Birmingham Friendly

[muzzysgal]

Weren't sitting near me were you? Kop end near the corner? Some proper twats on the walk back to narborough road. Thought it was hilarious to pull some blokes shorts down, 3 times! Not to mention banging on car windows and just being general dicks. Not going to miss not seeing people like that next year.

No, back of B1, near Jobber and his cronies. I also had the added bonus of Natalie Jackson sitting next to us second half and shoving her camera in our faces every few minutes

 

[Si Nick]

It is a tough call who starts wide right:
- Gradel seemed to scare Brum more than any other player & his crosses were ok.
- Thought Adams was quiet for first 25 mins, but played well the rest of the half
- Infact was thinking after 30 mins, if our tactics are to win the division is based on our wingers, that we didn't seem to be getting wide much.
- Dyer ok, but as Adams can play anywhere across the middle, I wonder about trying him on the left with Gradel on right against Palace.

Class wise, I thought Tunchev & Mattock looked above the rest. Tunchev looks as tho he will dominate in the air, great powerful headers & looked assured.

Fryatt was way more threatening than any other striker & with Howard they linked up well at times.

Campbell & Ash Chambers didn't work as a combo, altho DJ linked up well with Gradel on 3 occasions.

I think the feedback from other fans about Gilbert were right, he seemed to be caught out of position a number of times.

Liked that Henderson was barking commands to his defence

Neither Hobbs or Morrison convinced me on that showing.

 

[Scarby]

Brum was very poor and should never have won.

City werent great, defence wasn't the best, could be said to be at fault for all 3 goals. KG should be half decent in the coming season.
First half MF looked good upfront, he made up for Howard who looked like he was stuck to the same spot for 45 mins. Mattock looked good getting forward as well. Adams as well had a good game.

2nd half we were generally poorer, Gradel looks strong and fast - the fastest i have seen in a leicester shirt in a while.

 

[indierich06]

I must have had a different view.

I thought Hobbs and Tunchev looked a very good partnership. Morrison was dodgy though.
Dyer did nothing and Gilbert was awful.
Fryatt played well and not just because of his goal, his overall play was good.

I'm with you mate - I think Dyer managed one cross the whole time he was on the pitch. Morrison looked very dodgy. Gilbert looked alright going forward, but he was shit defensively.

I do think there is a strong starting 11 in there though and I'm much more optimistic about next season now.

I think my 11 would be:

Henderson

Chambers, Tunchev, Hobbs, Mattock

Gradel, Oakley, Kishishev, Porter

Fryatt, DJ (Only because I don't think Chambers is good enough yet)

Sack howard off to another club ASAP imo.

 

[tedfoxxx]

thank god for that, some other people think gilbert the filbert was shit!

 

[David Gwilliam]

I agree with those who mentioned the link-up between DJ and Gradel. I thought DJ was at his best when he gave Gradel the ball. I thought Fryatt was our best attacker in the firstb half but was not convinced by either of the first half wingers. I was especially disappointed with Dyer who I had heard good things about.
In the second half I thought Gradel was superb. On tonights performance Gradel deserves to start against MK Dons.
I was impressed by the new Bulgarian but not by Hobbs or Morrison. Does anyone know is Harry Worley is any good.
Other people have said that the result doesn't matter. To me the result always matters. Winning matches can become a habit. Unfortunately so can letting in last minute goals.

 

[Hammond Organ]

I agree with those who mentioned the link-up between DJ and Gradel. I thought DJ was at his best when he gave Gradel the ball. I thought Fryatt was our best attacker in the firstb half but was not convinced by either of the first half wingers. I was especially disappointed with Dyer who I had heard good things about.
In the second half I thought Gradel was superb. On tonights performance Gradel deserves to start against MK Dons.
I was impressed by the new Bulgarian but not by Hobbs or Morrison. Does anyone know is Harry Worley is any good.
Other people have said that the result doesn't matter. To me the result always matters. Winning matches can become a habit. Unfortunately so can letting in last minute goals.

