Newcastle v Everton.

I think we've been poor for the last 4 games. We can let the Southampton game go becasue, we won. We probably expected to lose at Spurs and tonight, so I think the Utd game was the performance I was most disappointed with.

This next run of games before the World Cup are key to our season. The problem is we have a complete lack of penetration and creativity. There's no galringly obvious answer. We just don't have the players.

Gonna be a fucking looooooong season. We are one of about 8 or 9 teams with relegation problems. Not.looking good

Problem with this World Cup break is our players look like they’ve got their beachwear on already. Fucking dreadful.

Worst thing about that was that Newcastle didn't have to be that great to beat us and at 1-0 and 10 minutes left they looked the more comfortable side by far. We're an ok team, but we really lack a cutting edge and players who can carry the ball. Geordies seemed to have loads of them. Joelinton should 100% have been sent off, two of the clearest yellows you'll see all season. Gordon could have gone as well and Tarkowski got his van dijk free pass for that challenge. We look a bit lost, tbh. Dom is clearly half fit, I like Onana and Iwobi in the centre. Garner could be useful. Biggest takeaway re: players is how much we miss Patterson. We've not won since he got crocked and no wonder, Coleman for all his years of service and excellent professionalism, offers nothing going forward and looked out of his league in defence. We need another right back option in Jan.

Yankthattoffee wrote:

Rotterdam 1985 wrote:Fuck, 1-0. Onana dispossessed in midfield while strolling forward without any sense of urgency or danger. They score 10 seconds later.

We you yelling at the TV as well?
"Walking football walking football" I'm yelling at nobody in particular and with no particular meaning.
Up until then we were OK but not great. Then we rode our luck til half time. Trippier doing the shitty on Gordon, who should just flop when someone hits him.
This team has many weaknesses which FL has to sort out very quicckly.
Is there a plan?

It took about 5 seconds for the Newcastle player to get there and dispossess him, that's how much he dawdled.

He's still going to be some player though, when he grows up a bit. Still a kid.

Tonteau wrote:Worst thing about that was that Newcastle didn't have to be that great to beat us and at 1-0 and 10 minutes left they looked the more comfortable side by far. We're an ok team, but we really lack a cutting edge and players who can carry the ball. Geordies seemed to have loads of them. Joelinton should 100% have been sent off, two of the clearest yellows you'll see all season. Gordon could have gone as well and Tarkowski got his van dijk free pass for that challenge. We look a bit lost, tbh. Dom is clearly half fit, I like Onana and Iwobi in the centre. Garner could be useful. Biggest takeaway re: players is how much we miss Patterson. We've not won since he got crocked and no wonder, Coleman for all his years of service and excellent professionalism, offers nothing going forward and looked out of his league in defence. We need another right back option in Jan.

Yeah we're missing Patterson badly. Coleman and Mykolenko give us virtually nothing going forward. Allied to a lack of creativity from the midfield with only Iwobi ever looking likely to create much, DCL still being rusty and Gray apparently done for confidence, it's no wonder we only had one attempt on goal. Similar story in the Spurs game where I'm not sure we had a shot on goal in the second half.

Here we are worrying again about relegation but in fairness we do look like a Championship side at the moment, going forward at least.

Its easy to be an armchair manager of course, but here's what I'd do - and I'm loathe to move Iwobi as he's been good this season, but we've got to try something - I'd move Iwobi out wide to replace Gray, bring Garner in, who looks comfortable and aware on the ball, and allow Onana to move a bit further forward and make a nuisance of himself. With DCL back and Patterson back soon, this might be our best shot at being a bit more creative. I wouldn't go as far as to replace Myko with Vinagre because once Patterson is back, he'll get forward at least, and Myko can go back to sliding across into a solid defensive three when we've got the ball.

Onana and Garner are two really promising young players. They both need to get used to the speed of the PL. So play them both and let them develop.