We're third after 21 games

[H4usuallysitting]

It would be crazy to replace Mr Parker.....he needs at least a season

[Facts Not Fiction]

It would be crazy to replace Mr Parker.....he needs at least a season

Refer back to this in January.

[twang]

We're also:
11 points from 2nd place
1 point from 7th place
5 points from 12th place

[Penfold]

At the moment it's a little like the end of 2012/13. Quite a few people moaned about the dismal run in. We won the last game at Swansea, and Jol was fantastic, any criticism unwarranted. The fact that we were 3 or 4 points only from safety never came into it.

I'd have sacked him after the Reading debacle in April 2013 (where I left Lord's to go to the football, and missed a 259 run opening stand for Middlesex v Surrey), but I'm not bitter 🤣

[davew]

It would be crazy to replace Mr Parker.....he needs at least a season

Refer back to this in January.

Agreed, but at the end of January we could still be in a play off position, in spite of my normal negative posts I would hope we are still in the top 6 then, if not bring back Woolly.....Doomed!

[..FOF..]

I thought we are over with changing manager every few months? :)

[Woolly Mammoth]

So did I.

[Snibbo]

I thought we are over with changing manager every few months? :)

:54:

[hongkongfulham]

I'm not really sure what people are expecting. Were we supposed to be guarenteed to walk the league a la Tigana?

With a new manager, in his first role, with more new recruits, surely we expected to have an up and down period to start us off at the very least? Would people have really rejected being in 3rd at this point at the start of the season if offered?
It seems like if things aren't going in incredible, then they are terrible, with no middle ground.

I accept that the manner of winning or losing is important but our league position doesn't have an opinion, just how well we are doing relative to the competition.

Sure，if by January we have massively fallen away then there are obvious issues, but surely we cross that bridge when we come to it？Yes, we have lost too many games already but the boys above us are on a tear!

My hope is Hector will come in an help bring confidence in to the back 4 with some commanding performances, but maybe he will be awful, or not involved at all? I also hope that the team will improve as the season develops as Parker gains experience and the team gains choesion. Who knows, but the doom and gloom seems palpable around here.

[RaySmith]

We didn't play badly at Preston, but they took their chances, and we were unlucky v Bristol, and the season still has a long way to run.

Third Place!  We need to get behind the manager and players.
I think we still have the potential to do well with this squad and manager, maybe with some defensive improvement.

[I Ronic]

We're also:
11 points from 2nd place
1 point from 7th place
5 points from 12th place

So are the teams below us, if not slightly worse.

[Statto]

I'm not really sure what people are expecting.

Comfortable top 2

Would people have really rejected being in 3rd at this point at the start of the season if offered?

3rd and 11pts from 2nd - yes absolutely

Sure，if by January we have massively fallen away then there are obvious issues, but surely we cross that bridge when we come to it

We already have "massively fallen away" - 11 pts!

I also hope that the team will improve as the season develops as Parker gains experience and the team gains choesion.

But there is no sign of that. We haven't improved at all since the start of the season.

[Spirit of 2000]

Am basically repeating my reply from a different thread as it's relevant to the "we're 3rd, Parker is doing ok" argument.

A good manager gets a group of players playing above their perceived ability levels based on their career to date - that may equate to promotion as was the case with us and Slav or survival if a Barnsley, Wigan or similar stay up, or if Charlton achieve a mid table finish.

Given the group of players at his disposal at this level of the game Parker is certainly NOT delivering a collective team performance that is above or even on par with their abilities as professionals as a group at this level. Yes - the defence isn't great but let's look at individuals, Christie a ROI international with buckets of experience at this level who cost £4m, Odoi a limited but capable utility defender who played a massive part in our last promotion campaign - displacing Kalas, Bryan - deemed as one of the best left backs in this division when we signed him from Bristol City, Ream - borderline our star performer in the Jokanovic promotion season, Mawson - England squad and £15m signing much talked up before his signing. OK injuries haven't helped specifically in the case of Mawson - but that group shouldn't constitute an utterly ropey defence at this level and at some juncture things like coaching & tactics come into question.

