Eddie Howe

[The Prophet]

I'm an advocate of tweaking things, I just don't think things have gone stale. Putting the stats aside for a moment, you can see with your own eyes that we're creating opportunities, we're just not taking them. A clinical side bags three at City on Saturday. 

[Beth]

Clear as day to everyone that Isak should be starting ahead of Wilson now.

[Kid Icarus]

15 minutes ago, SUPERTOON said:

He said the last 6-8 games though, can’t see them being that high over that period.

They are. 

 

Again TCD keeps excluding chances from set pieces though.

[SUPERTOON]

6 minutes ago, Kid Icarus said:

They are. 

 

Again TCD keeps excluding chances from set pieces though.

I’m surprised at that tbh, excluding the Liverpool and city games which we are always going to create more, there is only the West Ham game where I came away and thought we missed some good chances.

[The Prophet]

2 minutes ago, SUPERTOON said:

I’m surprised at that tbh, excluding the Liverpool and city games which we are always going to create more, there is only the West Ham game where I came away and thought we missed some good chances.

 

We missed loads v Leeds and Fulham. Palace we were a bit more subdued but Almiron, Joelinton and Wilson all had decent chances to score. Bournemouth is the only one I can think of were we looked pretty hopeless. 

[Kanji]

1 hour ago, The Prophet said:

 

We missed loads v Leeds and Fulham. Palace we were a bit more subdued but Almiron, Joelinton and Wilson all had decent chances to score. Bournemouth is the only one I can think of were we looked pretty hopeless. 

 

Isak too v Palace. 

 

Agree on Bournemouth where we were lucky to even draw there. 

[The Prophet]

24 minutes ago, Kanji said:

 

Isak too v Palace. 

 

Agree on Bournemouth where we were lucky to even draw there. 

 

We actually created far more than I remember away to Palace. 

 

Bournemouth away is comfortably the worst we've played this season though.

[The College Dropout]

3 hours ago, The Prophet said:

 

That's conflating chance creation with chance conversion though. Before the weekend we were third in the league for big chances created post-World Cup. We then created three clear chances v City, though I'm not sure if they were considered "big chances".

The big chances created have mostly come from set-pieces. From open play we were upper mid-table in the rankings.

 

Wilson and Almiron aren't missing buckets of chances. 

[The College Dropout]

3 hours ago, Kid Icarus said:

They are. 

 

Again TCD keeps excluding chances from set pieces though.

Because i'm talking about the teams general performance and creativity. How the midfield and attack are working together to create chances.

 

And overall - the team isn't passing the eye test. To me anyway. I thought we were a little lucky to beat Fulham which counterbalances being a bit unlucky at Palace. We are competitive but we don't look like a team on the cusp of goals flowing in.

 

Until we changed formation we looked poor against Fulham. Poor against Bournemouth. Poor against West Ham. Out the game in 20 minutes against Liverpool. Out the game in 40 minutes against Man Utd.

 

 

Edited March 7, 2023 by The College Dropout

[TRon]

2 hours ago, The Prophet said:

 

We missed loads v Leeds and Fulham. Palace we were a bit more subdued but Almiron, Joelinton and Wilson all had decent chances to score. Bournemouth is the only one I can think of were we looked pretty hopeless. 

 

There's part of your problem right there. When Almiron and Joelinton are making up a big part of your attack, you will struggle to score goals, Almiron's amazing start to the season withstanding. We need guys who will hunt the space in the penalty area. Joelinton did manage it against City for the Murphy cross, but he missed the ball altogether when all he needed was to get a solid contact on it.

[The College Dropout]

Just now, TRon said:

 

There's part of your problem right there. When Almiron and Joelinton are making up a big part of your attack, you will struggle to score goals, Almiron's amazing start to the season withstanding. We need guys who will hunt the space in the penalty area. Joelinton did manage it against City for the Murphy cross, but he missed the ball altogether when all he needed was to get a solid contact on it.

Aye. The way we play, a lot of chances fall to Longstaff and Joelinton. They're not going to score a lot of goals.

 

Maybe when we got Gundogan & Mount we can play the same style and score goals. But until then, something needs to be tinkered.

[TRC]

It's all been very rosey since Howe came in and he's done a great job, but what separates the good from the elite is how they deal with drops in momentum and going to plan B. 

[WillDanceForChocolate]

Fear not! Looks like Howe hasn't quite managed to kick the streaky habit.

 

In our League 1 promotion season (12/13) we got near the top of the table (from the relegation zone when he took over), then promptly lost five on the trot before going on a winning run again.

 

 

Then in our Championship promotion season (14/15), we went top and then suddenly went five matches without a win only to turn it around again.

 

 

There are examples from other seasons as well. Given how it works, expect to go on a winning run shortly and drag yourselves back into the top four.

 

Good luck!

[The Prophet]

What I'd also add is that there were games per-World Cup, where we created an average amount of chances, but were clinical enough to take at least one of those and see the game out. Everton and Chelsea, along with Spurs away spring to mind.

 

I don't buy this idea that our performances have significantly dipped. Pre-World Cup when we getting the rub of the green, we probably take one of our many chances at home to Leeds and away to Palace, while keeping West Ham out after taking the lead, but we just lack a clinical edge at the moment. 

 

Totally agree with the points above and the goalscoring limitations of our midfield. It's why we can't really afford to be carrying an out of form Wilson up top.

 

 

 

 

Edited March 7, 2023 by The Prophet

[The Prophet]

Just now, WillDanceForChocolate said:

Fear not! Looks like Howe hasn't quite managed to kick the streaky habit.

 

In our League 1 promotion season (12/13) we got near the top of the table (from the relegation zone when he took over), then promptly lost five on the trot before going on a winning run again.

