Derby County v Blackpool Official Matchday Thread 11.12.21

I’m not panicking yet, but that was shit, just to rub things in the Knobbers won 😔. Still think we’ll be ok. I’ll click again soon enough. Have faith.
 
We need to start Grimmy, Keogh, Gabriel, and Dougall, and give them all a run of games to get going again. We also need to play two strikers up front to form a partnership and ditch the attacking midfielder (as we don't seem to have one who can play there currently. I thought Carey could but seems he can only do it in sub appearances at the moment).

A creative midfielder with a good range of passing, and a striker with presence and strength are an absolute must in January. And not at the end of January either if we're to start winning games in time.
 
I’m not panicking yet, but that was shit, just to rub things in the Knobbers won 😔. Still think we’ll be ok. I’ll click again soon enough. Have faith.
I said earlier Paul, I think we have much bigger problems than Prestons results. We look a really poor team at the moment.
 
Not sure what to say thats new, i might as well cut and paste the same comments from the last 8 or so games. I genuinely don’t know if the majority of the players are good enough and that obviously makes Critchs job a hell of a hard one.

That being said the fact we struggle to score makes me think we have to play 2 up top. At the moment if we let a goal in it’s basically game over as we have zero goal threat.

If i was going to lay blame at Critch then i’d say i’ve got no idea what our attacking pattern of play is supposed to be. We don’t counter attack and we dont push up and squeeze teams in their own half. We sometimes work space down the wing but then theres nobody to cross too and no support.

The best performance of the season was away at Reading where the whole team pushed up in there half and pressured them into errors. Since we have no creativity id suggest this is probably our best way of creating chances/ a good result.

That being said that only worked because of the sheer commitment and energy in the team. I havent seen that for a long long time now, they look so pedestrian.
 
We need to stop playing to not cocede and hopefully grab a goal on the break.play our strongest team unless injured and play to our strengths as in earlier games and let the opposition worry about us,as the way we are playing now is not working and we seem to go to pot once we have conceded and have no plan b and no idea how to get a goal back ,playing a lone striker is not working so lets get back to two up top ,play either 442 or a 352 ,thats what i think anyway ,not having a go at critch as think he is going to be a great manager but we need to stop making things to complicated.
 
Why on earth people are focusing on Maxwell is totally beyond me. There was not a decent performance from anyone on the pitch today, absolutely abysmal
NC is not beyond criticism either, he sets us up, gives us a plan and system, but whatever it was today, I have no frickin clue.
People are focusing on Maxwell because he was almost caught in possession 2 or 3 times, he made a complete dog’s breakfast of the save, as he did last week for one, he ran out of his area with ball in hand, how they didn’t get a free kick I don’t know, need I go on?
 
I couldn't see the justification for Sterling ahead of Gabriel today.

The problems as far as i can see are we give possession away through poor passing and I don't mean 50/50's, just rank crap passing. Not just today either. Then there is the lack of swift forward passing- somehow we need one of the 2 holding m's to drive forward confidently.

And what the fuck was Maxwell doing today, what, 3, 4, 5 times he got caught.

Next game I think we'll see, Grim, Gab, Epo, Keogh, Hub, Dougall Wintle and then who the fuck knows.....
 
Looking at the video of the goal whoever was supposed to be getting back to mark the guy who shot ,didn't do it, but could have. Couldn't identify him from the film. Not just down to Maxwell.
 
Makes you wonder if there is a bit of unrest with the squad and coaching team, there's certainly been a lack of confidence and a shortage of fight in the team over the last few games. Can Critch turn it round let's hope so!
 
For the past few games starting dale has been a mistake, not for trying it out in the first place but the fact that it wasn't working was clear in the first game he started. You might as well brought John-Jules in. Gabriel must be wondering what he's done to deserve this and dropping dougal makes no sense at all.
Jerry on the bench and dale starting, can anyone explain that ?
I'll be really interested to see what the next starting line-up is. If it remotely resembles today I might just give it a miss. Oh actually I'm in Blackpool with a ticket for the game !
I know we say trust critchley but trust has to be earned and and both he and the players have been left trustworthy in the last number of games. We need to get back to what was working and I know people have criticised some of it but partly keeping the ball was one of our big assets even if it does mean playing it back and sideways. We couldn't keep the ball to save our lives today. That's got to be the worst performance I've seen in years
 
I couldn't see the justification for Sterling ahead of Gabriel today.

