Charlton pull clear of relegation zone

Charlton went to 19th in the Championship, one point behind Millwall, after a 2-1 win over Sheffield United at The Valley this afternoon.

Substitute Matty Godden scored against Sheffield United four minutes after coming on to end Charlton Athletic's 11-game winless run and earn them their first three points since 29 August. Godden struck his second goal of the season with just 11 minutes remaining to lift the Addicks seven points clear of the relegation zone.

Millenic Alli opened the scoring in the 12th minute for the hosts at the Valley before Jordan Ayew headed United's leveller.  The defeat ends United's four-match unbeaten run and dents their promotion hopes as they drop to tenth.

The Blades threatened first and Ayew had a shot saved by Charlton goalkeeper Will Mannion but it was Charlton who scored when Alli's left-footed shot sneaked into the bottom corner for his first Addicks goal since his £1.5m move from Luton.

Back came the visitors and they equalised when Ayew headed home on the rebound when Mannion could only half clear Kalvin Phillips' free-kick to register his first Blades goal since joining them as a free agent in September.   Alan Mwamba and Tyreece Campbell then missed opportunities for the hosts in between Mannion saving a Liam Kitching header.

Mannion saved from Harrison Burrows and Sydie Peck, the hat-trick hero of the midweek win over Preston, headed wide before Godden's decisive moment arrived for Charlton.

The Addicks striker volleyed home from six yards out from Alli's cross to send Nathan Jones and the Charlton fans wild.

The Addicks had to endure nine minutes of nervy stoppage time, mainly because of Seriki's injury, and Mannion made a key stop in the dying seconds when he saved Peck's shot.

AI avatar Desmond from Deal commented: 'Jones rides his luck again and gets a reprieve.  His P60 was ready and the taxi was booked.'

Nathan Jones said today was his second favourite Charlton match behind Wembley.

Charlton women have been 'chewed up'

The Guardian takes an in depth look at the fate of Charlton's women's team.  I had not realised how much they had lost in the WSL2.  Funding this year is being kept under wraps by use of exemptions in company law, but its unlikely to be sufficient: https://www.theguardian.com/football/2026/nov/06/charlton-risk-being-chewed-up-wsl-karen-hills

Wilder faces criticism from Blades fans despite recent success

Charlton will face a Sheffield United side on Saturday that have won three and drawn one of our last four matches, beating Preston 3-2 away on Tuesday.   Fans are buzzing about 22-year old midfielder Sydie Peck who scored a first half hat trick in that game.   All four of his league goals have come away from home.

Yet, surprisingly, the mood among Blades fans is quite despondent, although one should never under estimate the capacity of football fans to be negative about their own team.

Chris Wilder has spoken candidly about the difficult atmosphere surrounding Sheffield United in recent times, insisting his players are giving everything as they look to build on back-to-back wins and maintain their progress ahead of Saturday's trip to Charlton,

Wilder has faced questions in recent weeks about an undercurrent of negativity amongst Unitedites. The Sheffield Star commented: ‘Whether you agree with it or think it’s harsh, it will probably never go away.’

Wilder responded: “I get that. But I think what you see from a team that we try and put together is that they give everything. Sometimes they might not be good enough, sometimes they will make mistakes. But the group will always have a go and we're working tirelessly to improve the group. And I think people are gradually seeing that.

“I'm fine with it [the criticism]. I'm fine. I'm all right with it. We've just got to keep working away, keep getting our heads down. Not get carried away when we win a game of football, and not taking a wrecking ball to it when we don't get the results that we're after as well.”

The Blades will have their own play-off ambitions in mind, however, with just one point keeping them outside in ninth as it stands.

Charlton did the league double over Sheffield United last season, winning both games 1-0. They last won three in a row against the Blades between 1955 and 1957.  Sheffield United have won just two of their last 17 away league games against Charlton (D6 L9), with these wins coming consecutively in November 2007 and November 2008.

Charlton are winless in their last 11 league games (D5 L6), losing the last four in a row. They last had a longer run without victory between December and February in 2023-24 (16).  Sheffield United have won consecutive league games for the first time this season, last winning three in a row in November/December last year (4).

Many fans will be hoping that another defeat will see Jones leaving and it is possible that he may fall on  his sword which would be a cheaper exit for the board.

However, any new manager is going to face the challenge of making silk out of a pig's ear.  The latest suggestions from Charlton fans are to go down the sentimental route and suggest bring in Jason Pearce, Kevin Lisbie, or even Luke Young.   Personally I would add Jaosn Euell to that list, but the best chance of shaking a lacklustre team up would probably be to bring in a foreign manager.

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Mood at the Valley is 'really edgy' says supremo

One stalwart fan contacted me to describe our performance on Tuesday as 'inept' and told me that he is not going on Saturday.   Only 11,250 came on Tuesday.

It looks as if the Sparrows Lane treatment table is going to be busy as is always the case at Charlton.  We have to take risks on injury prone players because of our lack of funds.  This also applies to players with a record of going awol as in the case of Ouma.  No statement from the club on that.

Charlton are winless in 11 matches and are set to once again be depleted of options in the middle of the park for Saturday’s home game against Sheffield United.

Richard Cawley notes: 'It throws further scrutiny on the recruitment process in the summer with Chalobah’s injury record in recent seasons extremely well documented. He played just 581 minutes for Sheffield Wednesday last season and was only in their matchday squad for three of their first 34 league matches.'

Cawley asked Jones if there had been enough expenditure in the summer window to upgrade his options.   The Welshman did not supply a direct answer.

“It was always going to be a tough window for us - to move to the next level was going to take significant investment. We knew we had to be patient, bide our time and see what we could pick up.

