Nigel Adkins made 5 more changes to his starting eleven on Saturday following the 6 & 7 he made in previous games. In each it failed to produce a win.
The last two games have seen slightly better football from the Addicks but sadly it’s not sustained and fortunately the opposition hasn’t been that good for varying reasons.
Pompey could and should have been out of sight at half time on Saturday. Luckily for us they weren’t and at least we kept plugging away to get a point.
In the first half Adkins cut a forlorn and isolated figure in his technical area. He looked somewhat lost.
Post-match he referred to the change in formation and the impact of the subs. All well and good but it indicates that he doesn’t start in the right way.
This constant tinkering of personnel and formation is confusing for fans let alone the players.
The gaffer’s comment about having a large squad and the need to rotate is becoming tedious. Most of the clubs of our size have large squads but they are not rotating players to this extent.
What reward is there for putting in a good shift and playing well only to find that due to the desire to rotate you’re not in the starting eleven.
The manager seemingly won’t come clean about DJ who’s not even making the bench at the moment. If he doesn’t make the squad tomorrow then Adkins has to tell us what’s going there.
I’m also concerned at to what is happening to Akin Famewo. One of our best players last season and one of the first names on the team sheet.
He hasn’t set foot on the pitch in the last two games. Is he really so out of form that he doesn’t start ahead of Jason Pearce?
Given all of the above it’s not hard to see why we’re struggling to win games or even play well for more than a half at best.
Clearly, not assembling a competitive squad until well into the start of the season hasn’t helped but weeks on from the close of the transfer window and Adkins can’t keep hiding behind that.
We still find ourselves in the relegation zone. A situation you’d have thought unbelievable before the season started.
Adkins is keen on the debrief and review following games. I do wonder how much benefit there is in the apparently deep analysis. It certainly doesn't appear to be having the desired effect.
I’m sure the players will be aware of where they’ve done badly or played well. In addition, he’s feeding back to a number of players who won’t play in the next game or those that will be playing in a very changed side.
Something’s got to give. Either we start playing well and winning games or it’s time for a change.
Bolton will provide a really tough test tomorrow as much of Thomas’s patience as the team.
Let’s hope we can start to turn the corner.
Come On You Reds!
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