Selection Consistency

[Plodder]

So much one could write about, but let's deal with one subject - consistency of selection. Slavisa is helping to seal his own fate by chopping and changing too much, not only before games, but during them. Fabri/Bettinelli/Rico in goal, Christie/Fosu-Mensah at right back, Odoi/Ream/Chambers/Mawson/Le Marchand at centre half, Sessegnon/Bryan/Le Marchand at left back - we all have our own opinions, and he is not going to please every player and supporter, but Slavisa simply has to make up his mind what he thinks is our best team and give it a decent run of games (ten?). I would guarantee Mawson and Chambers the next ten games as the central defensive pairing, and see how they go, but whoever Slavisa selects, he should stand by his judgement, and not just pick the next cab on the rank after a player has a bad game or makes one mistake. It isn't just the defence. Vietto is the latest being given the hokey-cokey treatment. Personally, I would not have selected him in the first place tonight, certainly not in the same team as Schurlle as it makes us lightweight when not in possession, but taking Vietto off at half time and changing the team shape was an admission of failure and exposes Slavisa to a lot of fair criticism along the lines of "you don't know what you're doing". Yet I suspect Vietto will be back soon, only to be dropped again. Sad to see it all unravelling so quickly. I think managers are sacked too hastily, and part of me thinks he deserves at least until Christmas, but it is becoming harder to argue with any firm conviction that Jokanovic is the man to turn this around.