Cronky

Thank you. I wasn't being sarcastic. Although born in Newcastle, I left when still in nappies, so there is much of local culture that is unfamiliar.

I don't get it. Can someone help?

You're right, we do lose out defensively when he's played there, which was why I used the term 'anchor role'. I think the problem is that, at Premiership level, you can't afford to have a player in that role who is limited to winning the ball. They will tend to get a lot of possession, and if they can't get the ball forward or support the attack when the chance arises, then too many opportunities are wasted. So despite his defensive limitations, Bruno is not easily replaced in that position. And to complicate things further, when in possession, he may be more effective with his team mates in front of him, where his passing and reading of the game come to the fore. There is speculation about how it would be better to free him up to receive the ball in more forward positions, but it's hard to tell how well that would work. FWIW, I think that Phillips is a bit more than a defensive player, so maybe if he comes, it'll be with a view to the two of them regularly alternating positions in the course of the game. Where that might all leave Tonali is a moot point, of course.

‘Keep striving for more’ is the message that all great players give themselves. Well said.

There's a rumour that City are holding out for a loan with an obligation to buy in the summer, which makes the decision a lot more tricky. With the potential size of the transfer fee and wages, that would obviously restrict us in the summer. A question mark for me would be how well he would combine with Bruno, who is doing well in that anchor role despite not being a defensive midfielder. I guess that's a potential problem with whoever we might look to slot in alongside - and that includes Tonali. Obviously it's been difficult for Phillips to get into that City side, with Rodri for competition, but there has been a hint that Pep is dubious about the player's general attitude. My money would be on Eddie's ability to motivate him though.

Just wanted to add to this post. Eddie did mention the lack of training time in a recent interview, and I think that he does rely a lot on good, detailed training to get the most out of his players. He's very thorough in this area. In his time here, I've never quite been able to figure out why we don't concede more goals, because the back four lacks pace and no-one in the midfield is a good tackler. The answer has to be in the area of organisation, and Eddie has lately had to deal with the double whammy of limited training time, and a back four plus keeper that has not been the stable unit that we managed to maintain last season. In this respect, I'm intrigued and mildly encouraged to see how we do against Liverpool. Eventual defeat is likely of course, but I'm hoping we'll be tougher to break down than in recent games.

Good point.

As I understand it, what Tonali was doing was not just against the football regulations, but also against the law of the land in Italy. That may have inhibited many in the know from telling tales.

I can’t speak for what went on at Bournemouth, but last season with us, thanks to clever tactics and good mental preparation, he overachieved massively with the squad he had. It helped that we were relatively free of significant injuries and fixture congestion, but over the last few weeks we’ve had both. The modest quality of some of our players has been exposed and the lack of preparation time and options have prevented Eddie from using his considerable skills. It’s not like we had a great side that suddenly looks ordinary. We had an ordinary side that Eddie made look great. Unless we are able to play at our peak, a lot of our methods don’t work well. This may be what’s behind the ‘streaks’

Bit nervy because it reminds me of Bournemouth - an away game against an athletic, if limited side, with many of our big hitters missing.

There's always the risk that Man U will offer to triple his salary, which would be very tempting for anyone. I don't think anything else will entice him, because Man U have problems which this new structure involving Ratcliffe and Brailsford is unlikely to improve.

I don't think Chelsea are a better team than us, but they do have better individual players - they ought to, with the money they've spent. With home advantage, and our tiredness, that took its toll. Even then, let's face it, in the vast majority of seasons, an away draw at Chelsea would be treated as a good result. And we were two minutes away from winning.

Well, I guess we'll never know how things would have turned out, short and long-term, if at the start of that season, Robson had been allowed to replace Shearer. He wasn't given the chance to back his judgement. What was apparent was that, after his dismissal, no manager of repute at the time would touch the job with a barge pole, knowing what was going on behind the scenes. We ended up with our fifth choice man in Souness.

The situation was complicated, but Robson's say over the signings was limited. Freddie Shepherd was a poor Chairman, getting over-involved in the football side and listening to too many other opinions. Sir Bob's successor experienced the same problem. There were divisions within the dressing room yes, but Robson's position and authority as manager had been undermined. He needed and wanted to move Shearer on, but Shearer had become bigger than the club and one way or another was exerting too much influence. Shepherd had the dream of Shearer taking over the manager and both he, the local paper and most supporters ended up backing the wrong guy. It was like watching a car crash in slow motion. At the end of the day, we had three successive top five finishes. We've not come anywhere near that achievement since.

