JFH: Team must stay stubborn to regain away form
WHEN they face a buoyant Plymouth Argyle side at Home Park today, Burton Albion will be looking to turn around a somewhat surprising slump in away form.
While they went several months, from January until the last day of the season, without losing on the road under Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink last season, they have only won once this time around, on the opening day against Shrewsbury Town.
They have also scored only two goals on their travels.
Plymouth, meanwhile, have climbed to third in League One having not lost since the opening day. Since then, they have won five and drawn five
Ha s s e l b a i n k says he is not – as yet – unduly concerned about that form but he recognises Plymouth, under the respected Ryan Lowe, as tough customers.
“With the new stand opening, they have a lot of support and they are stronger than last year, more solid at the back and a real force,” said Hasselbaink.
“It’s always a difficult place to go but we are trying to do everything in our power to go there as fresh as possible.
“I only made two substitutions on Tuesday because I was thinking about the fatigue factor for certain players.
“We want to put everything we can into the game and be ready.
“The pitch is big but we have players who can get around the pitch. I don’t see it as one of the bigger problems.
“If we can be committed and really together in what we do, we can cause them problems.”
Of the relative goal drought on the road, the manager said: “We have had chances. Even at Crewe, when we lost, we had chances, we had a couple more against Wimbledon when we should have scored.
“It’s all about calmness and taking them. If we didn’t get chances, then I’d worry.
“I’m never going to fault them for missing a chance, I’m going to fault them for not being there for the chance.
“We need to keep on knocking on that door – and eventually someone will open it. If you stay stubborn, keep on doing the right things, you will get your benefits.”
Keeping on doing the right things was very much at the forefront of Hasselbaink’s thinking after he watched his players lose a 2-0 lead and, eventually, the match, 4-2, to Aston Villa Under-21s in midweek to go out of the Papa John’s Trophy.
He hopes the whole squad will have learned from the experience and what was said after it.
“There were certain players who haven’t played that much over the last few weeks who were basically playing to show themselves so that if something happens to the ones who are playing (regularly) they are saying ‘please pick me, so that I can have a chance to stay in the team.’” said Hasselbaink.
“There was more to it than just losing a 2-0 lead, although that was important.
“We haven’t spoken a lot about it.
If you stay stubborn, keep on doing the right things, you will get your benefits. Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink
After the game, I said what I needed to say. Then it’s, for us as staff, speaking to individuals in one-v-ones about certain things that happened in the game and, hopefully, they learn and be better from it.”
It was, on Tuesday, an utterly foul night in a competition that has never captured supporters’ imagination but that was no excuse as far as the manager was concerned.
He was asked if players might feel more pressure if they were trying to impress him in such circumstances.
“Yes – and it’s difficult. It’s a mental game,” he said.
“But why are players in the Premier League? Not only because they are technically and physically very good players and have the talent but because they are very strong mentally. They come up with the goods.
“You have to win that mental battle. My players all have talent, now they need to use it in the right place, stay calm and deliver in difficult moments.
“You might be playing in a very important game, it’s 1-0 and you’re hanging in there. You need to deliver. If you’re not going to deliver when you’re winning 2-0 against an under21 side, how are you going to deliver in the senior side in the last five minutes when you are winning 1-0?
“That is where you see the difference (as a manager) and you make your decisions – he can handle it, he can’t handle it, he needs work.
“Hopefully, they see it. We can only put it on a plate and keep on working with them.
“We do think that they will get better. Sometimes, you need to get hit with those kind of moments. Hopefully, it’s a moment you learn from, you get better from and it never happens again.”