Charlton Athletic 1 Cambridge United 1
A frustrating watch, but a fair result yesterday.
Lots of possession, but little to show for it, and we just weren’t able to overload attacking areas like we did at will on Tuesday.
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Aug 21
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Formulae
I wrote the other day that it’s nigh on impossible to guess how we will line up in games. Bow said yesterday that it was the first time the team had played to that formation. It looked like (from watching on Valley Pass) that we were 5-4-1 with Solly and JFC advanced wing backs and a flat midfield. That put a lot of trust in Bonne, but he did not disappoint, despite the fact a year ago he was playing in a FA Cup qualifying tie at Maidstone.
Whilst Jacko and Marsh are drilling the players on set-pieces, Bowyer must spend hours in a room studying opponent’s strengths and weaknesses. Derby and Phillipe Cocu are no slouches but yesterday we picked them off at a corner and targeted the £10m Krystian Bielik. Teams appear to be obsessed in playing out from the back pedestrian like believing they are playing for Man City.
Do not disturb
The first proper day of the World Cup. The do not disturb sign is hanging around my neck.
As suspected the Bermuda TV coverage is worst than terrible. Not sure where they stole the pictures from, but sounds as if the commentator is doing it from his sofa, and there is no pre or post game punditry and the half-time show consists of crowd scenes interrupted by adverts from local companies who have each thrown in about a hundred bucks to ‘sponsor’ it. Please don’t let me hear you moan about Martin Keown and Glenn Hoddle..
Also, during the game the screen has no score or time on it, which is a very disconcerting and a nightmare if I need a wee. Who knows what the score is and how long is left, doubt if the commentator knows either.
Aussie, Aussie, Aussie
After what has seen like a length of a James Cook expedition the Aussies are apparently finally coming. We have seen plenty of false dawns but word is that next week we may eventually get rid of the Belgian poison and have new owners.
According to the sage Richard Murray there were two bids accepted. One was obviously the Aussies, and the other may have been an Arab consortium, or was it English or was it the Scots, and someone said today there was some American interest. Who the hell knows, except that we finally rid ourselves of Roland Duchatelet.
The circus of Karel Fraeye
The timing of Guy Luzon’s sacking was a surprise to a lot of people but not to Karel Fraeye. He was waiting patiently in the wings confident and ready for the job that he had long been earmarked for. The Interim tag was to appease us, Duchalelet and Meire hopeful that his articulate and open manner would grow on Charlton fans. More engaging with the players especially Johnnie Jackson, all he had to do was turn around the disastrous form of Guy Luzon before being given the job of his dreams full time.
I wrote after Fraeye took over as Interim Head Coach that his ability or lack thereof would stand on its own two feet. His appointment was another piss take, but there would be no hiding place. Time would judge him in front of us all.
After his 9th game which has yielded two wins in Fraeye said “To be fair, we’ve had an away game at Middlesbrough, an away game at Birmingham, an away game at Burnley and a home game against Ipswich.” Yes Karel my old son this is The Championship. It does not suffer fools gladly.
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Birmingham City 0 Charlton Athletic 1
An excellent result and not just a clinging on rear guard action. The Addicks created chances too, with youngsters Ademola Lookman and Tareiq Holmes-Dennis outstanding, especially Holmes Dennis playing out of position at right back who danced down the wing to provide a teasing cross for super skipper Johnnie Jackson to head powerfully home.
Lookman started up front with Simon Makienok with Reza on the bench along with the returning Harry Lennon and new loanee Ricardo Vaz Te. There was no place for Moussa.
We were under the gun for a lot of the 1st period, especially before half-time but the Blues never caused many heart-fluttering moments, at least listening to the radio. That was until the final seconds when Holmes-Dennis rounded off a terrific performance preventing Grounds from a sure equaliser.
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Enough is enough
I don’t know whether to laugh of cry. Mind you, I can’t imagine what it must be like working in the media department at the club. Poor sods.
“Interim Head Coach.” In capitals. So Fraeye has given up a full time job at homely VW Hamme to take up an interim position? As has Wim De Corte. Then again it is like giving up a full time paper round to take up a makeshift role in the city at an investment bank. You wouldn’t look a gift horse in the mouth would you?
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Song for Guy
Well not really. A slight maunder of “Guy Luzon’s red and white army” from a few in the Upper Covered End but that was about it as the Israeli left just like he arrived. By the back door looking like a rabbit in the headlights.
