Match Thread Coventry City - Ipswich Town Match Thread - Monday 29th Dec (30 Viewers)

[Sick Boy]

no way this team survives in the top flight.

Of course it wouldn’t do but the starting 11 wouldn’t be recognisable to what we have now.

 

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[Lamps]

Last night showed us a couple of things. The Ipswich players can turn up for big games but don't give it all for the smaller games and that their 170m side has better reserve players than us.

We're at the top with a gap because the teams below us can't hit consistency. It isn't because we're brilliant. If they don't hit consistency we don't have to be brilliant.

We just had a really hard November and December. A fair few said they would reconsider our chances if we were near the top. We're 8 points above 2nd and 10 points above 3rd. We've had injuries to our big players and a virus rip through the squad. JDS red card has hit us hard but he will be rested and back soon.

 

[coop]

Why did we keep knocking it long when we never won anything all night,every second ball fell to them every 50/50 bounced to them a bad night all round we will need to bounce back with 3 points on Friday.

 

[Viktor17]

Jesus, some of the comments towards players/manager/team are beyond. So classic of todays society to react to everything, rather than be patient and look at bigger picture.

We got beat by a team littered with quality and they all turned up, very good and tactically excellent. It happens, it’s football. That’s the Ipswich I expected all season, they beat every team in this division last night.

there are so many factors which effect us, this flu which is and has effected most players on that pitch - that’s fact, I know one in particular been playing and struggling with it.

Layer that into a thin and knackered squad. People had off days, again allowed.

we are top still, enjoy it ffs. See you at Charlton.

 

[Skyblue Bangkok]

Jesus, some of the comments towards players/manager/team are beyond. So classic of todays society to react to everything, rather than be patient and look at bigger picture.

We got beat by a team littered with quality and they all turned up, very good and tactically excellent. It happens, it’s football. That’s the Ipswich I expected all season, they beat every team in this division last night.

there are so many factors which effect us, this flu which is and has effected most players on that pitch - that’s fact, I know one in particular been playing and struggling with it.

Layer that into a thin and knackered squad. People had off days, again allowed.

we are top still, enjoy it ffs. See you at Charlton.

Because the internet is is a microcosim of opinion. It's also a place here some people just instantly ie everything is either great or crap. No nuance just instant opinion. We were beaten by a team stronger, faster , betwtr in the night with far more resources at their disposal than us .

 

[Hobo]

We did get a lot of crosses into the box but they dealt with them very comfortably.

It's for that reason I think Simms should have started but there's no guarantee he'd have fared any better.

I can't remember any quality crosses. How many crosses came in from our wingers?

Most of our balls into the box came from the long throw.

 

[Otis]

Why did we keep knocking it long when we never won anything all night,every second ball fell to them every 50/50 bounced to them a bad night all round we will need to bounce back with 3 points on Friday.

We hit it long because they pressed us so well and prevented us from bringing out from the back. We had very little time on the ball .

 

[Otis]

Jesus, some of the comments towards players/manager/team are beyond. So classic of todays society to react to everything, rather than be patient and look at bigger picture.

We got beat by a team littered with quality and they all turned up, very good and tactically excellent. It happens, it’s football. That’s the Ipswich I expected all season, they beat every team in this division last night.

there are so many factors which effect us, this flu which is and has effected most players on that pitch - that’s fact, I know one in particular been playing and struggling with it.

Layer that into a thin and knackered squad. People had off days, again allowed.

we are top still, enjoy it ffs. See you at Charlton.

Some great points. Also worth noting we have key players out of form, who will certainly come back into form.

Wright will hit another purple patch and Rudoni is much better than he is currently showing

 

[clint van damme]

I can't remember any quality crosses. How many crosses came in from our wingers?

Most of our balls into the box came from the long throw.

I never said quality crosses, they certainly werent that!
But we put a lot of crosses into the box, and long throws as you pointed out, and I just think Simms might have been the better choice to start though whether he'd have had any joy we'll never know.

 

[Hobo]

Wright’s hold up/link play was childlike in competence.
We struggled to get the ball into any forward positions for the majority of the match - certainly on the ground.
But Haji’s contribution (he wasn’t alone of course) was yet again utter shite.

I agree weak across many dimensions. But let's be honest all our players lost their physical battles.

The persistence with the long ball forward from Rushworth, obviously a pre match tactic, killed us in the first half. A lot off it gave no chance for Wright, EMC or Sakamoto to compete. Also our midfield was totally absent from the second ball.

Frank Lampard and the coaches have to wear that one.

Our best spell after half time came once we reverted to building from the back. But then the Ipswich goal killed us.

It wasn't just Wright, because EMC, Sakamoto and Torp put their deficiencies on display. Brau tried hard but lacks composure which shows why he hasn't being starting. Rudoni was wasteful. Grimes wasn't given space. The only two that had any credit was Wolfenden and Kitching. Rushworth general. goalkeeping was excellent but his distribution was awful, especially in the first half.

