Leeds United
- Thread starter ivoralljack
- Start date
Yankee_Jack
Key Player
On the brighter side ... unless we pull up lame from being under-managed and over worked ... if we play like that for the rest of the season, then We will have a good outcome. One of our most solid performances for quite a while. We forced a Bielsa team to change shape at half time to combat us, that says something about the quality that we can produce when we apply ourselves.
I don't blame the lads one iota for this. They played well, put in the effort and almost snatched a point. Well done to them. There was only ONE REASON for this defeat and ONE MAN responsible - Steve Cooper. His inexperience, his lack of ability to see what's in front of him, cost his team a deserved share of the spoils.
When he did make a substitution he put on 35 year old Wayne Frigging Routledge who now appears totally shot as a player. We wanted runners, industry, energy; players who would match Leeds effort for effort and yard for yard. Routs never did that even when he was fit!!!!!
There's still a twist or two to be run in this race but how demotivated must the lads feel after this? They could have gone to Forest cock-a-hoop knowing that their fate was still in their own hands. Now they'll go there thinking of what might have been. And players talk, believe me they talk and they will all be aware of how Cooper let them down today with his lack of game appreciation.
They might like him as a person but I'm not sure they respect him as their boss. I mean just think on: most of his squad have far more experience of competitive league football than he does. And that's a FACT! We took the cheap option when we appointed him and likely that will cost us a shot at getting back to the Premier League.
When he did make a substitution he put on 35 year old Wayne Frigging Routledge who now appears totally shot as a player. We wanted runners, industry, energy; players who would match Leeds effort for effort and yard for yard. Routs never did that even when he was fit!!!!!
There's still a twist or two to be run in this race but how demotivated must the lads feel after this? They could have gone to Forest cock-a-hoop knowing that their fate was still in their own hands. Now they'll go there thinking of what might have been. And players talk, believe me they talk and they will all be aware of how Cooper let them down today with his lack of game appreciation.
They might like him as a person but I'm not sure they respect him as their boss. I mean just think on: most of his squad have far more experience of competitive league football than he does. And that's a FACT! We took the cheap option when we appointed him and likely that will cost us a shot at getting back to the Premier League.
As a rider, onlooking rival teams will have received a tremendous boost by that result. Cooper cut the legs from under his own players whilst motivating our competitors in the bargain. 
CroJack
Key Player
Fair play to Leeds. They kept going and in the end they got a reward for their efforts. We coudn't run anymore and the donkey of our manager decided to bring in some fresh legs when it was too late.
We have lost play-off places earlier this season when we have lost and drawn games against the bottom league sides. We simply haven't been consistent enough.
Now it's not in our hands anymore. We need Cardiff to drop points and we have to get 9 out of 9 points.
We have lost play-off places earlier this season when we have lost and drawn games against the bottom league sides. We simply haven't been consistent enough.
Now it's not in our hands anymore. We need Cardiff to drop points and we have to get 9 out of 9 points.
lliwt yr lavac
Key Player
Hi ivoralljack - I was interested to read your Leeds pre-match post, particularly the comment that Leeds are far fitter than us and your hope that Cooper uses the subs well.
You must be psychic as that’s exactly how it turned out, and how they won the game, they were far fitter than us at the end, and Cooper didn’t use his subs well, leaving it too late after they scored to change things. Some of our players were out on their feet. Subs at the right time may have rescued the draw.
You’ve got to ask why Leeds are fitter than us, was it that their players were more experienced and paced themselves better?
Why didn’t the alarm bells ring with Cooper when super-sub Hernandez came on, and why didn’t we use fresh legs to mark him more closely?
I also thought Woodman was a bit slow to react to Hernandez’s half hit shot that went in off the post.
Yankee_Jack
Key Player
Woodman was at full stretch on Pablo's shot, which literally threaded a needle between fingertips and post. Pablo could do that 100 times and only make it once - a blade of grass could have provided enough of a difference to hit post or clip a finger tip.
