Is Johnson In Pursuit Of Happiness Or Cash? January 29, 2010
Posted by stuart in Adam Johnson, Gordon Strachan, Transfer Rumours.Tags: Adam Johnson, Boro, Follow The Boro Brick Road, Gordon Strachan, Manchester City, Middlesbrough, Roberto Mancini
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Adam Johnson wants to talk to Manchester City to see what they can offer him in terms of football. The 22-year-old is likely to sign for Roberto Mancini’s side if he is guaranteed first-team football from now until the end of the season meaning Gordon Strachan will have to work fast in securing more signings to strengthen the squad before the transfer window is shut.
With the departure of Johnson looking more and more likely, especially as Robinho has now switched to Santos, we are going to be very light on goals once our leading goalscorer heads back to the Premier League. After the failed attempt to land Celtic striker Scott McDonald it seems that Strachan might get a wee bit desperate and try to land some unknown quantity which he has been reluctant to do up until now.
For me our next signings hinge on the sale of Johnson whether it be now or at the end of the season. If he does leave at the end of the season it means a deal must be in place with an initial fee being paid up front to allow our cash-strapped club to afford new players.
We need to get this right and looking at the clock we only have a few days and hours left to build a team that is capable of charging up the league into the Play-Off places.
Going back to the Johnson saga, I truly believe that if AJ does move to the City of Manchester stadium he will run riot with all the excellent players around him. So will he be persuaded by the cash or is he looking to get on that plane to South Africa? My guess, his soft arrogance will lead him to take the cash and then stamp his authority on the Premier League whilst having fun.
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Strachan Must Bring Fans Back To The Riverside January 21, 2010
Posted by stuart in Gordon Strachan, Transfer Rumours.Tags: Boro, Boro Brick Road, Follow The Boro Brick Road, Gordon Strachan, Leon Best, Wayne Routledge
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It’s no secret that some Middlesbrough fans are already calling for Gordon Strachan’s head only three months after the former Celtic Manager took charge at the Riverside. A lack of consistency since his arrival has seen the side slip down the Championship standings to mid-table mediocrity.
With the attendance records taking a battering this season due to uninspiring performances and results it is no surprise to see less and less Boro fans at the Riverside and with it comes uncertainty about whether Strachan is the right man for the job. Before some fans get all defensive I will make it clear where I stand. In my opinion Strachan has inherited a squad of players that lack enthusiasm, quality and resistance so I am giving Strachan a good amount of time to get things done right.
He may well need the rest of this season to consolidate the teams ambitions which, at present, is nothing more than our current position in the league because the table does not lie. We have deserved to be in the position we’re in now because we have not played well enough in games.
Gordon Strachan needs to get the players enjoying playing football in a Boro shirt which means getting wins under their belts. Just imagine four or five wins on the bounce – the fans would flock back to the Riverside. Strachan can also lure fans back to the Riverside by buying players. I guarantee that if GS is able to pull off the purchases of both Leon Best and Wayne Routledge we will have more supporters turning up to games in the next run of home fixtures.
Once we have new faces in place we can then concentrate on getting wins in the bag which will help us climb up the league table. At the moment it seems a long way off, seeing the Boro win games on a regular basis but I think we are about to turn the corner and hopefully the change in fortune will bring the fans back and stop all this negativity that is flying around. To be honest we can’t do anything else as fans other than support the team.
Fingers crossed Best and Routledge are on their way. Those two are vital if we are to start winning again soon. One can score goals and the other can produce chances for strikers in the final third.
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Strachan’s Raid On Celtic Continues January 12, 2010
Posted by stuart in Barry Robson, Chris Killen, Gary Caldwell, Gordon Strachan, Willo Flood, celtic.Tags: Boro, Follow The Boro Brick Road, Gary Caldwell, Middlesbrough, Middlesbrough F.C., Mido, Strachan
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Happy New Year!
What have I missed? Have we signed ‘the fat Ronaldo’ yet?
It seems that the excitement of the New Year transition at the Riverside has somewhat gone flat amongst the sledging and snow-ball throwing.
Gordon Strachan’s attempts at luring old pals from Scotland were short-lived as the bad weather intervened to scupper talks between officials at Middlesbrough and Celtic. I blame Keith Lamb for this one – his 16-year-old Volvo estate not up to the icy roads north of the border.
The Gary Caldwell saga continues. Will we or won’t we be buying the central defender? Who knows! It doesn’t look good when another team, especially one from the Premier League, starts sniffing around the 27-year-old. To be honest though, who would you rather play for: Wigan or Middlesbrough?
