Mark Hughes your football is...

We have the perfect players for 4-3-3 which is the best and most flexible formation. For example we leave Songo on the bench when as a physical ball winner on the ground and in the air he would be perfect for centre of the three in midfield. I know some will say a tadd slow but not much would get past him as he dictated the game in our favour.

 

He deserves until the end of the season at least. We also have a habit of vastly overrating our squad. Gilliead starts for us ffs.

If we're still this miserable come next December then sure let's sack him, but it's the same thing that happened under Bowyer and Adams. If we sack him now I guarantee we'll be in the same situation next season.

 

We have wingers who have it drummed into them to come inside we have two full backs who are capable of playing decent crosses. Instead they are busy playing it backward and forward between themselves until a mistake happens and we lose possession. We have some good attacking players I would love us to play a pressing and attacking game. But failing this I would accept whatever tactics if they were successful. I honestly think that a failure to at least reach the play offs this season would be pretty catastrophic for the club. I want Hughes to succeed because he is just the figurehead we need but I fear his failure to adapt to the league in which he manages is going to cost him and us.

 

Surely he's seen enough of this league to work out what works and what doesn't.
That's what worries me, it just seems obvious to pretty much all of us that we can't just stick with what we're doing.

 

100% and that’s why Cook is a problem because when we play with Cook we don’t play as a TEAM and when Cook isn’t scoring we look mighty shite.

 

19 points off top spot in this poor league with our squad is unacceptable.

 

There are so many other reasons we look mighty shite... it's not just Cook ffs

 

mid table? lower if we aren't careful.

 

True.

Imagine thinking Gilliead, Platt, Halliday and Foulds are the best players in League Two.

They start for us pretty much every week, LOL

 

We brought the wide players in with the specific remit that they fit into a 4-2-3-1, which predominantly asks your wideman to cut inside and attack the goal as Banks and to a lesser extent Young. To be fair Wright does sometime go to the byline but not as often as cutting inside. To ask those wingers to then switch to a different attacking mindset during the match is very difficult, we never saw Parky change mindset through a game. Its just not that simple to switch on to a different formation and expect it to work. And its why i feel for the likes of Cook and Oliver when we do switch, it simply doesn't work enough to be effective.
I do agree that things need to change but surely the idea of having a big squad was to change personnel out of form, Hughes seems fixated with the same players. Maybe its time to give the other squad players a chance to claim a starting spot.

 

Let's be sensible about this take Cooks goals out of the equation and we're relegation fodder for sure.

 

One up top is easy to defend against if the 3 behind offer nothing as we’ve seen. I’d love to see 4-3-3 which is the formation Northampton play and others. I’m struggling to see the reason why Hughes thinks our current formation is going to work. It hasn’t looked comfortable from day 1 and here we are halfway through the season and the same frailties are obvious to all.

 

If the midfield was working properly there would be more chances created and Cook's presence would have some worth. I agree he has his limitations and he can't hold the ball or bring others into play, but that's never been in his skillset. He does have an ability in the box, facing goal as he's shown in patches. The glaring problems are around the midfield and our lack of ability to turn a defence and get the ball in the box with our players facing goal. Cook's failings are a complete distraction even though they're easy to see.

 

How would you line up the 3-3?

 

If Cooky had taken one of those chances, which to be fair this season he has, folk wouldn't even be questioning his inclusion. As you allude to Salty, we all know his limitations. That said hes our best attacking asset and as such we should be setting up to get the best out of him. Because no one else is threatening the scoring stats.

 

if Vadaine Oliver, Lee Angol or Jake Young were even close to dislodging him, I'd understand the debate.

As it stands, there isn't one.

Cook all week, every week.

Not a question.

 

Agree that's what was so annoying with regards yesterdays misses he thrives on those sort of chances within the penalty area/6 yard box.

 

Its the one asset Hughes has upfront that is actually contributing regularly. And some want him dropped? I give up....

 

It just becomes a fantasy topic for some.

"Who isn't playing, or doing anything? Why can't they be better?"

Happens often with keepers.

Now it's happening with non-goalscoring strikers.

 

I’d probably go Wright, Cook, Banks given they’ve scored this season, with Walker in the centre of the midfield 3.