Cycle of mediocrity
I have thought a lot today about last night. I know we won, but I don’t think I have ever been as non-plussed.
All the stats, the apathy of the attendances and the mixed bagatelle of players, still disjointed due to umpteen poor transfer windows all point to another season of mediocrity.
Michael Appleton is less than 3 months in and he is already talking up performances and waiting on the magical portent of a January transfer window.
I have quite liked Appleton thus far, but last night I took him down a few notches on my Christmas card list.
Somehow amongst the injury prone we managed to sign the best striker in the division. I hate to think where we would be without Alfie’s goals, and his attitude as the midfield and defence offer literally nothing goal-wise. Now we have our two other main strikers injured.
We cannot keep a clean sheet to save our lives, we are yet to beat a team above 14th place in the table, and the old adage of we turn it on against the better teams has not been true this season, accept of course against Portsmouth.
I know there are a 1,000 points available and a transfer window, but this is all very familiar and I think Charlton fans, proven by last night’s (real) attendance, need a lot of convincing that we are capable of breaking the cycle.
Action not words.
It does look like yet another season of mediocrity unfortunately.
The crowd’s continue to diminish along with our enthusiasm.
The nonsense attendance figures put out by Charlton were seen through long ago. Quite why they continue with the farce, I don’t know.
Whilst some may mock this opinion (mainly Mi**wall fans) Charlton Athletic are a club too big for third division football. Those of us who have supported the club for some time (55 years for me) know our natural home is second division football.
We now have a stadium good enough not just for the Championship but even the Premier League (not that I think we’ll be back there anytime soon)
The only thing missing is a board with enough money to build a top team and get us up and out of this awful division.
CA
Unusually !! – I slightly disagree. I do think the team is better than the last couple of seasons. Last season we lost at home to Cheltenham and this year we found a way. AMB, Edun, Watson and particularly Jones are decent at this level and Asimwee and Ness decent replacements. In the middle is where we need turbocharging. Dobson needs help although Watson is decent.
Tedic is shockingly useless, so they will need to try and find a striker in the window to cover for injuries. I’d like to get there quicker ( we are all getting older after all) but I’m not dismissing this season just yet. We will need some good acquisitions in the window. Andy Scott’s record so far is not particularly good. We will also need to keep the key players on board , Dobbo, CBT and Leaburn.
Don’t despair !! – at least you’ve got decent weather where you are !!!
Agree we found a way to win where previously we’d have folded. So that’s a small plus.
I know AA. There are threads of hope, and we did lose at home to Cheltenham a year ago (three managers ago). I am wary of a decent transfer window forthcoming, and our inconsistencies all point to another season of despair. All of the best mate (horses are doing well) 🌞 🌞
Biggest disappointment was our inability to deal with a high press which Cheltenham employed to great effect. We have no strong leaders / personalities on the pitch who would bite opponents as well as underperforming team mates.
If you’re concerned about attendance why don’t you come every week???? Easy to make judgements from a distance!!!
Perhaps you’ll explain who that was aimed at?
I would think me OA.
Fair enough. I walked into that one. I guess I am part of problem of instead watching CAFC TV, but many thousands that choose to watch that live closer than my 4,500 miles away.
Yeah !! why ain’t you flying in from Miami every other Saturday.
🙂 🙂 🙂
Believe me OA if there was something to fly in for I would every 6 weeks or so as I have done over many seasons. 😄
I hope ‘Steve’ has read that and realised his mistake. Personally I would say flying in every six weeks goes beyond the call of duty.
The trouble is like all managers Appleton has his favourites. The weakest part of our team is currently the midfield and which is one of the most important factors for any team as they are the main link to the forwards and defence, unfortunately apart from Dobson ours are really poor! Frasier, flatters to deceive, he does a few good passes and that it! If you watch him closely throughout a game, he never really helps out the defence as he hardly ever puts a tackle in and actually stands away from players waving his arms around for everyone else to mark someone or get stuck in, plus up front his efforts on goal are so weak, when he actually gets to have one. McGrandles is not that much better but at least he gets stuck in and was the better player the other night, yet he gets taken off, but Appleton loves them both and couldn’t wait to get them playing together, whilst Louie Watson a far better player is stuck on the bench for the last two games, until the last 15-20mins!
The other player Appleton appears to favour is Hector. How many big cock ups does he have to make before he is finally dropped for Ness, who must wonder if he will ever get a game in the team? Every game he makes at least one, many of which have cost us a goal and luckily has escaped with the others, mostly due to Brewer, coming to the rescue. He is just another Inniss but without the injury problems, though at least Inniss chipped in with a few goals!
As for the forwards, Tedic as a replacement for Leaburn, should be a non starter and Kanu should be brought back, but no, Appleton says he has other options of Mbick and Casey, who have both never played at this level, (Mbick for 10mins in the Cowboy Cup), whilst Kanu is actually in our first team squad. It just doesnt make sense.
As you said CA, Appleton’s latest witterings seem to be a man of desperation of trying to justify why we play poorly against all the lower teams and have hardly beaten any of them.
And if my auntie had balls she would be my uncle. If you think a dollar will be spent in Jan – well no hope and bob hope.
CA is spot on – MTM is here to stay.
Your Thanksgiving spirit seems to have well and truly worn off but mate yeah it were a shocker.
On the plus side, the anonymous owners are doing what owners should, paying the bills and keeping schtum.
Don’t think our problems will be solved in January either and the challenge is if we’re still in the wonderful division next season it’ll be cheerio CBT and Alfie May.
You’ve talked me into the doldrums now as well.
Haha.
I agree I have no complaints with the owners / management team so far. Don’t get down it is almost Christmas!