4 Minds Are Better Than One - A Shared Save

[bcfc1]

May

I was going to just put the last game in as part of the end of season review but with the game having so much staked on it I have decided to give it its own post. After 45 games, it all comes down to this one away game against Burton. The league has been so tight and this is how the table currently sits.

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This is the line-up I went with for the game. I have been pretty consistent with the starting team for the end of the season. I was tempted to bring in Poyet but his match fitness wasn't quite there for such an important game.

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Match Report

9th minute: Sordell picks up the ball around the half way line and dribbles almost 30 yards before shooting just wide from just outside the box. 0-0

11th minute: Great play from Barker as he gets the ball down the wing and crosses it to Katumbi Chapwe who lays it back to Rodwell who strikes it just wide. 0-0

19th minute: A long clearance to Katumbi Chapwe is flicked on to Barker who dribbles inside and smashes it from 2o+ yards into the top right corner. 1-0

45th minute: Not much happens before half time as we go in 1-0 up and looking like we have one hand on promotion and the League One trophy.

50th minute: Some intricate play gives Burton some space down the left wing where Miller whips in a cross that O'Riley gets onto and smashes a volley in at the near post. 1-1

60th minute: Burton take a corner and cross it to the edge of the box where Miller picks up the ball and plays it to O'Riley again who scores a curling shot into the top left corner from just inside the box. 1-2

73rd minute: Walker plays the ball out wide to Brewster who puts an early cross into the box, aiming for the far post, where Katumbi Chapwe is to smash the ball into the back of the net. 2-2

83rd minute: Good hold up play by Katumbi Chapwe gives Barker the chance to break the offside trap and from a tight angle smashes the ball into the side netting. 2-2

90+4th minute: Brewster plays a quick ball down the line to Katumbi Chapwe who tries the shot but Mannion parries it over the bar for a corner which comes to nothing. 2-2

90+5th minute: FULL TIME. We are both the champions of League One and now have the hard task of building for Championship football.

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I will do a full end of season review in my next post but for now I am going to enjoy a 2-2 draw and the fact that I wasn't able to keep a single clean sheet in any of my games, but was still able to win the league thanks to the hard work of everyone else over the season.





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[FM_TNSSO]

BOOM! Get in there my son!

 

[bcfc1]

End of Season Review

Well any season that ends in calling yourself champions and getting promoted has to be considered a success. By looking through the results it is clear that the most defining part of the season was the unbeaten run from 18th​ September until 5th​ December. There were a few draws but it was mostly wins in this run which picked up a lot of points over the season. The one downside of us moving up to the Championship is that we have missed our chance of winning the Checkatrade trophy. I like to try and win every trophy I can and unless we get relegated next season, it looks very unlikely that we will ever get the chance to win that again.

Final League Table

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Squad

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Other information

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[bcfc1]

Pre-Season Review

So in preparation of Championship football, there has been quite a few players brought into the club. The biggest deals though were probably keeping a lot of the loan players we had last season.

Goalkeepers

There hasn’t been any change here with Jaaskelainen still first choice. I am still looking for a new keeper to replace him but I failed to bring in Fielding and Amos and have yet to find a 3rd​ option yet.

Defence

Sterry’s loan was already extended for this season previously and I was also able to bring back Paljk and Mavropanos to keep those loan stars at the club. I also brought in 3 CB’s on free transfers. Jack Whatmough, Jack Hobbs and Tommie Hoban all come in to battle for places at the back with Mavropanos. All of the options from last season were released as I looked to really improve this area of the pitch so I hope these guys can settle quickly and build a solid foundation for the team. I also signed Elliot Moore to give us more depth. I can't imagine he will get too much game time but if we suffer with injuries and suspensions then he should be a decent option to call on.

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Midfield

I have decided to slightly change my 433 tactic into a more 4123 tactic so that Poyet can play in his preferred DM position. I have then signed Max Power to play with Rodwell in the CM position. I then also signed Darron Gibson to be backup to Poyet and loaned Dru Yearwood and Hamza Choudhury to rotate in the CM positions.

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Forwards

Getting Brewster on loan again and giving Barker a new contract were probably the biggest deals but I was also able to bring in some players. Ryan Colclough was released from his Wigan contract so I brought him back to the club he started at. He will battle with Barker and Brewster for the wing positions. I also signed James Vaughan as an experienced striker to be backup to Katumbi Chapwe.

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Review

I feel the squad has definitely got more depth in it and can fight for survival. I can see this season being a hard slog so I hope to start it off okay and leave it everyone else to do the hard work (Sorry guys).

