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Post by chad on Feb 27, 2021 18:41:09 GMT
This group as absolutely no bottle, as soon as things start to go wrong the whole team throws in the towel They just look round at each other and shrug shoulders
There’s no leadership on the field, no one the rest can look to for inspiration. No one giving out a good bollocking for silly mistakes
God knows where we’re heading from here but it’s not the Premier League with this shower
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Post by gingerninja on Feb 27, 2021 18:45:24 GMT
We have lacked a leader for quite a while now, it was evident on Wednesday and even more so today. No drive on the pitch at all, nobody grasping the game and driving us on..we look like sheep at times, looking for an inspirational shepherd.
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Post by bayernoatcake on Feb 27, 2021 18:48:18 GMT
The first half was a mirage?
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Post by chad on Feb 27, 2021 18:56:10 GMT
The first half was a mirage? No we played ok first half which is exactly what I’m saying. We got in front with a gift and that gave us a leg up and we looked at it. They score and bang. Heads go down the towel goes in and the games over No bottle |
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Post by bayernoatcake on Feb 27, 2021 18:59:14 GMT
The first half was a mirage? No we played ok first half which is exactly what I’m saying. We got in front with a gift and that gave us a leg up and we looked at it. They score and bang. Heads go down the towel goes in and the games over No bottle We were just knackered and had 2/3 midfielders that can’t run. We still created chances and on a different day Powell buries one of them. Today was just one of those days. |
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Post by christhepotter on Feb 27, 2021 19:01:33 GMT
No we played ok first half which is exactly what I’m saying. We got in front with a gift and that gave us a leg up and we looked at it. They score and bang. Heads go down the towel goes in and the games over No bottle We were just knackered and had 2/3 midfielders that can’t run. We still created chances and on a different day Powell buries one of them. Today was just one of those days. Not just about today though is it , we’ve been extremely poor on a whole this season |
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Post by bayernoatcake on Feb 27, 2021 19:03:19 GMT
We were just knackered and had 2/3 midfielders that can’t run. We still created chances and on a different day Powell buries one of them. Today was just one of those days. Not just about today though is it , we’ve been extremely poor on a whole this season I don’t think we were poor today on the whole. |
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Post by somersetstokie on Feb 27, 2021 19:05:40 GMT
The thought just struck me, looking at the thread, that this lot are representing the proud tradition that is Stoke City FC. Few of them in reality are contributing and are certainly not playing for the shirt.
I wonder if any of them know, for example, what a bottle kiln is!
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Post by xchpotter on Feb 27, 2021 19:06:31 GMT
There is something wrong. It’s like we still haven’t shaken off the stench of relegation and learned to build a consistent positive mentality. MON needs to find his Gerry Taggart and sharpish or the newer lot will become infected with this losing mindset if they aren’t already.
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Post by sheikhmomo on Feb 27, 2021 19:07:07 GMT
Not just about today though is it , we’ve been extremely poor on a whole this season I don’t think we were poor today on the whole. We were decent first half but when you look at the experience on the pitch the second half was an utter tragedy. Two home sides have beat us in a couple of days without having to do fuck all to earn it really. This is not a good bunch of players. |
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Post by Deleted on Feb 27, 2021 19:47:26 GMT
I personally define a leader as someone like Dennis Smith , or Mike Doyle or Robert Huth , so there is absolutely no point in me looking for a leader in this team .
If you set the bar that high , we don't have anything even approaching a leader in this team
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Post by davejohnno1 on Feb 27, 2021 19:52:55 GMT
Generally, I don't think this team lack in effort.
They rarely give less than their best. What the group do lack is copious amounts of quality.
Go through todays team. In an ideal world we'd only be starting the game with a maximum 4 players from the entire squad and one of those, most want the other keeper to play.
Gunn, Souttar, RND and Powell.
The rest are either hopeless or have some serious limitations.
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Post by newsteadst3 on Feb 27, 2021 19:58:05 GMT
Its just going through motions now, going nowhere, even good stokies I speak too are losing interest sadly, pandemic hasn't helped either. I just hope the fans are going to return and have not found alternatives when we're allowed back.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 27, 2021 20:01:12 GMT
We don't lack effort but we do lack a leader ...a Dennis Smith , a Mike Doyle , a Robert Huth ...we just don't have one
The fact that we don't lack effort , is actually a worry in itself , given our results .