 

[TomRad85]

Of course it wouldn’t do but the starting 11 wouldn’t be recognisable to what we have now.

We're literally aiming to go up so that if we do come down we can have a team that has all the advantages Ipswichs' team has. The fact we are 10 points clear of said team is a huge credit to us.

 

[Captain Dart]

Video of EMC penalty call. Looks fairly conclusive to me.

 

[Sky Blue Pete]

Knowing that Ipswich struggle against the low block, I wonder why we didn’t opt to simply park the bus to frustrate them and then try to hit them on the counter (regardless whether we’re at home)? Worst case we end up with a draw bad and best case we might nick a win. I think playing an expansive game (as we’ve tried before) plays into their hands. Just my thoughts. I don’t care if we don’t entertain as long we get the job done. If we’d gotten a draw, we’d have preserved our unbeaten hims streak and gained a point over Boro as well. I hope the team doesn’t look for excuses, get too down or go off the boil now.

We did first half

 

[Rodders1]

Urgh just rewatched the highlights - when you’re playing well it goes your way - both their goals had very useful deflections

 

[Sky Blue Pete]

Wasn’t it wright

Video of EMC penalty call. Looks fairly conclusive to me.

 

[HadjiChippo]

Video of EMC penalty call. Looks fairly conclusive to me.

Great angle of it, everyone in the ground could see it was a stonewaller, except the one person who mattered. Accidental or not, he’s taken the man out, got nowhere near the ball.

 

[TewkesburySkyBlue]

Just got back. Gutted with that performance - didn’t lay a glove on them. Helps of course when you’ve spend £100m+ on the squad.

Disappointing to see the exodus of fans when the goals went in.

We all know 10-15% of our fans are only there because we are top.
They are only interested in us winning.
Those of us who have supported the Sky Blues through thick and thin realise how fortunate we are to be where we are today.

 

[Sick Boy]

Great angle of it, everyone in the ground could see it was a stonewaller, except the one person who mattered. Accidental or not, he’s taken the man out, got nowhere near the ball.

Where was the linesman?!

 

[Ccfcisparks]

Where was the linesman?!

on the opposite side of the pitch

 

[JSL]

It was Wright not EMC. Im afraid to say but he may have a reputation for looking for pens of late and not getting anything

 

[Mcbean]

It was Wright not EMC. Im afraid to say but he may have a reputation for looking for pens of late and not getting anything

We have a curious absence of pens recently ! Despite seeing me stonewallers

 

[Skyblueabo1111]

Im not blaming him, im saying in the brief time he had (15 mins) he looked no better than Wright.
Replacing one out of form striker with another isntbthe answer.
We need to address the striker issue asap.
BTA will obviously help when hes back, but we also need another CF.

You don't give your inform striker 10/15 mins. He was on fire, 6 goals, in 7. Then got dropped.

 

[Skyblueabo1111]

all I know is Simms or wright are going and we’ve got a replacement lined up, after the last few games it can’t come quick enough

Simms scored 6 in 7 games, got player of the month, then dropped. Why?

 

[Skyblueabo1111]

We don't need 4 strikers when we play 1 up top .
Squad is tired and flat after recent illness in the camp and injuries/suspensions.
We need 2-3 in the door in January

Perhaps play 2 strikers?

 

[CCFC96]

Ellis managed to win more in the air in 15 mins than Haji did all night.

Having slept on it I’m less annoyed really. That first half was the worst we’ve played in ages (maybe since Plymouth away) and if the refs aren’t shit we probably undeservedly win.

Ipswich aren’t going to go on a mad run really and even if they do, Boro won’t. We’ll be fine.

 

[Mcbean]

While I am no longer full of Suffolk sour grapes Ipswich will get a different referee in their next match

 

[Sky_Blue_Bob]

Find myself agreeing with this. He's probably the player in this squad who i feel has the most potential for the future, however since he has been back in the team, the goals have dried up.
It's totally understandable that he is rusty (possibly the shoulder is subconsciously causing a problem) and you can't improve without minutes, but he has been slowing us down in attacks and we look less fluid as everything seems to have to go through him because he pops up everywhere in others space.
It's a really tough situation, you want him to get back to his best of last season, but you don't want the progression of this season to holt.
Perhaps both he and the team would benefit from him coming off the bench. I don't think Eccles had been playing badly at all and deserves a chance to carry that on.
We really miss BTA, but there's nothing we can do about that. So why not bring Eccles back in for a couple of starts. I don't think Lampard will bring Rudi out though.

Any transfer snippets you can share??

 

[clint van damme]

Ellis managed to win more in the air in 15 mins than Haji did all night.

