tajjuk

To be fair spurs play this way, maybe minus the big man (although they lined up like this against Arsenal with Adebayor up top with Defoe). They play two very wide direct tradtional wingers in Bale and Lennon who spend most of the game running at the full backs, however they also drift inside and swap positions. Stoke also play this way and you could argue Man Utd do as well with Valencia and Young. Good Wingers with pace will always have a role to play, but like full backs are more complete players now as are wingers, they have to be able to play inside, pass, tackle, track back, finish. Previously they would just knock and run for the byline and get crosses in that was probably all they needed to do. It would be good for us to have one as a plan B seeing as both Puncheon and Lallana play as inside forwards, they come in form the touch line and look to link up play rather than run in behind. Some days this won't work and having someone with pace he stays wide and get's in behind is a good option, especially with Lambert up front. I would imagine this is why we are still looking at Phillips.

I think Nick's post highlights why football fans should never be involved in the running of the club, those comments he picked up on look a bit silly now. Essentially this. This thread is full of massive overreactions and some people should be eating some humble pie. We aren't safe yet not even close but I think recent results have put some of these comments about Adkins to shame. I think those that gave him some slack and trusted in him as he's a good manager are allowed to be a bit smug.

Liverpool are unbeaten in 8, we have chance compared to previous seasons as they are still a club rebuilding but if Suarez is on form he could tear us apart. If he picked up a yellow in the game against Spurs that would be perfect, I think we would have a decent chance beating liverpool without Suarez. Wins against Norwich and Reading though would make anything form the Liverpool game a bonus.

Cork could be the younger version of Scott Parker, very similar attributes and hopefully Cork has a body that can withstand the rigours of football better than Parkers. I would think some more performances like this and he'll have a chance as it's an area of the field that England don't have very many options in, hence the likes of Livermore getting called up despite doing f*ck all for Spurs. Plenty of the deeper lying 'playmaker' type defensive mids like Huddlestone and Carrick (as well this being Gerards role now) but not many of the disciplined ball winning centre mids around. As for Lallana I think there are a lot more people in front of him, rightly or wrongly there is Walcott, Young, Oxlaide-Chamberlain, Sterling, Osman, Sturridge, Zaha, Lennon, Milner, Johnson for those wide attacking mid roles. You could play him though the middle he's better than Cleverley and Shelvey, neither of whom are close to being first choices for their clubs but I doubt they would do that. He might make a squad again with injuries but doubt he'll play.

Agree although pace is always nice to have maybe people get too hung up on it. It's probably this reason that Lallana won't get a look in the England team depsite him being able to control and pass the ball in tight spaces unlike many other English players. We do have pace in the team though, Shaw and Clyne are quick, Yoshida isn't bad for a centre back and Morgan is surprisingly quick as well. I'd also argue that Gaston with the ball at his feet (and under control) is as quick as you will get in the league, his driving runs yesterday were causing all sorts of problems.

Was shocked to see us the first game on MOTD2 last night, I wonder whether it was originally decided that Chelsea v Man City was going to be first game but they bumped it after it was a dreadful bore draw. Great all round team performance and I have to say special mention for Gazza, very shaky against QPR but responded with a much better performance and an excellent save to deny Santon. Only that 1 moment where he delayed kicking it and Ba closed him down.

Unbeaten in 7 including wins against Man Utd and Arsenal (and Spurs in the cup) this will be a tough game for us. However they have only scored more than one goal in the league once and that was in the 5-2 defeat to Liverpool, so if we can break them down they might struggle to score. From what I have seen they are very solid and organised defensively, and offensively they threaten from the wings and set pieces. First goal will be crucial. Ruddy being injured could be a big boost though he is in excellent form and produced a string of top saves against Man Utd.

Wouldn't be adverse to Robbo, not fully recovered from his England wobbles but was pretty reliable last season for Blackburn despite them being shocking, however if Friedel is available on loan we should be right at the front of the queue.

After the Utd game they have Sunderland away, Villa at home, Wigan away, Fulham at home. Chances to pick up some points with the 'new manager' boost. They still have an awful defence, and bar maybe Cesar a lot of their imports like Bosingwa, Cisse, Granero etc. looked not that bothered to me. A lot of hard work for Redknapp. I'm surprised he took it to be honest, after getting rather unfairly sacked at Spurs and almost being England manager bottom of the premier league seems a bit below him. Would think that some other jobs might be available in another month or two like say Newcastle, Liverpool maybe, even a return to spurs.

According to wiki "He went on to study business at Northumbria University in Newcastle, graduating in 2001" http://www.independent.co.uk/news/media/meet-the-bbcs-guest-editor-and-other-accidental-heroes-478556.html

Well it at least rules him (Harry) out of being Saints manager

Boruc for me, we need a keeper less likely to make mistakes and I think he is the man, you can say "don't change a winning team" but I think we managed to win last week even though Gazza was awful mainly because the defence were much much better and he had little to do, when he was called upon he came close to f*cking it up. I'm pretty sure we would have had a clean sheet last week with Boruc in goal. He wouldn't have come for that cross and would have probably calmly collected hoillets header on the line, as it was at best a glancing header and was pretty much straight down the middle. There was no reason for Gazza to come out into no mans land for it. He also cost us points against Swansea. The defence is improving every week, we don;t need a calamity keeper behind them. Get Boruc in get him fit and match sharp and he'll be winning us points.