Kayne Ramsay was absent after coming off in the first half at Middlesbrough.  Jones responded “no idea” when asked how long the defender could be sidelined. He added: “We have got to wait on reports.”

Jones described the mood inside The Valley as “really edgy”. The home support booed the team off at half-time and full-time.

The 'Jones out' crowd may soon have their way, but any new manager is going to have to try and make silk out of a pig's ear with the current group of players.

I did have the last two games down as defeats in the start of season prediction league, but I did forecast a narrow win against the Blades.

Valley of Despair

Charlton  were left one point above the drop zone after their latest defeat at The Valley, 0-1 to Bolton Wanderers.

Nathan Jones made six changes from the side which lost 3-0 at Middlesbrough on Saturday, with goalkeeper Arthur Okonkwo among those left out.

Chalobah was making his first start since he was injured in the win over Preston on 29 August, which was the last time Charlton picked up three points, but he had an inauspicious return.

With little threat on halfway, he played an aimless ball back towards his own goal and Dalby had enough pace to escape the defence before expertly planting his shot past Will Mannion in goal.

The midfielder was taken off at half-time, but the damage was done as Charlton huffed and puffed in their attempts to get back in the game, after Danny McNamara and Harvey Knibbs had come closest to scoring for them in the first half.

Bolton sat back after the break as Charlie Kelman's header and Conor Coventry's flashing shot were both inches away from levelling, but full debutant Max Lott almost doubled the lead as Bolton menaced on the counter.

The visitors had a tricky moment to survive when goalkeeper Jack Bonham inexplicably picked up Josh Sheehan's back pass, giving the home side an indirect free-kick on the edge of the six-yard box.

Knibbs went for power and Sheehan injured an ankle by bravely hurling himself in front of it, and was forced off a few minutes later, but he had done his job, although Tyreece Campbell curled a shot narrowly side in added time.

Stunned supremo Nathan Jones said: "In terms of endeavour, in terms of work-rate, in terms of passing the football there was zero problem. We've had more possession, more touches in the opposition box, and so many opportunities in and around their box, but we've gifted them a goal - they haven't had to work for it in any way.

"We had no problem all night and then gifted them a goal. Then we just didn't demonstrate enough quality in the final third, with the amount of opportunities we've had to cross it, to put it in areas, corners and free kicks.

"It wasn't any individual. We've probably made more positive substitutions tonight than is humanly possible, but we just didn't demonstrate enough quality. We aren't doing the out-of-possession stuff well enough because we are gifting goals."

 

Parker to West Ham

Scott Parker has been on the fantasy wish list for some Charlton fans, but the former Addick is going to West Ham.

The New York Times reports: 'A deal is in place for Scott Parker to take charge of West Ham United and replace Nuno Espirito Santo, who was sacked on Tuesday. There is hope the former Burnley and Fulham head coach will be in the dugout for West Ham's trip to Cardiff City on Wednesday. Parker’s former West Ham team-mate Mark Noble could be part of his backroom team.'

Will Charlton get the trots?

Shell shocked supremo Nathan Jones has no doubt about the importance of the task against Bolton Wanderers tonight at The Valley.

He told Richard Cawley: 'We have to get a quick reaction. It’s not hope we get a reaction....we have to get a reaction Tuesday and we have to get a reaction Saturday. We can't go another week without winning a game - that is the reality of Championship football.'

'What we need is we need a win. And we need a win quickly. If we get a win then we are able to build on that and slowly turn stuff around. But we need a win.'

'We don’t look the same team defensively as we have done. We press, work hard and organise but then, in the moments, something like the centre-half has to go with the forward, see the run out and defend well. We aren’t doing that at the minute.'

I would certainly endorse that last remark.  The sight of three Charlton defenders retreating in the face of a single advancing Boro forward did not inspire confidence.

The scores for Charlton players against Boro from the FLP varied between 2 and 4.  Usually the range for a team is 6 ro 8.

The Trotters lost 2-3 at home to Bristol City on Saturday.  Supremo Steven Schumacher made eight changes to the side last lost 5-1 to Boro and it didn't seem to work.   However, Bolton's record at home is worse than that away, losing five matches against two.

For what it's worth, at the beginning of the season I forecast a 4-1 loss at Boro and a 2-3 defeat at home to Bolton.

Steven Schumacher insists Wanderers' best chance of Championship success this season is to stay on the attack.  Despite seeing a 2-1 lead evaporate against Bristol City on Saturday, the Bolton boss saw plenty in the performance to feel optimistic as his side head to Charlton Athletic tonight.

The Bolton boss came in for some criticism at the weekend after a positive result slipped the net, with some feeling the Whites should not have gambled so many players forward in the latter stages.

But Schumacher remains adamant that his team can play the fearless football we have seen in the first few months of the season and still meet their objective of staying in the division.

He told the Bolton News: "We haven't got individuals where we can sit back, soak up pressure and counter-attack and rely on a Jarrod Bowen or a Will Lankshear or an Amario Cozier-Duberry to pull something out of the bag.

"We have to do it with numbers because, as I say, we haven't got those individual 1v1 types of players who are match-winners. We have to do it with numbers and bodies forward and pressure.

"Now, with that pressure, obviously, it takes energy for your team to be doing that up and down the pitch for a whole 90 minutes, 100 minutes, whatever it takes.  And then sometimes when you get it wrong, you haven't got as many bodies back. That's just how it is.”

On Charlton he said: “I know they've had a bit of a long time without a win, but again, the games are close,” said Schumacher, who watched the recent home defeat to Norwich. “They are not in games where they're getting blown away. And as I said, they've got a really experienced manager with good players who will find a way to get out of it, I'm sure.”