Is everyone too scared?

[Past Member]

Is Dave Jones too scared to play 4-4-2 given the crap he got from our fans when he did ?

Are the players too nervous to play their normal game ?

Are the midfielders too scared to play their normal through balls?

Have we got back to the point when the team and manager are just doing enough not to get fired and are too nervous to relax and go for it?

Possibly. If they are then its down to managerial error. It's DJs job to manage the team so that they go out onto the pitch with the right frame of mind.

[yowl84]

You're not wrong about the impact a positive atmosphere can have, but at the end of the day, the players get paid a healthy wage to do a job, and we are the ones paying our hard-earned cash to see them do it. Ultimately its up to them to give us something to cheer about - that's the dynamic. When they do, then it can snowball and become reciprocal, like last season. But I do think the ultimate responsibility lies with them.

When I went to watch Siena (in Serie A) one time when I was over there, they had a guy whose job it was to start chants and get the crowd going. He actually had a microphone and his singing would come out through loudspeakers. Then the crowd would join in. It was kind of a fun novelty but I don't think it'd take off in the UK. People like their football with a dose of grim reality...