Is The Sheff Wed Game Must Win?....

[ElectroClaret]

...or just must not lose?
We really don't want to be dropping many more points.

[bobinho]

Depends what you are wanting or expecting.

[jjclaret]

NO

[Longsidelenny1882]

Yes uptheclarets

[Milltown1882]

Every game now is must win

[Bosscat]

We have 13 must win games tbh plus the cup match('s)

[bfcjg]

Yes it is, we can't keep putting off going for it.

[Goliath]

Pretty much. We might get lucky and Sheff utd don't win either but we've a few tricky away fixtures to come so we need to gain ground on them now.

[dougcollins]

We've been playing 'must wins' for over a month now.

Unfortunately, we all forgot to tell Scott.

[Rumpelstiltskin]

Must win.We can’t afford to lose more ground on the top two.

[Quickenthetempo]

We need to win the next 4 on the spin or the season is in big danger of just petering out into nothingness.

With being so far clear of 6th there will be less urgency to win than previous, if that's possible.

We need to fighting for the top 2 as long as possible.

[NottsClaret]

I feel like we’re playing for penalties in about 3 months time.

[jurek]

I think we (fans, chairman, manager and players) all feel, if not know
that we have to beat Sheff.Wed. on Friday if we are to maintain
any hope of getting one of the automatic spots.

Be interesting to see whether Parker changes anything and goes for it?
Maybe start Edwards and/or Shelvey?
Or at least bring them on in the second half?

Don't think he'll risk it. Either way he's on a bit of a loser.

If he doesn't change it and we end up with another frustrating 0-0
then the boo boys will be out in force and we can probably kiss goodbye
to one of the automatic spots.

If he does change it and we still don't win but maintain our clean sheet record
or worse still lose then he's going to get pasted as well.

The ideal result would be a 3-0 win with Foster getting 2 and Edwards the third.

[willsclarets]

I think to get in the top 2, we are getting to the point where we need to have a run of 4 or 5 wins on the bounce.
It doesn't have to start with sheff wednesday, but with Leeds playing sheff United and then sheff having a tough game on the road at QPR afterwards it certainly wouldn't be a bad time to start.

[Superjohnnyfrancis]

Im predicting a 0-0 draw

[rosswallacefreekick]

We’re almost certainly heading into the playoffs, so I would say it’s a good opportunity to give it a go. Another 0-0 draw won’t make the distance to the top two, and a loss won’t mean we’re falling out of the playoffs.

Scott Parker, if you’re reading this, put so many goals past Wednesday that they’ll be having nightmares about it for years to come.

[Goody1975]

Definitely is.

We have created this whole situation by being too passive, too often. There have been loads of opportunities to go for it and win games this season, games that we have decided to stick rather than twist.

We are going to have to go on a fantastic run to get in the top two, but it's always jam tomorrow with us.

This team/squad is capable but the handbrake needs taking off.

[Vino blanco]

I don’t think my health and sanity would take another nil nil draw, I really don’t.

[pureclaret]

I don’t think my health and sanity would take another nil nil draw, I really don’t.

well just to be safe id get an extra bottle of wine in

[Sgt. Pepper]

It's weird, because barring an absolutely shocking run we're not going to miss the playoffs. We're eighteen points clear of seventh. We'd be better throwing the kitchen sink at the last twenty minutes of games like Preston/Stoke/Portsmouth etc., and risk losing a point to try and gain three. Maybe Parker feels we just don't have the personnel to do it?
Hopefully I'm wrong and Sheff Utd will start dropping points, but it's starting to look like our passive approach in the later stages of some games may cost us a chance of one of the automatic promotion places.

[dibraidio]

Stan said he looked at the season as groups of 6 matches. Two points per game is promotion form.
If you look at our last 6 games we've won 3 and drawn 3. That's 12 points.
We are 1 point away from 2 points per game for the whole season. Virtually any other season we would be in the top two.

