I don't recall ever being as bored at a game before, it was dreadful to watch. The refereeing debacle causing an additional 17 minutes of hell was the cherry on the cake. Kamara and Kabasele were both particularly crap at the back. Kayembe is a one footed player who does nothing. Sarr did his standard thing - score a goal but totally anonymous otherwise. Our home atmosphere is as bad as it has ever been, there was nothing from the Rookery last night until a chorus of booing in the 26th minute. **** players, **** fans, **** football.
The ref was crap, the time wasting was crap Apart from that we were poor, very poor. Our decision making, playing it along a back line to a team playing a very high intensive press, was ridiculous. Their center backs didn't have to drop from the half way line in the first 20 minutes. Not once did we just drop one over the top to stretch them out. Our passing was slow, runners non existent, god knows how many times we gave the ball away in Midfield. How many times did we spring someone on the wings? We had 10 good minutes at the end of the first half, apart from that it was an awful awful performance
Oxford have made a new addtion to the revised dictionary. Watfordy (noun) (pre-noun) 1. to do something completely expected regardless of circumstances. 2. to carry on with unwanted trends despite promise of change.
Good summary. I was shocked with Choudury and Kayembe last night, they've put a shift in so far but they were totally absent last night. In the first half hour there was a continuous replay of: ball picked up by Kabs in area, being pressed he kicked it to gaspar near the corner flag who looked up and not once did a midfielder come back at a decent angle for a pass option.... Not once.!! Now since bilic went mad last match about them hoofing long too much, I had expected to see the DMs dropping in - but no, they stayed up near the halfway line.!!?? Our defenders are terrible with the ball, so why tell them not to hoof but then not set up the midfield to play accordingly.. I expected bilic to get a msge onto the pitch but no nothing changed. Watching the players movement they looked like arrogant slugs that jut think theyre top class players that don't need to bust a gut.... If I was bilic I'd walk away now.!
This angle perfectly shows Kayembe's pathetic efforts at defending a ball in the box; https://twitter.com/aaron_housing/status/1577763853953339400
I've started feeling like this for the first time ever as well. Before I used to look at the clock and wonder if we could hang on to the result or get a goal in the time remaining. Now I look at it to see how much longer I have to endure before going home and actually doing something worthwhile.
Garbage from Kayembe, Kabasele gets manhandled and Pollock decides to run a long way around his man. All because they've allowed the Swansea players that weren't going to go for the ball to stand goalside or on their blind side. Was the most obvious goal ever, as soon as we conceded the free kick everyone around me was saying they were going to score. Contrast that with a free kick we had a couple of minutes before in an identical position. What did we do? Got caught offside.
It gets worse everytime you watch it. It's like Airplane. You can watch it 100 times and find something new and hilarious each time.
We ended the match with Bachmann, Morris, Pollock, Kabasele and Kamara (on the right). It was hideous to finish a game with a backline like that. No surprise we conceded a cheap, basic, Sunday League goal as a result. We do have injuries, but they were totally predictable. What do you expect when a player gets to 30 or older? They will get injured. Cathcart is 33, so you have to factor that likelihood into the equation. Ngakia has been unfit all pre-season and is still not fit. Clearly there is a big issue there, which the club would have known all about. Gaspar is 32 next month so will get injuries and will take longer to recover from them. Hause has a long injury history record. It's the same is other areas of the squad. Davis has a long injury record, Cleverley is at an age (33) where he's going to get injured, as with Gosling (32) (not that he's any good). Far too many aging players, or players with a constant injury record are on the books. Is it really any surprise we now have a bit of an injury crisis? Aging players cannot play the rigours of Championship football. Their bodies won't hold up to it. You either retain these players but build a bigger squad or you invest into a lot of younger players so they will be able to cope with the physical demands a lot better. Our first choice XI is quite impressive if EVERYONE is fit, but scratch below the surface, having one or two injuries to key players and we go downhill fast. Kayembe is no more than a squad player. He puts in performance levels of 5/6 every week. He will occasionally do something great, like a pirouette in the middle of the park or a decent long-range shot, but that's about it. He should not be a regular starter in a promotion chasing team. The winning goal last night was down to him not following his runner. He just didn't sense the danger or didn't want to take the responsibility. He's not good enough for our midfield. The drop in performance levels is far too great if we don't have ALL our key players. We have to have Pedro, Davis, Louza, Kamara (on the left) and Sarr all starting as a bare minimum, just to make us look like a realistic promotion contender. We also need the CB's to be Sierralta and probably Hause or Cathcart. Bachmann is not great, but heaven help us if he gets injured and we have to call on Okoye. For me, promotion totally resides on ALL our key players being available for the majority of the time. We cannot function as an effective team without them. The squad depth in non-existent.