Starting XI

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[bcfc1]

August

Millwall 0
Crewe 3 (Katumbi Chapwe 9, Barker 12, Poyet 22)

Jaaaskelainen, Sterry, Mavropanos, Whatmough (Hobbs), Paljk (Hoban), Poyet*, Rodwell, Power, Brewster, Katumbi Chapwe (Kavanagh), Barker

What a result in the first game of the season. I was really worried that we weren’t going to be able to compete against the teams in this league but this result proved that entirely wrong. We flew out of the blocks and then could not be competed with. I went really defensive at the end to hold on to the win but after not being able to keep a single clean sheet in my games in League one, I am happy to keep one in my first Championship game.

Lincoln 0
Crewe 1 (Brewster 8pen)

Jaaskelainen, Sterry, Mavropanos, Whatmough (Hoban), Paljk, Poyet*, Rodwell, Power (Yearwood), Brewster, katumbi Chapwe (Vaughan), Barker

This was the first round of the Carabao cup and I was thinking of playing the B team, but with so many new faces to the first team I decided to give them another game together to gel. I am pleased to get the win but we should have won by more against a team 2 divisions below us.

Crewe 2 (Katumbi Chapwe 52, Barker 68)
Leeds 1 (Dasilva 63)

Jaaskelainen, Sterry, Mavropanos (Hobbs), Whatmough, Paljk, Poyet (Gibson), Rodwell, Power (Yearwood), Brewster, Katumbi Chapwe, Barker*

A really good win here against a real quality Championship side. It was really tight in the first half but then came to life in the second and we proved to be better team in front of goal. It was of course our former loanee, Josh Dasilva, who scored against us to give them hope but it wasn’t to be as Barker got us the winner.

Notts Forest 5 (Grabban 4, 8, 46, Soudani 22, 82)
Crewe 2 (Whatmough 52, Rodwell 60)

Jaaskelainen, Sterry, Mavropanos, Whatmough, Paljk, Poyet, Rodwell, Power, Brewster, Katumbi Chapwe, Barker

We couldn’t repeat our good form here as Grabban and Soudani absolutely destroyed us. Soudani not only got his 2 goals but he also assisted all 3 of Grabbans as well. We knew games like this were going to happen but it is now important to see how we react to this.

Crewe 2 (Brewster 41pen, Poyet 65)
Sheff Weds 1 (Winnall 12)

Jaaskelainen, Sterry, Mavropanos, Whatmough, Paljk, Poyet, Rodwell, Yearwood, Brewster, Katumbi Chapwe, Barker

This was a very good performance considering what happened in the game before. When they took an early lead, I was worried they were going to do to us what Notts Forest did but we battled away and after we equalised with the penalty just before half time, it was only us who looked like winning.

Crewe 1 (Choudhury 69)
Huddersfield 4 (Mounie 35, 60, 67, Freeman 83)

Jaaskelainen, Ng, Hobbs, Hogan, Kavanagh, Gibson, Choudhury, Walker, Colclough, Vaughan, Pickering

There will be no cup run this year as Huddersfield and especially Mounie put an end to our dreams. I didn’t give us much hope as Huddersfield are still a Premier League team so I decided to rest the first team and it showed here. Huddersfield weren’t especially special but they were clearly better in all areas of the pitch.

Crewe 2 (Brewster 10, Barker 62)
Hull 3 (Evandro 58, LuaLua 84, Wilson 88)

Jaaskelainen, Sterry, Mavropanos, Whatmough, Paljk, Poyet, Rodwell (Walker), Yearwood, Brewster, Katumbi Chapwe, Barker

I am so angry to lose this game. With 5/10 minutes to go we looked as though we were going to get a hard fought win against a very good side, but two late goals mean we finished with nothing. We were very good in this game and this loss has probably hurt the most so far this season as it shows that, even when we have a good day, we can throw games away and get nothing.

Player of the month
Diego Poyet

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League Table

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[bcfc1]

September

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Swansea 0
Crewe 1 (Barker 41)

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Jaaskelainen, Sterry, Ng, Mavropanos, Whatmough, Hoban, Poyet, Rodwell, Yearwood, Brewster, Vaughan (Lennon), Barker

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A really good start to the month as we beat a very good team. Swansea were top of the table before this game so to get a win away from home is a fantastic result.

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West Brom 3 (Odegaard 2, Palmer 10, Dwamena 90)
Crewe 0

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Jaaskelainen, Sterry, Mavropanos, Whatmough, Paljk, Poyet (Gibson), Rodwell (Choudhury), Power, Brewster, Katumbi Chapwe, Barker (Colclough)

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This was a step too far for some players as a lot of the players were tired and struggled to see the game out. There will need to be a lot of rotation for the next game.

