BFT £&*@!! - Burton

[genome]

Hmm... thought Swift was poor myself. Some loose touches and a couple of sloppy passes, didn't really offer much else for me.

[bobby1413]

Wow, ok so I'm home now and I'm still as angry as I was when I left the ground. To say again, I am not at all a "reactionist". I never call for the manager's head (I'm not doing that yet), and I rarely single anyone out. I usually support and see the team in th ebest light all th etime, even when others are screaming in anger.

But today... wow

I had a friend

Friends.... I had a spare ticket today so brought a good friend from work. A long time Reading resident, but never been to a game. I said "We have a really strong lineup, we're a massively established team, and it will be a really high attendance". I told him, it will be a good atmosphere, good crowd, we will bounce back from Ipswich. I can take losing, I really can, I can name lots of good losses if that makes sense. When it's been a good game, or close contest.

Today was embarassing. My mate next to me yawning continualy, silently wondering why I come week in week out and why I waste my time.

I felt far worse for Reading Fans who came for the first time in a while. I was delighted to see the South stand filled on one half with RFC fans. When did that last happen other than Play Offs or Premier League?

I thought yessssss, this is a guaranteed win. I felt that players would excel, would drive forward and it would be a brilliant atmosphere. This was cemented when I saw that Dave Kitson was there, I thought yea, this is it, a big game, big crowd, christmas, easy, come on.

Realiity

An absolute disgrace, utter drivel. The first half was devoid of anything worthy, it was a disgusting, disgraceful, obscene display of nothingness. I'm so angry about it. It was terrible. I said to my m8 before Burton scored that if anyone scores it would be agood, just SOMETING to happen please.

I still don't know if I blame Stam. It's getting hard not to. How can we continually say we hve a good strong team (I believe we do) yet we still don't perform. It's fine to lose, but seriously, today was a waste.

Please don't even bother replying with "we should play 4-5-1" or we should play "XYZ and drop ABC". As I said on another thread, I would have expected a better performance with a team of kids, better passion.

Most disappointed

I am most angry and disappointed by the waste of an occasion.

The chance to shove it in the faces of the fair weather fans. Those who were on my bus saying "Nothing's changed" and "Yea I'm an RFC fan but not been for a few years."

This was a chance to say "Fark you, this is what you've missed, a stadium full of passion and players trying their heart out.

WHat happened though was 500th game wasted. A disgusting, farking mess of a game.

I've run out of words to say now, drunkneness and anger mixed up. Anyway, peace out.


Anything is better than nothing

I said it's quite easy to get the crowd up. You come out and there's 20'000ish fans there really wanting to support you. All you have to is surge forward and smash it. Even smashing the ball into the stands. Do that, smash it as hard as you can into the South Stand. Just something to show you're doing the business. Not just sit back for 43 minutes until they score.

Seriously, there was about 3000 fans today stood up and as each minute went past another 250 of them sat down. Just bored, just fed up, just annoyed.

[bobby1413]

Oh and on a more acceptable tone, I felt Gunter was really good today. I thought Vito had a poor game, McShane again, VdB bad again, Kermorgant looks like he should have some time off or time in the gym. Kelly looked half asleep

[Gunny Fishcake]

Can’t even be arsed to read the other comments.....just f*ck off Stam .....f*ck off our ting tong faceless owners who have f*cked our club up . 500th game my arse......shocking performance they should all be ashamed . Happy f*cking Christmas.

[Rea Ding]

felt bad for the club today as they put i real good show on for all the extra fans, the game however was an utter disgrace. I hate booing our team but today it was justified. Cant see anyone else coming in better than Stam but this puts real pressure on him.

[RoyalBlue]

I just don't get the criticism of Edwards for today's performance. He was one of the few players who looked like he cared and was constantly trying to drive us forwards. I thought his overall play was tidy too and was staggered when Stam hoiked him off first.

[RoyalBlue]

felt bad for the club today as they put i real good show on for all the extra fans, the game however was an utter disgrace. I hate booing our team but today it was justified. Cant see anyone else coming in better than Stam but this puts real pressure on him.