I grew to accept Luzon like a child-hating Auntie, but then the £5 WH Smith voucher at Christmas would see that acceptance grow to a like and when Luzon talked passionately and sensibly about his players and the club in a language that wasn’t his mother tongue, I think a lot of Addicks took kindly to him. I know I did.
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Luzon deserves better
A huge week for Guy Luzon as the vultures arrive in SE7 ready for their next meal. Tomorrow night 8 games without a win Charlton host 8 games without a win Preston at what could be an angry Valley.
I think in most cases the anger is not against Luzon, who joined in very difficult circumstances but slowly won the Valley faithful over by doing his work on the field, and in public providing honest assessments of his team and their performances.
Luzon needs to be backed by the owner and his CEO, who suggested that the Israeli could emulate Sir Alex Ferguson on his arrival. You have to laugh, Fergie was the poster child for stability, the opposite of what we have seen under the Belgians.
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Reading 1 Charlton Athletic 0
2 shots at goal compared to 23 by Reading tells it’s own sorry tale. More than 1,100 Addicks bravely got behind an impotent Charlton side with their only ambition to grab a point. I am starting to realise that I have never seen Bob Peeters and Guy Luzon in the same room. Although to be fair to old baldy he had 8 more points at this same point last season.
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Bikey out, anyone biking in?
Three out and no new arrivals as we enter the last day of the August transfer window. Andre Bikey had his contract cancelled yesterday, why both parties waited that long to divorce I don’t know, but it allows Bikey free agency and the chance to find another club.
Bikey had been frozen out by Guy Luzon and was playing in the stiffs, if the reserve team made up of youngsters can be called that these days. A year ago he was an intricate part of Bob Peeters unbeaten start to the season, but Luzon didn’t like how the experienced Cameroonian negatively dominated the dressing room. Add to that a couple of defensive howlers and a drop in professionalism and Luzon pulled rank.
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New squad numbers
Nothing earth shattering regarding the new squad numbers on first glance. Cousins moves to no. 8, there is no no.2 perhaps hinting at the club’s hopes to sign another defender imminently. Patrick Bauer and Naby Sarr become 5 and 6, and the young Spaniard Cristian Ceballos is given the no.10 shirt.
However upon scrutiny there is no shirt for Andre Bikey or Loic Nego and apparently Franck Moussa is only deserved of one once he can prove fitness, which presumes will not be for a long while.
A year ago Andre Bikey and Tal Ben Haim began the season as our centre-half pairings, eventually forcing Michael Morrison to leave. Admittedly once Guy Luzon showed up Morrison was already half out of the door, but that move still grates with me and his handling Bikey leaves a little bit of a bad taste, and one assumes he will be left to ‘rot’ in the reserves.
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Concrete rumour
Or at least a foam one
After a month of nothing in terms of Charlton transfer gossip, today Belgium football Journalist Sven Claes put out probably the most concrete rumour so far this summer.
Claes is very well connected in Belgium and has a good knowledge of the Addicks set up, as well as a decent track record in prediciting the mostly unpredictable in Charlton’s timeline. Today Claes reported that we are in the race to sign Lokeren winger Nill De Pauw. According to Claes the 25-year old has a €750,000 buy out clause.
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15 players released
Part one of Luzon/Duchatelet/Meire’s summer transfer strategy was executed today with the announcement of 15 players released.
They are: Tal Ben Haim; Simon Church; Chris Eagles; Roger Johnson; Lawrie Wilson; Oguchi Onyewu; Neil Etheridge; Jack Munns; Harry Osborne; Harry Gerard; Kadell Daniel; Kurtis Cumberbatch; Kieran Monlouis; Rhys Browne; Levander Pyke.
A mixture of the unfortunate attrition of young pros who were unable to step up plus 7 first teamers. My only disappointment is seeing Ben Haim go, although it was apparently his own decision. Not so much disappointed but sad to see Lawrie Wilson and Simon Church move on.
The Welshman scored just 10 goals in Charlton colours, but his work rate could never be questioned, but I expect his career will have to continue down a division.
Lawrie Wilson’s form dipped this season after an excellent 2014/15 season, when I personally thought he was player of the year. He was very friendly with Hamer, Morrison, Hughes and Jackson and an integral part of Chris Powell’s squad but he was sidelined under both Peeters and Luzon and the writing was on the wall. However I am pleased that he was able to come back to the club where he began his career to show us what a great pro he is. Best of luck Lawrie.