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Crewe 2 (Katumbi Chapwe 62, Yearwood 78)
Birmingham 0

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Jaaskelainen, Ng, Hoban, Whatmough (Mavropanos), Paljk, Gibson, Yearwood*, Power (Choudhury), Lennon, Katumbi Chapwe, Colclough

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What a great result by what is mostly the back-up players. I never like seeing my beloved Birmingham lose a game but we were able to play really well here and deserved to win.

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Norwich 1 (Lookman 75)
Crewe 0

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Jaaskelainen, Sterry, Mavropanos (Hoban), Whatmough, Paljk, Poyet, Rodwell (Choudhury), Power, Brewster (Lennon), Katumbi Chapwe, Barker

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I am always disappointed to lose to a late goal but we played very well here and Norwich have a very good team for this level. I am always going into these games as massive underdogs so I’m never too disappointed to lose a game by just one goal.

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Crewe 2 (Hoban 8, Katumbi Chapwe 69)
Burton 1 (Sordell 61)

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Jaaskelainen, Sterry, Hoban, Whatmough, Paljk (Hobbs), Poyet, Rodwell, Power, Brewster (Lennon), Katumbi Chapwe*, Barker

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A really nice win here to end my stint as manager. This result pushes us back into the playoffs which is a great way to sign off. We played really well and deserved the points, evenv if Sordell’s equaliser made us worry for a bit.

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Transfers

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I was able to bring in one new player this month as I signed Aaron Lennon on a free transfer. He was released from Burnley and I realised that I did not have a back up right winger for Brewster so I decided to bring in Lennon for the season as an experienced option when called upon.

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Summary

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A pretty solid month really with 3 wins and 2 losses from 5 games. One thing I don’t do too much is draw by the looks of it. Even though I have left the club just inside the playoffs, I am hoping for nothing more than safety this season and then have a look forward from there. The last thing we want is another promotion and go into the Premier League with Jack Rodwell as our star midfielder.

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Player of the month
Ourdy Katumbi Chapwe

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League Table

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[FM_TNSSO]

October 2019

October 2019

Tuesday 1st​ October 2019 (19:45)

Sky Bet Championship

QPR vs Crewe

Formation: 4-1-2-3 Wide
Lineup: Jaaskelainen, Sterry, Hoban, Whatmough, Paljk, Poyet, Rodwell (Yearwood 61), Power, Brewster, Barker (Lennon 61), Chapwe

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I decided to stick with the same formation and team that bcfc had been playing as he seemed to have us playing some pretty good stuff and the players average ratings for the season so far were decent. And I was impressed with what I saw here, despite the fact we didn't win! We are playing some clean, crisp, flowing football and really deserved to win this game. On another day, we'd have tucked one of our chances away and taken the points.



Saturday 5th​ October 2019 (15:00)
Sky Bet Championship

Crewe vs Reading

Formation: 4-1-2-3 Wide
Lineup: Jaaskelainen, Sterry, Hoban, Whatmough, Paljk, Poyet, Gibson (Rodwell 82), Power, Brewster (Lennon 82), Barker, Vaughan (Chapwe 64)

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My first home game back in charge ended in a solid win and another good performance! This team really has come a long way since I handed it over a year ago!



Centre back Tommie Hoban is going to miss the next 3 months through injury! He's been solid at the back so far this season with an average match rating of 7.25, so he's likely to be sorely missed!

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Saturday 19th​ October 2019 (15:00)

Sky Bet Championship

Crytal Palace vs Crewe

Formation: 4-1-2-3 Wide
Lineup: Jaaskelainen, Sterry, Ng (Moore 69), Whatmough, Paljk, Poyet, Rodwell (Choudhury 69), Power, Brewster (Lennon 69), Barker, Chapwe

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This was always going to be one of my toughest games in charge so I can't be too disheartened at the loss. However, I can be disappointed that we didn't get anything out of the game as ****, we deserved it! We matched Palace on every level and if we hadn't of missed that penalty at 2-1 down, it could have been a very different story!




Saturday 26th​ October 2019 (15:00)

Sky Bet Championship

Crewe vs Bradford City

Formation: 4-1-2-3 Wide
Lineup: Jaaskelainen, Sterry, Moore, Whatmough, Paljk, Poyet, Walker, Power, Brewster, Barker (Lennon 83), Chapwe

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We finish the month with another home win! We were thoroughly dominant throughout and could of won by a much bigger margin if we'd have taken our chances better! Bradford were struggling from the off and were lucky to get a goal!




3 wins from 4 games in October leaves us in 6th​ place. Is it too early to start dreaming of a 3rd​ straight promotion?