I can't believe it's on the cards, but the thought of Eddie getting dismissed absolutely terrifies me. He is our best chance of finally making the transition to the top level, and I've waited a long time for it. I don't live in the North East, so I can't really tell, but the support seems to be behind him. My only worry is that we have previous of turning against a great manager (Sir Bob), so I hope we all keep some perspective when we come across the inevitable bumps on the road. As for the Saudis, their thinking is a mystery to me. Yasir comes across as a likeable guy with some feeling for the club, but I don't know how much awareness he has on the ups and downs of football. It takes time. Amanda and co seem solid characters who will back Eddie. They all seem to be working well together, so I hope if there's any temptation to bring in a more glamorous name like Mourinho, they'll be able to resist it. (I think Mourinho would be wise not to take the gig anyway) I know it's probably all media talk, but I don't like hearing it.

We didn’t deserve to win but that was a lousy way to lose. I don’t know why Hall wasn’t given a go but I trust Eddie’s judgement. Given that the whole team were under the cosh, it wouldn’t have made a difference anyway.

We're getting dominated physically all over the pitch. Looking at the bench, I don't know what Eddie can do to change that. I think we've just got to hope that our goal continues to lead a charmed life and / or we nick something on the break. Not much chance of either, but the latter is a bit more likely.

I can relate to this, I was 12 when we last won a trophy, and even that was a competition where the best teams didn't enter. The League Cup is a notch above that. It would be great to win something before I pop my clogs (not imminent, by the way), but this current journey is the best of times and I'm enjoying it whatever. We now have a manager with the capability of using the passion behind the club without being burdened by its hopes and expectations. He keeps his judgement on firm ground, and creates a kind of protective ring around the squad which keeps them focused. If we lose, it won't be through a lack of composure, or fear. This is a team that delivers its best.

I was wondering when someone was going to come up with that comparison. Having watched the highlights, at one point he received the ball under pressure with one touch, weaved his way past 2 or 3 defenders with great changes of direction, and hammered in a fierce shot with his weaker foot. The Bellingham / Vieira comparisons might not be all that fanciful.

I don't think Dalot gave the ref any choice. He got booked for an aggressive display of dissent and then he did exactly the same thing again. It's like backing someone into a corner - never a good idea. I still think LIverpool are looking for a main striker and Nunez isn't it.

Silva does seem prone to these fits of self-righteous anger. So many managers don't seem to be aware of their wider responsibilities. Acting like you've been the victim of an earth-shattering injustice when a decision goes against you is a syndrome that filters down all the way to kids football. It's the very worst image for the game.

Interesting point, because despite his work-rate and the number of games he plays, he's been remarkably free of injuries this last two years. We've been very lucky, because so much of our good play goes through him.

Sorry, me again. Eddie isn't that experienced when it comes to the very top level, and so maybe it's inevitable that his supposed inexperience gets cited when something apparently goes wrong. But I've just checked - in the two years he's been here, we've beaten Man U three times, Chelsea, Spurs and Arsenal twice and Man City once. Liverpool are the only team that's escaped. Results that would once have been exceptional have now become regular. But when we're beaten, he's 'naive' and been put in his place. It's bollocks. Eddie is at least the equal of any manager out there.

Whenever a team loses, it's tempting to come up with some overall explanation, and 'naive' has been coming up a lot. In reality, in a close game, luck will play a big part. We were fully committed to the win and were throwing people forward, and of course that comes with risk. And throwing defenders forward is part of the tactic of going for it. If the pass to Schar had been more accurate, it would probably have been a different story. It really boils down to whether we should have been prepared to settle for the draw. Personally, I think Eddie called it right, in putting the correct value on a place in the Europa League. You can say he was wrong, but not 'naive'.

My thoughts too. I've heard it said that he himself would like to be in CM. There's nothing wrong with his passing and close control so it's a possibility, but that area is getting a bit crowded with the emergence of Miley. It does look like something's not going right, and that he's maybe not learning at the pace that Eddie needs.