Oh well you cant say what you think otherwise

erimus74 · August 27, 2023, 04:29:01 PM

S*%#@&!g your pants in August, well according to Viv OTR, the real fans spokesman

Basically everythings ok at the Boro, we're playing fantastically well, apart from the odd blip, or two, or three, well half a dozen, we're on course for a successful season

Fans pay good money to say what theyre watching & if it means a few hard truths then it doesnt mean they're less of a Boro fan than someone who who calls out "alleged bed wetters"

My look is we are awful, sometimes we have periods on nice, passing foitball, without making much headway, we are weak in defence & out muscled in midfield, in a nutshell we'll be looking over our shoulder as opposed to climbing the table

At present we need to score to at least win a point

tunstall · August 27, 2023, 04:30:18 PM

My dad is the biggest Boro optimist I know....even he's saying we're poor

We must be bad

Nosmo-King · August 27, 2023, 04:58:03 PM

It's Viv - what can you expect? In fairness a lot took him to task

markmywords · August 27, 2023, 06:08:10 PM

It was blatantly obvious what was required last season. We needed more physicality in the team. We were a soft touch. This was highlighted in the home game versus Stoke and especially the away game against Huddersfield. If we had retained the services of Archer, Ramsey and Giles and also kept hold of Ackpom we would still have needed to improve the team to get in the top six. We are gonna have to pull some good signings off next week to get anywhere near last season's achievements.

Francks left peg · August 27, 2023, 06:44:02 PM

Quite a few polls online are saying we have had the worst window in the league!!! Still a week and a half yet left. Hopefully the recruitment team pull it out of the bag.

erimus74 · August 27, 2023, 06:55:54 PM

As the season approached the finale Carrick told us a few times we've compiled a list of playets to bring to the club, regardless of what league we find ourselves in, I dont buy in to the argument that Gibbo wont back manages

The players we have are what Carrick & the recruitment team picked

I also dont buy in to the rumours that Carriick is unhappy with the recruitment, how does anyone, other than those involved, know such information

Francks left peg · August 27, 2023, 07:38:52 PM

Erimus, I am hoping for quite a few over the line before the end of the window!

AtomicDog · August 28, 2023, 08:43:06 AM

We had BBC Tees on the other day the football thing, that's on at 18:00 on the way home from work

We heard this 'Fan' on it, sounded like a right bumbling idiot.

Ralf said to me "I think I recognise that voice it's

isn't it"?

'Sounds like him mate'

"That's strange having him on at tea time . . . Doesn't he usually do the graveyard shift"?

Gingerpig · August 28, 2023, 09:11:43 AM

We are slow, ponderous on the ball with only hackney looking to play forward at times . People are correct, we are poor to watch, there is potential in Silvera ,who has pace galore but needs developing decisionwise, but he has stepped up a lot of leagues. Latte lath i do like the look of very mobile ,direct & will score with decent service.
We were never the most solid at the back last year either , we just scored lots more which hid how average we were defensively . Its what we can attract here is the problem , yes PL teams will see we gave games last year .....but that was because they were good players. Where we are in league at minute COULD put players off , i know were sameish this time last year & got it right . Can we get 3 of similar quality in i doubt ,it just seems like a rebuild year again with a probable 10-12 finish & thats being optimistic with how we are currently performing !

LIDDLE_TOWERS999 · August 28, 2023, 09:12:33 AM

FRY LENIHAN & SMITH... DIVISION ONE AT BEST...

FRY IS THE WEAK LEAK IN DEFENCE AND SMITH SHOULD BE FINED A MONTHS WAGES AFTER SATURDAY 😡😡😡

Redsteel (Moderator) · August 28, 2023, 09:15:31 AM

Quote from: markmywords on August 27, 2023, 06:08:10 PMIt was blatantly obvious what was required last season. We needed more physicality in the team. We were a soft touch. This was highlighted in the home game versus Stoke and especially the away game against Huddersfield. If we had retained the services of Archer, Ramsey and Giles and also kept hold of Ackpom we would still have needed to improve the team to get in the top six. We are gonna have to pull some good signings off next week to get anywhere near last season's achievements.

This is more or less on the money. We haven't replaced the quality of four players mentioned along with needing a DM CM to give us the strength to push on. That is 6 players the team needs to get back to where we were. There isn't much wrong with Carricks football, he just hasn't got the tools to do his job. Apart from the Keeper and LL everyone else is nowhere near the required standard on last year. That isn't to say these players can't get to that level, it just isn't going to happen in the next season or two. The club needs to outline that Carrick has got a free hit this season IF we are building for the long term, otherwise he and the club are going to get serious pelters turning the stadium toxic.

BoroRedKen · August 28, 2023, 09:47:36 AM

All boils down to this imho.

This division is not a division that you can easily make up 9/12 points.

Have the club settled for a "consolidation" and a "re-build" scenario for this season?

To me the change in transfer/loan structure is quite telling.

Johnny Thunder · August 28, 2023, 10:12:20 AM

Going by the last financial reports, I don't think we had any choice Ken.
The debt is maxed out and holding. Gibbo cannot put any more in without breaching FFP.
We need to do something different and this appears to be it.
A scouting department to uncover young talent and hope that one or two come good and make us a load of cash. They will not get it right every time but they hopefully hit the odd superstar.

We are seeing on the pitch that we have taken a step back. There was no way we were going to sign Giles, Archer, Ramsey and Steffen. That would have cost us over 40 million and probably nearer 50.

This new way of building a team will take time and the road will be rocky.
Very fuckin rocky.

Even a new owner would be hamstrung by FFP. You can't just fling money at it any more. There are rules.

Smoggers51 · August 28, 2023, 10:38:02 AM

I've said this all along that I thought this season was a rebuild and consolidate one.We are hamstrung on finances and have to tread carefully with FFP rules.I still think we lack physicallity in the team especially in midfield.We need a big old fashioned central midfield general who can hold the game up and match other sides strengths.We are sometimes very static in games ( ie we pass out the ball but then players seem to forget the basics of pass and move at times.)I'm fed up of short corners ,they only work if you've got the skill set to make them count.Ball into the box puts defenders under pressure and gives a chance of something positive.Still we dust ourselves down and travel to Bolton where hopefully we can do something.KEEP THE FAITH UTB!!!

Gingerpig · August 28, 2023, 11:08:48 AM

Nail on head JT , can you imagine the shitshow if we breach FFP after gibbo going after Derby , we will have to go backwards in order to go again & that will upset 1 or 2 but its factual , easy to blame gibbo , but without him writing shit off it would be seriously worse

tunstall · August 28, 2023, 04:29:49 PM

Well I put two bags on us finishing first

Gboro64 · August 29, 2023, 02:28:56 PM

When you want to go in a different direction it takes time. Brentford and Brighton were not built overnight. Loosing Chuba and the loan players has been difficult with only Stefan being adequately replaced.
TBF l didn't expect a promotion challenge this season and feel we missed our opportunity last season .
We will be 15-18 th this season