The 2023/24 L1 Matchday Thread

JonnyBiscuits

I'm a bit pessimistic about tonight but that's based on nothing more than "football supporter's hunch."

Just feels like we're due a messy defeat.

Fine though, get it out of our system, let Pumpey build up a bit of a lead and ratchet up the pressure and expectation early in the season. They'll buckle. They always buckle.

None of this is based on any credible observations. Just a bunch of armchair footballing reckons. ~~AKA the Karl Robinson method~~.

brinyhoof

Given the circs a point would be a good result I think. I'm guessing he will go with a 3421? Maybe Gorrin partnering McGuane? I can't see how McEachran can "go again" so soon, particularly having looked so knackered after an hour or so on Saturday.

Not that he was the only one. I still can't my head round how deep we played that second half, how the subs had no impact, why GO'D/Tyler/Murphy/Stevens didn't press. Behaviours!!!

Bspittles

I wonder if GO'D needs to start a game to get him fired up. Even if he only played 45, it might show him what he needs to improve. He's young, needs to play and isn't getting any game time with the kids these days.

TrevorAylottsHeadband

I'm just about in the "I'll take a draw" camp, but I'd like it to be an "unlucky not to win" draw rather than a "lucky to hold out" one.

It's really hard to judge at the moment though as we're not sure who is actually going to be available for selection which leads to the issues touched on by others above. I wouldn't be surprised to see Gorrin get more than a cameo tonight, though.

With GO'D, I simply don't think he's well suited to the lone striker role. I can see him working much better in a partnership where he can be the blunt instrument, so I don't think it's as simple as giving him game time. He actually needs a system in which he can thrive and, at the moment, I don't think we play that.

But, yep, a draw tonight followed by a comprehensive demolition of Wycombe on Saturday would be nice…

brinyhoof

Half time. A good start but decision making in the final third got poorer as the half went on. Goodrham looks way off it to me, losing the ball time and again. Would imagine Bodin replaces him if he carries on that way.

Bottom line is that we should be getting so much more out of 70% possession.

JonnyBiscuits

Found that very frustrating for all our dominance. Got a bit cocky with our possession. Thought it would be as easy knocking it around in the final third as it has been everywhere else, which is daft.

JonnyBiscuits

Hmm. Very disappointing. Feel like we were believing our own hype and dominance in the first half. Second half we suddenly ran out of ideas. I know it's well documented that the squad rebuild is a three-window job and we've only had one, but that match demonstrated that quite well I think.

Good reset/reality check though, just as the Cambridge game was after pre-season's sparkles and the Port Vale game was after four wins on the trot. Teams will figure out ways to play against us, which Wigan did a job of, so it's good that we're being challenged to find alternative game plans this early. It will only make us better in the long run and highlight work that needs doing in January.

JonnyBiscuits

Could be worse. Much, much, much worse. Look at Reading.

Bspittles

Wigan's defence was a yard quicker (mentally and physically) than our central attacking players, and they just kept getting to the ball first. We missed the composure and creativity of Cam more than Saturday for some reason. I thought Tyler and GO'D lacked match fitness - always the problem if they aren't playing regularly. I fear the same for Negru when he gets his next chance. Maybe we need moer regular BCD friendlies to keep the fringe players fit?

It's unfortunate that, at the moment, the player most likely to make a decisive through pass is Beadle…

TrevorAylottsHeadband

Disappointing result, and even more disappointing performance. From the stats I've seen, we won the xG battle 1.47 to 1.16. To be blunt, that stat doesn't reflect what my eyes saw as we seemed to create very, very little of note. we simply can't rely on our LB to be the main attacking threat, because that is what he has become. At the moment, I really don't know what the answer to our problems at the top of the park is, but I'm increasingly convinced that it's not Harris.

JonnyBiscuits

Harris looked so lively at the start of the season, getting in behind defences and exploiting space etc. He seems to be playing a completely different game since returning from suspension.

brinyhoof

JonnyBiscuits he looks lost most of the time IMO, not sure of his role or position. I saw a post from Oxford Analytics saying Harris/Rodrigues struggle against a low block (Cambridge/Vale/Wigan) which would make sense given last night's performance in the final third. I don't know why this is though!!

TrevorAylottsHeadband

Harris does look lively in the sense that he does a lot of running, but all too often that seems to be into dead ends and that’s reflected in our relatively low xG.

One of the problems is that he finds himself moving into wide positions with the ball, narrowing the field, and meaning that the opposite attacking midfield player then has to drop into the CF position. We need to make more of the attacks down the flanks so the ball can be played into Harris in the box, rather than pumped up to him in a position where he feels the need to then move wide. Easier said than done, granted!

LeftSider

Harris - we take so long to move the ball forward that his main asset, pace, just doesn’t really come into play. I’m not advocating for a kick and hope style of play at all, but our patient approach is allowing inferior opposition all the time they need to block us before it gets anywhere near Harris. McEchran is a tidy footballer, but I don’t think it’s a coincidence that our already slower style has slowed to almost a standstill with him in midfield.

We’re lacking individual brilliance and pace in one in one positions to create space at the moment. Hopefully, we can continue to bring in the points while we wait for those players to return, because Goodrham, Murphy and, to a lesser extent, Bodin and Mills, aren’t really doing the business

oxblogger

Match wrap | Wigan Athletic 2 Oxford United 0

‘When results were good, I thought we were playing within ourselves. Now I wonder if there’s another gear or whether we're just assuming The Science will work often enough to pick up the results we need.’

https://oxblogger.co.uk/2023/10/25/match-wrap-wigan-athletic-2-oxford-united-0/

TrevorAylottsHeadband

Another tough one today. Wycombe seem to be one of those "can beat anyone on their day" sort of sides with a reasonable away record (W3 D1 L3). It'd be great if we can pick up another 5-6pts from the next three games which should set us up nicely for the potential top-of-the-table clash against Portsmouth. It would be true Oxford style to take 2 points from the next 3 and then beat Pompey though…

LeftSider

Pompey game falls on an international break weekend, so it’s almost certain to be postponed.

JonnyBiscuits

Yeah. Tricky one I think. Their form seems to have been pretty up and down this season, but there's our current form and the big crowd factor to consider. The Ainsworth v Robinson ties felt more like events than this does, but I'm still part hoping it'll be a bad-tempered feisty affair just for the drama.

That would probably suit them more than us though, so perhaps just a grown-up professional game is best.

brinyhoof

JonnyBiscuits yeah, will be weird seeing Wycombe without witnessing the perpetual midlife crisis in their technical area.

TrevorAylottsHeadband

brinyhoof He may well be back there come the return fixture in February…

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