The First Goal

Today makes us 0-0-12 when we trail at half-time, 0-0-16 when we trail at any point in a match. "Pathetic" is being extraordinarily kind!

I think there's only so much coaching can do, though some line-ups and tactics don't help; it really comes down to the players consistently i) not being good enough, and/or ii) not having the grit/steel/backbone/determination/balls/whatever you want to call it (e.g. mentality) to refuse to give up the next goal and instead come back. We're good with a lead, we wilt otherwise. We reacted well to the Sunderland defeat, giving one hope; I hoped for the same sort of reaction today. Bah! It's almost enough to make one think that relegation and starting from scratch wouldn't be all that bad... What a waste of the past decade though.

It doesn't help that our subs bench has been more often than not shockingly weak -- who today were the game-changing types?

RCB

 

Very true. We need more competition for places so that the first team players do not become ever-so-slightly complacent.