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The season in one post
9 months ago 1,600 Addicks welcomed Bob Peeters’ new look team with 7 new signings at Griffin Park, and most left with a positive feeling. It was a gritty Charlton performance that Charlton fans could relate to. Yet the biggest reservations pre-season were over the unknown head coach and the lack of obvious goals in the side. Roland Duchatelet had added some much needed quality, but on the face of it, Peeters’ squad was thin and lacking in Championship experience.
Nonetheless by the time pre-season promotion favourites Derby came to The Valley we were three games unbeaten and Peeters had warmed the Addicks’ fans with his over enthusiastic tête-à-tête with then Wigan boss Uwe Rosler the game before.
The Derby game was a little surreal if we are honest. Peeters’ passing game, still a work in progress, was some of the best I had seen for a long time, but the Valley crowd came across as unsure to what they were witnessing. However it was a great 3 points won at a spruced up Valley and with two away draws following we sat happily in 6th place at the end of the opening month. Please click for more
Joe Gomez
Our 18-year old defensive prodigy lost out to Leeds United’s Lewis Cook in the Football League Championship Apprentice of the Year award tonight. Midfielder Cook missed the game yesterday due to injury but has played twice the games than Gomez has this season. Cook is also a year older. The other nomination for the award was Millwall’s Fred Onyedinma.
Catford-born Gomez, who was playing for Charlton’s U18’s when he was just 13 has been a revelation since breaking in the first team under Bob Peeters early in the season. The best way to describe Gomez is that he plays as if this is his tenth season and not his first and has that ability to simply glide across the pitch. Joe compares very favourably in my mind to Richard Rufus and Paul Elliott and I just hope Charlton fans get to enjoy this great kid for another season or two. Please click for more
Thoughts on Friday and looking to the summer
“We can’t be letting five/ten players go, we need consistency and I’ll certainly be keeping an eye on the ins and outs over the summer, that’s for sure.”
I have been impressed with what I have seen and heard from Stephen Henderson since he arrived in SE7 last summer. He has been very impressive in goal and speaks well, and clearly is enjoying his time at the club, despite his absence through injury.
If it wasn’t for the shoulder injury the Irishman would have by now played for the Addicks more than any other club in his career, which has spanned 8 years and 10 different teams, 11 if you include Aston Villa where he started in their youth team.
So it is no surprise that Henderson is so bullish, finally finding a club that has immersed him and where he has found some affinity. Interesting then that he was quoted as saying the above at the top of this post.
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Luzon – from Manuel to Mourinho?
I watched Guy Luzon’s press conference yesterday and noticed how he had morphed from a rabbit caught in the headlines to an assured and relaxed football head coach.
It is amazing what a couple of wins can do, good ones at that, and three in front of your own public, a public that were screaming “you don’t know what you’re doing” just a few weeks back.
The bitterness of Luzon’s arrival may still be lingering but the man himself, clearly at the first interview a combination of uneasy and unprepared, can afford to smile and he does, quite often.
Interesting also how his accent and command of the English language has gone from Manuel to Mourinho, at least in our perception anyway.
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Tony Watt #MadeForCharlton
I have Tweeted this hash tag a few times, and it’s a meme based on the club’s ‘Made in Charlton’ slogan. Watt arrived at The Valley with more baggage than a Bermudian after a trip to a Florida mall and a lot of us at the time, including Bob Peeters were underwhelmed.
I saw him on his debut at home to Brighton, a wholly depressing day, which was Bob Peeters last as Charlton manager. The one and only positive afterwards was Tony Watt. I liked that in a totally dispiriting 2nd half, he was trying to gee the team on and also I remember his first touch which took him away from two defenders in the box and created a half chance. It was something to cling onto.
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Friday night’s are alright
Katrien is right, Friday night football is a fantastic idea. How nice it was to wake this morning without a care in the world and 3 points in the back pocket of our pyjamas.
The Addicks sat 12th overnight after winning at Wigan, today Reading and Leeds both moved back above us after they both had very good wins on the road. Reading at Ipswich and Leeds at Middlesbrough to remind us how hard games are to call in The Championship.
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Luzon the will to live
I have no idea if Guy Luzon is a good coach/manager or not, and I have already made my mind up that I don’t want to find out. Harsh on the Israeli I know, but when one gives up professional pride and nails their colours to a mast of a man, so clearly bonkers, then what are you to expect.
Equally there is no evidence in the month since he was been appointed that he has any man-management skills, an ounce of tactical invention or an actual game plan. I’ll give him the benefit of the doubt on his ludicrous rabbit in the headlights press conferences because he is not speaking in his first language.
Unfortunately in the dressing room only Tal Ben Haim speaks in the same tongue and the centre back hates him.