They were at home so no travelling for them, however they couldn't really rotate, even Ba had to be pressed into action because of the Cisse injury and they struggled to a draw against Maritomo team that "yet to take a point or score a goal away from home in the competition." so we certainly should be fresher, we need to be right at them from the off to take advantage of any sluggishness they might have.

So 10 injuries AND Collocini suspended, AND they will be knackered from playing on only two days before AND they are in poor form AND we are at home. Pretty much set up for a spectacular fail on our part then Serious questions though if we can't beat a Newcastle side missing Cisse, Ben Arfa, Cabaye, Collocini and Gutierrez, pretty much half their first choice line up. Imagine our team without Lambert, Lallana, Morgan, Gaston & Fonte I reckon they will likely line up - Krul, Santon, Simpson, Williamson, Taylor, Tiote, Anita, Bigirama, Marveux, Ba, Sa Ameobi. All except Tiote and Williamson played last night as well.

Seriously he wouldn't pay £1? Is it really any wonder that Cortese doesn't talk to the Echo when they print this sort of 'News'.

It's probabaly just a typo. It's a very good article. I'd love to see anyone on here produce anything close to that. The Davis V Cork comparision is fair because they have both been playing the same role. The section about Lallana shows exactly how good he is as well.

Just to sum it up, as I understand it from what I have read in this thread. The tactical and managing genius that is Roberto Di Matteo, who has the abilities of Mourinho, Ferguson and Clough combined,(I mean no one else could have come up with 'Park the bus and hope Drogba scores' and only football masters like Avram Grant could get Chelsea to a Champions league final) would be a clear improvement on Nigel Adkins as his 6 months experience of managing one of the most expensively assembled squads in history would stand him him in excellent stead of improving our clearly underperforming world class squad (expensively assembled in league 1), his tactical nous and all round management zen would obviously instantly stop our defenders committing terrible individual mistakes (cos you know it's all NA fault that Jos Hoiveld score OGs) and we would quickly zoom up the leagues to a champions league spot. This is because he has extensive experience of managing newly promoted teams, from his mighty 7 month premier league stint with West brom where his mighty baggies team beat all before them, oh wait hang on they didn't, they were awful defensively and he was sacked by February with his team languishing in 17th only out of the drop zone on goal difference, where Roy Hodgson took over and took the same team to their highest ever premier league finish.

He possibly could, however there might be a slight stumbling block considering "The Colombian attacking midfielder passed a medical in Shanghai on Saturday, before inking the contract reportedly worth €7.15 million."

Liverpool probably would play him though, they have been playing Suso regularly on the wing as well as Sterling.

List Liverpools, Arsenals, Spurs, Newcastles, Sunderlands. All their squads cost far more than ours to assemble and they are all below West Brom. You also have to remember we spent £1.8 million in 2011/12, and £150k in 2010/11. 3 year total spend £30.45 In the same period West Ham for example have spent £40 million on transfers. Fulham £30.4, Sunderland £68 million, Aston Villa £73.15 million, Stoke £46 million, Newcastle £41.75 million, QPR 39.4. So we have had a League 1 squad and spent £30 million on it, some of those teams had premiership teams in the first place and had have spent way more on them than us. Just because we spent a lot this season doesn't instantly mean we should be doing well, it's not that Black and White.

Why would a man who has just won the Champions league and FA Cup suddenly become someones assistant?

Agree, but I think his dad might end up deciding his destination especially as liverpool are interested.

Last time I checked we didn't have John Terry, Cech and probably the best left back in the world, not to mention a world class team in front of them. You know essentially same Chelsea defence that won the league two years in a row and was unbeaten at home for what like two years? I'm sure it took a lot of work for the tactical genuis that is DI Matteo to get that lot to defend well Maybe rather than looking at his work with the multi-million pound assembled world class squad at Chelsea, it's better to look at his work with WBA, a newly promoted club who I'm pretty sure were praised for their attacking play but were very weak defensively. Sound familiar? I believe he got sacked at West Brom because he was essentially leading them to relegation, a team Roy Hodgson then comfortably led to 11th place. A lot more logical to compare his record at a club with a similar standing to us than with Chelsea. He shouldn't have ben sacked by Chelsea but to instantly assume he's better than Adkins just because of 6 months with one of the richest clubs in the world is naive. He's only been a manager for like 4 seasons, he's got a lot less experience than Adkins and achieved a lot less utnil he got his opportunity with Chelsea.

Thing is Di Matteo is going to be no better a defensive organiser than NA, in fact he will probably be worse. Yeh 10 men behind the ball and hope Barcelona miss a hat full worked in the Champions league but this season Chelsea have been very poor defensively and West Brom under him weren't that great either. Stick with Nigel, I think were going to beat Newcastle Sunday and will get something from Liverpool away as well. I reckon we will be midatable come the new year.

http://uk.eurosport.yahoo.com/news/premier-league-suarez-wriggle-ban-ankle-stamp-103822179.html Shame, almost got my wish!