Points lost from winning position

[Concrete John]

He came back carying a few extra pounds that's for sure, but it's pretty academic to try and and argue what he would/wouldn't have been like under a different manager.  All we know was he was great under MON and poor under Gezza. 

[NorthYvillan]

I find it baffling that we can be so good one season then the next the defence is rubbish.

The only difference is the manager.

Our defensive frailties exhibited themselves before the appointment of Houllier (Rapid Vienna, Newcastle, Stoke) - although I accept that he hasn't been able to improve things. However injuries through the autumn didn't help.

[KevinGage]

When you look at what Hodgson has done at West Brom, it's not unreasonable to expect a manager with even more pedigree (and who inherited a more talented squad) to perform a wee bit better than he has.

That's generally the idea, isn't it? Work with what you have and try to improve it. If the defence looked like a problem area (as it did from the Newcastle game onwards) that should have been the main focus of attention.

The 23 points from winning positions can be a bit misleading; you might score in the first 10-15 minutes and then be on the back foot for the rest of the game. Off the top of my head though, Stoke away, Fulham away, Man U at home, Fulham at home and Bolton away were all games we dominated and should have got maximum points.

[DeKuip]

We give the ball away too cheaply when the opposition are chasing the game, bringing pressure upon ourselves all the time.
We were exactly the same under MON, only because we more often than not conceded possession after a long ball to Carew, we still had protection in place when it came back at us. MON also got the wide midfielders to drop deeper as extra full-backs when we lost possession which made it more difficult for the opponents. Now our full-backs seem more exposed.
To play the way GH wants us to play clearly requires players who are better at retaining possession than what we have. But then Makoun was awful yesterday, and he was supposedly someone brought in by GH to do just that!

[TheSandman]

Considering we had one of the best defences in the league last season, its odd that we have become so leaky this season at the back.

When you consider that last season's regular back 4 is still there but either not played or have had fallings out with the coaching staff, I don;t think it's odd just poor management.

I might not be as blunt as that. I might not say it is the only factor but I think it is that.

We can blame the injuries but we must then consider the fact our performances have been worse with senior rather than young players in.

Houllier's big mistake has been in trying to change things too quickly. That has upset the players and lead to the fall outs. He has not considered the limitations of our players and the fact that without a few changes to personnel it was not possible for us to play a more passing game that our players in particular those at the back were not well suited too. He has also made some bizarre calls. The strange neither one thing nor another formation and continuing to play the bloated mess and accident waiting to happen that is Richard Dunne where a Cuellar or a Clark (maybe even both if you consider Collins' form) is available. Add to this the FA cup surrender ( ) which failed and god knows how many other things that just haven't helped.

I'm not saying our players haven't been c***s but the manager has lead to some of that and exacerbated it.

[maidstonevillain]

I find it baffling that we can be so good one season then the next the defence is rubbish.

The only difference is

I find it baffling that we can be so good one season then the next the defence is rubbish.

The only difference is the manager.

A lot of people seem to forget that the wheels started to fall off well before the end of last season.

[eamonn]

He came back carying a few extra pounds that's for sure, but it's pretty academic to try and and argue what he would/wouldn't have been like under a different manager.  All we know was he was great under MON and poor under Gezza. 

Well with five days before the start of the season when O'Neil fecked-off, Dunne was very much carrying timber. Don't think he would have shifted it that quickly regardless of who was in charge.