Don’t hold your breath about Boro signing exciting players this month. We are about to be turned into a refuge home for players that are in transition from their peak playing days who want to play to pay for their retirement home in Spain. It will get that way, I promise.
Adam Johnson and Mark Yeates are currently our most energetic players, get used to it because there won’t be anyone in the same mould as these two coming through the gates any time soon.
All we can hope for is that AJ stays and Gordon gets his hand on a defender, midfielder and a striker with a beard. The latter being able to score goals.
So, let’s get this straight. Amidst all the transfer rumours we are apparently locked in talks with Gary Caldwell, Barry Robson, Chris Killen and Willo Flood.
Should Caldwell see past the potential relegation dogfight at Wigan, we should have a quartet of Celtic lads hooking up with the Boro squad tomorrow. It could be an interesting trip to Sheffield on Saturday.
Here is a thought for all you Riverside Revolution’ lovers. What about Gordon Strachan bringing Mido back into the frame? Would our Scottish lion tamer bring the Egyptian back to reality. It could be a stroke of genius getting him back in the Boro side.
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Strachan Keen To End Boro’s Boxing Day Blues December 24, 2009
Posted by stuart in Christmas, Gordon Strachan.2 comments
I think all Middlesbrough fans would love to see the Boxing Day blues banished for at least one year and for us to see a goal scored from a player in a red shirt.
Our previous results on December 26th have been nothing short of disastrous for the last six years. Take a look at our recent Boxing Day records:
2008 lost 1-0 to Evrton at home
2007 lost 3-0 to Birmingham City away
2006 drew 0-0 with Everton
2005 lost 2-0 to Blackburn at home
2004 lost 2-0 to Birmingham City
2003 drew 2-2 with Blackburn away
The last time we won on Boxing Day was back in 2002 when we defeated the mighty Manchester United by 3 goals to one. Alen Boksic, Szilard Nemeth and Joseph Desire Job grabbed the goals that day in front of 34,673 fans inside the Riverside Stadium.
Maybe that one in a million result against Sir Alex Ferguson’s men at that point came with a price. And that price was for us to not score at home for the next six years and not to pick up any points in front of our own fans.
I’m sure Strachan will have the players up for this game as he will be as determined as anybody to get his first win at home since arriving on Teesside. As we make wishes over Christmas – try and put a good word in for the Boro!
Just a quick mention for Kay Murray who dropped in at Football United earlier this week to talk to Sam about life in Madrid. You may or may not know, that Kay is a Boro fan and she is a presenter on Real Madrid TV. Have a listen to her on the latest Football United podcast – she also gives her thoughts on Middlesbrough’s season so far.
One last thing from me – Merry Christmas to you all and thank you to all who Follow The Boro Brick Road.
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Four New Players Expected To Arrive In New Year December 23, 2009
Posted by stuart in Beckford, Gordon Strachan.Tags: Boro, Boro Brick Road, Follow The Boro Brick Road, Gordon Strachan, Jermaine Beckford, Middlesbrough, Steve Gibson
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Gordon Strachan has been quizzed recently as we approach the January transfer window. Talking to the GL, Strachan is keen to strengthen his team as we head into the second-half of the season. The Boro boss is not giving any names away though at this point but has revealed he will be making best use of the transfer window.
Following yesterday’s post about Jermaine Beckford it seems that we will be out of the running for the talented striker because Steve Gibson will not be in a position to hand over large sums of money halfway through the season. I remain optimistic about the chances of landing a couple of good players that will cost the club to ‘part’ with cash for. We are in a position where we could lose a lot more money at the end of the season if we don’t acted next month and try to make the Play-Offs. Being cautious or tight now might hinder our chances?
Strachan has already mentioned the fact the team is lacking responsible heads on the pitch. He explained last week that he only knows of three married players in the squad which obviously is something that worries the Scotsman. He’s looking at personalities within the side not just talent with a football which is a necessity if he wants to have the right balance for success. So expect to see a couple of older heads coming through the gates at the Riverside next month. New faces but old heads – you know what I mean.
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Stop Teasing Us With These Rumours December 22, 2009
Posted by stuart in Beckford, Follow The Boro Brick Road, Gordon Strachan.Tags: Boro, Elland Road, Follow The Boro Brick Road, Gary O'Neil, Gordon Strachan, Jermaine Beckford, Leeds, Middlesbrough, Sean St Ledger, Simon Grayson
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Jermaine Beckford has been linked with Middlesbrough in the last 24 hours fuelling speculation that League 1’s sharpest shooter will be Strachan’s first permanent signing next month.
