One thing about League One is that fixtures come thick and fast. Players get the opportunity to right some wrongs and Davies gets the chance to experiment with the squad early on in the season. However, looking at today’s game, it’s still so important we strengthen in a few key areas prior to September.
There was no shock to see Ryan Allsop come in for his first start. Sampsted probably a little late through the door to start so early on in his Blues career. Bielik rested after a couple of injury scares two weeks running. However seeing Khela start at left back is a surprise, but shows just how useful the versatile youngster can be.
Paik and Leonard need time together to for a partnership in midfield so it’s a surprise to see Roberts starting there, although in the middle of the park theres a real the lack of depth . A rotation of the front four is hardly a shock. And it’s always exciting to see a few signing on the bench. However Donovan not being in the match-day squad has shocked a few. He needs game time this season and we believe Blues may see a loan deal being the right option for him.
In terms of the performance the first 25 minutes were a little concerning against a fairly weak Charlton side. It had many similarities to the Reading game, we looked nervy a few of the errors we saw on the weekend were on show again. We were trying things but Charlton just about edged it based on chances created.
Allsop’s penalty save spared our blushes and Blues started to settle. The biggest shock of the evening came from versatile youngster Brandon Khela scoring from 25 yard with a wonderful strike off his right foot. The goal settled Blues further, we started to dominate the ball and the press improved, we looked more structured and organised and there were clear patterns of play that Charlton struggled to deal with.
Blues continued to dominate in the second half. The defence dealt with Charlton’s threat comfortably and looked assured in possession. Blues continued to threaten Charlton and on two occasions probably should’ve done better, Hansson being denied after wonderful play by Paik and May missing a chance that should have been pulled back to Keshi Anderson. Blues dominated possession in the second half having almost 75% of the ball, however didn’t massively work their goalkeeper.
Although it wasn’t a glittering score line, the performance will have impressed Chris Davies. The work the players are doing on the training ground is clear to see, it’s the best we have looked on the ball in years, the players are working hard, and albeit not all the time, when it clicks out of possession we look organised and well drilled. I think he’ll need a little bit of time to iron out the errors and have us creating more chances, but games like today offer the perfect opportunity to further embed our style of play.
Ratings
Starting XI
Ryan Allsop: 7
Making his first start, he instantly became a hero, saving an early Charlton penalty, getting down well and kept hold of the ball. Ryan looked incredibly composed in possession and picked out some wonderful passes when Charltons press threatened to trap us.
Brandon Khela: 7
I'm giving Brandon the benefit of the doubt here. It wasn't a performance we'd have seen from our very own Ashley Cole, but to slot into left back as a right footed central midfielder shows incredible versatility and despite a few scares, he did well, dealt with the ball under pressure when playing from the back and of course, scored an absolute peach, cutting onto his right foot from 25 yards. Think he'll have a part to play this season, especially with his ability to slot in all over the pitch.
Christoph Klarer: 8
As he did against the Baggies, Christope looked calm on the ball, demonstrated with his forward runs into midfield. He's clearly a communicator and looks to be driving Chris Davies philosophy of front foot football whenever he receives it, often looking to travel or play forwards, rather than sideways and backwards. He seems perfectly set up to play in England, and in a Chris Davies side. He doing all the right things to cement himself as Bielik's partner.
Dion Sanderson: 5
I feel that to play in Chris Davies' sides you need to move the ball quickly and in the first two games of the season, Dion takes too many touches and allows the opposition time to reset our of possession. He looked nervy again today and although he seemed to calm down after the goal, he never really looked assured. After a decent pre season he appears to have reverted to the Dion we saw last year. Two really soft bookings to concede lead to his sending off with 15 minutes remaining. Petty incidents like that certainly won't help us win promotion, or impress Chris Davies.
Ethan Laird: 7
Ethan showed his athletic abilities yet again, covering ground up and down the right channel, but yet again struggled with an end product. When playing in his own half, Ethan seems to take too long on the ball and ends up having to turn back, often when swarmed by the oppositions press. His endeavour and ability to get in the right attacking positions is a positive though and you can't doubt that he is a threat down the right side. Much better performance compared to the weekend.
Tyler Roberts: 7
Credit where it's due. Tyler played a lot deeper than expected and he's dealt with it well. He's dropped deep to receive the ball and more often than not attempted to turn and play quickly to restart attacks. He was tidy in possession and link up play across the pitch was good. He's was busy and affective, a really solid performance for Tyler. If he'd had a little more impact, I think he could've been my choice for man of the match.
Marc Leonard: 7
Primarily playing a deep role splitting the centre halves to receive and bounce the ball, creating spaces between the lines. A few mistakes but kept the ball ticking over and will be vitally important to the way Chris Davies wants his team to play. His set pieces were excellent and I'd expect them to become a real threat as the season progresses.
Keshi Anderson: 8 - Man of the Match
Another solid performance from Keshi. Davies system will require the forward players to be versatile and he was exactly that. Dropping deep, drifting central and staying wide, he did well both in and out of possession. He was strong, direct and effective. He'll be pleased to follow up a strong substitute appearance with a good start this evening.
Luke Harris: 6
Found pockets of space well and kept the ball ticking over quickly, something that is vital in this Davies system. However, his performance was littered with a number of unforced errors which I'm sure will frustrate him. It was a decent enough show, but I'm sure he'll be expecting far more of himself going forward.
Emil Hansson: 6
Didn't see a huge amount of the ball going down the left side, so struggled to really impact proceedings. However when he did he was tidy and created chances . He was direct, purposeful and always looked a threat. Albeit not a hugely impressive performance, it shows just how much more Hansson fits the system compared to Dembele.
Lukas Jutkiewicz: 6
The huge lack of depth in the striking department gave Lukas one of what may be limited starts this season. The style really doesn't suit the Juke, however he did well on various occasions to travel forwards with the ball into the opponents half and kick start counter attacks. Something a little different to what we've come to expect.
Subs
Alex Cochrane: 6
Another solid performance from Alex slotting in perfectly. He showed his versatility coming inside on a few occasions picking up a deeper lying midfield role to help play out from the back. Defensively he also won his aerial and ground duels, most importantly to deny Ramsey on the break with just a few minutes remaining.
Paik Seung-Ho: 7
Feels a little over the top giving a substitute a 7, however he showed his class when he came on. There's no more dandruff with Paik, because he really is Head and Shoulder above this level. He seemed to have a little more of a free role, similar to what we saw from Tyler Roberts and he made a few excellent runs in behind. Paik looked excellent on the ball and when the connection between him and Leonard develops, they really will be the key orchestrators in this side.
Alfie May: 6
He looked sharp and made a few excellent runs in behind. His link up play and ability rotate with the forward players instantly improved our attacking threat. It also highlights just how important it is we find a rotation option of a similar profile, as the threat we posed with May on the pitch compared to Jutkiewicz was a stark contrast.
Krystian Bielik: 6
Wouldn't have expected to feature tonight, however Dion's lack of game management saw his introduction. Didn't have to deal with much but looked solid defensively and composed on the ball.
Alfons Sampsted: 6
He slotted into the team impressively considering he's been here just a matter of hours. Defensively he was solid and looked comfortable on the ball. Not a huge amount to add however he'll be pleased to get his Birmingham City career off to a winning start.
