James

Difference is that under Koeman we had produced good results and good football the season before when we came close to CL qualification. Puel has yet to show anything that makes me think we are capable of replicating a similar run of results.

Ah the old retreat tactic. Worked brilliantly against Spurs too didn't it? Very poor game management.

The staunch defence of Claude is slightly bizarre.

Out for me as well. The festive period has been pathetic and these complete collapse away performances are very worrying indeed.

Tactics are the root cause of all of this. Even if we had won this 1-0 I wouldn't be happy with Puel. His tactics are awful and the football we are producing is awful. Playing not to lose and then letting in three cheap goals, tactical genius.

Genuine question, do you honestly see the situation improving under Puel? He's out of his depth and there are times when a change can be made for the better (see Poch for Adkins). Just because Swansea are **** and have changed their manager doesn't mean that it can't be done successfully.

9 goals conceded in three games, 2 scored and next to no chances created. We will be well and truly drawn into the relegation battle. Decisive action required now.

The rotation thing has just not worked at all and is implemented at random it would seem. Completely agree on fitness, we must have the most unfit first XI in the league as no other team needs to rotate as much as we do.

As long as Black goes too I'm willing to take the risk I think. The current team and management are as dull and uninspiring as I can remember (certainly in the last ten years). His time will be up when we get turned over by Liverpool.

What a ridiculous statement.

Puel has got to go I think. Can't see this situation improving.

Will be interesting to read how the Puel apologists justify another lifeless performance if we don't buck up in the next ten mins.

Its probably pretty close to the truth.

It was, he was playing him onside FFS!

Pathetic xmas performances really.

Exactly and Tadic will basically have to play every minute whilst we don't have Boufal. This rotation system is fine in theory but the way it's being deployed is completely random. Certain players (VVD and Romeu) play every single minute yet some players are rotated out constantly (full backs, shuttle midfielders and strikers). I don't think it's any coincidence that VVD and Romeu are, by some distance, our best performers this season as the rest of the team don't know If they'll be playing the following week. As others have said it must massively reduce any kind of "playing for places" mentality as players know that no matter what they do and how well/badly they've played they will be rotated. I'm struggling to think of any team that has successfully implemented a mass rotation system. Even Chelsea who had a much stronger squad were ridiculed when Ranieri tried it. Always seems that successful teams are settled ones. Leicester won the league by playing a consistent team even Barcelona (who also have Europe to contend with) play pretty much the same XI every week.

Very odd decision.

Why, if the stated ambition of the club is to qualify for the Champions League, have we sold off a team that might even have been capable of challenging for the title?

To pass backwards and sideways, score from a set piece or single attack and then hope we don't concede.

Not so sure. The majority of the complaints are to do with style rather than results. I'm not sure a win will solve the problems we've got or answer fan complaints (unless, of course, Puel rips up the tactics we've been using recently).

If we concede early this could be an ugly one.

This is the crux of the problem. Even if you had Man City's attacking riches they'd struggle with this safety first approach. You don't need to have good quality players to be a threat in an attacking sense, look at Burnley for example who put 4 past a woeful Sunderland team that we only scored against as a result of a goalkeeping howler.

Good player when on song but very careless in possession sometimes. Hope he returns to form but to do that he neees a run in the team and he won't get that from the Tinkerman.

Agreed. What has happened to him? His confidence looks absolutely shot.

Yesterday was not good at all, I think we all agree that. It was a stark reminder that, no matter how well we've done in recent seasons, we aren't too big or too good to go down. At the moment I see us as a season behind Swansea. Very similar praise for how both clubs were run but continually selling the family silver is eventually going to catch up with you. We won't go down this year (I don't think) but next year will be interesting. As others have said, I can take losing but the style of play is awful. We don't take risks, we don't make runs and we don't commit numbers in attack. Earlier in the season we won points because, in spite of our attack, we didn't concede. Now we do concede and we can't score. Very reminiscent of 2004/5. God help us if we cash in on one of Fonte or VVD in Jan.