This would be great news for us if we were to grab the free-scoring forward but it looks unlikely with the 26-year-old’s love affair with the Elland Road faithful. And despite a spat with Leeds boss Simon Grayson last weekend it will take a lot of persuading for the hotshot to step up to the Championship a few months before Leeds arrive in the same league themselves.
Preston North End confirmed today that they will not be getting their former defender Sean St Ledger back from us after he moved to the Riverside in September. Another one for the rumour mill – I wonder where he is going if they are true? Nowhere of course.
Some good news at last this week. Gary O’Neil’s contract at Middlesbrough has been extended – not by Gary though, by the club after it was revealed that the midfielder had a clause in his contract which allowed us to extend the deal which sees the former Pompey player remain under contract on Teesside until 2012 which will keep poachers at bay.
At least he won’t be able to leave in the summer on a free like others in the past with this option being exercised by Middlesbrough. O’Neil was recently given the captaincy following the arrival of Gordon Strachan and has performed very well with the armband since.
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St Ledger Has Bright Future On Teesside December 18, 2009
Posted by stuart in Gordon Strachan, Sean St Ledger.Tags: Boro, Follow The Boro Brick Road, Gareth Southgate, Gordon Strachan, Middlesbrough, Preston North End, Republic of Ireland, Sean St Ledger
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The Red tops have issued a couple of damaging stories in the last 24 hours about Middlesbrough players. The writers, scribblers and trash talkers at The Mirror must be about to take Christmas leave, so instead of writing some interesting and engaging stories about climate change they decide to make some rubbish up about the Boro players before they jet of to the Canary Islands for their holidays.
Before I start talking about Sean St Ledger as a Boro player, I will first paint a picture about 24-year-old Sean Patrick St Ledger-Hall. The Birmingham born Republic of Ireland international had been a star in Preston North End’s defence for three seasons before signing for Middlesbrough on loan for an initial three-month period with a view to a permanent deal.
Since arriving on Teesside, St Ledger had praised the club from top to bottom and singled out Gareth Southgate as the main reason why he chose Boro ahead of many other Championship rivals. He has only had positive comments to say about his new life in the North East and has not once said anything damp about his time here.
Now then, as a player in a Boro shirt, he has come under considerable criticism (by Boro fans, not me) about his abilities to defend and since his arrival the side have began to concede a lot of goals, but that is not the fault of just one player – the blame should be shouldered by the rest of the defence and the goalkeeper.
There is no doubt that St Ledger is talented and I believe he could play at a higher level which he has already proved he can cope with well, as we saw, when he played in the recent World Cup Qualifier Play-Off against France. Sean has added a presence at the back with his no nonsense defending and his eye for goal has seen him score a couple of goals form the back which is needed in this league.
Apparently, according to reports from The Mirror, Sean has had a bust-up with Gordon Strachan. Isn’t it coincidental that the defender will be missing a few of Boro’s next games as we approach the transfer window? Isn’t it that time of the year when papers make-up stories to unsettle teams and players ahead of the January sales?
St Ledger has always spoken well about Boro and is always keen to talk to the media at all times so it is a little surprising to read this trash about him and Strachan having words with each other. Even if it was true, surely we have to accept that Strachan’s personality is the total opposite to Gareth Southgate’s so there is always going to be some contrasting views when the little Scotsman is involved.
In my opinion, St Ledger is still way off his best and hopefully with a little more time, alongside Wheater, he and the defence will become stronger for the second half of the season.
No doubt there will be more stories like this appearing in the media over the next couple of weeks. I look forward to naming and shaming.
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Strachan’s Santa List Getting Longer December 16, 2009
Posted by stuart in Gordon Strachan, Tuncay.Tags: Afonso Alves, Barry Robson, Christmas Day, Federico Nieto, Gary Caldwell, Gordon Strachan, Middlesbrough F.C., Olivier Giroud, Scott McDonald, Steve Gibson
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Gordon Strachan keeps updating his wish list for Father Christmas as we lead up to the big day. I’m not talking about Christmas Day by the way, I’m talking about the January transfer window opening day.
Something that is sure to put bums on seats at the Riverside is if new players are brought in from English and Scottish Premier League clubs.
If we are not getting it right with the current crop of players in the squad, then the transfer window will have to be used to maximum effect – that’s if Steve Gibson will be playing ball once again though.
Our chairman is more wary these days about handing over the cheque book, which is inevitable ever since the ‘£12million plus’ was put to good use in signing Afonso Alves two years ago.
With January 1st fast approaching I have put a list of potential targets that might be heading to Teesside.
These guys have been getting a bit of coverage in the last couple of days. What do you think of these possibilities?
