Ronaldo

This needs to be better defined, like. The FA Cup and League Cup are on different sides of the argument.

Rafa knew what he was going suggesting him and Gayle have a shooting competition, like. 'Er, you can just have it, Dwight.'

Which every keeper from Premier League to Sunday League does. It's generally the stuff you don't notice that makes a goalkeeper worth having in your side. Darlow has time on his side but he's a long way short of what I want starting for us next season. If it's the stuff you don't notice that matters, how do you ever notice if a goalkeeper is good or not? I think you know the answer to that. The point is, the best keepers make it look pretty easy. It's the shit ones like Rob Elliot that get credit for Hollywood saves that will often be a straightforward catch for the keeper that gets his positioning right. Or the one who organises his defence in such a way that the save doesn't need to be made at all.

He got a lot more space on the ball and in the box than when he first arrived, too. Put a man on him and he fades out of the game.

Which every keeper from Premier League to Sunday League does. It's generally the stuff you don't notice that makes a goalkeeper worth having in your side. Darlow has time on his side but he's a long way short of what I want starting for us next season.

Looked like he was getting pelters after the second goal, like.

That's another thing, like. There's no managerial style that won't have an overall negative effect on certain personality types, especially in football. Benitez's polar opposite is probably someone like Ancelotti. He trusts his players on and off the field implicitly and allows them to express themselves as opposed to being part of a controlled and overall tactically restrictive setup. Obviously this works with the top players who can be trusted to maintain a professional and intelligent approach to the game but it would probably struggle with middle-of-the-road shit. Likewise, Benitez won't ever really have success at the top clubs because players at the very top of the game tend not to react well to absolute autocracy.

Well, Bobby trusted him. But that isn't the point, none of the players find out his team until 2 hours or less before KO. It's just the way he is, anyway. It ties in with the rest of his style.

Remember Bellamy saying that in his autobiography. Said it was symptomatic of him not trusting his players iirc.

I really don't think it's all about intensity, like. Though I know what you mean. I just think - t'other night notwithstanding - we're far too susceptible to getting dragged into the whole compact, keep your shape mentality when actually against shit like this, and let's be honest Wolves are utterly fucking shit, we should be playing a far more expansive form of football with wingers and strikers than teams can't negate by limiting time on the ball.

Another bafflingly bad post. Bramble was a very good passer of the ball, it was other stuff that let him down.

Which is exactly why we needed to spend money on a winger in the transfer window. We already have Gayle, Atsu, Ritchie, Perez, Aarrons and Gouffran. I'd much rather have another centre forward and play Gayle out wide or in Diame's position. Shit post of the week award.

Smaller clubs. Like Fulham and Wolves.

What a terrible post this is.

There's absolutely no argument for Perez to start up front, like.

It's the more the fact when we go behind we look absolutely toothless. We're far too easy to defend against when the opposition are behind the ball.

Which is exactly why we needed to spend money on a winger in the transfer window.

Not at all, but when it gets into 'Rafa dropped a bollock' and 'we need to play this way not that way' when both goals were individual errors and we just beat a team 6-0 away from home, then people have a point tbf. We've lost badly at home to one of the worst sides in the Championship. It's a massive cause for concern.

This is the truth, though. We're just gonna play teams in the game with only one striker because we don't have the goal threat and creativity from the wide areas.

I will knee you.

Can we see a RB at RB now please? We seem to have more of them than ever before, like.

I think this is more about complacency & struggling with the favourites tag than anything else Bullshit, man. We've lost 2 games out of 4 at home playing 1 striker. It absolutely doesn't work at this level.

Why would you drop Perez after his performance on Tuesday? Because we've got much better options than him.

Exactly, we've got other options. Today was an ideal opportunity to go 4-4-2 with Atsu and Ritchie wide, with Mitrovic and Gayle up front.