From Progression To Regression: A Tale Of Two Blackpool Games

Reading 3-2 Blackpool (L), Reading 0-1 Blackpool (R)

Well, Saturday was a load of rubbish, wasn’t it?

A quick caveat before I start. Yes, there are reasons to be grateful. The ‘at least we have a club’ mantra has become somewhat of a meme on social media, but it’s sometimes worth taking a step back and considering how poor the off-field situation was just 18 months ago.

It seemed like we were never going to be sold, so it’s been nice for us to become regular football fans again this season. We’re now able to fully scrutinise what’s on the pitch without rose-tinted glasses or worrying about whether we’ll have a club in the coming weeks or months.

Off the pitch, the owners are clearly trying their best. The execution of ideas has been an issue at times, as was the over-promising last summer, but I do feel at peace knowing Rob Couhig, Todd Trosclair and Rick Catania are at the helm. Their hearts are in the right place, the communication is appreciated and I really hope their time at the Select Car Leasing Stadium is a success.

Most importantly, the club isn’t having to worry about payday at the end of each month.

However, the difference in the atmosphere between Saturday and Blackpool at home two years ago couldn’t be much different.

A depressing end to the season

Saturday’s game was appalling. The 3-4-3 formation isn’t working, there’s no cohesion and it seems like the players have given up on Leam Richardson, along with a lot of supporters. Who can blame them?

How have we progressed since Richardson took over? He was able to secure some vital wins during the winter period to stabilise us, but we’ve gone backwards ever since.

Richardson can’t take all the blame. Clearly, the playing squad will need to be addressed in the summer and we need to bring in the correct profile of players to return to the high press that served us well under Ruben Selles. But even so, we could have done so much more, even with our injury list in mind.

The following sums up my frustration with Richardson.

In my mind, for any team to have any chance of being successful with a back five, both wing-backs need to contribute in the final third. Ryan Nyambe hasn’t been able to do that, aside from his debut against Barnsley. Derby County fans were telling us that Nyambe gets a nosebleed when he crosses the halfway line – they weren’t kidding.

He’s been a respectable signing, but I lost the will to live after travelling four hours to Rotherham to see him play at wing-back. Thankfully, he played more centrally on Saturday, but that didn’t do anything to lighten the mood. In fact, the supporters were fuming.

People will argue that the fans haven’t been on top form this season, but no one can blame them for staying away. You’d be hard pushed to find many highlights from Saturday’s game – and it came to a point where Club 1871 were making their own entertainment. To the boy who had his hat thrown around, I hope it’s still clean enough to wear.

I digress.

“The atmosphere became as toxic as I’ve ever seen it at Reading”

Now, I know Saturday wasn’t going to be the most enthralling game. Unlike two years ago, when Blackpool had an outside chance of securing a top-six finish, this was a dead rubber for both teams.

But it was at least an opportunity to take the shackles off and have a go with some of the younger players. It was a chance to give fans a little bit of hope next season.

We well and truly failed that task – and the atmosphere became as toxic as I’ve ever seen it at Reading. It’s a massive shame, because this should have been an enjoyable match. The sun was out, we had a good chance of winning and the pressure was off.

Whether the fans are more demanding now than they were 10-15 years ago is neither here nor there – Richardson’s tenure isn’t working out.

Even with a League One promotion on his CV, I wouldn’t trust him with a summer transfer window. I just don’t think he’s the right type of manager to take us forward in the years ahead.

The style of play is appalling, the fans have turned and the players don’t look like they know what they are doing half the time. I just can’t see us starting next season well with Richardson at the helm – our play is far too disjointed.

Looking to the future

We have some of the players needed to enjoy a respectable campaign next season. The likes of Haydon Roberts, Daniel Kyerewaa and Benn Ward are solid additions who will only get better. Lewis Wing should have at least another year or two in him, and many will back Joel Pereira to shine again next season, despite having a bit of a wobble this term.

However, changes are needed this summer, both in the playing squad and, unfortunately, in the managerial department. I feel we’ll only be wasting time by keeping Richardson in charge.

While I don’t want to see us keep changing managers, Richardson has been given the tools he needs to make at least some progression since he took over, and it’s quite damning when ‘retaining stability’ is the only argument many people can make for keeping him in charge. Stability is much-appreciated, but it doesn’t mean much to people when we’re regressing in the way that we are.

While I’m fairly happy with midtable this season, the style and a lack of hope for the future has pushed me and many others over the edge.

How times have changed

Contrast Saturday to our home game against Blackpool on the final day of the 2023/24 campaign.

I’m not saying I’d rather be back where we were a couple of years ago, because the future of the club always comes first, but there was genuine optimism about what was ahead. Selles had adapted his system to set us up for success – there was clear progression, not regression.

We may have had the likes of Amadou Mbengue, Tyler Bindon, Harvey Knibbs and Femi Azeez at our disposal, so it’s understandable that there’s been a slight drop-off in quality, but our 3-2 victory against the Tangerines was thoroughly enjoyable.

It was so enjoyable that I remember the day vividly. Karamoko Dembele’s early goal didn’t dampen the mood, because we had real belief that we would get back into the game, and second-half goals from Knibbs and Azeez were particularly enjoyable in front of the Eamonn Dolan Stand.

The atmosphere was top-notch that day and there was a genuine connection between the fans and the players. Perhaps the siege mentality created by the off-field shenanigans helped with that, but that’s no excuse for there not to be a connection now.

If only we could go back to a time when we had centre-backs who were able to progress effectively with the ball like Mbengue did. If only we could have a manager in charge who was able to squeeze the best out of what he had at his disposal and not make excuses.

Richardson seems to be a decent enough guy, but I can’t see there being a way back for him now. A mutual termination of his contract is in the best interest of all parties.