'Really good show' ? A couple of videos with irritating effects and Dave Kitson? Did sod all to get the crowd fired up before the game and at HT.

[bobby1413]

felt bad for the club today as they put i real good show on for all the extra fans, the game however was an utter disgrace. I hate booing our team but today it was justified. Cant see anyone else coming in better than Stam but this puts real pressure on him.

Agreed entirely. Good build up and it got a good crowd. £5 is great pricing.

In a way it was a shame it was Burton and not Leeds or Sheffield Wednesday. Someone to actually rile people up more.

It's all excuses. This is the Championship. It's a scrap for points and we need to realise that. I think we do actually. I just think Stam hasn't quite got it yet.

[Muskrat]

Abject. Utterly utterly abject. I'm sorry but after that and unless we can pull off a stunning victory at Brizzle on Boxing day, Stam should go of his own volition. Not that he will. Nor will he be sacked, because I don't believe our new Chinese owners have any real interest in the club. I think it's just a trophy to them. I've never felt so disconnected with the club as I do now, which is sad really after watching some great players and performances over the decades.

My other point is to say fair play and we'll done to Burton. In the first half they looked no better than a pub team and if we were set up in any kind of sensible way we could have completely obliterated them. But due to managerial incompetence we weren't, we just expected them to capitulate, which they didn’t. Second half they were immense and showed us the meaning of team spirit. At the end I applauded them for a well earned victory.

I'd love to feel that again as a Reading fan....

[Royalcop]

Our players look scared to take any risks when in possession - always looking for the safe, usually backward pass - and I place the blame for that entirely at Stam's door. I simply don't believe a more direct-minded manager wouldn't get more out of this team, and more excitement with it.

[stanmoreroyal]

I came with my son today and we left deflated but virtually laughing. I started watching the Royals in 1974 and can't remember a team being as passion free. Who is the Phil Parkinson of this team of over paid players?
We need a manager who cares about our club rather than cloaking his rigidity in a casual arrogance about his possibility of moving on.

Time please!

[Jagermesiter1871]

Liam Moore's reaction at the end was interesting. Looks like he could be off and who could blame him after that shambles.

Who even gives a oxf*rd at this stage. The defence is a mess and is leaking goals. He may be the best of the bunch but he's not faultless and to be honest he's probably becoming a bit overrated by some on here. Give me Ingamarson any day.

[Schmeichel the dog]

I just don't get the criticism of Edwards for today's performance. He was one of the few players who looked like he cared and was constantly trying to drive us forwards. I thought his overall play was tidy too and was staggered when Stam hoiked him off first.

+1

Not Edwards greatest fan but felt he put in a better display than most and the fact that he gets odd goal meant he should have stayed on. In terms of the rest of the midfield, Barrow not on his game, didn't bust a gut and didn't take people on. Joey can be great on his day, but today wasn't his day and he always looks like he has a catastrophic error in him or a red card. Kelly I just don't get the love. Yes he can ping a pass but is lightweight and far far too deep most of the time. Aluko........ I'm afraid I have no words. Was he even on the pitch today?

[Lower West]

You can't field a playmaker like Kelly and ask him to cover at right back and stand between the centrebacks and watch them push forward.

I'm struggling to remember the last decent performance from Kelly. Stam has played him in a variety of positions recently. Sadly there's no one else available. As his contribution to the team simply doesn't warrant his selection. Might be a good kicker taker in dead ball situations, but we don't create enough of these. Never going to win a header, doesn't play box to box, doesn't tackle effectively. Unless the midfield is built around him doesn't work I'm afraid to say. Today we badly missed Evans to help link play up from the back.

[bobby1413]

It's even worse as we're suppposed to be an up and coming "city" with some decent population coming out.

EDIT: not at all my consideration there, just annoying. Sick of this atm. I just feel gutted that we are underachieving. We ahve the whole town ready and wanting to back us. We could with some achievements become quite a big club (in championship standards), but yet we are throwing it away.