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Lepoint signs
The Addicks added to their midfield ranks today by signing Belgian Christophe Lepoint on an undisclosed deal until 2017.
30-year old Lepoint was at Belgium Jupiler League KAA Gent, and has played 17 games so far this season, without a goal. He is said to be a more defensive midfielder, with more ardour than ability. Some would say like his new head coach.
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New head coach bounce
“He’s met the players, he’s had some chats and they are well aware of how he wants to play as well, so we tried that in the first-half.” – Damian Matthew
So Guy Luzon has his work permit, and the Israeli officially becomes the Addicks 24th manager in it’s colourful history.
At the end of the day he will get my support, because wanting the team to be successful is the only way I know. Life and in particular being a Charlton fan is complicated and draining enough without wishing ill of something that has been part of me for 40 years.
When football fans set off for games it is not to support the owner, or the CEO, it is to support a collection of footballers wearing a shirt, representing a club in a community that they have an emotional connection with, and that will be no different on Saturday.
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Bob speaks
You can spin it through Google Translator, but if you allow me to paraphrase it for you, Peeters says he was “idolised” by fans, and he thought he had a good relationship with Katrien Meire, but they ended up in conflict. The supporters could see we needed better players, but the owner thought he was exaggerating.
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Watford 5 Charlton Athletic 0
What a shambles.
Very few times in my years as a Charlton Athletic fan can I ever predict a result or a performance, because we have always been so unpredictable, save the days of games against Manchester United, or the FA Cup.
However today’s defeat was a dead cert, but despite this 2,024 Addicks spent hard earned money to travel and watch the team they love, and gave the players total backing for the entire game. And this was their reward.
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Will it be anyone else other than Luzon?
I was quite expecting no further comment from the club yesterday, until late in the day Katrien Meire did follow up with comments on cafc.co.uk.
Meire said that the decision was only taken after the game on Saturday, which seems both unlikely and a little too impetuous. I don’t believe her, nor does Bob, especially knowing of recent informed reports from the Israeli media about Guy Luzon, and the fact that Karel Faraeye was at the Cardiff game, but after her comments in the programme on Saturday, I expect Roland Duchâtelet allowed her, a lawyer, to choose her own words.
It doesn’t matter now, what does is who is appointed next as the 4th manager/head coach in 10 months.
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Who is to blame?
Football is all about the blame game, whether we like it or not. Personally my only blame laid at the door of Bob Peeters was his tactical naivety, and as time went on I questioned whether he was able to get his points across to the players.
However Peeters was responsible for introducing a momentous change in the way Charlton played the game. Some of our play was truly inspiring and I thank him for giving that to me, albeit for a only a tiny amount of time, but it is something I will remember.
Peeters’ trouble, our trouble, is the squad is made of straw and has more perforations in it than a Belgium waffle.
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Charlton Athletic 0 Brighton & Hove Albion 1
I wrote this on the plane yesterday afternoon flying back from Gatwick after watching the Brighton game on Saturday, which was to be Bob Peeters’ last.
I thought I’d still post my report, particularly as some of it could serve as Bob Peeters’ epilogue….
“You know how we used to say anyone can beat anyone in this league? We’re proving that wrong.” – Brian Haines, Charlton Blogger
Terrible wasn’t it?
How have we fallen so far since those heady September days, that Derby game on that August evening. What an earth has happened?
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Peeters sacked
“Charlton have terminated the contract of Head Coach Bob Peeters with immediate effect, the club can confirm. The contracts of Senior Professional Development Coach Patrick Van Houdt and Performance Analyst Guy Kiala have also been terminated.” (Club statement)
24 hours after CEO Katrien Meire told supporters in the matchday programme that the club can take many positives from the first six months of the season, tonight the club decided that Bob Peeters, given to us by Roland Duchâtelet, wasn’t one of them.
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Arguments in dressing room
“There were some arguments in the dressing room – it has to happen. The manager has to understand. No one is happy. We have to try and get a solution.” Andre Bikey (more)
Probably comes as no surprise to most, but cracks have started to appear in Bob Peeters armour, and need to be addressed.
Whether Bikey was right to take this to the press I don’t know, but it clearly smells of frustration and exhaustion.
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Bob’s sound bites
I hope Bob Peeters is showing a little more variation in his training techniques than he is in his post-match conferences. Sadly since the Duchâtelet era began we rarely hear from our head coaches other than a few sentences post-game, which is not helpful in building rapport with supporters.
