricing and facilities at Hillsborough, for me the prices have always been to expensive since they were raised in the summer of 2015, we all know that the reasoning behind this was to increase the amount we could spend on the playing staff. While this kind of made sense and he could back it up with two decent seasons it'll be difficult to see people willing to pay those prices much longer, especially if the worst happened and the club dropped into League One.
I'll say again, I like Chansiri and respect him I just feel as though he put too much stall on promotion to the Premier League and not enough attention to the wider aspects of the club. Yeah we all want to be in the top flight and it's hard not to look up the road and see what's gone on at Bramall Lane and think where they were not so long ago. But as galling as that is it does represent what having a plan and backing a manager can do.
Obviously there is no guaranteed way to get success, it is down to Chansiri for me to come out and tell the fans what the plan is. Give them something to get behind, try and build something long term.
Thanks for reading
Tom
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