Mick

Gouffran will offer more than Mitrovic has offered for a while, I think we'll be a threat up front.

Colback starting again.

Yes, but the right wingers do tend to go up against left backs. Thought Knockheart plays mostly on the left. He does, to the opposition keeper.

Atsu and Yedlin are ideal players if we're going to look for quick breaks and they'll give Shelvey something to aim at. The only problem is if we do that we're unlikely to have anybody in the middle to get on the end of deliveries if we're coming from deep.

Baldock and Knockaert both need watching and we need to be at our best to win it. Our record isn't very good at Brighton and I think we all know why that is, he's currently looking for another job. I think Hughton might try and play a safe game and that could hand us some initiative. I don't think we'll start as badly as we have recently and I think we'll get at least a point if Rafa goes for it and drops the players who have been letting us down. Colback has to be dropped and I think he will be because he was pathetic on Saturday, Rafa gave him a chance at the start of the second half and then took him off when he could see he was still shite. Lascelles would go for me, Rafa might give him another chance after he was supposed to have gone a bit daft with other players at half time. I'm not sure how he had the bottle to do that after his performance but he seems to have got a reaction. If we have Hanley in for Lascelles we might get done at the back for pace so he would be a risk. Reading weren't as bad as the scoreline suggested on Saturday, they were beaten by pace and movement so we should expect to face the same. Perez wasn't too bad against Norwich and he might be feeling a bit of pressure when playing at home, I still can't see him starting. Mitrovic is offering nothing, I wonder if he's confidence has gone because he seems to give away free kick after free kick for things that others get away with. He's had opposition players crawling all over his back and penalised when doing nothing wrong.

Unless Darlow thinks Dummett isn't going to get the ball and Darlow thinks he's going to hit into row Z of the Milburn. It's the only reason I can think of that would get him running out.

I don't know how Lascelles is getting a game at the minute, his defending is so bad that he's got the back 4 shitting themselves. Even when he's got the ball at the back and has space to run into he's bottling it and standing looking for a pass. He had loads of space in front of him against Bristol in the first half where he could have driven the team on but no, he stands like a statue and looks for somebody else so he can pass the buck. Mbemba has must have done something bad to upset Rafa and it needs sorting out because I think he'd work well next to Clark. If he doesn't trust Mbemba then stick Dummett in the middle where he's more than capable of playing but drop Lascelles as the captaincy seems to have gone to his head.

Unfortunately just too much work, I seem to be the only person who doesn't get to decide where my time goes at the minute.

He didn't have to see behind him, the ball was in the air long enough to check behind him. I'm not absolving him of his share of the blame, I just don't think it was all down to him.

I'm no fan of his when he's playing, he's missed when he's not and that's down to the failings of others as much as anything. We've moved him central a couple of times lately and we've improved because he has more movement than anybody but Gayle up front.

Dummett didn't have to make the header, Cotterill was never catching him and he has no excuse for not knowing what was going around him considering the ball had travelled almost half the length of the pitch. I think it was 50/50 as Darlow didn't have to rush out even though he probably though he would get the ball into row Z of the Milburn. Darlow must be a bit thick trying to come out for that after his air kick against Norwich.

Remember sarcasm?

This is good news, keep him fit and we have a player with excellent potential on our books.

I'm quite please about this, once again we see a problem and Rafa can see it and does something about it.

He'll get over it.

Or they've trained intensively and are having a couple of days off before returning to training. We played on Friday so it makes sense that they have the weekend off.

His ban was self inflicted because he can't control himself, if he goes I'm sure he'll be replaced.

He's taken it out of the team for the first 4 games, his aggression didn't help us on Friday night.

Without wanting to go all RTG, you sir have wet the bed.

You're right, I was a month out for some reason and thought that the tournament finished in June, not July.

Of course he will have it sorted, he's too good and methodical not to.

Sissoko hasn't played for almost 2 months, no way could he have played last night after one week of training.

I loved Hibbitt when I was a kid.