The worst case scenario this weekend is that we could be 10 points behind Leeds or 8 points behind Sheff Utd and 7 behind Leeds.
Worst result in their game would be a win for Sheffield United.

Probably the best case scenario is that we win and Leeds win and we would be 2 points behind Sheff Utd.

If Sheff Utd continue to pick up points at the same pace they'll finish the season on 97 points. Two points per game is only 92. We'd need 32 points from our next 13 games to match 97. That's a minimum of 10 wins and 2 draws from the remaining games.

If we beat Sheff Utd and Leeds do too their season form would see them finish on 93 points which would means that we would still 28 points from 13 games to match them. That's a minimum of 8 wins and 4 draws.

I guess that means that no, it's not a must win game BUT if we don't win then it will get harder and harder. Discounting penalties I'd say our defensive approach should be very effective if we do end up in the play-offs.

[gtclaret]

I would hate having to play Sheffield United needing to win

[dougcollins]

I would hate having to play Sheffield United needing to win

Well, the bad news is we have to beat them in the league game to have a chance of automatic.

[Spijed]

Well, the bad news is we have to beat them in the league game to have a chance of automatic.

tbf, our victory on Boxing day was arguably one of the easier wins we've had all season, wasn't it?

[SouthLondonexile]

i’d say yes, if only to make me feel better!

[jtrbfc]

If we want to keep on track with the top two then yes it's a must win, if we're happy with the playoffs then no it's not.

[Shaggy]

We are like a boxer who is cautious and trying not to expend too much energy or get hurt and drag the fight into the championship rounds before turning it on and hoping for a strong finish. We are almost in the championship rounds now and need to up the effort to win instead of being happy to cruise to failure.

[Aclaret]

Every game is a must win.....if we keep saying it isn't, then we ain't going up !!

[Colburn_Claret]

Every game is must win.
If we are still going into games thinking they aren't, we're screwed.

[Taffy on the wing]

We’re almost certainly heading into the playoffs, so I would say it’s a good opportunity to give it a go. Another 0-0 draw won’t make the distance to the top two, and a loss won’t mean we’re falling out of the playoffs.

Scott Parker, if you’re reading this, put so many goals past Wednesday that they’ll be having nightmares about it for years to come.

Good user name!..... It was a cracking goal.
An argument broke out on here wether the ball was actually "in the net the moment it left his foot" as stated by the commentator.

[dandeclaret]

Fair play to dibraidio for some sense and reasoning in a sea of panic and defeatism.

[dandeclaret]

Every game is must win.
If we are still going into games thinking they aren't, we're screwed.

So you think in order to achieve promotion Burnley need 39 points from here? Only 104 points will see Burnley promoted?

If you don’t think that, then every game is clearly not must win.

[Newcastleclaret93]

Regardless of whether it’s must win or not

I just hope Edwards starts. He looks a level above

[Big Vinny K]

No team that has ended the season with 92 points has not been automatically promoted.

Yes records are there to be broken but history shows us that teams drop points in the run in and often against teams you don’t expect them too.

Losing against Sheff Wednesday would obviously be a big blow but given their recent form and where they sit in the league it would be far less of a surprise than Sheffield United’s recent home defeat to Hull.

I do agree though that we need to be more proactive in trying to win games - even if that means taking the odd defeat if we are pressing forward and someone beats us on the counter against the run of play. With the quality of attacking play we have on the bench we just need to try and change games where we are struggling to break teams down sooner than we seem to be. Defending against us is tough for a lot of teams - they inevitably start to tire in the second half. Whilst they will also make substitutions it’s often to protect a point and again there’s usually a big gap in the quality of players they are bringing on compared to us.

If we do get to 92 points or just below this and don’t get automatic then the teams above us deserve it and for me that’s still a very credible season by Parker irrespective of what happens in the playoffs

[Colburn_Claret]

So you think in order to achieve promotion Burnley need 39 points from here? Only 104 points will see Burnley promoted?

If you don’t think that, then every game is clearly not must win.

