Flip

So not only do we want to split up a very good partnership to accommodate Ben Arfa but we also want a striker that has scored 8 goals in 9 league games this season and 15 in 21 in 2011 to change the style of play that has been very effective for him to accommodate the lad too? No, it's just that I don't agree with that's whats been working for him. He does more defensive work right now than he should, I don't see how playing Ben Arfa would change his offensive game. You move him higher up the field when defending instead of him tracking back the whole time. He hasn't played behind a striker, all his goals bar one or two have come from being inside the box, not from coming from deep. You can definitely let Ba play like he has been without the tracking back and accomodate Ben Arfa. No doubt about it.

So not only do we want to split up a very good partnership to accommodate Ben Arfa but we also want a striker that has scored 8 goals in 9 league games this season and 15 in 21 in 2011 to change the style of play that has been very effective for him to accommodate the lad too? You'd honestly think we were talking about Gonzalo Higuain or someone of similiar ability. Ludicrous. Higuain Well done. Top stuff.

Yeah think it may have to be Ben Arfa or Ba rather than together, or stick Ben Arfa out wide, I agree inferior position, and I've argued against it but not a terrible idea really. You mean it should be Best along with either of our two best offensive players, instead of playing our two best offensive players together? It's football, you should always be able to accomodate your best players together.

We will never know if they can link-up or not if we don't play them together. I have no doubt that Ba can play off the last defender instead of dropping deep. I also think he wouldn't get as tired if he did, since he's running so much, he's knackered after 65-75minutes. Ba's goals have come from a position where nothing suggest he can't play there, as they have been from inside the box and not all of them have been from coming from deep. Against Blackburn he held up the ball and smashed it and why wouldn't he be able to do it on a regular basis? I feel its more that Pardew wants him to drop deep since Best won't to the same degree, but nothing suggest his game will not be as good if he doesn't drop deep.

Don't necessarily have to play him against the Manchesters side if he has a good game against Everton, but I hope to see Ben Arfa getting at least a half in the three-four coming games. I just think that our best chance of hurting Man Utd and particularly Man City is a flash of brilliance from Ben Arfa. As far as I'm concerned we've got nothing to lose in those games, so give HBA a chance to go crazy. True, I'm all in favor of starting him this weekend already, I won't be disappointed for him not play against the big sides in the beginning, but I think his brilliance can hurt the small teams the most, where we struggled last season.

Don't necessarily have to play him against the Manchesters side if he has a good game against Everton, but I hope to see Ben Arfa getting at least a half in the three-four coming games.

There have been people writing him off though. They're taking a lot of risks Ba-Best partnership was generally good (very good against Blackburn at SJP) since the start of the season, but to say that it's better than HBA-Ba partnership or that HBA can't play behind Ba is a very...fast conclusion. Comparing a partnership which got a lot of hours and games on the pitch, which got time to find automatisms, with another potential one isn't very serious. In France, the best seasons of HBA careers were 2007/2008 at Lyon when he played behind Benzema, and the first 3 months of 2008/2009 season at Marseille behind Mamadou Niang. He's much more influential in the center than in the wings and his vision of the game, an unknown aspect of his football but the best one for me, prior to his dribbles, is just amazing. Je suis d'accord avec vous monsieur garrincha. People have drawn the conclusion after he played more or less 180 minutes in this league. And yet won us 3 points on his own from those minutes.

His performances against Spurs, Wigan and Wolves were below average. Not saying he was the only one, but was much more visible against Stoke then against any of the other teams possibly this whole season. And like Pip said, maybe we don't need to change right now, but at some point Ben Arfa will have to get in if we want to challenge for a top 6-7 spot.

Thank you for knowing your stuff and agreeing with me.

There have been people writing him off though.

Some people are crazy Let the boy get some time, get up to speed. Then we will use him, he is just to good for us to have on the bench in the long run. Him and Ba on top Ben Arfa - Ba upfront should scare defenders more than Best - Ba. Can't wait to see Ben Arfa at his best again, he just needs to get a few more games to get into that groove.

