TRon

Brentford won that ball from some loose control by Longstaff. Not directly responsible for the goal but it played a part.

He looks like a sack of potatoes on steroids.

Their front three looks the sort that would give us problems.

Gordon most definitely has earned a rest. I think the surprise with Tonali might be because he's started very few games for us. Which ironically might be why he's fatigued so quickly after coming back.

I thought Joelinton was blowing a bit by the end, and he's been involved in a couple of late goals conceded in the last two games. I am actually on board with rotation, just seems that some players don't get much rest. But I guess the medical staff will be able to judge that better than us. Just putting it out there.

How come Joelinton never gets rotated then? The guy busts his lungs every game, but he never seems to get a rest.

I don't see how that applies to Emery, he's done a great job at Villa.

That's what I'm hoping for as well. Pay attention to their main threats like Mbuemo and we should have more firepower in an open game. Good though our performance was against Liverpool we still only got a point at home, and dropped 5 in the previous two games against shit opposition. We need a win to keep us in the mix for Europe.

I've watched just about all of them, I missed the Brighton game because I was at a wedding, and the first half of the West Ham game because I was travelling. You might not think there has been holes left by the midfield, but it's been commented on quite a lot by others in the media. Quite a few of our goals conceded this season have been when we've been caught in possession then hit on the counter.

It has been yes, not talking about one or two individual games but over the course of the season. I presume that's why Tonali was moved into that space to plug the gaps as he has good recovery pace.

I think Liverpool fans must dread seeing him in the line up, seems to score against them every time. He's made VVD his bitch you could say.

I don't know if we have the players to break down stubborn defences, but I think we need to make sure in these games we don't go behind through leaving gaping holes in the midfield. Hopefully moving Tonali into the 6 position will help with that in future games. It might not be as sexy as going at teams all guns blazing, but if we can keep it level for an hour, then take the chance when it comes, it's one way of coming away with points against teams with the low block. Just be a bit more patient with the passing and draw them out rather than let them sit back and close all the spaces off.

As long as we get top 4-6 it won't be an issue. It's when we don't qualify for Europe that players heads start to turn. My gut feeling is that the likes of Isak will want CL football, Bruno would probably be ok with Europa or Conference league qualification. It's a big ask considering we can't spend as much as 6 other clubs and year on year the system is rigged so they can pull further ahead.

It's not what we want to read, but it is the bitter reality.

We could do all of that if we were actually allowed to spend our money. If we aren't and are consistently spending less than the cartel clubs then eventually the best players will leave. We have to find some way of increasing our revenues sooner rather than later.

I read it this morning, just confirms our players are far better geared to playing on the counter where they have open space to run into rather than having to actually break defences down. Pressing high without goals to show for it is a dangerous approach.

It's weird because Shay Given mentioned the crowd noise being a big reason for us giving them a hard time, and Slot also mentioned the noisy home crowd. Hard to tell if you are watching on Amazon because it seemed pretty muted on there.

I think Isak does already do the drop deep or move wide stuff though, just he doesn't get the ball as often in some games because our build up is poor around him. I thought Tonali made a massive difference when he was snapping at their players and along with Bruno and Joelinton, we weren't just winning the ball, we were providing early delivery to Isak, be that in advanced positions or deeper.

I think some teams are easier for our style of play as well though. Liverpool come at you so there is more space for our attacking players. Will we be as effective with teams who come and sit back? This is where I would like to see a bit more flexibility in our game plan, maybe don't push forward quite so aggressively when players are just running into a wall of players and losing the ball too easily.

Agree. That's why it's better to look at recurring patterns over a period of games to get an idea if there's an issue. The table tends to tell the real story whatever the ifs and buts over 90 mins.

Bent as fuck. You can't help wondering if PL refs are on a cartel bonus payment plan to give them the game altering decisions. Liverpool get up to 10mins extra if they need a goal, we didn't even get 60 seconds.

Yeah this is why I am still on board hoping he'll finish the season strong. It's like Keegan. You can see the shortcomings in some games, but you fear for what will come after if he's gone. That's why Howe has such a loyal backing, most fans are still enjoying the ride and tbf, that's not often the case as a Newcastle fan.

He's a striker primarily, I do think the onus should be on other players to get the ball in zones where he can be most dangerous. Just because he can do brilliant stuff dropping deeper, doesn't mean that he should be expected to every game. There'll be games where for whatever reason he doesn't see much of the ball, that's when you need the midfielders and wide forwards to get the supply in.

Hopefully if he's pushed further forward he'll be able to make more runs into the box instead of striking them from distance. In his first season he did score a few from inside the box and that's what we need more of.

This is where we claw back those 3 points dropped at home to West Ham. Eddie has to demand no less from his players.