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Player of the Month

Brandon Barker

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Brandon's had a good month and turned in some good performances for me this month, including an absolute belter against Reading.




A busy November coming up with 6 league games ahead of us! Aston Villa and Cardiff are sure to provide stern tests, but Barnsley and Blackburn present us with very winnable matches too!

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[FM_TNSSO]

November 2019

November 2019

Saturday 2nd November 2019 (17:30)
Sky Bet Championship
Preston vs Crewe
Formation: 4-1-2-3 Wide
Lineup: Jaaskelainen, Sterry, Moore, Whatmough, Paljk, Poyet, Yearwood, Power, Brewster, Barker, Chapwe

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Preston were extremely clinical in front of goal and took their chances extremely well. We probably deserved at least a draw here after creating more than double the amount of chances they had, but it wasn't to be!


Tuesday 5th November 2019 (19:45)
Sky Bet Championship
Crewe vs Barnsley
Formation: 4-1-2-3 Wide
Lineup: Jaaskelainen, Sterry, Moore, Mavropanos, Paljk, Poyet, Yearwood, Power, Brewster (Lennon 80), Barker, Chapwe (Vaughan 80)

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I was keen for us not to suffer back to back defeats against teams in the bottom 6, so before this game kicked off, I told the lads in no uncertain terms that I expected the win! But it didn't spark the team into life like I'd hoped it would and Barnsley were all over us for majority of this game and in the end we can be lucky to have taken a point.


Saturday 9th November 2019 (15:00)
Sky Bet Championship
Crewe vs Aston Villa
Formation: 4-1-2-3 Wide
Lineup: Jaaskelainen, Sterry, Mavropanos (Hobbs 66), Whatmough, Pickering, Poyet, Yearwood, Power, Brewster, Barker (Lennon 66), Chapwe

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What a first half of football that was. I didn't expect to be 4-1 up at the break, that's for sure! However, the 2nd half was an absolute shocker from our point of view and we threw away the 3 goal lead late on and only take a point from the game! The lads got a serious bollocking after the game! That 2nd half was not good enough!!


Saturday 23rd November 2019 (15:00)
Sky Bet Championship
Cardiff vs Crewe
Formation: 4-1-2-3 Wide
Lineup: Jaaskelainen, Sterry, Mavropanos, Whatmough, Paljk, Poyet, Yearwood, Power, Brewster (Lennon 64), Barker, Chapwe

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Cardiff are struggling down in the relegation places, so I saw this as a great opportunity for us to turn our poor form around and get the win! When we took the lead, I thought we'd push on, but again we let it slip and have to settle for a bad point! We're really struggling to see games out at the moment and when we get our heads in front, can't seem to hold onto a lead for love nor money!


Tuesday 26th November 2019 (19:45)
Sky Bet Championship
Crewe vs Blackburn
Formation: 4-1-2-3 Wide
Lineup: Jaaskelainen, Sterry, Mavropanos, Whatmough, Paljk, Poyet, Yearwood (Rodwell 76), Power (Walker 90), Brewster, Barker, Chapwe

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When you're down on your luck and on a poor run of form, the team you want to be playing is the one at the bottom of the league to get yourself a win and boost the confidence. And that's exactly what happened here. We were much better today and if I'm honest, I can't see Rovers surviving this league as they look shocking!


Saturday 30th November 2019 (15:00)
Sky Bet Championship
Ipswich vs Crewe
Formation: 4-1-2-3 Wide
Lineup: Jaaskelainen, Sterry, Mavropanos, Whatmough, Paljk, Rodwell (Gibson 51), Yearwood, Power (Walker 65), Lennon, Barker (Brewster 51), Chapwe

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Another draw, another late goal conceded as we give up another lead! However, Ipswich had been on top throughout most of the game so it was probably fair that we shared the spoils in the end, although still frustrating!


Although it feels like a very frustrating month, we have still strung together a 5 game unbeaten run.

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With all our draws this month, we have dropped down to 9th in the table. However, all the time we're so far ahead of the relegation battle, our board will be happy! Although I am starting to wonder whether 3 straight promotions may be beyond us and this instead could be a season for building the squad ready for more of a challenge next year!

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Player of the Month
Ourdy Katumbi Chapwe

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Our main man up front has been fantastic this month with 3 goals and 4 assists from up top!


December will be my final month in charge before handing over the reigns again! And I won't have it easy with some very difficult fixtures coming up before the New Year. I just hope I can hand the team over in decent shape for the 2nd half of the season!

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[MrTini23]

Incredible effort by all of you. Hoping you can get into the promised land!