Pre-Match Thoughts - Millwall

After Saturday's win against Rochdale, Posh move swiftly on to a tough trip to the Den to play Millwall on Tuesday night.

Millwall

Millwall come into the game on the back of a 0-0 draw against Oldham Athletic. They missed two penalties in stoppage time at the end of the game as Oldham stopper Connor Ripley singled handedly denied them all three points. This came as good news to Posh, who can leapfrog their opponents with a win at The Den.

They're likely to set up in a 4-4-2 formation, with two banks of four set up to frustrate Posh's attacking threats. Shaun Williams in central midfield is pivotal to how they play, both defensively and the threat he poses when his team attack. He's good in the air, he can pick a pass, and has also been known to hit the occasional screamer, whether that be from open play or a free kick.

Lee Gregory is another threat that Posh need to be aware of. He knows where the goal is, and alongside veteran striker Steve Morison, the Posh back line will be in for a battle on Tuesday night. Fred Onyedinma has been impressive for Millwall this season, and he may turn provider for most chances that drop to Morison and Gregory.

Posh

Jack Baldwin, as we know, has picked up a two match ban after his second red card of the season on Saturday. Posh have sent Dominic Ball back to Rotherham after he and Posh boss Grant McCann had a disagreement over a team selection which saw Ball drop to the bench. That has subsequently led McCann to send him back to his parent team. In his interview, he said we don't need players like that at the football club, so we move on without him, and hopefully it'll be for the better. Ball had performed fairly well in his games with the Posh, but we do have options in the back line, so it shouldn't cause too much of a problem.

Both Anthony Grant and Chris Forrester come back into contention after serving their suspensions. I would expect them both to start, given Baldwin's suspension and Ball's departure, as Michael Bostwick will probably partner Ryan Tafazolli at the heart of the defence. This could see Grant and Forrester playing the holding roles in front of the back four, if Posh decide to continue with the 4-2-3-1 formation which proved to be successful against Rochdale on Saturday. Forrester could play a more advanced role, though, with Leo Da Silva Lopes and Brad Inman also in contention for the midfield spots.

If McCann doesn't want to drop Bostwick into the middle of the back four, he could shift Andrew Hughes across and play Jerome Binnom-Williams at left back. Hughes played a number of games for Newport at centre back. However, at the start of the season, McCann spoke of the importance of having one left footer, and one right footer at the heart of the defence, and the only player he can play in the middle with Tafazolli to keep that balance, is Bostwick.

Tom Nichols, I imagine, will keep his place after his goal on Saturday, which will leave Craig Mackail-Smith, Junior Morias and Lee Angol out of the starting line up. CMS is still in search of his 100th goal, and if he's going to get it in this one, it will probably have to be during a substitute appearance.

Harry Anderson has trained this week and could come into McCann's thinking, but that would probably only be as a substitute. He has stiff competition in his position, with Martin Samuelsen, Brad Inman and Callum Chettle all vying for places in the squad.

My predicted Posh line-up (click image to enlarge):

Subs: Tyler, Binnom-Williams, Inman, Samuelsen, Morias, Angol, Mackail-Smith

Prediction: Millwall 0-1 Posh - After Saturday's result, there's reason to be optimistic. Grant and Forrester's return could play a huge part in snatching all three points from Millwall. Millwall haven't conceded many recently, so I wouldn't expect us to get more than one or two, but having been shut out by Oldham on Saturday, I'm hoping Posh can capitalise on any lack of confidence up top. 

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Post-Match Reaction - Rochdale

Well, it wasn't perfect by any means, but it was certainly a vast improvement on the recent performances from the Posh.

Posh started brightly but couldn't muster anything clear cut to trouble the Dale keeper. That was until Jack Baldwin found space in the box to steer Posh into a 1-0 lead following a corner from Marcus Maddison. A move followed that looked almost like the Posh of old - good work on the right wing afforded Leo Da Silva Lopes the space to set Tom Nichols up for his 12th goal of the season. And just like that, Posh switched back to the team who have been leaking goals in recent weeks, the defence were cut open by a through ball which allowed Joe Thompson a simple one on one finish to reduce the arrears for the visitors. Joe Rafferty saw a red just before half time when he picked up a second yellow for hauling back Marcus Maddison. So Posh led 2-1 at half time, and apart from the goal conceded, it was looking pretty good.

Eight minutes into the second half, Donal McDermott became the second Dale player to be sent for an early bath. His lunging tackle on Baldwin was his final action of the game, as referee Chris Sarginson gave him a straight red card. Posh had a number of chances, but the likes of Brad Inman Marcus Maddison and birthday boy Craig Mackail-Smith all squandered decent attempts to put the game beyond any reasonable doubt. Referee Sarginson brought the red card out for the third time in the game, sending Jack Baldwin off for a second bookable offence, before Paul Taylor ended the contest with a well struck effort which left Wilson in the Dale goal with no chance.

Final Score: Posh 3-1 Rochdale

My man of the match: Michael Bostwick - Didn't put a foot wrong all afternoon, and timed his tackles to perfection. Provided good protection for the back four and a partnership with Anthony Grant seems exciting.

There were plenty of positives on show for the Posh, but some areas for concern, also. The defence, despite looking fairly solid for most of the afternoon, were completely undone by one decent pass for the Rochdale goal. Ryan Tafazolli charged out of the back line on a few occasions to try and win the ball high up the pitch, and one of those ended up seeing his defensive partner, Baldwin, sent off.

Tafazolli was beaten by a Dale man and, in my opinion, should've took one for the team and hauled the man down before he reached Baldwin. He didn't do so, and Baldwin was left with no other alternative other than to let the man run in on goal, or bring him down. He chose the latter, and will now probably miss the next two games due to his sending off earlier in the season.

