qwertyell

They've been "resting" Giroud all season. Tammy Abraham is their first choice striker now. Sent from my F3311 using Tapatalk

That'd be 12 points by the end of November. Hughes was sacked with 9 points by the end of November. Progress... ? Sent from my F3311 using Tapatalk

And we couldn't create a single chance from open play against their 10 men. Lol indeed... Sent from my F3311 using Tapatalk

It's a bleak situation. We've only got three senior central midfielders in a team that usually plays three central midfielders. There's no wiggle room for the manager - if they're fit, they play. But Romeu, Hojbjerg and Ward-Prowse don't compliment each other at all. None of them can pass the ball forwards, so we have no creativity from the midfield at all. And none of them can run - they're consistently five yards behind the play in both boxes; can't supplement the attack with late runs into dangerous positions, can't track back when the opposition counters. They just plod around in no man's land as the game goes on around them. It's a big problem, and it's only going to get worse as injuries and suspensions come along. Imagine having to play Slattery, Smallbone and Armstrong as a three! I can't see how the club won't move for someone in January - there was no point getting Lemina and Reed off the wage bill if it was going to leave us with only the bare bones of a barely functional midfield. Sent from my F3311 using Tapatalk

Scored more goals this season than our new star striker. Sent from my F3311 using Tapatalk

Actually they planned excellently for Maguire's inevitable departure by signing two highly rated young centre backs the previous summer (Soyuncu and Benkovic) and letting them acclimatise to a new country and league under the radar for a year. It's worked out swimmingly. Sent from my F3311 using Tapatalk

Imagine getting caught in a three on three when playing against ten men... Hojbjerg taking himself out of the game because he didn't fancy running back was disgraceful. Once again, a midfield without a shred of mobility haunts us. Sent from my F3311 using Tapatalk

Wow! That's... I can barely believe I've seen such a goalkeeping howler. Thanks, Hugo - what a mental gift. Game on, I guess. (Go to a back four at h/t, please, put a proper RB on - Prowse is getting rinsed) Sent from my F3311 using Tapatalk

Twice in two minutes Ndombele was in behind our plodding midfield. Shot went through the ghost of Angus Gunn. Frustrating - we've not been bad. But we've got so many exploitable weaknesses, it's only a matter of time before it all goes to crap. Sent from my F3311 using Tapatalk

I think we'll play a back five. Newcastle won there a few weeks ago by simply clogging up the middle. Tottenham don't want to get wide and put in crosses. Poch loves his side to side and back again football - but played by a team low on confidence and seemingly energy (surprisingly they're one of the worst pressing outfits in the league these days - very un-Poch), it's not that hard to deal with. Sent from my F3311 using Tapatalk

And if we hadn't played for 60 minutes against 10 men at Brighton and Sheffield United hadn't been wrongly denied a penalty we'd be in the bottom three. If, if, if. We're a pretty poor side just about scraping by - so far. I don't see any reason to think that won't remain the case for the foreseeable future. Sent from my F3311 using Tapatalk

Ah well, we've won our cup final. Time to concentrate on staying in the league. Sent from my F3311 using Tapatalk

They wouldn't have overruled him anyway, so what's the point (other than to draw lines over a still image to "prove" someone offside by a nose hair)? Sent from my F3311 using Tapatalk

Unfortunately that's a common theme. He works really hard, but he's pretty poor on the ball and he doesn't get into goalscoring positions. If he was missing loads of chances at least we could be optimistic that the goals will come eventually, but he's rarely anywhere to be seen when the ball drops in the box. Not an encouraging start... Sent from my F3311 using Tapatalk

All about the result, of course, but sweet baby Jesus our midfield is shocking on the ball. And these are our only options there until at least January. I swear, some games Hojbjerg looks like he's never played football before. Don't think I've ever seen a player's performance level vacillate so wildly. Anyway, thankfully Ings is tuned into the game - he's really been the difference in a low quality game. Sent from my F3311 using Tapatalk

Because they are a bunch of plodders. It's been a massive issue for us for a while now. Our midfield is easily bypassed on the counter attack because Romeu, Hojbjerg and Ward-Prowse are slower than coastal erosion. Throw in a centre back pairing that would get lapped in a 100m race and we're ripe for the picking from any side with a bit of pace. Our full backs aren't even particularly pacy. With Djenepo and Adams, we've at least added a bit of speed up top, but that doesn't address all the other areas of deficiency. Plenty of sides have slow centre backs, but they compensate by defending deep and compact. Tactical genius Hasenhuttl wants us to play an aggressive, pressing style with a high line - but he doesn't have the players for it. Once the opposition beat the slow moving press, five or six players are out of the game and don't have the legs to get back. I think he's showing himself that be quite one dimensional as a coach. He hasn't adapted very well to the squad at his disposal, as opposed to the squad he wishes he had. Sent from my F3311 using Tapatalk

Manager had a shocker. Defensively disorganised to the point of negligence. Whatever his problem with Bertrand is, he needs to be told to get over himself - his ego is only hurting us. Horrific lack of quality going forward. Adams works hard but doesn't get into scoring positions. Pedestrian midfield bypassed again and again on the counter attack - and we've got no other options but those three statues. Still think this will be another grim season of scraping by. And if the manager's tactics and selections continue to be as erratic as they have been since Rohl left, we might not get away with it again. Sent from my F3311 using Tapatalk

This is on the manager. He's playing Bednarek at right back now. What a disorganised mess. Sent from my F3311 using Tapatalk

Offside. Defensively hopeless, though. Sent from my F3311 using Tapatalk

Lack of creativity if both Redmond and Djenepo miss out. Amazing how quickly Boufal has become a key player. Sent from my F3311 using Tapatalk

Vokins starting for u23s today. So either Bertrand is fit or we're going to put another square peg in a round hole. Cedric, Hojbjerg, Yoshida the candidates, I'd guess. Sent from my F3311 using Tapatalk

Bertrand took part in that training fun day they did earlier in the international break, but I didn't see him in any pictures of their most recent proper sessions. The team are doing some running around at St Mary's today - Djenepo is among them. Sent from my F3311 using Tapatalk

Sims should be back in November after a short loan, so he'll be available to play right away, rather than having to wait until January. Sent from my F3311 using Tapatalk

Champions League club, probably with enough money to buy him if he goes well - not the worst deal in the world. Wish the midfield options we're left with weren't so threadbare, though. Sent from my F3311 using Tapatalk

Had a good game today, so it's probably harsh to be critical but what the hell. Much as I like a lot about him I find his footwork a bit concerning. It's been nagging at me since the 3-2 defeat at United last season. Pereira scored a nice 20 yarder, but it didn't go in the top corner, yet Gunny's full dive went nowhere near it. He just sort of flopped over. I'd noticed he had a bad habit of jumping up just before the ball is struck, meaning he can't actually react with a dive until he's landed again, which could be too late, and thought that the resultant lack of sideways momentum was why he couldn't dive very far - instead of taking a quick step or two to the side and then launching, he was just landing flat on both feet and then trying to spring from a standing start. But today, for James' goal (and in fairness for a solid save Gunn made from Greenwood) he pushes off from the wrong foot. To dive left, he doesn't use his left leg at all - he uses his right, and vice versa when diving to the right. The net result is a complete lack of spring from his starting position: he really goes nowhere beyond his normal reach (which is pretty substantial, as he's a big lad). It's been a long time since I kept nets and maybe the fundamentals of goalkeeping have been completely rewritten and I'm full of crap, but surely pushing off from the wrong foot when diving isn't the new and improved way. Not that he could've done much to stop United's goal today, I just thought it was a curious thing. Sent from my F3311 using Tapatalk