Having slept on it I’m less annoyed really. That first half was the worst we’ve played in ages (maybe since Plymouth away) and if the refs aren’t shit we probably undeservedly win.

Ipswich aren’t going to go on a mad run really and even if they do, Boro won’t. We’ll be fine.

Let's be honest, we had a chance to go up last season via the play offs and he stunk the place out.
Now we're challenging for the autos and he's doing the same again.

Yes, Milan made a major fuck up in the play off semi, yes, there were several other players off it last night, but it just seems to be a regular thing with Wright, long periods where his contribution is minimal.

We can't afford to hang around waiting for him to find his mojo when there are gamechanging promotion opportunities at stake.

He needs to start firing soon or he needs dropping.

 

[COVKIDSNEVERQUIT]

The most disappointing thing about last night was the performance, no control, given the ball away too often even Matty Grimes of all people.

Well we won't be playing Ipswich again this season, where's other teams will Still have to play Ipswich again so still all to play for.

 

[Brighton Sky Blue]

Let's be honest, we had a chance to go up last season via the play offs and he stunk the place out.
Now we're challenging for the autos and he's doing the same again.

Yes, Milan made a major fuck up in the play off semi, yes, there were several other players off it last night, but it just seems to be a regular thing with Wright, long periods where his contribution is minimal.

We can't afford to hang around waiting for him to find his mojo when there are gamechanging promotion opportunities at stake.

He needs to start firing soon or he needs dropping.

Bloke’s got the incentive of a home World Cup to play in next summer but even that isn’t doing it for him.

 

[wingy]

L

Bloke’s got the incentive of a home World Cup to play in next summer but even that isn’t doing it for him.

Someone's gotten into his head on his last visit home and he's either demanding something we're not prepared to meet ATM it's either pay up or ship out, crazy scenario I know but it's needed sorting for a longtime now hope Doug's got it sorted and ready to go.

 

[EFL View]

Town fan here.

Our best performance of the season and a pleasant surprise. Definitely some parallels between our games with Leeds two years ago where we finished above them but they comfortably beat us in both matches. Think that’s partly because Cov are a nice style match up for us but I felt Lampard had an off-day tactically.

I was puzzled by the gameplan, particularly in the first half. The pressing was poor, with that really narrow triangle at the fron leaving loads of space behind in the midfield once we’d played through them. Possibly Hirst’s goal at our place influenced Lampard’s thinking with wanting a deeper defensive line, but it didn’t make much sense to put three players so far forward at the same time.

Cov being too passive in the middle was a theme of the game, both of our big chances in the first half should’ve been cut out. Rushworth was absolutely outstanding though. He’s one we tried to sign the summer we got promoted and it’s a shame it never got over the line. Thought DaSilva was a big miss too, from what I’ve seen he’s really kicked on in the last year.

On the controversial decisions, thought we got away with one a couple of times, first with the Furlong/EMC incident. Kipre on Sakamoto was a definite penalty, although whether that would have made much difference in the 94th minute I’m not sure…

You’ll be promoted comfortably. We’ll need an excellent January to be consistent enough to bridge that ten point gap and even if we do, I doubt Boro will as well. Get some cover for Sakamoto, one more attacking addition plus another midfielder and the squad looks very strong

 

[thekidfromstrettoncamp]

on the opposite side of the pitch

The linesman would not have seen it anyway.He didn't see the Tats pen, the attack on MVE or the excersion outside the box with ball in hand by their keeper(3rd time is as many games).

 

[shmmeee]

My assessment.
Man for man they were the better team.
Dasilva was never my favourite player but the drop off in quality on the ball is massive.
If we do go up Grimes won’t be the answer. He’s brilliant in this league but their number 5 bullied him.
We need to drop Rudoni. We look a poorer team with him starting at present
Basically they were miles better on the night

This is why people claiming we just need to make a couple of key signings seems mad to me. The difference is level is huge. These players playing at their max can match a parachute club. But by definition a parachute club isn’t good enough for the PL. aside from the few who we’ve signed from abroad most of our players are here because a PL club has deemed them not good enough. Thats not a slight on them just a reality of this division. Players like Clarke who look a level above here aren’t good enough. Hamer wasn’t good enough. Players who would walk into our current team. We really will need to spend huge amounts to not be embarrassed.

 

[Brighton Sky Blue]

This is why people claiming we just need to make a couple of key signings seems mad to me. The difference is level is huge. These players playing at their max can match a parachute club. But by definition a parachute club isn’t good enough for the PL. aside from the few who we’ve signed from abroad most of our players are here because a PL club has deemed them not good enough. Thats not a slight on them just a reality of this division. Players like Clarke who look a level above here aren’t good enough. Hamer wasn’t good enough. Players who would walk into our current team. We really will need to spend huge amounts to not be embarrassed.

Define huge I guess, but the club can spend at least £100 million without risking its future.