Where do you start with that one?
Fantastic game, just fantastic. Best game we've played since Stoke (h) last season. Mindful of undue hyperbole/superlatives my bullet points:
Demba Ba - Returning prolific forwards certainly don't seem to enjoy their first return to SJP, do they! Andy Carroll came back, got booked for an inexplicable dive when through on goal and got hooked to a chorus of mockery; now Demba's come up, got his nose busted off Colo's boot and had to trudge off. Don't have any enmity for the guy and thought he was a great servant to the club during his tenure, but very happy to beat his new side today. Very, very happy in fact. Hope he isn't in much pain in terms of the nose/injury or owt and he manages to permanently shove that waste of space Torres out of the side.
Our first half - Incredible. Santon was electric, and Sissoko will deservedly get mountains of praise/homoerotic advances on the forum, but my man of the first half was probably...
Gouffran tbh - There's something about this guy, something very understated but composed. He gives us a patient and calm in attacking that has been missing. He has so far ignored any instructions (if there have been any) to hit the front man at the earliest available opportunity. His primary concern is retaining possession, and finding a black and white shirt. That's not to say that he is Joe Allen/Scott Parker-esque, making useless passenger-y five yard passes either. He just gives us a nice balance and helps us to dictate the tempo - something rather alien to the side in Pardew's tenure thus far.
Jonas - What a difference, eh? I thought he was pretty good first half against Villa, and I hope he is given a bit of credit for his display today. Not just his goal, but his graft, hardwork and, yes, skill. Still some magic in those boots. The difference of having competition for places will help players such as he and Marveaux tremendously IMO. I think the effect has already taken hold. I don't mean to say that all team/player/managerial shortcomings can be exonerated/absolved by the board level's failure to invest over the summer, but you can certainly see the positives of having a bit of depth. You could see how Chelsea struggled in this respect today, with them (somehow!) low on numbers.
Pardew - I thought it was same old Pardew as the second half began, and I was cursing under my breath as I thought I was going to witness another Man Utd/Arsenal heartbreak, but the choice to bring on Marv for Gouffran instead of Bigi won the match. Benitez is often criticised for his defensive subs and credit to Pardew, he bested him today by showing a bit of bravery in his actions instead of just his words. It's no secret I don't rate the guy as a manager, but I really hope to Whoever Is Up There In The Sky that he has the capacity to learn from this match. Learn from the consequences of our approach to the beginning of the second half, and how we responded thereafter.
Sissoko - Wouldn't be right not to end with this human battery. During the second half, I was mentally writing this up - trying to think of who I could say was the last player I saw gallop up and down the pitch with such pace and power and authority - then I realised I don't think we've ever really had a player who is as fantastic in the way that Sissoko is - or at least in my memory (atm). It was just supreme. He bulldozed around Ashley Cole (who is still no slouch even at this age) down one side after 70+ minutes one moment, then skinned the right side of their defence the next - and remarkably, both with end product that may have beaten uninspired keepers (Cech was having a very good day, it must be said).
This is just one of those good days you have to savour, and dream, and hope that things should progress from here as they ought to... with HBA welcomed back into the fold, and Tiote coming back refreshed and reinvigorated.
I have one or two gripes, but I'm going to ignore them for now.