And, as our shit luck would have it, Pablo only needed to do it THE once. However, somebody should have had a word in the ear of our midfield players immediately before the kick-off for the second half and assigned somebody to not give him an inch of room. At this level Pablo is superb quality and more than capable of pulling the strings and scoring himself. It's not like he should have been a mystery to Tate on the bench .... Andy Pandy yes (everything's a mystery), but not Tate ... or any of the unders like Grimes that ever practised with him
And, as our shit luck would have it, Pablo only needed to do it THE once. However, somebody should have had a word in the ear of our midfield players immediately before the kick-off for the second half and assigned somebody to not give him an inch of room. At this level Pablo is superb quality and more than capable of pulling the strings and scoring himself. It's not like he should have been a mystery to Tate on the bench .... Andy Pandy yes (everything's a mystery), but not Tate ... or any of the unders like Grimes that ever practised with him
I think everyone on here was aware of the disparity in A) the fitness of the two teams and B) Cooper's naive or non-use of his subs. And, as @Yankee_Jack correctly pointed out, we had no one with fresh legs to shadow Pablo and give him a few digs in the bargain. We've all said time and time again, that Cooper's inexperience is costing us. Certainly, whilst he's learning on the job AT OUR EXPENSE, the lost points his decisions, or non-decisions, will likely cost us a shot at promotion.
Were it not for the blistering start we made at the beginning of the season, our subsequent results have been no more than average. The fact that we still have an outside chance of the play-offs has nothing to do with Cooper and everything to do with the influence that was a hang over from Potter's tenure. As the season progressed and Cooper put his stamp on the team, so our performances regressed. Cooper might well become a good manager in time but right now he is not!
KVetch
Key Player
Here's a defender in his prime. They tried to steal his lobsters but got cod in the end.
Carlos Carvalhal escapes with cuts and bruises after fending off three robbers - one with a knife | Daily Mail Online
Carlos Carvalhal escapes with cuts and bruises after fending off three robbers - one with a knife | Daily Mail Online
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Pleased that Carlos wasn't too badly hurt. That could have been very nasty.
KVetch
Key Player
Right. Thank goodness for that. Wonder if they knew who he was they must have. Didn't realize Carlos is so close to qualifying for the Europa next season. I liked his press conferences. Felt like he was counting on getting good players at the window. We played some bad football then but he is not clueless.
Back on point if we pulled out a draw we would still have a tough road ahead of us. No easy fixtures, Nottingham, Bristol and Reading in the next 9 days. At least it's an interesting finish and were still just barely in it.
Would League One be so bad? By then the owners would have to sell and take their losses. Then a group of actual supporters could buy the club cheaply. This time next season we'll probably be talking about selling Garrick and Cullen for £50 million.
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CroJack
Key Player
He was actually too short to save Pablo's weak shot. Woodman, and I pointed this out many times this season, has a bad habit of being glued to the goal line. Had he made a step or two forward he would have been able to make a save. Easily. He simply doesn't make himself bigger and he doesn't make the angle tighter when facing opposition shots. I don't know why he is refusing to do that.
Borini
Key Player
It's because he is a kid with a lot to learn.
Yankee_Jack
Key Player
I keep coming back to same old question: what is there about this kid (Woody) that is superlative in any respect to Mulder and Nordfeldt that would pick him ahead of these two older keepers that are: bigger, equally skilled (or more so, especially with the ball at their feet), equally athletic (or more so), more experienced (in Nordfeldt's case substantially more so). Loan obligation to start? Nose up Andy Pandy's arse? What? There is nothing he does where he stands out and you have to say: "of course he starts".
There are Welsh league keepers that I have known that were superior. He doesn't help his CBs out from set pieces and corners. He's not known for taking one for the team ... many keepers will not flinch at coming for the ball, take a hammering and hold onto the ball or at worst get a good punch on it and bang the forward in the process. He can't and won't do any of that. He has no physical presence in the box and best I can tell no verbal presence.
There are Welsh league keepers that I have known that were superior. He doesn't help his CBs out from set pieces and corners. He's not known for taking one for the team ... many keepers will not flinch at coming for the ball, take a hammering and hold onto the ball or at worst get a good punch on it and bang the forward in the process. He can't and won't do any of that. He has no physical presence in the box and best I can tell no verbal presence.
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On the other hand he was beaten by two shots from outside the area. The first was difficult for him but I thought he had time to judge the second.
Yankee_Jack
Key Player
When the other team is pressing us, Woody is not composed and boots it. Mulder on the other moves the ball effectively.
But his ability to see and read those longer shots tonight left something to be desired. On the other hand .... I don't see Woody doing any better.