That's what is making me angry

[Jagermesiter1871]

It's even worse as we're suppposed to be an up and coming "city" with some decent population coming out.

As in coming out of the closet or....?

[leon]

The players were abject, but the set up was just as bad.

You can't field a playmaker like Kelly and ask him to cover at right back and stand between the centrebacks and watch them push forward.


The whole shape is wrong. We're relying on our centrebacks to be the creative outlet. It's stupid. Our fullbacks push high up the pitch and our midfield either drops into defence or stands next to the striker. There's no movement. The players run away from the ball, there's almost never two quick passes forward in a row because each player is isolated and only those behind are in space.

The desire for how to play is right, but the set up, execution and application is terrible.

I think you’re right to an extent, but Swift coming on improved this a lot. Actually picked the ball up between the lines

We just played abysmally to be honest. Couldn’t string two passes together and let in two of the softest goals imaginable

Kelly is no playmaker at the moment imo. He is a big part of the problem - so negative

With no movement and being totally bypassed Kelly will never be good. Yes he was poor today despite that though.

Swift was a terrible sub for me, particularly for Edwards. Yes, he gave us a bit more quality on the ball and broke the lines a little. But with such abject play all around him it was never going to be very effective. We needed someone who could grab the game by the scruff and drive forward.

He tends to hold on to the ball and get over intricate. And he's soft as shite defensively. I don't remember who was on the bench, but anyone would have improved on the terrible displays from Aluko and Barrow. Anyone would have been less of a passenger than Kelly.

Bod should have been on 20 minutes earlier. And he has to start next game.

We need a fullback. We need Bacuna in midfield, he'll drive forward. We need midfielders to play in midfield, defenders to defend and support the midfield's creativeness, not be the 'creative' ones

I’ve been boring you fcukers for months about this but yet again the deficiencies in this team are plain to see. And Stam seems powerless to fix them.

No movement, ponderous passing around the back going nowhere and a disorganised defence that consistently makes mistakes and as a result concedes soft goals.

[Denver Royal]

Liam Moore's reaction at the end was interesting. Looks like he could be off and who could blame him after that shambles.

Or maybe his reaction was...'Yikes, I made an awful feck up, which handed them the game at a time when we had just got back in it and could have gone on to win it'.

That doesn't fit the narrative of the Stam and/or club bashing, but that's pretty much how I'd have felt as a player when I was playing.

Are there many current/former players in here? Because when I played, if I had a stinker of a game, about the last thing I'd do is blame my manager for it. I'd know full well that I was capable of playing much better than that, that I should have done so, and instead I let my manager down.

All the players have played much better than that in recent weeks. (You know...when Stam picked a settled side and stuck with it...like he should have...even though he 'stumbled across it by accident'. And of course, now he should be changing things up again...).

Interesting that Burton have so much 'team spirit', and their fans out-sang us and they 'sang all game long'? Not too shabby for a bottom 3 team that pretty much plays every game with a lone striker and 9 men behind the ball.

[Platypuss]

I just don't get the criticism of Edwards for today's performance. He was one of the few players who looked like he cared and was constantly trying to drive us forwards. I thought his overall play was tidy too and was staggered when Stam hoiked him off first.

Waved his arms around most of the time. Didn't get back, didn't get forward.
When he did get the ball he wasted it. Wolves got rid for a reason. Beige.

[blueroyals]

Tevreden's vision as DoF is emulating the Ajax model - youth development and the "Dutch" style of play/total football. That's why Stam was brought in as manager - to implement that style of play.

Unfortunately over the last couple of years that style of play has failed spectacularly on a number of occasions - Dutch national team, LVG at Man United and Koeman at Everton.

If Stam did get sacked, I'd expect him to be replaced by another Dutch manager to attempt the same boring style of play. I think it's that ideology that is the problem here, not the man who is trying to implement it.

On the subject of Tevreden what a poor piece of business Aluko was. Stam said there's no money in Jan for a striker. Imagine if we had £7.5m to play with now. We're paying the price for a poor summer - shite transfers and a rushed pre-season.