Crewe Alex 25/26 Monthly Review - December

Hmm. The Alex started November 1 point off the play-offs. They are now 2 points off the play-offs and won just 1 league game in the month. Was it a bad month? Or a mixed one? Do you take the positives or the negatives. I'm very conflicted. This is my monthly review of November for the Alex:

Looking Back

Mentioning the EFL Trophy briefly, the Alex took on Stockport and got ahead thanks to an Adrien Thibaut goal. However, they were pegged back in the first half and spent most of the rest of the game on the back foot. It finished 1-1 after 90 minutes, but they came up short in the shootout, as Emre Tezgel and Josh March missed penalties and County were perfect, allowing them to move on and the Alex to exit.

Back in the league, they faced bottom of the league Newport County at home and it seemed like it was going to be a comfortable evening when Tezgel scored early on. However, the Alex dropped into cruise control and it cost them, as a deflected James Connolly own goal drew Newport level just after the break. The Alex reupped their levels and shortly after a red card for former Alex striker Courtney Baker-Richardson, Josh March came off the bench to get the Alex back ahead. But once again they faltered and another deflected effort in stoppage time gave Newport an unlikely 2-2 draw.

With confidence seemingly low, they headed north west to their boogey ground Prenton Park. However, they went on to put in a stunning performance, as 2 first half goals from Max Sanders had they in control at the break. A Tezgel penalty and a low Tommi O'Reilly finish had them 4-0 up with 20 minutes to go and even another own goal from James Connolly couldn't dent what was a fantastic win and their first at Tranmere in 25 years.

Back at home in their final home game of 2025, a ctcrow of just over 9,000 watched them take on Bristol Rovers, who were fresh off 10 straight league defeats and had a new manager in Steve Evans taking charge of his first game. The Alex once again raced into an early from who else but Tezgel. However, that was the high point of the evening. A quick equaliser from a Waller/Connolly mix up had Rovers level. Then Thibaut got himself a stupid red card and Tezgel limped off with an ankle injury shortly after that. The Alex to their credit kept battling and it was at worst at even game. Rovers somehow dodged 2 clear red cards in the 2nd half but came close to winning it as they hit the post. In the end, neither team did enough to win it and the game ended level.

For their final 2 games of 2025, I'm going to lump them in together as they are largely the same story. The Alex started well at Walsall and Newport, but then conceded a soft set piece goal in both and never looked like getting back into it. The only difference was, Newport added a 2nd and Walsall didn't. So they ended the year with 2 defeats to take their record in December to 1-2-2.

U21s

Guess what, the U21s didn't lose in December! Ok, it was because they didn't play, but small positives right? Guys?!

U18s

The U18s ended the year on a high as they picked up 4 points from their 2 games in December. A solid 0-0 draw away at Barnsley was followed by a 4-0 win at home against previously top of the division Sheffield United. It pushed them to 3-1-1 in their last 5 and they now sit 4th in the North Division, only 5 points off 2nd. This group will be back in action in January, with 4 league games to come.

Injuries

Urgh. It wouldn't be a December review without discussing a massive injury list would it? 8 players missed, 7 of them difference makers when fit and all of them starters. It's the same story every year and it getting boring at this point.

Player	Injury	Possible Return Date
Jack Lankester(RW)	Knee	Mid January 2026
James Golding(CB)	Groin	Mid January 2026
Mickey Demetriou(CB)	Ankle	Mid January 2026
Emre Tezgel(ST)	Ankle	Late January 2026
Conor Thomas(CM)	Ankle	Late January 2026
Josh March(ST)	Shoulder	Late January 2026
Shilow Tracey(RW/ST)	Broken Leg	Spring 2026
Joel Tabiner(RW/CM)	ACL	Summer 2026

Loans

Zac Williams is back on the bench for Kilmarnock. As a side note, can fans please stop calling for him to come back. He's a poor defender, his attitude stinks and he's a walking red card. He can stay and rot up there.

Fin Roberts continues to struggle for game time at Chester as they flounder in mid-table in the National League North. I'd be looking at moving him on in January permanently if possible. Jordan Hodkin also isn't having much goalscoring success at Leek, but then he is still appearing in games, so hopefully he's picking up valuable experience.

Player of the Month

Max Sanders

In a month of very slim pickings, Sanders is one of very few standout lights. His performance at Tranmere was one for the ages and he's been doing his best to make things happen even as the team falls apart around him. I feel sorry for him.

Previous Picks:

August: Josh March

September: Max Sanders

October: Max Sanders

November: Emre Tezgel

Step It Up

James Connolly

I could have picked anyone of 5-6 players for this list, but I thought I'd give it to the player who has had one of the worst months in Crewe Alex history. In 5 games in December, he conceded 2 own goals and made 3 critical mistakes which led to goals being scored against them. Step it up isn't a fair reflection of what I want to see him do. Step it out of the building would be more appropriate.

Previous Picks:

August: Emre Tezgel

September: Tom Booth

October: Calum Agius

November: The depth

Underrated Player

Lewis Billington

It's criminal that we're up to December and he hasn't made the list yet. He's struggled at times at CB, but I don't pin that on him. He continues to try his best to keep goals out, yet is being let down by his colleagues.

Previous Picks:

August: Max Sanders

September: Conor Thomas

October: Tommi O'Reilly

November: Owen Lunt

Analysis

It's hard to analyse the Alex's performances in December because there are so many reasons why they didn't win more than 1 game. The saddest thing is, for the most part they didn't perform that badly. Let down by 2 critical mistakes against Newport, they should have won that game. Thibaut doesn't get sent off against Bristol Rovers and they win that game. James Connolly isn't on the pitch against Walsall and Newport and they might do better in those games.

But the fact is, they only got 5 points and only won 1 game. We can play the "if only" game all day, but whether it's managerial incompetence, injuries, players decision making, the Alex find themselves 6 points adrift of the play-offs with their season increasingly in the balance.

What light is there at the end of the tunnel that they will improve and push back on up the table? Not much to be honest.

Looking Ahead

Previous Predictions:

August: 2-2-2(Actual: 4-0-2)

September: 1-2-1(Actual: 1-1-2)

October: 1-2-1(Actual: 2-0-2)

November: 1-1-2(Actual: 1-2-1)

December: 2-1-2(Actual: 1-2-2)

Well, for once I went down the middle for my predictions and they came up short by 2 points. Taking just 2 points from 3 games against Newport and Bristol Rovers will be one of the reasons why they finish well outside the top 7 come May.

December Predictions:

Optimistic Prediction: 3-2-2(Beat Cheltenham, Harrogate and Barrow, draw with Barnet and Colchester, lose to Notts County and Bromley)

Pessimistic Prediction: 2-1-4(Beat Harrogate and Barrow, draw with Cheltenham, lose the rest)

Realistic(My) Prediction: 3-2-2(Beat Cheltenham, Harrogate and Barrow, draw with Barnet and Colchester, lose to Notts County and Bromley)

Final Word

I said December was poor for the Alex form wise and it didn't get much better this time around, as they once again recorded only 1 win in the festive month to leave themselves increasingly adrift of the play-offs. Still, their first 4 games in January 'could' yield a healthy points return and if they do, they could still be in business. But those last 3 are very tough and if they fail to get more than 1 out of the first 4, then the top 7 could be out of sight before we even hit February.