The last few weeks Peeters’ has bemoaned tiredness, other teams being better headers of the ball, injuries, young guns, a lack of physicality, set pieces, Tal Ben Haim and the size of the squad. It’s getting a little tiresome.
I took to Bob early because he came across as passionate and honest, and had an endearing amalgam of naivety and ambitious. This is a massive test for Bob, both in managing and getting the best out of his players and how he gets the best out of those that employ him.
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Cup half full?
You know it is a bit of a myth that we are rubbish in the FA Cup, in fact we are more rubbish in the League Cup.
What am I talking about? Well for a team that spent the majority of the last 21 years in the 2nd tier, we have been to four quarter finals. That’s one every five years.
1993/4 (Old Trafford, things can only get better), 1999/00 (Bolton, bloody Fish & Jensen), 2005/6 (Middlesbrough replay, Operation Riverside) and last season, the Bramall Lane embarrassment.
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Halfway house
I don’t quite understand why almost every team in The Championship plays tomorrow afternoon, yet we don’t play until Tuesday night. Possibly it’s the trains, but I did note that Boxing Day’s schedule of games took us to the middle point of the season, 23 games.
Charlton sit in 12th, which represents the lowest place we have occupied all season. The night we beat Derby at home we went 4th, which was our highest point.
Between you and me I still look at the bottom of the table before I peak at the top, but at the halfway point of the season, although there has been frustrations, I can’t help but think that Bob Peeters has done a more than fair job with the squad that was mostly put together for him.
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Watt Oh!
As a reminder to those that thought Charlton would be picking up the Standard Liege pick of the crop, news comes that Tony Watt is ready to move to the The Valley in January on a permanent deal, with the Addicks probably picking up the remainder of the Scotsman’s 5-year deal.
Watt is a proven bad egg, with from what I can see six managers having failed to get anything but disrespect and laziness out of the obviously talented 20-year old. Now it seems it is Bob Peeters turn as Roland Duchâtelet again flips us a player that Standard don’t want.
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Polish Pete and Reza
Without knowing the terms of their loan deals, and let’s be honest Roland makes the rules, I can’t understand why they both haven’t been recalled.
Both players are ‘owned’ supposedly by Charlton, and with our utter lack of firepower, even Igor hasn’t scored for six games, surely it would make the utmost sense for Bob to have them in his training sessions to see if they could add something to his threadbare squad. The answer has to be yes, doesn’t it?
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Blackburn Rovers 2 Charlton Athletic 0
“You can talk about it as much as you want, but we need to do it with the players we have at the moment. We need to patch them up and go to the next game.”
And we are talking about it Bob, and I think the majority of us understand how difficult it is to operate within such austere parameters, but it’s now starting to reflect badly on you.
We understand and accept, and perversely enjoy that you are new to the English game, and still learning your art, but the honeymoon period looks to have come to an end, and what we’d like to see now is strong leadership, managing down and encouraging and breathing confidence into players, but importantly managing upwards, explaining and demanding what you need to take your team forward.
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Charlton Athletic 2 Blackpool 2
Our ability to finish teams off this season has been abysmal and although punctuated by some good results and the occasional bout of very good football, Bob Peeters’ team has now only won two games since September, which is frankly not good enough.
Early in the season Peeters set the team up quite expansively to a point where many of commented on how much more dangerous we were going forward, but he has become increasingly more and more scared of his own shadow.
Whether that is due to teams finding us out, Vetokele not being fully fit, a general shortage of players, or a combination of each I don’t know, but watching us has become very frustrating and results are being underscored by poor defending, slow starts and an anxiousness to go for it, especially when we are on top.
Social experiment
Following Charlton Athletic has often made me think that I am part of one big giant social experiment.
Some greater sociological power watching over us. Like the time for no apparent reason when Derek Hales knocked his striking partner out during a game or when a European Footballer of Year was revealed on News at Ten as without-a-pot-to-pee-in Charlton’s new signing.
Being handed a piece of A4 paper telling us that we were leaving our ground of 69 years and to be the first club in the modern game to have to share a ground, with that lot as well! Then after an unlikely promotion to the countries top table, being forced into a play-off when for the first time in 100 years, it was deemed that the team normally considered safe from relegation, would for a change have to go into a play-off.
Surviving a heart stopping winner-takes-all game at the old Wembley and being made to watch 14 penalties including one from Shaun Newton!
Iain Dowie and Alan Pardew. Need I say more.
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Charlton Athletic 0 Ipswich Town 1
And you thought it was the orange shirts? My last two games – Bournemouth and Ipswich Town!