My son played semi pro football and from youth team to first team, the managers most common whinge was the rhetorical question ...what do you want to do ? Work hard or work smart ?
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Post by davejohnno1 on Feb 27, 2021 20:07:41 GMT
We don't lack effort but we do lack a leader ...a Dennis Smith , a Mike Doyle , a Robert Huth ...we just don't have one The fact that we don't lack effort , is actually a worry in itself , given our results . My son played semi pro football and from youth team to first team, the managers most common whinge was the rhetorical question ...what do you want to do ? Work hard or work smart ? How much of a leader was Robert Huth? I don't recall him being captain at any club other than here and when he was captain because shawcross wasnt alongside him, games tended not to go particularly well. We've good professionals at the club. They just aren't very good players. No amount of screaming, shouting, cajoling will change that |
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Post by spitthedog on Feb 27, 2021 20:11:51 GMT
I don’t think we were poor today on the whole. We were decent first half but when you look at the experience on the pitch the second half was an utter tragedy. Two home sides have beat us in a couple of days without having to do fuck all to earn it really. This is not a good bunch of players. Brentford did do something today, though, they completely changed their game, that's why they won. If they had carried on like they did first half we would have easily seen that game out. We could not handle their change of gameplan. I agree though in situations like that you need someone to get a grip. |
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Post by spirered on Feb 27, 2021 20:19:20 GMT
Generally, I don't think this team lack in effort. They rarely give less than their best. What the group do lack is copious amounts of quality. Go through todays team. In an ideal world we'd only be starting the game with a maximum 4 players from the entire squad and one of those, most want the other keeper to play. Gunn, Souttar, RND and Powell. The rest are either hopeless or have some serious limitations. Totally agree with this...for a multitude of reasons we are stuck with a squad full of players with very limited quality. I can't remember the last time that a player really produced a piece of skill to get me off my seat (Powell is the best of a bad bunch) For 50 years I've loved the club (and I fully expect that as a Stoke supporter there will be more downs than ups), but it's really difficult to get enthusiastic about the current squad |
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Post by Deleted on Feb 27, 2021 20:28:37 GMT
We don't lack effort but we do lack a leader ...a Dennis Smith , a Mike Doyle , a Robert Huth ...we just don't have one The fact that we don't lack effort , is actually a worry in itself , given our results . My son played semi pro football and from youth team to first team, the managers most common whinge was the rhetorical question ...what do you want to do ? Work hard or work smart ? How much of a leader was Robert Huth? I don't recall him being captain at any club other than here and when he was captain because shawcross wasnt alongside him, games tended not to go particularly well. We've good professionals at the club. They just aren't very good players. No amount of screaming, shouting, cajoling will change that Leaders don't shout , they lead by example . Someone asked mark Bowen on radio Stoke ...what about this conceding from corners worry ? ...and I am paraphrasing but he basically said ...it's a worry because the players all just left the ball for Huth to head away ! Mike Doyle , just talked his team mates through the game ( along with Howard Kendall ) , offering words of encouragement , rather than shouting .But he was still voted the hardest ever player to play for man city , in the days when they had such polls . He lead by example , not by shouting . |
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Post by palerider on Feb 27, 2021 20:33:00 GMT
There’s been a aw well fuck it stench for at least the last four seasons,no leaders ,too many stealing a living
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Post by peterthornesboots on Feb 27, 2021 20:36:23 GMT
This group as absolutely no bottle, as soon as things start to go wrong the whole team throws in the towel They just look round at each other and shrug shoulders There’s no leadership on the field, no one the rest can look to for inspiration. No one giving out a good bollocking for silly mistakes God knows where we’re heading from here but it’s not the Premier League with this shower I'm not sure that it's a lack of bottle. I just think that, when things are going badly, we lack that special player with a charismatic presence and ability to change/turn a game. Beyond Powell, I'm not sure if there is anyone in the team today who has that ability to swing a game in our favour or grab the game by the scruff of the neck. |
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Post by davejohnno1 on Feb 27, 2021 20:37:03 GMT
How much of a leader was Robert Huth? I don't recall him being captain at any club other than here and when he was captain because shawcross wasnt alongside him, games tended not to go particularly well. We've good professionals at the club. They just aren't very good players. No amount of screaming, shouting, cajoling will change that Leaders don't shout , they lead by example . Someone asked mark Bowen on radio Stoke ...what about this conceding from corners worry ? ...and I am paraphrasing but he basically said ...it's worry because the players all just left the ball for Huth to head away ! Mike Doyle , just talked his team mates through the game ( along with Howard Kendall ) , offering words of encouragement , rather than shouting .But he was still voted the hardest ever player to play for man city , in the days when they had such polls . He lead by example , not by shouting . Which is kind of my point. The likes of Chester, Allen, Mikel, even Powell, you can almost be certain that they are offering words of encouragement. They can encourage and cajole as much as they want but leading by example is difficult when you are crap. They do lead by example. Those good professionals who cajole and encourage their teammates also lead by example. They play shit and the rest of the team follow them. |
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Post by wuzza on Feb 27, 2021 20:41:08 GMT
Agree with what quite a few have said - I don’t see a lack of ‘bottle’ just a complete absence of that touch of quality that brings incisive passes or classy finishes or anything really.
