Chez

Yep. Play them, which is what Koeman did yesterday with Targett at left back and he got made to look a mug by Zaha.

Agreed. That might point to good coaching, a great team work ethic and a large group of decent players. What the first team needs is one absolute top notch player to come out of the batch of youngsters. If you get a Shaw and 10 others not fit to lace his boots that's probably preferable.

I thought Classie had an a good game yesterday. His passing was excellent, and I was especially impressed at the number of times he looked to play it forward to players between the lines. The other part of his game, the off the ball stuff such as closing down, getting goal side, tackling, hustling and winning second ball was much much better. He still can't win anything in the air of course, but he was much more effective. If we can add the right players around him, with some height, then he could be a good signing for us.

The board gave Rodriguez an extra five years when it was unclear if he would ever make it back to his best, so who knows what they are thinking of doing with RK...

You cant integrate youth into the first team if they are not good enough to get in the side. I'm not a fan of Koeman. Whether he is a good coach or not is hard to say. Only players can really tell you that. His eye for a player is certainly in question, but the more I see of Classie the more I like him and he was his big signing of the summer. It could be argued that he has shown too much faith in youth. Targett is miles off the level required in the top flight, yet he is second choice left back. JWP has his detractors, I personally think he has improved as this season has gone on, and he gets a lot of game time.

Agree with pretty much all of that, except you evaluation of Targett. Even his throw ins were ****.

Did it swerve at all? Only excuse I can offer.

Personally I think there is room for a player without the best technical skills but with the work rate and ability to win the ball back, which is why I liked Cork so much. I don't rate Reed anywhere near his level. Id have given Reed some playing time,off the bench based on what he did last year, but if he has receded as has been described of his displays in the under 21s then RK perhaps doesn't have a choice. Targett really is that bad at the moment. Slow, weak, totally one footed and not that great with it. He is gormless. Add to that The number of times he got forward today only to hit his cross straight at the first defender defied even my worst expectations. Would he get in any championship side? He needs toughening up. A season out on loan not our reserve left back. Appalling squad management. He cost us points earlier in the season in my opinion.

Reed did OK running around a lot at the end of a few games, but from what I have read he hasn't shined at under 21 level this season. If he looked the best midfielder in training and practices matches don't you think he'd get games? Targett is woeful. Would you prefer we didn't sign Bertrand to let him get game time? Blimey. I don't see your logic. If Shaw was coming through right now do you think Koeman would ignore him? Seager isn't ready. People calling for him to get in the side just sound desperate to me.

My case in point right here. Even when RK make it quite clear that Seager is not ready we still have fans demanding they play. RK picked Targett today. He picked youth. And what do you know Targett was ****. It's not the route to the first team that's the problem it's the players.

You make some very good points. He's under pressure due to results and he's under pressure to pick youngsters as that has happened before him. I think you are right he could have said there is talent but it's not ready, but I suspect the local journalists will come back with, "but what about Reed. He looked good in his twenty minute cameos." he is setting these people straight about what options he really has. He's protecting himself for sure, but sometimes people need to be told the cold truth. Is it his fault we don't have anyone coming through?

My point was that the scouts probably weren't consulted on him

The path hasn't been shut, RK has just pointed out what many people already know that the latest batch are not good enough. He wants there to be no doubt that he is not scared to play young players, but he will only do so if they are good enough. And they aren't. It's a hell of a lot easier to bring young players into the first team in league 1 and the championship. The players don't have to be as good. To get into a prem side they need to be absolute top notch.. If you have a Shaw coming through its a no brainer. Get him straight away. But if Targett is the best young player then you are ****ed. The guy is lightweight, slow and a long way from being premiership level yet. He wouldn't stand out at championship level and neither would Reed. No one has been misled. When you sign for a pro team as a youth their are absolute no guarantees given about opportunities in the first team. How the hell can there be? If players are good enough they will be get games.

Agreed. What also annoys me is when fans start suggesting players are not putting the effort in or aren't playing for the manager or showing poor body language when we are losing games of football. I don't see any of that. I said this a lot last season. It's a very fine line between winning and losing at this level. Losing a pacey fullback that gets centre backs out of jail, or a midfielder that wins a lot of headers might be enough to move you the other side.

Three. The failure to see the ball of play or at least consider it might not go and make sure you get over there to close the opponent down early. Woeful goal to give away. Both were.

Looking at this game in isolation I thought we played pretty well. I thought the five at the back worked to nullify Palace and get some of our players into space. We dominated and look very comfortable. The goal conceded was terrible. Davis under hit a pass through the wet conditions a minute or so earlier, so we knew he had to make sure. Romeu got caught in exactly the same position shortly before, so we had been fully warned. Very bad mistake then by Classie or was it Davis I couldn't see. I thought the change in formation and personnel helped open them up a little and we deserved the equaliser. But once again we shot ourselves in the foot. We didn't react to the ball quite clearly not going out of play, Tadic let Puncheon waltz past him and it was a poor save. I thought the work rate was good, we created enough to equalise. Hennessy saved well twice, although I thought Juanmi should have buried his chance. I'm very disappointed to go out of the cup. A football club will never get a better chance to win it than when the are a prem side, but yet again we fail. Having said that I wasn't overly disappointed with the effort we put in. We need to start taking chances.

Going rate these days after Fulham spunked £11m on McCormack

He must be on a small fortune. Which counts us out, not that City would allow him to leave now. Never understood why City signed him. Extremely stationary striker, albeit with great strength and a decent finish,. But if you are try to compete with Barca etc. you should surely be looking for more than that. Preferred Djecko myself.

Very good point. Top earners are/have provided the least return. When did Osvaldo's pay off happen? Was that before the season? Will that count towards this years/seasons wage bill?

wouldn't be surprised if Fonte was on that now. Having seen chumps like Osvaldo come in on bigger wages and fail, his agent will have secured a tidy rise when he signed that latest deal.

Two out is nothing, but losing your two best players every season for three seasons in a row?

Juanmi has done little of note, but are these nippers good enough?, even for the bench? Seager seems popular on this board, is he decent? Not seen him myself. Isgrove will have had to improved a lot from what I saw of him in that Sheffield United game in which he looked a bloody million miles away from being good enough for top flight football. How did he fair out on loan?

JWP with Grays pace, now that would be a player...

Where does the money come from? Is there a stockpile in the bank I am not aware of?

Those that did, were they already at other prem sides? I see a lot of players coming in from overseas and struggle initially. If they at a prem side and haven't been playing are they match fit. That can reduce the instant impact