It was a horrible way to lose a game we should never have, especially as our own sloppiness was integral to Noel Hunt’s 95th minute winning goal. Ben Haim had been outstanding until he decided he was Claus Jensen in the last minute. As I have written many times since Peeters’ arrival, over playing the football is on occasion going to come a cropper. That’s not Ben Haim’s first offence.
It was tough on the Israeli, who Peeters was furious with, but I have really been impressed with TBH and it is admirable that his immediate thought was to avoid safety first and attempt to find some space and a pass that might have given us an opportunity to score a 95th minute winner. Why not, it is what you pay your money for.
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Bob’s first 6 months
In these days of Alan Pardew 8-year contracts it is refreshing to see head coaches and managers except the harsh reality that if they are a total failure there is no lump sum pay-off. When Bob Peeters signed a one-year contract with Charlton in the summer he said he was happy with the offer and it allowed both parties to mutually see how the relationship worked out.
The upside for Charlton is that the club can budget accordingly and I would expect Roland Duchâtelet gave his new employee some strict but achievable goals. Not for a minute do I believe that Duchâtelet said to Peeters ‘promotion or you’re out.’ I would think it was more likely along the lines of ‘safety, progress and player development.’
Peeters, who celebrates 6 months in charge of Charlton tomorrow and is already the 48th longest serving manager in the English leagues, has impressed the majority of us Addicks so far, including me.
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Millwall
Like a lot of Addicks of a certain age this fixture haunts me now as it did when I was a kid.
My brother and I grew up with a Millwall supporting family living next door. The two sons and us were very close well into our early 30’s, and at school in Catford there were many Millwall fans, no one supported Palace, because they were, well nothing. I had a load of mates that were Millwall, still have a couple and I used to occasionally go and watch them midweek in the 80’s when Charlton weren’t playing.
Our record against our local rivals is pathetic and I would argue, and one day I will do the research, probably the worst of any local derby rivals in English football. 11 wins in 68 league matches beginning in 1921. Incidentally 2 of those 11 wins came in the first two games in December 1921 and January 1922!
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Uwe makes it 12
He never quite recovered from his tete e tete with Big Bad Bob, who he accused of over celebrating our winner in his space.
I took it upon myself to subsequently follow Uwe Rosler’s after match comments, and the German turned into a right old sour puss, this after a scintillating spell at Wigan after he joined them last December from Brentford. His record this season is about as far away as last as you can get. One win in 12 games, and despite signing 4 players on deadline day including one Andy Delort, Wigan dropped into the bottom 3 after losing their last game to local rivals Bolton and today Uwe Rosler was sacked.
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Fox Hunt
With Rhoys Wiggins being out for a minimum of 6 weeks with a fractured foot, Big Bob was a little coy on who would takeover at left back in the coming games. Morgan Fox has patiently waited in the wings appearing only at Fulham in the League and in the two League Cup games.
The Welshman may not have impressed as much as he did at the tail end of last season under Jose Riga, but the 21-year old needs and deserves a run of games. Coquelin, Gomez, Solly and Wiggins, even Cousins could probably all fill in there, but I would prefer to see Fox.
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Charlton Athletic 1 Sheffield Wednesday 1
At half-time yesterday I started to believe that the players were on the same page as Roland Duchâtelet, i.e. they were content with 22 points.
However the 2nd half from the commentary anyway sounded much improved and we played some more incisive football and once Igor was introduced packed a much bigger punch up top.
If Bob can keep Igor and JBG 100% fit then I think we can compete in the top half of the table, and within reach of the play-off’s, without them and until Bob is able to sign some additional recruits we will continue to resemble a patchwork quilt.
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Morrison leaves for Birmingham
Not surprised at all with Michael Morrison’s departure. After 146 starts in three seasons in the heart of our defence , under Bob Peeters he has made just the one, and only that due to Ben Haim’s religious belief’s.
The vice captain joins Gary Rowett’s Birmingham City on loan until the end of the year, with a 28-day call back.
I like many Addicks have always been a huge admirer of Morrison, since the very first day he pulled on a Charlton jersey. The 26-year old only signed a new 2-year contract in the summer a month after Peeters joined. I suspect like many this was to both appease fans and a back-up in case the Belgian wasn’t able to get the ball-playing defenders in that he wanted.
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Good flow
“We get good results, there is a good flow around Charlton. People are starting to respect us again and for me that’s the most important thing.”
On Monday night over steak and chips, and no doubt a cold Flemish beer Bob and Roly met to discuss the Addicks season so far and if like me you watched the live You Tube show 1905 yesterday then you would have heard that they are pretty pleased with each other.
