Andy

I'm surprised people are happy with that second half like, that was a very poor Man Utd team with a load of players missing and they just parked the bus. It would've been baffling if we didn't have a lot of the ball in dangerous areas. For all that we camped in their half, we created half chances at best. I found it more annoying to watch than the first half to be honest.

I think our build up player has looked better as a result of them going backs-to-the-wall with a team full of defenders tbf. We haven't really created too many clear cut chances for all the ball we've been allowed to have.

This game emphasises my main problem with the Ramsey and Elanga signings. All that money spent for players that are just more of the same, even if their individual performances will surely ultimately improve. We've spent all that money but still have absolutely no guile or creativity to throw on when a team asks us to break them down, a problem that we've all been aware of for ages and that has been emphasised by Isak leaving since he often papered over that particular crack. It we can't brute-force our way through a game by outrunning the other team, we've got absolutely nowt.

Agreed that we lack leaders today, but we've been equally shite with those players on the pitch too this season. The problem with our performances goes deeper than that unfortunately.

We'd had more attempts than them before the goal tbf, also the best chance of the match with Bruno's header.

It's just a good goal, arguably the keeper should do better but it's difficult to anticipate that strike coming in through bodies. As long as we don't shit the bed there's still something in this game for us. We've been by far the better team.

Hope we get new admins for Christmas, allowing two threads on it is mental. Have a good day all.

I said it earlier in the thread, but he's literally just hurt his leg. It's not like it's been blown to pieces by a bomb fighting on the front lines in Ukraine. He's well enough compensated and he's acted enough of a cunt that I see it as being difficult not to find it extremely funny, personally.

They may have. That's how the game goes with almost every transfer nowadays. He could easily have said "nah I'm areet". Not a big fan of taking the blame off him for a decision he's completely accountable for. And considering Wissa's actions were largely similar, I do think it's naive to think we didn't attempt to engineer that transfer, yeah.

He wanted to leave. He pushed for a move. Liverpool exploited the opportunity. Much as I hate the scousers, they ultimately just signed a player who wanted to join them, and paid us what we wanted. They really behaved no differently to how we behaved with Wissa, for example. The blame for Isak ending up there and fucking up his career (if that's how it goes), lies solely with Isak. He knew exactly what he was doing.

I don't think it's that high a bar as I didn't think it was that amazing a performance from him, it was just better than he'd performed in previous games.

The injury has obviously impacted his start here, but his performances so far have still been largely similar to what he was dishing up at Villa in his previous two seasons, especially when he played more centrally for them. Flashes of looking a top player, large spells in matches of looking invisible. That first half against Chelsea and his sub appearance against Liverpool need to be the norm, every week, for the full 90. He's getting a lot of praise for the Chelsea first half but to me that was just the kind of performance he should be delivering as an established PL midfielder, it wasn't extraordinary but it was definitely a lot better. If he can produce that performance consistently I'll gladly hold my hands up and say I was wrong about him.

Yeah I said earlier in the thread, I don't mind seeing a player try to do something positive when they're in a rut. It doesn't mean he's turned a corner, but berating him for that felt harsh, I reckon most players in the league would have taken a shot there after they'd made a sprint like that. Gordon and Barnes both almost certainly shoot in that position too.

Scored almost a goal a game for club and country since 2019. That's insane tbh, but I do agree he still doesn't have that "magic" of a Suarez, De Bruyne, or Henry.

Miggy looked a much better footballer and a better fit for us in those opening few months under Rafa than Elanga has so far like, even if his output didn't back it up. Obviously he was shite for long periods after that under Bruce (who wasn't?) but when he first arrived most people on here liked him.

I can see what Eddie was thinking to an extent. The intention this season was clearly to try to bring in a more counter attacking style, and Elanga fits that perfectly in theory. Unfortunately (a) we're bad as a team at playing out once we're on the back foot, so we're pretty terrible on the counter in general, and (b) there are those intangible forces at work that sometimes just prevent a player adapting to a new club for whatever reason, meaning he looks terrified and is struggling to make the step to a bigger club. I'm convinced there's another universe where his signing worked out from the get-go, perhaps one where we kept Isak or one where he scored a couple of early goals for us and got off to a flier, but it looks a long way back for him in this one at the moment.

Always hated the "ooo you can't wish injury on another player" thing, as if they're literally dying. Cunt's got a sore knee, am I meant to light a candle for him? Soz but it's absolutely hilarious that it's happened to him and I hope his other knee explodes too.

This is the main point for me. He had no interest in the ball whatsoever and deliberately diverted towards Gordon. It was full speed, reckless, and while I haven't seen it back since half time, I'm pretty sure there were several points of contact below the shoulder. I'm normally firmly in the "wouldn't want it given against us" camp on penalties, but for me this one was a stonewaller.

Also somehow the Gordon penalty wasn't even the most baffling decision of the match. The offside against Woltemade/Ramsey in the first half takes that one. I still have absolutely no idea what the linesman was doing there.

The Gordon one is definitely a penalty, 100% clear cut and not even up for debate for me. The other decisions were exacerbated by that one; they could've gone either way, but would feel harsh if they were given IMO.

You see loads of challenges where the defender plays the man and the ball at the same time, or even the man first, there has to be some leeway when it's a last ditch block IMO. You surely can't tell me you'd be happy if that was given against us?

The point is the bit you edited out. Defenders generally get the benefit of the doubt when it's a last ditch block.

Fabian Schar absolutely obliterated Phil Foden a few weeks back trying to block a shot and nowt was given. The benefit of the doubt is normally given to the defender when it comes to last ditch challenges, rightly or wrongly.

Yorkie foaming, he's been desperate to lump Woltemade in with Elanga from the get go

That James one isn't a penalty for me, he gets just a enough of a touch on the ball I think. To be honest, Barnes should have got the shot away anyway, he was too indecisive.