The Voice - Match preview #26: Bradford City vs Walsall Saturday 25th January 12:30pm

No idea tbh. Hopefully it's a case of his injury issues whilst he's been here being behind him and he stays fit.

 

He's managed 107 mins this season. The most in one game was 45 mins against us in the Pizza/Bristol/vertu cup thing.

He's started 1 other match since the first week of Feb 2024, and he played 90 in that match. Every other game since Feb has been either a few months cameo or about 20 off the bench. He had a bad concussion when his loan at Dundee was just starting to get going and then never really got back in the side.

 

Yes. I read this on their forum. They were all disgusted. Fair play, to a cub who's always tended to have a good set of supporters.

 

Good on them.

Walsall always seemed a good set.

 

The lad I sit with was also puzzled about Mellon.

I don't think he's fully fit as I think it was GA who said he's not started a game for a year (or so). Leigh, as we've just seen is fine as a 'No.9' alternative.

One significant good think about GA and again it's where he's similar to Parky, he won't use a player unless they are 100% capable to do what he wants them to do.

If you notice, he's been very good at bringing injured players back - often making them wait more than some other managers would. He won't bow to fans pressure or even perhaps give himself a break if he's under pressure - by playing players too early.

Expect Mellon to make an impact say from March onwards - five or six goals, would be fine!!

 

Truth is we look a better TEAM without Cook

 

I think the way we play, he could do that role and in fairness has looked fine when he's come on. I don't see why he can't he seems more physical than Kav, probably holds the ball up a bit better. Not quite as mobile but can pass to a teammate.

Who knows, maybe GA has seen something and Leigh's quite confident he could do that role. At 24, your position isn't necessarily defined.

Around the same age Thierry Henry was converted from a winger to a striker (not saying Leigh's in that category, just giving an example!!)

 

The points gap helps his comments! And a good one off loss

 

It's more of a comment on the mentality of the L2 players around him, as opposed to criticism of Cooky.

The problem is that with him in the team, there will be a tendency - no matter how much their manager tells them otherwise to play the hit and hopeful long ball / not take shots themselves, instead give it to Cook, sub-concioulsy think will always bail them out with his goals.

It was Nigel Clough who alluded that he had no issue with Cook when he was at Mansfield, but it was the tendency of other players to see the target man as the only option.

Of course Cook is an asset - but this system means he's slightly less important than if we were playing two up front.

 

Almost the perfect day great performance and everyone else bar Doncaster dropped points Tuesday night is massive. Let’s get that win and hopefully get into the auto places for a massive game next Saturday well done all round

 

Honestly, I thought he looked significantly LESS physical than Kav.

 

If that was PP on the sidelines instead of Alexander nobody would have been surprised by todays performance.
Energy,tempo, getting the ball forward quickly etc

 

GA has dropped every outfield player (who've played say 50 matches) in his time with us and I think he's have had no hesitation to drop him if he hadn't scored for a few matches and wasn't playing well - as he saw how good we could be against Crewe.

Very impressed with how ruthless GA is. Byrne has looked a bit 'meh' but as he as bought as a replacement for Platt, I thought he'd have to be terrible to not to be even in the squad. None of it. Ruthlessly axed, after the Barrow match, because he felt there were better alternatives - when he wasn't that terrible.

 

Not as mobile, but there were a couple of incidents when he held off the defenders off better than Kav. I also thought his control and shot was smoother action than our young striker.

But we were 3-0 playing a demoralised team.

Remember, I'm a big fan of Kav - always defended him (apart from today when he should have passed to Sarcevic!!)

 

Wasn't that impressed with Matt to be honest Dave, bit of a carthorse for me.
The lad who should have been sent off for that cynical lunge on Halliday just before H/T, if it wasn't for an inept referee, McEntee, was nothing but a thug and I thought this striker of theirs who they are all creaming their pants about, Johnson - deary me, what a useless waste of space.

 

It doesn't look like there anything out there at the moment, although I'd think he has little to say with regards his teams overall performance.
Apparently a Walsall fan posted something about the Bradford Fire I'm not the best on X but it looks like their fans have his/her details and handed them into the club.

 

Yes so did I, however all those goals he scored before his move to MKD seemed to be from the front or just off the front. Maybe he can do both roles . Clearly GA thinks he and Kav could share that position Dave?

 

Didn’t GA say he hasn’t really played since he joined Stockport?

 

Todays was Alexanders best performance since coming in as manager. We've frustratingly had 45 minutes here and there which have shown what might be, today they were at it all game. More important than the result for me was the performance, controlled large parts of the game. The midfield triangle of Pattison, Sarcevic and Smallwood kept shape throughout the game, a position we've had a long standing problem with. Three players for me have been pivotal in this run, the aforementioned Pattison, Sarcevic and the impressive Richards. Keep these three fit and injury three we go up automatically i'm that confident right now.