Federico Nieto – 26-year-old Argentine, former Rangers striker who is a bit of a journeyman when it comes to shifting between clubs in Portugal and Argentina with Scotland thrown in for good measure.
Olivier Giroud – 23-year-old French striker who is 6ft4” tall. He has been playing in France’s second division and has a decent record of scoring but where have we heard that before Mr Alves?! Nicknamed the ‘Warrior’ because of his height strength, Olly could be a cult hero at Boro. He could be the modern day version of Uwe Fuchs who helped us to promotion in 1995.
Scott McDonald – 26-year-old Australian international who would not have trouble settling in at the Riverside with fellow Down Underers’ Brad Jones and Rhys Williams at Boro. His goal record is phenomenal at Celtic (50 goals in 85 apps) This would be a massive scoop for us but it would be possible with Strachan’s connections working overtime.
Barry Robson – An old head (31-years-old) that would give the midfield added guile. Strong possibility for this one. Again another Strachan connection at Celtic.
Gary Caldwell – This is the more likely out of all the above. The 27-year-old would bring experience at the back which we are desperately in need of. One of Strachan’s better contacts hence the more likely to sign in January.
Would you welcome any of these players at the Riverside?
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Boro Players Seek Refuge On The Road December 14, 2009
Posted by stuart in Boro, Gordon Strachan, Newcastle.Tags: Boro, Boro Brick Road, Follow The Boro Brick Road, Gordon Strachan, Middlesbrough, Newcastle United, Premier League, St James' Park
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Gordon Strachan feels ‘the footballing gods’ had not been kind to the Middlesbrough players on Sunday against Cardiff City which suggests that he is looking beyond the grey skies that cover Teesside for help.
Our Scotsman is still searching for his maiden victory at the Riverside as Boro Manager and Sunday’s 1-0 defeat to the Bluebirds certainly added fuel to the fire that is burning bright in most sections of the stadium.
It’s getting increasingly worrying that our away form outweighs our home record by some distance. I remember the days when we were hard to beat at home – not many years ago in fact. Now, it seems we have reversed the trend and are excelling on the road which highlights the fact,even more, that we have a team that would rather play in front of the travelling fans than the home ones.
If the footballing gods were to ever help out a side that are having a torrid time at home it would be Boro. There are teams in the Championship with similar home records but their fans still back them despite losing games in front of the masses.
The Boro boo boy syndrome is catching around the Riverside, the more games we lose at home, meaning the players become more and more nervy which is crippling their confidence.
Fans at the Riverside need to be patient and understand that we will not bounce back to the Premier League if we boo our players off the pitch at the end of matches.
I’m pretty sure that the footballing gods will not be needed on Sunday against Newcastle United because our players will relish playing in a stadium that won’t be booing them. It’s hard to think that the St James’ Park faithful won’t boo and jeer the Boro players as much as our own fans do.
Strachan should look to the fans for help and guidance at home because at the moment it is the fans that are helping visiting sides win at the Riverside and not just the performance of the Boro lads.
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Strachan Looking To Change It All At Boro December 10, 2009
Posted by stuart in Gordon Strachan.Tags: Boro, Boro Brick Road, Cardiff City, Dave Jones, Gordon Strachan, Ian Holloway, Middlesbrough F.C.
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Previous to the 5-1 thrashing of Queens Park Rangers on Saturday, when was the last time you heard the Boro fans chanting “we want six, we want six, we want six” at an away match?
I was thinking that the convincing win against QPR would have been the turning point in our somewhat Jekyll and Hyde season but following the Boro no show against Blackpool last night at home it must be said that we need to go back to the drawing board as a team and the players need to think about what league they are playing in.
To go from scoring five goals against a decent side who have had a good home record this season surely would have given Strachan’s players a boost. Something changed between the end of the QPR game and the start of the Blackpool match to make the Boro lads perform so badly.
Where was the fight and where was the quality which we have seen in the last three matches before the 3-0 slump to Ian Holloway’s Tangerines?
Strachan was an angry man last night and too right. It must so frustrating and mind boggling that he has inherited a side that have no balls when it comes to playing at home.
Mr Flash has hinted at changing the entire pre-match itinerary for home games, thinking that sloppy results in front of the Middlesbrough fans are a result of poor preparations. Strachan could be right there and I would certainly welcome any change that would give the players a chance at winning at the Riverside.
With our recent form at home I’m hoping we won’t see the limp and lacklustre Boro as they prepare for a clash against Cardiff City at the weekend. Fingers crossed we will see a Boro side that will fight for everything against Dave Jones’ Bluebirds.
I want to hear from the Boro fans about this. Where do you think it is going wrong?
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