Carlo turned to talk to Clement today and i didnt see Clement saying anything back. Clement looked scared to me. Nothing like Carlo and Rays dynamic.

Theres problem there imho. Anyone else seeing this?

I saw Carlo talk to Clements, making a point, and Clements nodding in agreement.

The thing that I find interesting is this: If Emenedaninho is meant to be his new "Wilkins" then why is Clements sitting next to Carlo?

Maybe Ray played a bigger part in the actual selection and tactics for games than was first thought. I remember him discussing things with Carlo all the time on the bench, but now he's not there Ancelotti has to decide everything himself, and possibly he's not up to that job?

Or maybe it's just a co-incidence that we've hit a poor run of form at the same time as Ray leaving.

"The thing that I find interesting is this: If Emenedaninho is meant to be his new "Wilkins" then why is Clements sitting next to Carlo?"

Odd isnt it? Emenaliho is providing nothing there so far.

Edited January 2, 201114 yr by JJtheBlue

The biggest flaw in the argument that Ray Wilkins' departure is the main reason for the way we've been playing over the last couple of months is that our form was already on the slide while he was still here. Liverpool away is the obvious one, but even before that we'd scraped a win at Blackburn and against Wolves. Go a little further back and we'd lost successive games, to Man City away and Newcastle (yes Newcastle) at home.

The typical response to a run like this is to find some sort of intangible reason for why it's happening. The simple reason and the most likely is poor play and poor management.

Right now Ancelotti has his "I'll be patient with the team and they will pull through for me" hat on. He needs to take it off and put on the " light a spark under some butts and give others a chance" hat on.

And a real chance. Not 45 minutes and a sub at half if they don't score.

The typical response to a run like this is to find some sort of intangible reason for why it's happening. The simple reason and the most likely is poor play and poor management.

Right now Ancelotti has his "I'll be patient with the team and they will pull through for me" hat on. He needs to take it off and put on the " light a spark under some butts and give others a chance" hat on.

And a real chance. Not 45 minutes and a sub at half if they don't score.

Agree completely with that. But too much change in the lineups will be too dirsruptive. Drop anelka for sturridge from todays lineup for me.

I thought that Em-guy was just the guy who scouted the opponents, but wouldn't have anything to do with the tactics.

The biggest flaw in the argument that Ray Wilkins' departure is the main reason for the way we've been playing over the last couple of months is that our form was already on the slide while he was still here. Liverpool away is the obvious one, but even before that we'd scraped a win at Blackburn and against Wolves. Go a little further back and we'd lost successive games, to Man City away and Newcastle (yes Newcastle) at home.

Okay, we had been rocky, but Newcastle at home featured about half the side changed, and City away is a hoodoo game for us. The Liverpool result was the big one in my mind that sticks out before Ray left. That result has seen us come completely off the f**king rails.

The thing about Ray's fate is not what he brought to the team in terms of x's and o's. He was clearly a presence, a familiar figure to all the squad. And someone who had the trust and confidence of the manager. Its not an excuse to say "its because of that" but when the going gets tough, suddenly removing a familiar face from the set up for, apparently, no good reason is the last thing they should have done.

When I think it was likely done by our owner or whoever, to save the vanity of some money stooge's wife, it makes me sick to the pit of my stomach. Our manager is one of the best in the modern game, and yet he cant even control what goes on in his own house without being treated like some company stiff. If Roman really wants to control things that bad, just have him pick the team and run the tactics like they do at Real Madrid.

Maybe it was a rhetorical question.