The problems as far as i can see are we give possession away through poor passing and I don't mean 50/50's, just rank crap passing. Not just today either. Then there is the lack of swift forward passing- somehow we need one of the 2 holding m's to drive forward confidently.

And what the fuck was Maxwell doing today, what, 3, 4, 5 times he got caught.

Next game I think we'll see, Grim, Gab, Epo, Keogh, Hub, Dougall Wintle and then who the fuck knows.....
It all depends on Critchley's random team selection generator.
 
People are focusing on Maxwell because he was almost caught in possession 2 or 3 times, he made a complete dog’s breakfast of the save, as he did last week for one, he ran out of his area with ball in hand, how they didn’t get a free kick I don’t know, need I go on?
His hands and ball were not out of the area. We have bigger problems than the keeper situation.
 
People are focusing on Maxwell because he was almost caught in possession 2 or 3 times, he made a complete dog’s breakfast of the save, as he did last week for one, he ran out of his area with ball in hand, how they didn’t get a free kick I don’t know, need I go on?
Because the ball DIDN‘T go out of the penalty area and by a good stretch …simple as that
 
Makes you wonder if there is a bit of unrest with the squad and coaching team, there's certainly been a lack of confidence and a shortage of fight in the team over the last few games. Can Critch turn it round let's hope so!
I wonder about this, too. Both Gabriel and Yates have been overlooked, or at least under-selected, during the bad run. In fact, I haven't checked the stats, but the slump appears to coincide with Gabriel's omission, to a degree. Keogh's absence, too, has been a huge factor. Could these young lads be missing an avuncular presence?
 
Trying not to have knee jerk reaction but that was poor. Maxwell looks out of sorts, his distribution and positioNING In open play was one of his great strengths, and it seems to have left him. Would say he's still not fit. I honestly think we miss garbutt at left back even though he was having a bit of a mare form wise before his injury. Keogh coming on made us less secure at the back imo, don't know why we don't give the Viking a run out. Gabriel is a better player I think than Stirling, Stirling might even be a better CH than fullback. Don't understand why dougal wasn't playing I think this was a game he might have excelled in. Connolly is better than most of us give him credit for but I'm not convinced hes a midfielder. He might be the distributing CH we need though. The two most worrying things for me are that the last two games we have been very disjointed, like a new team playing together for the first time. The second is that we are not getting players into the box when we go forward, any attack is looking for one player and there isn't a second option or a second player chasing up if there is a loose ball. This group of players haven't suddenly become poor but they are lacking confidence, which is causing them to make a lot of errors. Maybe even critches confidence is at a bit of a low ebb as well. Get back to some basics. Press, pass, pace.
 
People are focusing on Maxwell because he was almost caught in possession 2 or 3 times, he made a complete dog’s breakfast of the save, as he did last week for one, he ran out of his area with ball in hand, how they didn’t get a free kick I don’t know, need I go on?
Yes, why stop at number one, work your way through the entire team. Not one decent performance today, from team for manager. It would take me hours to go through Husband's performance for instance. Win as a team lose as a team, clueless today the lot of them.
 
So what’s with the Maxwell love in 20’s?

Apologies for having to ask?
It's nor a love in at all. It's just a case of me knowing how a professional managers mind works and some of you don't with regards to goal keepers. They bring their first choice keeper back in after injury. Go and ask Critch, Klopp, Pep or any other pro manager it's what they do. Alisson, Ederson , Mendy, they get injured but when fit they come straight back in. Grimshaw did well no doubt about it, but it wasn't about that, it was about the fact that Maxwell is his no 1 keeper and he hadn't done anything wrong prior to injury. So back in he came.
 
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I am baffled by the continued absence of Gabriel, he was in the form of his life when he was inexplicably dropped.
Totally agree but could it be Sterling has something in his loan deal from Chelsea that if fit he must play? Not good if he does.
 