That is the start of our problems if Kayembe was the one trying to organise things ! Should be up to the defenders or captain first ?
That's the one I meant. I didn't realise it was on Netflix. Thanks for the tip. I'll watch it when I like football again
I quite enjoyed the first half, but the second half was dreadful - not helped by the fact that the ref went mental. What really p1ssed me off though was the spotlights that have been added to light up the stands that stayed on throughout the game and ruined the night match atmosphere completely. Save energy Watford and turn the bloody things off.
This is down to recruitment. We do not have any leaders in the squad. Probably the best we have is Cleverley and that tells its own story. I do not see anyone trying to motivate when the chips are down. They all seem to be going through the motions out there. You cannot really trust enough of them to get the job done. How many really care? Who will go home after last night's match and be too bothered about the result. I just don't see it. This is a fundamental problem. You need 2 or maybe 3 "bullies" in the team. Players who demand a certain level of performance. It's easy to switch off a little in a match, but you need one of your teammates to bark at you just to get back on it again. There's none of that going on. Where are the players like Deeney, Eustace, Page? Players who will really demand a performance from you on the pitch or will let you have it in the dressing room if you're not delivering.
Sarr - here because we couldn't get the right fee for him yet. Knows he won't be here for much longer Louza - probably convinced that Watford would be a stepping stone into the Premier League and that he'd be at a top 10 side soon. Gaspar - confused, doesn't know why he's here, nurse hasn't given him his medication Kayembe - Inexplicable purchase that we did not need and who isn't good enough. No idea why he's here Davis - here on loan, knows he won't be here if we don't go up. Will easily get a move to another top Champ club, if not lower Prem Choudry - Here on loan, will go to another top half Champ club if/when it doesn't work out here Kamara - content to be the chip in an outrageous piece of creative accounting. Sold on the idea of moving to beautiful Udine when things go **** up here. Kabasele - consistently not good enough and now, also old Asprilla - wonderful young talent, but in no way tailor made for our needs as a team or in fact, ready to be a regular starter at his age Just a selection of some of the issues with our squad. All on Paper, of course.
Agree with all this -when I think ball into 6 yard box from a free kick like that I think GOALIE-where was Bachmann-I know rooted to his line but really .........
I mentioned those to my old man. Didn't feel like a night game at all. Back in the olden days (the late 90s) when I were only knee high to a grasshopper you couldn't see anyone in the stands when the game were on and life were all the better for it.
I guess it was desperation at end but despite the mass appeals from our players no way was that going to be a penalty for “handball “..
Yeah that needs to be turned off, seriously annoying and I don’t see the point. Anyone would think we’re trying to guide boats into bloody port.
As you say, what this says about our recruitment and the way it operates is shameful; purely incompetent. The fact that they have apparently been unable to see the need to specifically recruit at least one player to provide that required leadership, even in the wake of a seismic event in the longtime captain and biggest figure the club has had this century leaving us after a decade of service, is a total and complete indictment. Nothing more is needed to draw a definite conclusion (although, of course, there is actually a bulging raft of further evidence). The fact that the hierarchy consider this acceptable, and something that should be allowed to continue as is, is indefensible.
