Wotcha.
Last night was a lot like the game against the Bubbles but with 13,000 Rammstein fans in the crowd. The overwhelming concern to all of us watching was that it really was a terribly dull fare. Once you got past the Maribor ‘I’ve been shot in the face’ play-acting the actual entertainment to be had was less than meager.
The star of our show – that if it was a pilot episode wouldn’t get commissioned for a series – was Tommy Huddlestone. I’ve been increasingly frustrated with him and the ‘myth of him’ perpetuated by his fanboys. But in the midst of this wake with no booze of a match he stood out as someone who was at least attempting to offer some class.
Difficult to argue there is a sweeter strike of the ball in the Premier League, I’d say. His distribution was like watching one of those slick frisbee players from the 1970’s. A slight delay as the grip was decided then the thing pinged effortlessly with extraordinary care and precision. Kind words from a blogger that described him only two weeks ago as looking like he’d been smoking ketamine. Possibly for weeks on end.
The problem is or was that Maribor are actually a bit rubbish.
My gusto for this tournament wanes when we don’t field a full strength team and we looked utterly characterless against a team greyer than John Major’s favourite sweater. Allegations that the manager is taking it more seriously than the players is a conspiracy theory that dissipates once the quality of the men in the Lilywhite nosedives this low.
Falque had a go, but at 23 you have to ask why he isn’t doing more than games like this. Lennon was in flatter to deceive mode again which against the schmucks he was facing is depressing.
Poor old/young Kyle Walker needs a rest. The bloke needs to urgently regroup. Don’t get sidetracked with the Twitter thing. Get focused on a naff game for England followed by a worse one for us against Chelsea. This guy isn’t too far away from being the business.But he needs to be reeled in now before we get a ‘trying too hard’ performance in the Premier League that also doesn’t amount to a hill of beans.
Jan was buried in the mediocrity. Naughton did little wrong, I want him to play against Southampton. Sandro was out of control. Mind you no one else was doing anything so it probably seemed like a good idea at the time. Livermore should ask Nottingham Forest if they have any openings. Gilfy needs Bale. Needs a plan. He’s a boy with no job description. Townsend look like he’d been taking tips from Kyle Walker. Lots of gusto, no bloody brain.
Defoe as a lone striker is like staring at the last match in the box and hoping it doesn’t snap/isn’t damp …
So what of the bosses’ Europa project? Mmmn. Bale on paternity leave. Adebayor with arse back ache. Moussa with a knocked out hip. Parker on a Saga Spa Break. Mmmn. If we don’t win the two home games we don’t deserve to progress. I just wish we’d played better. Unlovable stuff.
Defoe as a lone striker is like staring at the last match in the box and hoping it doesn’t snap/isn’t damp …
Nice one HH. I do appreciate that feeling as an ex-smoker!
I have grave misgivings about our ability to keep both strikers fit.
What happens if both get a knock?
Kids?
:whistle:
Disaster beckons.
Which sounds too like a frakin’ Just William book title :wassat:
Disaaaaaster Daaaahling.
Who created this team anyway?
We’ll be playing the Nextgen strikers before we know it.
Braaaaaaaaaaaaaaaap!
Reeeeeeeeeeeeewind!
With a distributing midfielder like Modders the whole thing would have looked much better. We miss the little rat and VdV more than
mostsome want to admit.Beyond that, Ade, Dembele, Kaboul, Bennie, Bale, Parker–the list of casualties grows and grows–this wasn’t a youth team out there, but it was hardly what you would have expected at this point of this competition.
BTW, Townsend was totally underwhelming. I was very disappointed. Looks to me like the youth program is not producing very much.
I think AVB should go to the 4-4-2 and give JD and Ade a chance to work together. I believe Ade’s “health” :angel: would quickly improve.
mostsomesomeallI think AVB should go to the 4-4-2 and give JD and Ade a chance to work together.
You are right about that, but he will never play 4-4-2 as he won’t be able to ‘find’ a ‘formation’ that ‘accomodates’ ‘2 strikers’.
I also have misgivings about 4-4-2, but when your midfield is clogged up with the likes of Dumpsey and Shitterson then maybe play your best players and fit them into a formation that works.
Haven’t more games than not this season been characterized by having an immense dimension of tedium?
I don’t miss Harry but I do want to see something else, other than that wifty wafty bollocks last night.
I miss us playing well…I don’t care who the manager is…With a squad like ours, we should be playing much better.
Formation v’s players strengths and weaknesses appears to be somewhat mis-matched at present…?
Cincinnati is right, Modric (and to a lesser extent VdV) are missed more than people want to admit. Modric made the team tick, without him they don’t tick. The only reason we looked so good first half against ManU was because Fergie made a huge mistake with his starting line up that made us look better than we really are. Modric replacement (Moutinho?) in January please Levy.
Cods-asked this before and got no reply, when did VDV last play a decent game for us before his departure?-take your time because it requires quite a lot of thinking!
:daumen:
zzzzzzzzz, it was a poor performance really, I thought ‘huddles’ was about a 6.5 but didn’t do his defensive duties well and it was against a poor team, Naughton did ok too as did Caulker and Falque when he came on, defoe ran but no service the rest well, it was a slice of ‘meh’ mixed with a dollop of ‘that is shit’. We seem to lack any cutting edge without bale and dembele, we need them back asap and I want to see ade start on Sunday
I think the core of our team is/should be Lloris, Vertonghen, Caulker/Kaboul, Dembele, Sandro, Bale, Lennon and Ade. When one or more are missing we seem to be average at best. Huddlestone may be a wonderfully nice chap but he’s not top 10 premiership quality – too slow and can’t defend.
Disagree – he’s not on form and will take another month or 2 to get fully fit.. Seem to remember him playing a lot when we finished 4th, so to say he’s not good enough for a top 10 team is frankly ridiculous.. He may not be a starter for us when he have a fully fit squad or have some new signings come in, but let’s see how he is in the new year once fit before judging him as not even good enough as a squad player… Should have done better with their goal, but I would still argue that was more Townsend’s fault for getting him in that situation… He kept and passed the ball better than almost anyone else on the night..
So on Soccer AM the other day Dawson was asked the best trainer at the club – answer Thomas Dances With Stones. Is that evidence of a misunderstood genius or a damning indictment of every other member of our squad?!
I was literally just going to post this I saw it this morning. I think its a testement to the fact he wanted to get fit after so long out, the bloke is just a bit of a unit and is always going to have the turning circle of the QE2 maybe if he’s pumped up on the weights whilst injured he’s got even slower he needs to do more cardio. Tie a bottle of ketchup on a rod strapped to his head and give him a nandos card to stamp and we may reap the benefits
…or simply a reflection that Huddlestone is a hell of a lot better than most of the numpties here seem to appreciate.
Both.