Roly as we know is a hands off owner, but came across as reasonably tuned into the happenings at The Valley and in The Championship. We know that Katrien Meire is his eyes and ears and although not the greatest communicator unless there is steak and chips involved, the 1905 interview if hardly ground-breaking was helpful for us Addicks that try to understand his ambitions and persona.
He talked for long lengths about young players and how difficult The Championship is knowing that it can change quickly. Strangely after sacking Guy Luzon on Monday he told us that results are not important. I beg to differ, but I can accept that we are in a long game, which I think to most of us is a more sensible and more satisfying approach.
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Guy Luzon to remain in network
As expected Standard’s Guy Luzon stood down as head coach this morning after the debacle of yesterday. Standard sit in the bottom half of the Jupiler League 3 points above the relegation zone. Remember Standard fans have the expectations of a Man Utd fan.
Interesting that the official Standard announcement said “Luzon is no longer head coach of Standard, but will remain active inside the network of partner clubs.” Quite what that means I am unsure.
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Norwich City 0 Charlton Athletic 1
Scenes!
A monster result tonight against the league leaders’ expensively assembled squad and the division’s top scorers.
It may have been a smash and grab victory, but they don’t come without defensive mettle, strength of character, organisation and a game plan. Oh, and winner, and Johnnie Jackson is a born winner. Those less appreciative of what Jacko gives to the fabric of our club can go back into their cubby-holes for a little bit longer.
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It’s a squad game
Bob stuck to his script today re-iterating that no new players will join on loan. If true, and there maybe some gamesmanship here, then I think we are taking a chance. Roland does insist that his sides don’t carry cumbersome squads and will supplement needs from within the network.
However The Championship is an unflinching marathon of tough and high tempo games. One would hazard a guess that the Belgium, Hungarian Leagues and the Spanish 2nd Division aren’t so rigourous.
I make it that we have a first-team squad of 20 players, excluding those out on loan. Middlesbrough who visit The Valley Saturday have 27 and Norwich, who we go to on Tuesday, have 37 players at their disposal.
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Possession’s 9/10th’s of the law
38% – 62% Watford
36% – 64% Brighton
63% – 37% Huddersfield
37% – 63% Derby
45% – 55% Wigan
39% – 61% Brentford
Our possession stats for the League games played so far.
Probably not a surprise that we only kept our first clean sheet of the season Saturday. Lies, damned lies and statistics and all that, but we have clearly been under the cosh for long periods of games in the six we have played so far.
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Chris Powell gets Huddersfield job
Huddersfield Town appear a good fit for Chris Powell and I warmly wish him every success. He is a good man, a football man and I personally think he will continue to be around the game for a long time and will add to the managerial successes he had at The Valley.
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Call for Churchy
Very disappointed that we weren’t able to bring another striker in with Duchatelet clearly putting his eggs in the Andy Delort basket. I believe he was still trying to work with Tours FC before last weekend offering investment in the Ligue 2 clubs youth structure.
Tours needed €4 million to keep the wolf from the door whilst Delort’s agent and father pulled every trick in the book, some pretty tasteless, to get the best deal for the player. Duchatelet was never going to fight in that ring.
Whether Peeters can now convince Katrien and Roly to explore the English loan market we will have to wait and see, an area congested with rubbish that needs to be sifted through carefully, especially when you are out shopping after the best deals have been snapped up.
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La la la la la la la la
Thank the Mexican gods I will be travelling from early tomorrow morning until late-ish tomorrow evening and therefore won’t be drawn into the crazy self-aggrandizing Sky Sports torture chamber of the final day of the summer transfer window.
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That Charlton spirit
If you watch the players, I think there were five in total, in the immediate vicinity of Igor Vetokele when he smacked our second goal home on Saturday, you would like me have taken great enjoyment watching how every player celebrated the goal. In fact Kyle wrote here that Simon Church almost burst a blood vessel, so wrapped up in the moment he was.
Interesting then the loan signing of Frédéric Bulot from Standard Liege. It is said from the outset he was against the switch. However with his Standard opportunities diminishing he was later convinced of making the move. The photo of him sat in front of a burger and fries was also an unusual way to make an introduction!
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Brighton & Hove Albion 2 Charlton Athletic 2
I wrote yesterday that in Igor we had a player that could bag a half chance on the road, well he did it twice today on the south-coast. The first out of nothing, early in the game to set the pattern for the remainder of the match. The second when, looking like he was out on his feet, he showed great natural instinct to fire home.