There you Slaven. In case you read WFCForums. Here's the reason why we have so many injuries. Watford head coach Bilic concerned about injury numbers | Watford Observer
Been the same for years since the Pozzos first came in. Must be the training or poor medical /recovery team/process ?
Agreed in regard to our first choice XI and even with the issues around depth should be performing better then it did last night if its missing one or two players. In regards to the players age, it highlights another problem with our squad - theres no longevity to it. I mean the spine of the team this year is 4 loanees who we will only be retaining if we get promoted (assuming whatever our modest transfer budget will be will cover it). Otherwise the foundation of this squad is a bunch of players who are either 30+ now or, in the case of the likes of Sema & WTE, will be next season. These players cant have long left on their contracts I would have thought and like you say they seem to be struggling with the intensity of training. Outside of that, what else do you have? Sarr and Pedro's remaining time with us is limited, otherwise its bizarre and needless signings like Okoye and Kalu.
It's difficult to say for sure. It is heavly rumored that one of the reasons Giraldi was almost sacked, and why players went to Gino for this, is due to Giraldi handling the training sessions and not allowing Edwards to step in. Rumors persist that Giraldi takes control of a lot of things the manager should be doing. Do I personally beleive this? No, but it may be the reason why some of our players are so easily injured, if the regime is not the one the actual manager wants to execute.
Clearly the officials communications problems had some effect as I did think we had a bit of momentum going at the time it happened. I do agree with the lack of leadership on the field. I was always to place a ball in front of the player to enable him to run onto it and clearly Choudry wasn’t in the mood to do that and was constantly berating others when they didn’t get the ball. What I really cannot understand is when there is a break in play the players never take the opportunity to go over to the dug out for instructions on what is going on. How many times did Swansea do that last night. Instead we stand around thinking everything is like a bed of roses when clearly it is not. To end could someone tell me why when defending a corner or free kick we never have just one player up field as we clearly have no one able to hoof the ball out to. What do we do put all eleven in the box or just outside and crowd everything out and create more confusion and panic. Not a happy crappie at the moment and clearly all those pundits on the television who thought we were a favourite to go straight back up were talking out of their ……..
My Luton-supporting friend informs me we have exactly the same record as them; games played, won, drawn, lost and therefore points, as well as goals scored & conceded and therefore goal difference. They are ahead of us on alphabetical order alone and their forum is loving it...
Wasnt something similar mention in a recent article in either the athletic or WO? Cant remember now, but it was something along the lines of Giaretta was overseeing the frequency etc of training sessions, setting nutritional needs and so on. So basically like you say doing the managers job and wanting Edwards to be a coach only. I can well believe its the regime being set is the reason why we have so many injuries, considering how many different players and managers we've had yet the injury problem remains - its the only consistent. As an aside, it was rumoured/reported that some senior players had gone with RE to speak to Gino about Giaretta. It might be putting 2 and 2 together to get 5, but whats the betting that those players included Cathcart & Pedro? Seems strange that after starting every game (ad I dont recall them taking a knock) they should suddenly get injured just after RE is sacked. Probably ******** though to be fair
Loads of muscle injuries already . Goodness knows what will happen when the winter comes and it gets cold .
There are an alarming number of very average physiotherapists working in this country. I would not be in the least surprised if our group are amongst them. My late,great physio was Peggie Pearman. She was a retired nurse and her son played cricket at St Albans CC. He asked her to treat a friend in the team. He recovered. Word spread. She set up her practice in her spare room in her terrace house in St Albans ( near the dairy, can't recall the name but near St Michaels). Soon she was treating Jo Durie, Jeremy Bates, Gillian Gilks and όι πολλοί. My first encounter with her was terrifying and enlightening in equal measure. Tiny lady,then in her 60s. Looked not unlike Nurse Diesel in "High Anxiety". I was in awe of her. She had a very low opinion of most football physios. One chap, (oddly enough now coaching pickleball) was Spurs physio in the '80s. She was less than enthusiastic! She trained my current physio. If our lot were treated by Peggy they'd all be fit and what's more they would have a proper programme to adhere to. Indicative of the mess we're in.
