After being humiliated at home by a far superior Accrington Stanley team, manager Johnnie Jackson was quick to concede that his side was “second best by miles. So, with this in mind, is the jury still out on the AFC Wimbledon manager?
After an excruciating 2022/23 season, it was time to rip up what had been a stagnating squad and start with a fresh approach. The foundations were laid with the recruitment of Craig Cope as Head of Football Operations.
As he took control of the comings and goings, a stable of fresh exciting talent was made available for Jackson. There was no doubt that the style of football that he wanted to play, had been the guidelines for Cope’s recruitment drive, and the pair had hit a formula that bonded well during preseason.
Lessons Learned?
The early results looked good too as a League Cup win against Coventry was backed up with a home draw against Wrexham and two away wins. It wasn’t until September 9th that they suffered their first loss of the season, apart from a narrow defeat at Chelsea in the Cup.
We are at the stage of the season now where teams are starting to settle into a pattern, and managers know the strengths and weaknesses of their squad. After Tuesday night’s 4-2 defeat, what is the pattern and squad tell us now? Or more importantly, what has Jackson learned that is different from last season?
Well, if truth be told, not a lot.
The team still has a terrible record at home, winning only once out of seven games at Plough Lane, a record that is in keeping with last season’s when they won seven from the 23 played at home. The current form has seen them score just twice, the goals in the Accrington loss, in the last four games, in which they’ve drawn and lost twice.
Of the teams they have beaten this season, the highest is placed 14th, and three are in the bottom four. This shows that when playing against the higher ranked teams, they either set out not to lose or have in fact led only to throw leads away. This is also a trend that has happened in the last two seasons.
https://twitter.com/AFCWimbledon/status/1716950818791071888
Jackson it seems has been cut short where squad depth is concerned. There was a period when his two starting midfielders, Armani Little and Jake Reeves were both out injured for the same number of games. This would catch anyone out, but the forced changes meant there was no core strength and with it no wins in five games.
Lack Of Depth
There is also a distinct lack of output from strikers. When Ali Al-Hamadi started to hit form, his season was broken up with international duty. The Iraqi man has the perfect foil in Omar Bugiel, but as this week has shown when that duo are broken up, so is the route to the goal.
James Tilley started the season scoring near enough every game but has not been on the scoresheet since September 16th. The experiment of Harry Pell as a target man just simply isn’t working, and Josh Davison has dipped so far out of form, it does beg the question of why another striker was not drafted in on deadline day instead of an abundance of midfielders.
Writer’s View
With games in November against Doncaster Rovers (18), Milton Keynes (16), Notts County (2), Gillingham (7), and Swindon Town (9), Jackson will have to work out a sufficient Plan B to suppress any anxiety that may well creep in – that is if it isn’t starting to already. Three of those games are at home, which means he will also have to find a way past whatever it is that stops the Dons from gaining any kind of form there.
It seems strange to question a manager that has taken the Dons to the fringe of the playoff places, after a season where it so nearly went horribly wrong. The fact is despite the high position, there is no real evidence that despite having players that show glimpses of taking the team forward, the manager has ultimately convinced everyone that he has nailed a formula that works, and is adaptable when it doesn’t.
