Cronky

Maybe Hughes has told him to lay off twitter. As a manager, you don't want your captain making an arse of himself in public all the time. Not to mention all this 'I could have been a contender' stuff about Arsenal and England, which must have pleased his team-mates no end.

He actually seemed to be enjoying himself at times out there today. Good to see, because he seems a rather nervous character. I'd like to know why he's ended up as a left back though, because he's very right footed. I understand that he originally played further forward, but Mourinho converted him into a full back - perhaps he already had someone decent on the right, and Santon was his best option on the left. For Italy, I think he had some games on the right.

As others have said, we looked better after Ben Arfa came on, partly because of his ability on the ball, but also because the shape of the team looked much more fluid, with Jonas and Guthrie roaming around. Hopefully it will have encouraged Pardew not to stick so rigidly to that 4-4-2 straitjacket.

Shola gets scapegoated a lot, but blaming him for Ben Arfa's habit of hanging on to the ball is going waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay too far.

It was interesting to see that the guy is actually quite strong. Several times, he was able to hold defenders off under pressure and ease opponents out of the way. He just needs to release the ball at the right moment. There were occasions when he'd beat one or two men and instead of delivering the ball into the space that he'd created, he try and beat a third, simply because his confidence was up. A shame, because he also produced some moments of pure brilliance.

I'd like to see us getting in another forward player, but not with the idea of covering for Ba's absence. He'll only be gone a month and we should be looking at getting in someone who adds something different to the attacking options in the longer term ie a Bellamy-type who has a lot of pace and energy IMO.

When I saw him against Palace, he showed glimpses of his talent, but he also looked very relaxed and confident for a youngster - no nerves at all. He got involved right away, like there was no doubt in his head that he belonged out there. For me, that's a very promising sign. It also seems - with his haphazard attitude to training - that he's not afraid of Sir Alex, in which case you're not going to be afraid of anyone. The flipside of that is that he might be way too cocky and may not be ready for a few years yet to knuckle down and make the very best of himself, and adhere to team discipline. But it looks like we're not the only ones prepared to take the gamble.

Sums it up. There was an element of hysteria surrounding assessments of the player. His power in the air was a very useful weapon for us to have in coming up to the top division, but he needs far more to be of use to a team like Liverpool.

I don't think it will work out because my hunch is that, at 18, he won't yet be ready to change his ways - not unless he has to face some kind of adversity, and being offered a lucrative contract by another Premiership club certainly won't be that. But providing he comes cheap enough not to block investment in other areas, or the progress of other players, I'd be unable to resist taking the chance.

The problem with a talented but ill-disciplined young player is that they often get given second chances which would be denied a lesser player, simply because their club is reluctant to let them go and see them flourish elsewhere. If Morrison gets a decent contract with us after jerking Man U around, he may get the message that he doesn't need to knuckle down because there'll always be someone who wants him. I fear that, with Ranger, any chance of an improvement went when we gave him that long-term contract.

Going forward, Spurs have looked good for a while now but until this season they had a soft underbelly in central defence that was preventing them from fulfilling their potential. Kaboul in particular looks a very improved player. I'd seen him as liability before but he now looks one of the best defenders in the league. That weakness in a crucial area has now gone. Providing they can steer clear of injuries to key players, there's no reason why they can't stay up there.

My thoughts too. No-one has a better record at bringing youngsters through. From what I've seen of him though, a major talent.

Maybe I'm in a minority of one, but I think Downing has looked pretty good this season.

I like the look of Zaha - very quick and also good technically. It's only the (for me) unknown factor of his temperament that might hold him back and prevent him from realising his potential. If he does go, I hope it's to a club that's going to put him in the first team fairly soon.

I agree, think he is brilliant. Me 2.

I think he said he was 'struggling', which is Shearerese for 'crap'. I only saw the first half, but he really was crap. Liverpool's style doesn't suit him, but even allowing for that, his concentration and self-belief looked very low.

Can't agree with you about Ba. He's strong physically and technically, but he's not the most mobile of strikers. That goes with his physique. As for Carroll, there's the psychological impact of going from England's brightest young star (supposedly) to a reserve player who his club wants rid of. Some players will just dust themselves off from a setback and quickly start all over again. Carroll is young, he seems to have a bit of an ego and I'm not sure how he'd handle it.

Even at £10m, it now feels like a gamble. We don't know how much his confidence and focus have been knocked by his experiences at Liverpool. Besides, he's not the kind of striker we should be looking for. We need someone with good pace and movement.

The Times, with some confidence, has said that agents who have seen his contract have told them that the release clause doesn't apply during the January window.

Very disappointed with the game. Arsenal needed to score early for it to open up. Henry didn't look remotely fit enough for the Premiership, but produced the fairy-tale finish. The real MOM was Ramsey, who has emerged as a great all-round midfielder.

It was interesting to read those comments. When I first saw him, he was in midfield and I've never been convinced that defence would turn out to be his best role.

Pardew wants his wide players to track back and help out the full back - that's every time, not just when they feel like it or when they're not feeling tired. That's important for his system where he has two out and out strikers and only two CMs. Ben Arfa isn't used to that sort of discipline. But I thought Gutierrez makes a good point - that if Ben Arfa gets the ball some distance from goal, the percentage choice is usually to shift the ball forward quickly and keep the rhythm of the attack going, rather than try to beat a man. Then the bloke scores a goal with a dribble from near the centre circle. Not easy, this management business.

If there's a release clause and the player is interested in leaving, then his agent will have circulatated the news anyway. Redknapp is out of order in making a drama out of the situation, but I don't think anything has changed from the practical point of view. With Ba at the African Nations Cup, I can't see him leaving in January. A departure in the summer looks quite possible though.

If they appeal, it will not be rescinded, unlike Rodwell's. I've lost count of the number of times refs have explained this. It's the style and technique of the tackle that's key, not the end product. He jumped into the tackle with both feet, studs first. The fact that Nani jumped out of the way and only one foot got the ball is not the point. And incidentally, his other leg wasn't 'trailing', it was parallel.

Pardew has said that he wants high-tempo football, and that's what Ben Arfa needs to adjust to. That may be more significant than the issue of his position in the side. Ben Arfa seems to be one of these players who likes to play in bursts. The kind of run that he made for his goal yesterday is very demanding physically, and he may need or want to recover fully afterwards so that he's ready for the next opportunity. I suspect Pardew wants his players to track back the minute we lose the ball, which of course means more constant movement. Hopefully they'll be able to meet in the middle somewhere.