The unofficial AFC Rushden & Diamonds messageboard

Like we're signing a whole new team! Peaks must be trying to build a side ready for next season it seems

How many midfielders do we need?
How about someone who can score some goals. Maybe Harry Kane or Jamie Vardy would like to help us out

Is he a central midfielder? If he is I could see us playing a 4-5-1 or 4-2-3-1 sort of formation.

Perhaps he's more of a creative midfielder and we see more interplay through midfield rather than this aimless long ball from the back. Although we are bemoaning the lack of goals, it's not exactly as if we're getting loads of chances and the front men have been living on scraps. Bunting and Berwick have been badly missed in my opinion and I think we will probably see Elliot Sandy playing in a more advanced position this Saturday.

I think the downward spiral took hold when Sam Brown left. He helped to give the midfielders options out wide, as well as linking up on the left to give us width. Too often we've seen Claudio isolated out wide in recent games. I'm not sure Jason Lee will offer that attacking option from Left Back - or the long throw.

Formic wrote:I think the downward spiral took hold when Sam Brown left. He helped to give the midfielders options out wide, as well as linking up on the left to give us width. Too often we've seen Claudio isolated out wide in recent games. I'm not sure Jason Lee will offer that attacking option from Left Back - or the long throw.

I almost mentioned in a previous post that Jason Lee didn't once overlap Claudiu or endeavour to help him going forward on Saturday, but didn't want to criticise him after one game. Who knows, maybe he was instructed to sit back.

It's as if we are building a whole new side with only 9 games to go??

I'm guessing he has come in to replace Bunting to give us a bit more creativity in the midfield, which we are currently lacking.

It all just seems a bit bizarre. These players are going to take time to gel, and it looks like they're going to have to do it whilst trying to secure a place in the play-offs!

I can only conclude that Peaks does not have the confidence in himself or the players to turn this around. I think its very hard to bring in 4 or 5 players with 10/9 games to go and expect them all to gel and hit the ground running.

I think Peaksy has plenty of confidence in his ability!

Our full backs are a massive problem for us, we haven't replaced Merrill or Brown and both offered us so many attacking options, just goes to show how blessed we were to have players of that quality. We get very few attacking/link up options with our current line up.

In midfield we're missing Bunts massively, no-one seems to have the ability to link up with the front men who are struggling to get quality ball through to them. I don't think we have poor strikers, I just think the service to them has been poor.

I'm guessing Peaksy wants to shake it up a bit, but it's a great risk - but fair play to him for giving it a go! Whether or not the players he has got in are of the quality we need (and better than we already had) remains to be seen, I'm hoping they are!!

For me though, the main problem so far hasn't been addressed, that of the right back position! I'm willing to wait and see if Lee can deliver on the left, but the right side remains a BIG problem in my opinion ...... but what do I know?

Hopefully Tom will be the missing link in midfield and get some service to our forwards - once we get scoring again we WILL start to win games!