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Post by peterthornesboots on Feb 27, 2021 20:44:11 GMT
Leaders don't shout , they lead by example . Someone asked mark Bowen on radio Stoke ...what about this conceding from corners worry ? ...and I am paraphrasing but he basically said ...it's worry because the players all just left the ball for Huth to head away ! Mike Doyle , just talked his team mates through the game ( along with Howard Kendall ) , offering words of encouragement , rather than shouting .But he was still voted the hardest ever player to play for man city , in the days when they had such polls . He lead by example , not by shouting . Which is kind of my point. The likes of Chester, Allen, Mikel, even Powell, you can almost be certain that they are offering words of encouragement. They can encourage and cajole as much as they want but leading by example is difficult when you are crap. They do lead by example. Those good professionals who cajole and encourage their teammates also lead by example. They play shit and the rest of the team follow them. Which was the point I tried to make in another post further up. I'm not sure it's a lack of leadership or bottle (or even effort). It's just a lack of quality (or someone who can produce a moment of magic) to turn the momentum in our favour. |
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Post by lordb on Feb 27, 2021 21:32:14 GMT
The first half was a mirage? No we played ok first half which is exactly what I’m saying. We got in front with a gift and that gave us a leg up and we looked at it. They score and bang. Heads go down the towel goes in and the games over No bottle Utter drivel |
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Post by march4 on Feb 27, 2021 21:39:26 GMT
Leadership comes from the manager.
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Post by smallthorner on Feb 27, 2021 21:56:01 GMT
No we played ok first half which is exactly what I’m saying. We got in front with a gift and that gave us a leg up and we looked at it. They score and bang. Heads go down the towel goes in and the games over No bottle Utter drivel I'm not sure it is. There deffo seems to be something missing in the "spirit" side of things in my opinion. Ability and talent of course will always be priority of course. Followed by a Manager's game plan and coaching. But that lack of leadership factor does seem to be a big issue at the moment. |
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Post by gingerninja on Feb 27, 2021 22:13:27 GMT
The players are clearly playing for the manager, there is no lack of fight, we are just woefully short on quality. We really have no players who can breeze past players with skill or trickery, whereas we time and time again do. It's an uphill struggle and likely to be for a while yet. The summer isn't going to suddenly transform us, we will I would imagine be roughly where we are this time next season, for many, that won't. E good enough..
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Post by thevoid on Feb 27, 2021 22:58:25 GMT
No we played ok first half which is exactly what I’m saying. We got in front with a gift and that gave us a leg up and we looked at it. They score and bang. Heads go down the towel goes in and the games over No bottle We were just knackered and had 2/3 midfielders that can’t run. We still created chances and on a different day Powell buries one of them. Today was just one of those days. One of those days? We're shit and have been for over 5 years now. |
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Post by Deleted on Feb 27, 2021 23:01:34 GMT
This thread begs the question....
What the fuck is wrong with Bayern?
What game is he playing now?
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Post by canadianmoose on Feb 27, 2021 23:12:59 GMT
Lack of quality is forgivable.
Lack of fitness is not. Most of them look buggered after 60 mins or so. It’s been like that all season too.
They should be running through brick walls. At least that would go someway to make up for the inability to do the basics like passing a ball to feet accurately from 10 yards.
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