When have we ever done that?

 

[Rasta Maniloe]

I would say overall....we definately played the better football and had more chances although we did show lapses at the back.

Mattock - Brilliant going forward and played very well

Fryatt - Wonderful Goal and looked very willing, worked hard and looked generally sharp.

Tunchev - Looked solid throughout minus maybe 2 or 3 slight lapses.

Morrison - Assured in the air, dodgy on the ground.

Dyer - Quick,too little of the ball though to judge

Adams - Hard worker and good down the byline, a few decent crosses...seems like a good signing [new age scotty taylor maybe???]

DJ - Perhaps needs a touch more confidence as his decision making at times seemed poor when he had created great opportunities for himself.

Gilbert - I was pretty pleased with his performance, seemed pretty solid.

Hobbs - Dodgy in patches but very impressive in patches, i believe with a few games under his belt will develop very quickly into a solid centre back....should flourish in league one.

Kish - Was pleased with his work ethic, broke up a lot of play

 

[DesertFox]

My enjoyment of the match, especially the second half, was completely spoilt by those who were sitting around me.

Surely someone warned you about going with Melton and BG.

:icon_bigg

 

[homer]

Another three goals conceded - making 15 conceded in the six games played so far

Tin hats on this season, I tells ya........

 

[FOX Franks]

Played well

Very happy with how the lads played yesterday, I would say gradel, porter and fryatt played the best games.

Nicky adams seems promising and steve howard really needs to start scoring.

As for DJ, he needs to just have a shot- and realise that there is no pressure to score every time. but making chances he does a lot.

so pretty good lads!

 

[Steven]

The Birmingham view. :icon_wink

LEICESTER 2 BLUES 3

Blues produced another crisp pre-season display at the Walkers Stadium to keep their unbeaten run going in the lead-up to the fast approaching Coca-Cola Championship campaign.

A first half Seb Larsson strike and a header and clinical low shot from Kevin Phillips late on meant Alex McLeish's side maintained their record of having won every warm-up game so far.

The match had a slow pre-season friendly feel about it early doors - competitive but not littered with too many chances.

Leicester were handed the first half decent opportunity when Liam Ridgewell's low clearance only served to find Matt Oakley on the edge of the box. Fortunately for Blues his shot was well over on 11 minutes.

Matty Fryatt then scuffed a shot wide from 18 yards as the Foxes picked up a head of steam, urged on by their animated manager Nigel Pearson.

With Marcus Bent up front for Blues, supported by widemen James McFadden and Seb Larsson, Alex McLeish's side worked hard in the opening stages but the Leicester defence were dogged and resilient.

That almost changed on 25 when Gary McSheffrey released David Murphy on the left. The defender charged past his man and got into a great crossing position but sent the ball behind the goal at the near post.

Two minutes later Murphy was the danger man again, and this time his positivity resulted in the opening goal. He broke past his marker once again, cut into the area from the left and produced a low shot that Paul Henderson could only parry into the path of Larsson, who hammered the ball in from close range.

Blues had the bit between their teeth and on the half-hour mark Larsson curled a delicious ball along the face of the six-yard box that the advancing Mehdi Nafti was agonisingly close to reaching.

Leicester levelled on 35 with a strike good enough to grace any game. Matty Fryatt picked up position 25 yards out with his back to goal before turning and unleashing an unstoppable left-foot curler that flew past Colin Doyle.

In injury time at the end of the first half Larsson almost put Blues back in front when he squeezed in a low shot at the near post, but Henderson was equal to it and pushed it behind.

Radhi Jaidi came on for Martin Taylor at the break and the second half began with lively Foxes substitute Max Gradel trying to make in-roads down the right.

The first 20 minutes of the second period rather followed the pattern of the first as both sides showed plenty of endeavour but without much end product.

The ball broke kindly for Larsson on 67 and he attempted a clever lob but it dropped onto the roof of the net.