At times your clueless. Your love for Best makes you blind when talking HBA and Best. Ba and HBA would work very well, don't see why it wouldn't. Just because Ba is not playing as high up the field as Best doesn't mean he cannot do a job there. Actually I think playing HBA would make us better in the sense we wouldn't be relying on sending long balls for Best to win them. Like best a lot but he's not better than HBA, and HBA can start with Ba upfront, don't see why it wouldn't work. I'm clueless for not wanting to break up a partnership that has us 3rd in the league in order to accomdate a player who a lot of us see as being stronger from a wide position anyway? That's a new one. So well argued too. No, you're clueless for thinking that Ba - Best partnership will hold on for the whole season and saying that for HBA to start he has to play on the right (at some point we won't be 3rd and won't be winning every game). Ben Arfa against Wigan although not at his best was brighter than Best has been for many games this season. Best will hold up the ball well, but rarely looks dangerous and his play with the ball at his feet is very very average. Ben Arfa would bring far more to this team than Best if he could get fit. Against Stoke he had a very very good game, but Spurs, Wolves, Wigan were below average performances. All this is completely irrelevant if you were arguing that you think Best should start on Saturday since I agree with you

At times your clueless. Your love for Best makes you blind when talking HBA and Best. Ba and HBA would work very well, don't see why it wouldn't. Just because Ba is not playing as high up the field as Best doesn't mean he cannot do a job there. Actually I think playing HBA would make us better in the sense we wouldn't be relying on sending long balls for Best to win them. Like best a lot but he's not better than HBA, and HBA can start with Ba upfront, don't see why it wouldn't work.

£12m profit in a year is definitely something ashley would look into.

Never really saw what Whelan did, but from what I remember he didn't lunge with the studs raised like Perch. Lunging with raised studs should be banned, worse than diving ffs. Its just a disgrace.

Torres never touched the player...it really shouldn't matter if its two or one footed, in the end you SHOULD never tackle with the studs raised. Fucking disgusting, and I don't think it was with malice but was a terrible tackle and Ill remain with the opinion that he was lucky to get only a yellow.

He lunged with his studs pretty high. Had that hit Whelan (think it was him) in the shins, there would've been a big chance of a broken leg. It was so unnecessary and I hate to see those tackles. I mean, Torres got a straight red for the same thing, without really touching the player. A player should never lunge into a tackle with the studs raised like that, its cowardly.

It looked like a 50/50 to me. It was. It mostly wasn't. He was lucky to escape with a yellow card. Disgusting tackle, watched it with neutrals who agreed. Should been a red, you don't lunge into a tackle like that.

I know he's class, but I don't believe he's racked up 66 goals quite just yet. Kind of read it like that too. Fucking hell. Was first shocked and then I realized I'm stupid.

Watching the match again, and fucking hell disgusting challenge he put in. Should've been off and almost fucks it over for us again against Stoke. There's no need for him in our team, I bet one of the kids can do the same job as he did yesterday running and closing down player with 10 minutes to go. Always look awfully nervous when with ball at his feet and seems clueless in how to defend too. Even for the peanuts we bought him for he's along with Smith the worst buy this club has made in many many years.

Agreed, getting more and more impressed with him. Wins almost every header and holds the ball up well, needs to find a way to do something individually when he has the ball though gets to predictable that he'll pass it to Cabaye or Simpson or whoever, needs to try and turn the defender away and get a shot in at times.

Great great player to watch, didn't get everything right last night but still ran his socks off with Guthrie and played two balls perfectly to our strikers. Once again I feel he got by many on the matchthread an unfairly low rating.

Yeah cos we're going to carry on like this all season, suffer no injuries and nobody's going to suffer a loss of form. My exact reaction when I read that post. Ben Arfa will at some point get his chance, if he's that good as he was prior to that injury he'll get a spot in the team in no time. In the longrun we need a genius of Ben Arfas capability, be now or later in the season, he'll play an enormous part in our hopefully successful season.

Cabaye 6?? He must have covered every blade of grass. I thought he was excellent. Couple of wayward passes but so f***. Certainly a 7 or 8 for me.