Unfortunately both of Igor’s goals were cancelled out, the last one in the final minute of injury time to leave Addicks ruefully foregoing three points, but in the cold light of day accepting a more pragmatic one.
On the face of it, it was a great point against another good side, one that I started to have doubts about, but that have made some strong signings under the spectre of FFP.
Home and away
The Addicks end their 3-game away sequence tomorrow at Brighton hoping to keep their league record intact into September.
As others have noted after recent appalling home seasons under Chris Powell and Jose Riga, where the side was simply not expansive or adventurous enough to win the majority of it’s games and were better suited to success on the road, Peeters’ new look side could potentially give us the opposite dilemma.
With The Valley’s new enlarged snooker table of a pitch allowing Big Bob’s players to impose their passing style on visitors home fans can hope to see much better entertainment. However you don’t get that kind of luxury at the majority of aways grounds in this division.
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Bulot & Viera. New names to conjure with
Two new names to conjure with as we reach the final week of the transfer window. Bored of Delort and Bahebeck? Then try these two for size.
Frédéric Bulot has never really settled at Standard and it is thought he was at Sparrows Lane today after Roland Duchâtelet finally convinced him of the Addicks’ worth. The 23-year old attacking midfielder grew up in France but is originally from Gabon and his name was mentioned in dispatches before in terms of a loan move to The Valley but the player was not keen.
Yoni Buyens may now be telling his old team mates a different story to others that made the journey across the Channel in January and Bulot may have bought it.
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The passing game
Tuesday night’s atmosphere was a little surreal I thought and certainly Addicks’ watchers are going to need to learn how to watch Peeters’ new look team.
There were groans around me as the ball often moved from a promising attacking position back into our own half. One old boy near me shouted out it was “disgusting” how a ball out wide wasn’t crossed into the box, but instead passed back.
The award of a foul appeared to bother the players, not because of foul play but because it broke up a rhythm. Instead of then launching a free-kick into dangerous opposing territory they were mostly just tapped to a team mate so the players could continue their passage of play. I only remember Jackson’s effort outside the box being sent goalwards.
Peeters team and the style is a work in progress and I think for long standing suffering Valley stalwarts it is too.
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Charlton Athletic 3 Derby County 2
My first sight of the new revolution in SE7 last night and quite frankly I was astounded.
The first 10 minutes I sat in a kind of self contained bewilderment as Peeters’ side imposed their passing game on most people’s favourites for promotion. Derby hardly got a sniff of the ball until they kicked off again after George Țucudean scored a beautifully crafted goal in the 11th minute.
I cheered with others, but I was equally a little bit speechless if I’m honest. I don’t think in 40 years I have seen a Charlton team play such a deliberate passing game. Good passers, yes, but all eleven players in a predetermined way look instinctively for the pass first, I don’t think I have.
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Charlton Athletic 2 Wigan Athletic 1
“I started running and celebrating. I didn’t know where to go. He [Rosler] said, ‘Don’t come and celebrate in my corner’, but I’m not going to mention the other words he said to me.”
Now, I adored Chris’ deep felt love of the club, I appreciated José’s calm demeanour and occasional fist pump, but come on what is not to like about a man so wrapped up in the moment that he forgot he was actually working and not sat amongst the fans.
Peeters will be interesting to watch this season and I personally hope he doesn’t temper his sideline enthusiasm. This is what he has brought, and it is infectious. Big Bob, keep up the good work.
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Brentford 1 Charlton Athletic 1
I would happily have taken a point beforehand, and the opening half-hour was as I envisaged it with the Bees full of confidence and vigour and us, with 7 new signings, trying to find our feet.
Therefore I was pleased that we took a hold of the game late in the 1st half and then from what I heard and obtained from those there, we played very well in the 2nd half, but of course in true Charlton style were left hanging on at the death.
I was after substance today and I think we got that from Peeters side, who obviously sent them out with a plan after half-time. We had the added bonus of an impressive display from Igor Vetokele as well as Johan Berg Gudmundsson. An extra bonus was Solly slotting into his right back spot and being the majorities man of the match. In front of Roy Hodgson too!
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This is it
“I’ve never worked abroad so it will be interesting to see if the way we want to play fits into the Championship. Fans, players, everyone will be a little bit nervous because it is the first game of the season. Some of our signings have come from abroad and they do not know what to expect. It will be an eye-opener for some players but, hopefully, they will be ready for it.” – Bob Peeters (more)
That heady cocktail of apprehension and excitement. Being a football fan on the eve of another new season.
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