Graffito

Apparently the Hawthorns will be rocking tonight. https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/68313059

No complaints about the result. Got exactly what we deserved. The performance is a worry. Totally lacking in energy. I think the coaching staff have been conscious of it. The signs have been there for a few weeks now. Well done Bristol though.

I hope you’re right. Bristol - unfortunately not. Can’t get home from an evening game there. Liverpool purchased but of course the criterion is attendance not purchase.

A surprisingly low allocation. However, a bit of quick research suggests around 2k is what they’re giving away teams this season. With 4 aways and having bought train tickets I’m not confident of getting a match ticket now.

Relax Carlos. Just suggesting why block 34 may have taken longer than usual to clear of “dickheads” as you call them. Not me. Final whistle and I’m off like a whippet. I hope the poor soul who took ill or had a fall is ok.

Well done Martin. Lose four on the trot again and you go back to being a twat.

Chair looked like a wing back.

I’ve noticed this too. When he’s in line with his defence (ie not left stranded upfield) he often plays close to Bednarek. I think he does it because if he goes out to the winger he’ll get isolated one on one and likely get done for pace. Danny Fox used to do the same thing, probably for the same reason. While I’m moaning about Manning, so often he plays a short ball inside to a CB. It’s partly his body position when he receives the ball. I’d like to see him open up his body position more often to allow the possibility of a ball up the line or, riskier, into midfield. At least it would put a bit of doubt in the minds of the opposition, but it’s predictable. I wonder whether Coventry noticed this last night. They doubled up on him as he tried to go inside, won the ball and scored.

A couple of thoughts. Time wasting, if that’s what it was, seems like a poor strategy for a team that’s good at keeping the ball. As well as picking apart Saints’ performance (this thread), sometimes you have to credit the opposition. The contrast between say the performance and result against Bristol City and yesterday’s performance and result - Watford did a better job than Bristol at limiting goal scoring opportunities. For all that, poor defending cost us two points.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/67295892

We’re soft. Preston tactics first 10 of second half were no more sophisticated than get into em fuck em up. And we caved in.

I remember seeing him interviewed many years ago saying how he was coached when young, perhaps by his uncle Jackie milburn, to aim for the posts. A simple concept that so many players seem unable to grasp or to execute eg che adams.

Loser.

The most important appointment at any club and SR has ballsed it up every time.

“He arrived confident in his conviction that you could control a game and set the rhythm for your team with a central midfielder who was neither particularly strong nor overly physical. This is what he had done in the past with Xavi at Barcelona and Joshua Kimmich at Bayern. But he quickly found out that approach did not work in the Premier League. In England, you need a central midfielder who is powerful in aerial battles and wins 50-50s. Rodri is a good example of what he thinks he needs. Also, he expects his central midfielders to act as a defender when a centre-back moves forward, so they must have the physicality to cope with being in that position.” “His view on refereeing is also well known – he is firmly of the belief English referees are far more lenient than their continental counterparts. This has also affected his decision making, as he feels you need players who are physically bigger and stronger to cope with it. If you get knocked down, you’d better get up and be ready to go again as clashes do not get rewarded with fouls as often as they do anywhere else“ “Guardiola accepts that sometimes control and possession is not enough. Tactical acumen takes a temporary back seat to raw courage as emotions take over and it becomes a case of ‘all hands to the pump’ as an opponent piles forward. This is one area where he knows things can be improved. Ruben Dias displays a calmness and clarity in his decision making in moments of stress and panic. He is an example to follow.“ https://bbcfootball.info/how-english-football-changed-guardiola

Unpick that shambles. Start with the selection, especially central midfield where there was a gaping hole. We need two holding midfielders who are willing to hold. One has to be Charles. Then tactics. I for one couldn’t work out what we were trying to do. No overloads. Precious little rotation. Poor selection and muddled tactics compounded by lack of aggression and no urgency going forward.

Are sell on fees always a percentage of profit or may they be a percentage of any future sale?

Yes you’re right it’s the Sounds app and not IPlayer as I said above. However, you do need to change your location in settings should you live outside the region.

IPlayer, Settings, Change Location to South.

Do you still play?

I lived in north London just off the north circular for thirty years. That section from the m3 round to east London is a nightmare. Likewise the m25 gets snarled up regularly. A commute from Winchester wouldn’t be sustainable imo. Either he moves house or don’t go there. The latter I hope. Incidentally I travel to matches from East Sussex now. The A27 isn’t great either so brighton wouldn’t be an easy commute.

“Shocked”? Pull the other one. What a load of crap.

It’s because he’s slow on the turn and slow to accelerate. These are much bigger drawbacks to his game imo than the often cited lack of pace. You see it also when players go past him quite easily sometimes. Defensively he’s improved a bit by better positional play so that he doesn’t get caught out so often by players wrong footing him. But offensively he doesn’t seem to have the attributes to play on the half turn. Lavia can do it. Of course Lavia’s an exceptional player. It’s not that common for defensive midfielders to be able to turn defence into attack as Lavia does. It’s great to see. And it’s risky. More generally on JWP, I saw something in the Athletic appraising the players most likely to leave. I can’t be arsed to post it and it’s probably against the rules anyway but his stats (ok stats but they give us part of the picture) are way ahead of anybody else in the squad. Secondly, he gives his all. There are many in this squad I wouldn’t pay in chocolate buttons. He’s not one of them. We as fans expect players to care as much as we do. He does. We’ll miss him when he’s gone.