Struber next season

Not bothered either way. Hasn’t done either a great or an awful job. Took us over at rock bottom and kept us there. We look more solid under him but solidity cannot mask a lack of quality.

 

I would like to see him stay as I think he has unfinished business and I would like him to have a full season working with his own players.

 

Depends if there is a financial saving to be made in these unfeckinprecedented times.

 

Have you got a link for the Sollbauer interview?

 

Not sure. Seems a decent bloke, but plays our best striker in midfield, our best midfielder on the edge of his own box, subs young lads off after 25 minutes and rigidly sticks to one system even when a Plan B is needed.

 

https://www.barnsleychronicle.com/article/sollbauer-returns-alone-and-says-ten-cases-is-too-many

 

I reckon he’ll be gone along with as many coaching/backroom/office staff as the club can lose. Huge changes in football to come and we’ve hardly begun to see the financial impact of covid on football yet. Expect relegation, usual sale of best players to be replaced with kids from league 2 on zero hours contracts.

 

When he joined we had 9 points from 16 games and no win in 15 (0.56PPG). Since then we've achieved 25 points in 21 games (1.19 PPG), we'd be 17th if we'd have kept that up for the full season to date.

Woodrow scored 6 in 13 (0.46 GPG) before Struber and 8 in 18 since Struber took charge (0.44 GPG).

I think he's done a pretty good job to be fair.

 

Stats can be twisted to suit anything.

When Struber joined we were 24th and 5 points off relegation. Were now 24th and 7 points off relegation. Despite being allowed to bring in his own players which previous managers did not have the luxury of.

We drew 0-0 at home to Birmingham and Woodrow touched the ball in the box a grand total of zero times in the second half. I know that ridiculous stat because I was that bored watching the game I counted.

I think he's too rigid and too negative. But hey, I'm a bloke on a message board driving a van for a living, so what do I know. I sincerely hope he proves me wrong because I like him as a person.

 

Arguably our form dipped once he brought in Ritzmaier. Can’t imagine we gave him a 2.5yr deal to bin him off if relegated unless it’s a clause in the contract.

 

Don’t think that’s what Sollbauer is saying. He says he doesn’t want to play in league one but he’s got a contract here. I think he just means he doesn’t want to play in it in an ideal world, but should we be relegated he will have to after unless someone wants to buy him.

 

Can't say I blame him. He's not getting any younger, so should definitely not be playing below his level. And he is definitely of Championship level. I can see him being snatched up by another team around our level but with a bit more wage budget even if we stay up if he's available for free.

 

It depends on “how” we go down for me, if I we go down do with the dressing room fighting all the way, maybe. If we see some of the rank capitulations we’ve already seen this season, then it’s a no. He’s stubbornly played Mowatt in the wrong position and brought in players who’ve not been good enough. Not sure tactically he’s any better then a dozen English managers we could have had.

 

I was really impressed at first & I thought Mowatt was playing incredibly well on the left of the diamond but then he brought in Ritzmaier & put him on the left & has played Mowatt either behind the strikers or more recently at the base of the diamond which is a position that I think is made for Dougall & is a waste of Mowatt’s talent.

Also I felt he persisted in partnering Diaby & Anderson for way too long. I couldn’t understand why Halme wasn’t starting at centre back & even when Sollbauer came in he partnered him with Anderson at first when for me Halme’s looked far better than Anderson all season after August.

I’m a bit torn. Whilst I think he’s got them two things wrong I think the change in system has worked & it’s certainly benefitted all three of Woodrow, Chaplin & Brown. I don’t think I’d have a strong opinion either way unless things drastically changed during the last few games