It's all about mind set, if we go into games thinking it isn't must win, because we'll probably win the next 3. then yes we're screwed. No one has a crystal ball, the only game that matters is the one in front of you.
We are playing catch up, and we should presume those above us are going to win every game. No, they won't, but anything that lets us take our foot off the pedal is detrimental to our performance.
We have to win every game, even though we won't, and if we can't beat Sheff Wed knowing we are chasing a top two spot, knowing how important a win is, then we don't deserve anything.

[dandeclaret]

It's all about mind set, if we go into games thinking it isn't must win, because we'll probably win the next 3. then yes we're screwed. No one has a crystal ball, the only game that matters is the one in front of you.
We are playing catch up, and we should presume those above us are going to win every game. No, they won't, but anything that lets us take our foot off the pedal is detrimental to our performance.
We have to win every game, even though we won't, and if we can't beat Sheff Wed knowing we are chasing a top two spot, knowing how important a win is, then we don't deserve anything.

You get what you deserve at the end of the season, not in a one off game before pancake day.

Did they look like they weren't chasing a win against Preston, Hull or Oxford in the last few games? Leeds is probably the only one where they were cautious, and I'm sort of grand with that.

[Colburn_Claret]

You get what you deserve at the end of the season, not in a one off game before pancake day.

Did they look like they weren't chasing a win against Preston, Hull or Oxford in the last few games? Leeds is probably the only one where they were cautious, and I'm sort of grand with that.

We were terrible against Leeds, simply because of that attacking intent. I've been very happy with our last run of performances, even the Preston game where we weren't at our best, but it's the lack of chasing a win against Stoke, Derby, PNE at home......... that has put us in this position of chasing now. It's a mistake we can't repeat.

[dandeclaret]

We were terrible against Leeds, simply because of that attacking intent. I've been very happy with our last run of performances, even the Preston game where we weren't at our best, but it's the lack of chasing a win against Stoke, Derby, PNE at home......... that has put us in this position of chasing now. It's a mistake we can't repeat.

Leeds were terrible as well then? They showed no attacking intent either.

One person's chasing, is another person's stalking. Well positioned, with a team that's progressing, built on solid foundations and a good mentality, ready for the final push at the most pressurised part of the season. At the end of the season, we'll see how those other sides handled the mentality.

[mickleoverclaret]

You get what you deserve at the end of the season, not in a one off game before pancake day.

Did they look like they weren't chasing a win against Preston, Hull or Oxford in the last few games? Leeds is probably the only one where they were cautious, and I'm sort of grand with that.

We were time wasting with 20 minutes to go away at Portsmouth.

[JR1882]

Yes, it really is, a draw and Sheff win and they will be 7 points ahead of us, could be 8 if we loose - with 12 games to go that’s one foot in the prem for me, a 3 game swing needed with just 12 to play when we draw roughly half our games will be too much. Granted our goal difference is better.

They could then come to The Turf and stink it out for a 0-0 and it would be game over for us.

[Woodleyclaret]

All 7 home games are winnable and we must treat each one as such no more draws.
We have 6 aways also all winnable and we could win at least 3.This would give us a points total of 65 +30= 95.Enough for automatic promotion.Doable if we attack with speed and not pxxx about slowing down the game with constant side and back passing

[morninbob]

Yes, it really is, a draw and Sheff win and they will be 7 points ahead of us, could be 8 if we loose - with 12 games to go that’s one foot in the prem for me, a 3 game swing needed with just 12 to play when we draw roughly half our games will be too much. Granted our goal difference is better.

They could then come to The Turf and stink it out for a 0-0 and it would be game over for us.

This. It's all about score board pressure, win and it's back down to 2 points with sheff utd to come to the turf, we don't want a situation where they are happy with a point in this game.

[ClaretPete001]

Leeds were terrible as well then? They showed no attacking intent either.

One person's chasing, is another person's stalking. Well positioned, with a team that's progressing, built on solid foundations and a good mentality, ready for the final push at the most pressurised part of the season. At the end of the season, we'll see how those other sides handled the mentality.