A trio of attacking substitutions then took place with McLeish changing his forward line. On came Garry O'Connor, Kevin Phillips and Cameron Jerome for McSheffrey, Bent and McFadden.

But it was one of a pair of Leicester substitutes that should have put their side in front on 72. James Wesolowski got in behind the Blues defence and found himself in acres of space but Doyle spread himself and excellently saved his low shot, before Chambers blazed over the rebound.

On 78 Blues were back in the lead. Stuart Parnaby motored down the right and produced a cross that was turned behind by a defender for a corner. The resulting Larsson set-piece was nodded on by Jerome and Phillips was lurking in the right place at the right time - as he so often does - at the back post to head home.

Sixteen-year-old midfielder Jordon Mutch replaced impressive captain Lee Carsley for the final five minutes but he, like the other players on the pitch, could only watch helplessly as Levi Porter lashed home an unstoppable equaliser from 20 yards with just two minutes left.

However the last laugh belonged to the unerringly clinical Phillips. Two minutes from the end a move that started with Mutch deep inside Blues' own half ended with a Jerome ball into the feet of Phillips, who dug deep and produced an angled, placed shot past the outstretched arm of Henderson from the right-hand side of the box.

Full time: Leicester 2 Blues 3

Leicester: Paul Henderson, Kerrea Gilbert, Joe Mattock, Aleksander Tunchev, Jack Hobbs (Michael Morrison 46), Radostin Kishishev (James Wesolowski 46), Nicky Adams (Max Gradel 46), Matt Oakley, Steve Howard (Ashley Chambers 46), Matty Fryatt (DJ Campbell 46), Lloyd Dyer (Levi Porter 64). Unused subs: Michael Morrison, Conrad Logan, Barry Hayles, Harry Worley.

Blues: Colin Doyle, Stuart Parnaby, David Murphy, Martin Taylor (Radhi Jaidi 46), Liam Ridgewell, Sebastian Larsson, Mehdi Nafti, Lee Carsley (Jordon Mutch 85), Gary McSheffrey (Garry O'Connor 68), Marcus Bent (Kevin Phillips 68), James McFadden (Cameron Jerome 68). Unused subs: Artur Krysiak, Stephen Kelly.

 

[Matt_B]

The Birmingham view. :icon_wink

Pretty much about right, except it was Chambers who got through in acres of space and Wesso who blasted the rebound over.

 

[lazzer]

Hobbs and Morrison both looked dodgy, and if by tonights showing should be kept well away from first team football for a while.

Adams seems to be a good signing and the bulgarian will be a main part of our defense. Dyer another good player too.
Ashley Chambers looked very quick, as did Gradel, but DJ Campbell can fcuk off. The lad in yellow boots seemed solid and quick as well



Big downside tonight, I bumped into Duzza and Lazzer, both pissed up and on the pull

And the porkies just keep on coming :icon_lol:

 

[highland fox]

Another three goals conceded - making 15 conceded in the six games played so far

Tin hats on this season, I tells ya........

Might help if he keeps the same back four for the last friendly and lets them start tio try and build an understanding rather than changing it round at Half time

 

[teblin]

I personally think the diffensive weekness was mattock. both goals in the scond half came from his side (i know one was a corner, but leading up to the corner was a ball that went over his head) and on the corner he lost his man.

He looked good going forward, but dodgy defensively. And birmingham noticed that in the last 20 mins and player a diagonal ball and every chance they got.

 

[Boy Genius]

And the porkies just keep on coming :icon_lol:

Like I said I saw two porkies drinking beer together

 

[lazzer]

Like I said I saw two porkies drinking beer together

As opposed to you and your svelt like physique.

 

[highland fox]

Like I said I saw two porkies drinking beer together

You are back..I thought you were dead

 

[homer]

You are back..I thought you were dead

Me too - I'm waiting to hear if he's bought a season ticket

The suspense is just too much to bear