It's nor a love in at all. It's just a case of me knowing how a professional managers mind works and some of you don't with regards to goal keepers. They bring their first choice keeper back in after injury. Go and ask Critch, Klopp, Pep or any other pro manager it's what they do. Alisson, Ederson , Mendy, they get injured but when fit they come straight back in. Grimshaw did well no doubt about it, but it wasn't about that, it was about the fact that Critch is his no 1 keeper and he hadn't done anything wrong prior to injury. So back in he came.
Critch is a bit small for a goalie 20s 😀😀
 
It's nor a love in at all. It's just a case of me knowing how a professional managers mind works and some of you don't with regards to goal keepers. They bring their first choice keeper back in after injury. Go and ask Critch, Klopp, Pep or any other pro manager it's what they do. Alisson, Ederson , Mendy, they get injured but when fit they come straight back in. Grimshaw did well no doubt about it, but it wasn't about that, it was about the fact that Maxwell is his no 1 keeper and he hadn't done anything wrong prior to injury. So back in he came.
Critch said he had two No 1 goalkeepers. Grimshaw was in form, and on that basis Maxi should have been on the bench. The teams you alluded to don't have two No 1's
 
Play your best side that compliment each other Critchley and get some confidence vack in the team. Even if we lose. We know that at least we gave it a good go. In my humble opinion . The best starting lineup regardless of opposition is as follows

Grimshaw
Gabriel Ektipeta Keogh Husband
Bowler Wintle Doughall Anderson
Madine Lavery or (Yates)

Subs Yates ( lavery) Mitchell Greteson Connelly Carey Stuart or (Maxwell if fit )
 
Critch said he had two No 1 goalkeepers. Grimshaw was in form, and on that basis Maxi should have been on the bench. The teams you alluded to don't have two No 1's
so why did he bring him back in then? You can rightly argue your case about Grimshaw all you want but when it came down to the crunch why did Critch bring him back in? It's because Maxwell is his no 1 keeper. Tell me any other valid reason why he did it?
 
so why did he bring him back in then? You can rightly argue your case about Grimshaw all you want but when it came down to the crunch why did Critch bring him back in? It's because Maxwell is his no 1 keeper. Tell me any other valid reason why he did it?
Easy, because even now Critch doesn't know his best team and which player should be in their best position.

Hes a good Coach and did marvellous getting us promoted, but his tactical naivety was evident then, and is now.
 
so why did he bring him back in then? You can rightly argue your case about Grimshaw all you want but when it came down to the crunch why did Critch bring him back in? It's because Maxwell is his no 1 keeper. Tell me any other valid reason why he did it?
He’s the captain, an experienced player and a big influence in the dressing room. It was clearly the wrong decision though. If Grimshaw gets a good run of games he will quite rightly be the new number 1. If Maxwell was deemed to be number 1 before his injury it doesn’t mean he’ll forever be the number 1.
 
Play your best side that compliment each other Critchley and get some confidence vack in the team. Even if we lose. We know that at least we gave it a good go. In my humble opinion . The best starting lineup regardless of opposition is as follows

Grimshaw
Gabriel Ektipeta Keogh Husband
Bowler Wintle Doughall Anderson
Madine Lavery or (Yates)

Subs Yates ( lavery) Mitchell Greteson Connelly Carey Stuart or (Maxwell if fit )
I thought I'd heard Madine was injured again? Although I'd agree pretty much with your team selection.
 
He’s the captain, an experienced player and a big influence in the dressing room. It was clearly the wrong decision though. If Grimshaw gets a good run of games he will quite rightly be the new number 1. If Maxwell was deemed to be number 1 before his injury it doesn’t mean he’ll forever be the number 1.
never said it did but it doesn't answer the question i posed to Bend it. Anyway, seems like Maxwell might be injured so Grimshaw will get his chance back. God help him if he makes a mistake though the way some on here have attacked Maxwell.
 
Easy, because even now Critch doesn't know his best team and which player should be in their best position.

Hes a good Coach and did marvellous getting us promoted, but his tactical naivety was evident then, and is now.
no it's not easy and you should know better than most. My question to you was solely about the unique position of goalkeeper. Not about the rest of the team which is always subjective because of formations etc. So give me a valid reason as to why Critch brought Maxwell back into the team other than what I say which is in Critch's opinion Maxwell is his no 1 keeper.
 
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