Oct 20
As Addicks fans make their way to The Valley tonight, CEO Katrien Meire has given Guy Luzon a vote of confidence. “Guy has our full support, for sure. He has been unlucky with injuries. I spoke to Guy over the weekend and told him not to worry – that he is not under any pressure.” (more)
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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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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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Whilst Franck Moussa has been like a new signing after a year out with injury, this summer’s signings Simon Makienok, Christian Ceballos and Ahmed Kashi are still sidelined with injuries depite a fortnight’s resting up period.
The Addcks go to in-form Reading tomorrow still injury hit with no sign of Stephen Henderson, Igor Vetokele or Reza either, although in a pretty uninformative update from Guy Luzon it does appear that the Iranian and Makienok are at least back in training.
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Unsurprising result especially given the team that Luzon put out. It is September and he is already resting players for a game that meant so much to supporters. What was more disappointing was that he didn’t throw on JBG and Watt at the break after successfully keeping the score goalless at half time.
We had 8 minutes of excitement after Sarr headed in to make it 1-2, but another soft penalty and losing the influential Diarra to a straight red and that was the end of that. Pope again keeping the final score down.
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When the two fateful names were pulled out of the hat, we were told that it wouldn’t be a distraction. That was four games and one point ago. Whether the players have been affected, some of whom probably were never going to play in the game anyway and many of whom, I would expect, had no previous knowledge of what the game means, who knows. Our form since the international break is a cause for concern but nothing that a rip-roaring derby win cannot put right!
It was always going to be a distraction for Charlton fans, beside themselves when the draw was made, but now terrified of what the game beholds. Palace have bought big and mostly well this summer looking to push on, knowing that a new humungous TV deal kicks in August, and just like so many before them starting to feel at home in their new lifestyle.
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The biggest defeat of a season that is rapidly turning from hopeful to worrying. A straightforward win for Blackburn today, who like Huddersfield before them won their first game of the season against the Addicks. If it wasn’t for Nick Pope the score may well have resembled a rugby score.
Jordan Rhodes scored twice, his 9th and 10th goals against Charlton, the first coming at a killer time seconds before the break.
Up until then the 1st half sounded reasonably decent from our perspective although we had to thank young Nick Pope for allowing us to even be in the game after two superb saves early on, both from that thorn in our side, Rhodes. Funny how we used to joke that Michael Morrison used to carry the Scotsman around in his pocket. No, I’m not laughing either.
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“This is our squad and we go with this squad.”
Guy Luzon at today’s press conference saying that the club won’t be adding any more players to the squad. Hmm, lessons don’t appeared to have been learnt and I am fearing an incredible amount of deju-vu.
No cover then for an injury prone Chris Solly, no experienced keeper, no centre-half alternatives other than the young Lennon and Sarr and no left sided midfielder options which means Luzon will also have to play someone out of position there. Luzon indicated that we can expect Conor McAleny on the left at Blackburn on Saturday. I hope the Evertonian can impress and get some goals, but the lad’s injury record is very poor.
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Tonight’s result and performance makes last season’s 3-0 win all the more remarkable.
The worrying thing about tonight is that, Diarra rested aside, it was probably our best team with the players available, alongside a very impressive bench. Cousins however, should never play left side of midfield again. Never.
The question, and I am sounding like a broken record, but the question is how does Luzon change it? Who does he have, where are the options?
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Today Guy Luzon was predictably vague when it came to Saturday’s team selection. Tony Watt we think is fit again, Simon Makienok may or may not be as he only started training properly today and Igor Vetokele, well who knows. He didn’t train today as he was ill Luzon said, but obviously not too ill to be in bed, as he was at Sparrows Lane.
Maybe it was jet lag Igor was suffering from as he was surprisingly allowed to make the 12 hour plane journey (one way) to Magadascar to represent Angola in their African Cup of Nations qualifier this week. They drew 0-0 by the way.
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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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Disappointing but not unexpected today. Wolves will certainly be promotion candidates and staying unbeaten for the whole month of August was just beyond us.
Nonetheless 8 points on the board, 2 wins against teams that now sit 2nd and 4th in the table and 2 excellent away draws. Add to that 8 goals in two rounds of the League Cup taking us to a belter of a 3rd Round game and the start of our season is not to be sniffed at, and the total opposite of what many of us were thinking when the fixtures first came out.
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With James Henry still part of Wolves’ plans and any moves for him shelved until next summer when Henry is out of contract, Dagenham & Redbridge’s 17-year old winger Jodi Jones has become the Addicks’ latest target.
Jones is about as far removed from Henry as possible. Both wingers but 26-year old Henry has played 250 odd games and has 9 England U19 caps, whereas Jones is just 17, and has only made 9 League Two appearances after coming through the Daggers youth system.
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What a wonderful day out to end a very enjoyable week. Back in Bermuda tonight with my head full of memories and Charlton songs!
QPR may not end up being a good yardstick to judge our opening performance as my mate Dave said in his post-match thoughts, although you can only beat what is in front of you, but although we conceded a lot of possession and corners to the west Londoners in the first half, it was a little surprising to see their capitulation after we went 2-0 up. The rather cocky QPR fans who somewhat startlingly sauntered past the Royal Oak singing their anti-Chelsea songs may need to lower their pretensions.
I think most of us shuddered a little when those first 6 fixtures came out, but early season is as good as time as any to play the relegated teams, and Austin-less it is hard to see anything other than a season of mediocrity or worse for Ramsey’s team.
But as Luzon repeats it wasn’t about our opposition, for Addicks it was finding out about those players in red shirts, their aptitudes and their attitudes.
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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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Chicago Addick 