Greg

To be fair Rafa thinks somewhat the same after pushing him up the pitch into the number 10 against Southampton. He didn't he changed the system, but yes Hayden was the further forward but wasn't really playing a 10 role. Didn't say he changed the system, but he was playing in the number 10 role as much as Perez, Diame or anyone else has for us this season. Not saying Hayden in there is the solution, but it's worth a shot over Diame who can't last a full game and Perez who is offering very little at the minute. Hayden guarantees the work rate needed in our system. I don't think he was. I was there in the away end and it looked like a totally different shape to a midfield three rather than a two to close the game out. I was sober as well.

He may as well not have been on the pitch. Really can't function when he doesn't have space.

To be fair Rafa thinks somewhat the same after pushing him up the pitch into the number 10 against Southampton. He didn't he changed the system, but yes Hayden was the further forward but wasn't really playing a 10 role. Changing the system to a midfield three, perhaps is an option, but not Hayden in a proper no 10 position.

We're 6th with a team that should be nowhere near the top half based on ability. I'm sure he would loosen the shackles a little if he thought he had the players capable of playing another way and winning. You don't think it puts us under sustained, potentially unnecessary, pressure sometimes? I just think we're better than backs to the wall every game despite the media's portrayal of us. Well we restricted Palace to not a single shot on target today. Last week Southampton's manager said we were brilliant defensively. Considering our squad, I think if we opened up and went to toe to toe with most in the league we would get beat more often than not.

Has there been any confirmation of that though? He just kind of suddenly disappeared. Well he went off injured for his country and everyone said he would be out for three months. Then Rafa said it wouldn't be that long. He was in training pictures this week, but was so Haidara, so I presume he isn't fully fit yet given he was in the team before he got injured and did well. Then again, you know what Rafa is like and was ruthless with him last season based on not following his instructions and we lose last game he played.

We're 6th with a team that should be nowhere near the top half based on ability. I'm sure he would loosen the shackles a little if he thought he had the players capable of playing another way and winning.

Is that Cabaye?

Diame isn't fit enough to play for more than 20 minutes though. His legs have gone.

Disagree. He did very little other than give the ball away when he first came on.

Being in the top six reminds me of Jose.

Mbemba is injured. Was in the team before he got injured.

Fuck. Totally forgot this week.

I think he sees Gayle as offering something different to Joselu whereas Mitro offers something similar so hasn't been making the bench. Joselu did well when he first arrived but has been poor last few, I'd start Mitrovic next week but can't see it.

Poll reset.

It was two teams with tactics that cancelled each other out and neither manager willing to take a risk to win it. Always going to be settled by a set piece. This tactics cancelling each other out stuff only goes so far like. Both teams were alarmingly poor on the ball. It was basically only Townsend and Zaha who looked like they'd kicked a ball before. Primarily because there was no space, due to how both teams were set up. I don't see what this tactical yin and yang craic has to do with Palace not having any strikers and Joselu being poor like. There was a lack of quality throughout both sides and it's highlighted best of all up front. When Townsend and Zaha got on the ball the game threatened to burst into life but that was about it. Have you been listening to a load of footy podcasts or something recently? No i don't do podcasts. That would be fine if Joselu had missed a load of chances but he barely had the ball in the final third, that wasn't all his doing, that was because of how the rest of the team failed to function. Ah aye I said as much myself a few pages back like. My original post is canny s**** reading back like, it wasn't meant to come across as blaming Joselu, was just a throwaway comment about how poor both squads are - although we can play much better than this, the lack of quality means it's never going to be consistent. It was in reaction to someone seeming to suggest that the game went to Rafa's plan which I don't think it did, I think he'd have been massively dissapointed with the performance of most had we not grabbed a pretty fortunate winner. Agree with that. Now go and read Inverting The Pyramid.

Which he is. Remember playing the likes of Paul Huntington and David Edgar at full back.

But what are the helicopters doing?

Yep, it looks like it. Agree with all of that.

Wait. I'm on about Diame not Merino. Have we got crossed wires here? Merino did very little when he came on and didn't make much difference. Our play improved when Diame came onand made an impact because Perez may as well have not been on the pitch.

Tore a hamstring.

Deluded.

Just not true. We made more play in the final third in the last 10 minutes than the entire 80 before that. I watched the match Greg, that's how I saw it. We scored from a corner. The only alternative would have been a long shot, we didn't create anything at any point. Yes we were shit throughout but last 10/15 minutes we had more going forward than at any time in the game - Diame even managed a shot on target from the edge of the box! We still weren't great in that period but Diame on, Atsu and Ritchie swapped made a small different and give us a bit more going forward compared to the 80 minutes before it.

He's also back up. We don't normally have back up.