 

 

Then in our Championship promotion season (14/15), we went top and then suddenly went five matches without a win only to turn it around again.

 

 

There are examples from other seasons as well. Given how it works, expect to go on a winning run shortly and drag yourselves back into the top four.

 

Good luck!

 

Aye, our form has been fairly streaky under Howe, but there are more to some of these runs than meet the eye...

 

2021/2022

 

1 win in 9

6 wins in 7

0 wins in 3

6 wins in 8

 

2022/2023

 

1 win in 7

7 wins in 8

1 win in 9

[gbandit]

We know Howe doesn’t like to change a winning team, that’s been justified during his tenure. Now, we’re going to find out this week what happens when we’re a losing team. If changes aren’t made now, it will ask the question, what needs to happen for changes to come in. I trust him, and hope we get a big result this weekend 

[Bimpy474]

1 hour ago, WillDanceForChocolate said:

Fear not! Looks like Howe hasn't quite managed to kick the streaky habit.

 

In our League 1 promotion season (12/13) we got near the top of the table (from the relegation zone when he took over), then promptly lost five on the trot before going on a winning run again.

 

 

Then in our Championship promotion season (14/15), we went top and then suddenly went five matches without a win only to turn it around again.

 

 

There are examples from other seasons as well. Given how it works, expect to go on a winning run shortly and drag yourselves back into the top four.

 

Good luck!

Feckin hell you improved on the back 9.

 

 

Edited March 7, 2023 by Bimpy474

[CherryPie]

3 hours ago, WillDanceForChocolate said:

Fear not! Looks like Howe hasn't quite managed to kick the streaky habit.

 

In our League 1 promotion season (12/13) we got near the top of the table (from the relegation zone when he took over), then promptly lost five on the trot before going on a winning run again.

 

 

Then in our Championship promotion season (14/15), we went top and then suddenly went five matches without a win only to turn it around again.

 

 

There are examples from other seasons as well. Given how it works, expect to go on a winning run shortly and drag yourselves back into the top four.

 

Good luck!

The only thing I’d add to this is that the turnaround in form after the lean spell, certainly in the Championship season, was not achieved by any significant changes in formation, tactics (so far as this amateur observer could see) or selection. It was probably the most stable I can ever remember our side. I’ll stick it below in case anyone is interested.

 

Loyalty is a huge thing for Eddie. If a player is honest, gives everything in training and on the pitch, and has what Eddie thinks is the right quality, he will reward that by being loyal in his selection. (If you are an entitled, whinging Scot who’s only interested in himself, mind, you get sent to play five-a-side with the under 12s.) I reckon that Eddie thinks that all players and teams have dips in form, and that the best way to get out of bad form is to play yourself out of it. Presumably there’s a fine balance between the short term gain of shaking things up and the long term impact on the project of not keeping faith in players who are still giving you everything and a system that has taken you to top 4 against all predictions.

 

That said, IMHO he can take this to far. The most egregious example for me was keeping Nathan Ake on the bench for weeks (having signed him on loan) whilst we were shipping goals left, right and centre in the EPL. It took an injury and a suspension to get him on the pitch, and he immediately became one of the very best players we’ve ever had, and he wasn’t dropped thereafter. 

 

Seen Eddie turn things round so many times before. Guarantee he’ll do it again. After all, what’s harder to turn round, a lean run against some great sides (often worth many more hundreds of millions than yours) after you’ve massively outperformed literally everyone in the world’s expectations for months, or the situation you were in when he arrived? Good luck with it. 

 

Here’s the mighty Championship-winning side of 2014-15, my favourite ever. The one that played itself out of the bad patches when Eddie kept faith in it…

 

            Wilson    Pitman/Kermorgant

Pugh       Surman         Arter           Ritchie

Daniels     Cook          Elphick         Francis

                           Boruc

 

 

Edited March 7, 2023 by CherryPie

[Kanji]

You Bournemouth posters are chilling me out right now, 'preciate it

[80]

Yeah, I appreciate the perspective, thanks. Almost sounds like you've received reverse conditioning to us - seeing hard times come along and being used to eventually massively overcoming them. With us, the hard times come and then everything you've ever loved turns to ashes

[RUHRLYASLEEVESUP]

2 years ago today, we drew 0-0 vs. Sam Allardyce’s West Brom

 

[Nine]

4 minutes ago, RUHRLYASLEEVESUP said:

2 years ago today, we drew 0-0 vs. Sam Allardyce’s West Brom

 

That team fielded by a ‘premier league club’ in 2021, you’d think that image would remind some of the more impatient ‘spend more’ fans of the stage we are at right now.

 

 

Edited March 7, 2023 by Nine

[RUHRLYASLEEVESUP]

3 minutes ago, Nine said:

That team fielded by a ‘premier league club’ in 2021, you’d think that image would remind some of the more impatient ‘spend more’ fans of the stage we are at right now.

 

 

 

Which was my intention, like many I would love to be competing against the best in our league but I know were at least 2 summer transfers away from that, as eluded to by Dan Ashworth yesterday.

Completely delighted just to be able to have pride in my team agin to be perfectly honest, everything else is a massive bonus for me personally. 

[Colos Short and Curlies]

12 minutes ago, RUHRLYASLEEVESUP said:

2 years ago today, we drew 0-0 vs. Sam Allardyce’s West Brom

 

theres no way that 11 kept a clean sheet

[Shays Given Tim Flowers]

5 hours ago, TRC said:

It's all been very rosey since Howe came in and he's done a great job, but what separates the good from the elite is how they deal with drops in momentum and going to plan B. 

what separates us from the elite is the quality of playing squad.