Knockaert and Cavaleiro are not performing as they had before inn nthis league, I believe as a direct result of coaching & tactics - our transition to attack is too slow to effectively use their abilities (although I have concerns on Knockaert beyond just that - but replace him with AK47 or Kebano and the same applies that these players would profit more from quicker tempo) - Mitrovic is carrying the side and is being compromised by our style & tactics and gets way too isolated. The balance, tactics, selection are ALL questionable in my opinion and the buck ultimately stops with one man on this front - the manager. Sorry but for me we should replace Parker for the good of the side, the season & club going forward - he and his coaching staff are not up to the task of getting the best from this bunch of players with their collective abilities at this level. Also please don't quote me the 3rd place mantra .... we are in points and application on the pitch a mile behind Leeds and WBA, two sides we should be competing on a reasonable equal level. Should we pick up none or maybe 1 point from the forthcoming Brentford & Leeds games, which given our last 2 performances isn't inconceivable ... in fact is looking likely, we're likely to be out the top 6 completely which given the squad we have is utterly unacceptable.

[fulhamben]

We didn't play badly at Preston, but they took their chances, and we were unlucky v Bristol, and the season still has a long way to run.

Third Place!  We need to get behind the manager and players.
I think we still have the potential to do well with this squad and manager, maybe with some defensive improvement.

we didn't play badly at Preston? Were we watching the same game, just like Bristol city, we didn't even start to get going until the game was already lost

[fulhamben]

It would be crazy to replace Mr Parker.....he needs at least a season

was you calling for felix to be given a season, or how about Sanchez?

[Robbie]

We are third and have loads of injuries .. get over it !

[Spirit of 2000]

We didn't play badly at Preston, but they took their chances, and we were unlucky v Bristol, and the season still has a long way to run.

Third Place!  We need to get behind the manager and players.
I think we still have the potential to do well with this squad and manager, maybe with some defensive improvement.

we didn't play badly at Preston? Were we watching the same game, just like Bristol city, we didn't even start to get going until the game was already lost

Bang on - we were rubbish until we went 2 down vs Bristol City who utterly outplayed and out-thought us for an hour or so - we were pathetic at Preston and supporters of other teams at work took the p*ss over how totally poor we were. More to the point we weren't that great in the 4 wins before that - maybe with the exception of the Derby game. Brum 1-0 was an awful game against a moderate side (who QPR beat 2-0 last night with ease), Against QPR we should have been dead & buried by HT and only got back as their defence was more ropey than ours, and at Swansea an out of form home side outplayed us for the majority of that match. We're not playing brilliantly and being unlucky, our style is Bracewell/Wilkins'esque to watch and the best isn't being got from this group of players.

[RaySmith]

Football doesn't work like this- like a computer game
It's how players mesh as a team, combined with input and organisation from training staff and manager.

There must be so many variables to why one team is successful and another not. It's often just happens with those players and that manager, and can't be replicated elsewhere, or analysed scientifically.

We are  3rd in the table, and have just had a run of  four wins in a  row. Ok, so now we've had two losses, but are still third, and you know- players get injured, lose form, the rub of the green  goes against us, and, as the saying goes, 'you win some and you lose some', despite the best efforts and intent of everyone involved.

[Spirit of 2000]

We are third and have loads of injuries .. get over it !

Preston had more injuries and have a smaller squad - they deservedly beat us thanks to an old journeyman scoring the winner - as for 3rd ... we're 11 points off of 2nd and 4 points off of 12th - that gives a more true reflection of where we are under Parker. Lose against Brentford & Leeds and we'll be in mid table or thereabouts.

[Southcoastffc]

Scott Parker has been nominated for the (November) manager of the month award.