Leeds are 7 points ahead and winning games for fun. Playing for a draw away at Burnley is good strategy for them...!

[ClaretPete001]

No team that has ended the season with 92 points has not been automatically promoted.

Yes records are there to be broken but history shows us that teams drop points in the run in and often against teams you don’t expect them too.

Losing against Sheff Wednesday would obviously be a big blow but given their recent form and where they sit in the league it would be far less of a surprise than Sheffield United’s recent home defeat to Hull.

I do agree though that we need to be more proactive in trying to win games - even if that means taking the odd defeat if we are pressing forward and someone beats us on the counter against the run of play. With the quality of attacking play we have on the bench we just need to try and change games where we are struggling to break teams down sooner than we seem to be. Defending against us is tough for a lot of teams - they inevitably start to tire in the second half. Whilst they will also make substitutions it’s often to protect a point and again there’s usually a big gap in the quality of players they are bringing on compared to us.

If we do get to 92 points or just below this and don’t get automatic then the teams above us deserve it and for me that’s still a very credible season by Parker irrespective of what happens in the playoffs

Agree, it has been a credible season for Parker if that happens but the problem is can we retain the squad.

A rhetorical question - I don't want to send this thread down the Financial rabbit hole - just thought I'd make the point.

[bumba]

Agree, it has been a credible season for Parker if that happens but the problem is can we retain the squad.

A rhetorical question - I don't want to send this thread down the Financial rabbit hole - just thought I'd make the point.

We won't retain the current squad for various reasons, more than likely to lose Esteve, Brownhill and Egan-Riley.
Humphreys, Anthony, Flemming and Edwards may not sign permanent.
We'd more than likely move on a few weeks don't need but who knows how the squad will look next season or how bad the finances are.
I think it's going up this season or we could spend a few more years in the championship again.

[alwaysaclaret]

Sheff wed are very much potentially play off contenders still, they'll come to us thinking they can win this, more than likely sit in, and play on the break, just the kind of game we struggle with at home, hope I'm wrong, we need to play like promotion contenders and put the ball in the back of the net. Yes, it's must win for me, because not far down the line we'll start to run out of games.

[Big Vinny K]

Agree, it has been a credible season for Parker if that happens but the problem is can we retain the squad.

A rhetorical question - I don't want to send this thread down the Financial rabbit hole - just thought I'd make the point.

I get that and totally agree.
But I’ve been resigned for a long while now (and particularly since the new owners came in) for a period of consolidation as has been experienced by so many other clubs of a similar size to ourselves. You only need to look at the size of some of the clubs where things got even worse and they spent time in division one let alone the championship.

Even if we do get promoted this year (or next year with our last parachute payments) the odds are massively against us of ever enjoying the sustained period in the EPL we did under Dyche within the constraints of the financial framework and constraints we have operated. I have never been able to name a single club in the history the premier league that spent as many years as we did under Dyche with a comparable budget, owners wealth etc. To think we are able to do this twice is for the birds IMHO.

[AfloatinClaret]

While this nor any other game is a 'must win', I would at this point like to see the team play in a more aggressive, open, expansive way to chase victories; to be fair, I think we already are, but just not able to consistently convert the chances into goals.
Why now rather than a month or two ago? We are now in a position where it would be difficult to drop out of the playoffs so the benefits of our succeeding and finishing in the top two far exceed the detriment of dropping to 4th, 5th or even 6th should it not pay off.

[dandeclaret]

Leeds are 7 points ahead and winning games for fun. Playing for a draw away at Burnley is good strategy for them...!

Football is not straight line extrapolation….. that’s why you play 46 games to see how teams handle pressure, injuries, loss of form, etc…..

[Colburn_Claret]

Leeds are 7 points ahead and winning games for fun. Playing for a draw away at Burnley is good strategy for them...!

You forgot Burnley playing for a draw at home to Leeds was good strategy for them.