Posh played more of a 4-2-3-1, which looked pretty good. Grant McCann spoke in his post match interview about the importance of getting his more influential players higher up the pitch - he was spot on. Taylor and Maddison found plenty of space to work in and produced the kind of quality we've become used to seeing from them. Tom Nichols benefitted from their movement and quality deliveries, as did Mackail-Smith, who really should've scored his 100th goal for the club today.

On Tuesday we go to Millwall, and will have Anthony Grant back in contention. Grant alongside Bostwick in a 4-2-3-1 formation could work for Posh. Both are solid, and working together could provide some much needed protection for our still shaky back line. I imagine Leo Da Silva Lopes or Brad Inman could drop out of the starting XI, but I'll revisit that prospect in my pre-match thoughts ahead of Tuesday's game.

So the win for Posh left us just three points off the playoffs, with Millwall drawing to Oldham, and Southend slipping up at Gillingham. Three points on Tuesday could see Posh move level on points with 6th place Southend, and in all honesty you really would have to put Posh right back in the playoff picture should that take place. Southend don't play on Tuesday, so they will have a game in hand, but three points are vital in what has to go down as the most important game of the season so far at The Den on Tuesday!

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Post-Match Reaction - Oldham Athletic

Following the postponement of the previously arranged fixture between these two sides, Oldham made admission for this game free of charge. And the the Posh fans that turned up well and truly got what they paid for.

Whilst Oldham didn't cause Posh too many problems at the back, the first half didn't exactly go to plan. Posh's best efforts on goal came from Chris Forrester, Michael Bostwick and Tom Nichols, who all tried their luck from 30+ yards out, and never looked like scoring. Oldham had a game plan - to be physical, and punt the ball as far up the pitch every time they regained possession. In the opening 45 minutes, their plan was paying off. They bullied Posh all over the pitch, and didn't give up any good chances at all. Despite being 23rd in League One, they do have a very good defensive record, and Posh looked like they'd run out of ideas as the game reached the half way mark.

So after 15 minutes of advice from Grant McCann, Posh were going to come out and take the game to Oldham? Yes? ...No. Oldham picked up where they left off and started to test Luke McGee in the Posh goal. And just when you thought this game couldn't get any worse - Oldham were awarded a penalty. No one is completely sure what it was given for, but it was given, and Paul Green scored. Junior Morias entered the frame with 15 minutes to go. Posh needed a reaction, and fast. They didn't get it, McLaughlin made it 2-0 to the relegation candidates, and Posh were dead and buried.

Again this seems to be an example of the Posh players believing their own hype after a win. We went to Swindon, won the match and now the players believe they're too good for this level again. We went to Chelsea and put in a spirited display, and backed that up with the embarrassing 5-1 loss at Bury. Whilst these players get ahead of themselves each time they win, we will be staying in this league. The group of players we have at the moment need to realise that they haven't actually achieved anything yet, and while they haven't achieved anything, their dream moves might not actually be forthcoming.

Grant McCann said he didn't want too many signings in this January transfer window, but to be honest, he might not be left with any choice. Something needs to change, and if this group of players aren't going to be consistent at this level, we need players who will be. We have so many players who are clearly very talented, but for whatever reason, it's just not coming together for Posh at the moment.

We may only be in January, but it'd take one hell of a winning run to get us into the playoffs at this stage.

Final Score: Oldham 2-0 Posh

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Pre-Match Thoughts - Oldham Athletic

So The Posh travel to relegation candidates Oldham Athletic tomorrow night, in a bid to make it back to back wins in League One

Oldham:

One of my friends at university, Chris Howarth, is an Oldham fan, and he reliably informs me that his team are incapable of scoring goals this season, so let's hope they don't choose this game to start finding the net... Their last game was a 1-0 loss at Shrewsbury, where former Latics loanee Freddie Ladapo scored the only goal of the game.

They currently sit 22nd, and recently reappointed former Notts County boss John Sheridan as their manager, following Steve Robinson's short stint at the helm. Sheridan has wasted no time in making changes to their squad, allowing central midfielders Carl Winchester and Mark Klok to leave the club. He's also brought in target man Michael Ngoo, as well as bringing Aaron Amadi-Holloway and Anthony Gerrard back for their second spells at Boundary Park.

Chris has also informed that their goalkeeper, Connor Ripley, is one of the main reasons why they don't lose every game by more than a goal or two. However, Grant McCann's first game in caretaker charge of the team last season was a huge 5-1 win at Oldham, and he will be hoping for a repeat performance. Lee Angol netted twice on that day, as did Souleymane Coulibaly, with Erhun Oztumer scoring the other goal.

Posh:

Following Saturday's win at Swindon, Posh will certainly be looking to make it two wins on the spin on Tuesday night. Dominic Ball made his debut, and was solid throughout the game, dealing with everything that came his way. Michael Bostwick's re-introduction to the midfield was also a big positive for Posh, and I would expect him to stay in that position at the base of the diamond.

I imagine it'll be an unchanged side from Saturday's win, unless there's any injuries or transfers that we don't know about yet. All in all, I'm expecting us to win, and in truth, win well against a team who look as though they're fighting an up hill battle to stay in League One beyond this season.

The only area of the team I would possibly expect changes is up front. McCann opted to bring Paul Taylor on up front over recent signing Junior Morias, on Saturday, so if I had to predict any changes, I'd probably expect to see Taylor starting in place of Nichols. However, I'm a believer in the phrase 'if it's not broken, don't fix it', and I think we'll start with the team that started at Swindon on Saturday.

My predicted line up (click image to enlarge):

Prediction: Oldham 0-3 Posh

Let me know your predictions in the comments! 

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