Chris_R

Pretty pleased that I'll be shut away in a room for almost the entire of the week with 2 fellas who are flying in today from Nigeria. And the only abuse I've had thus far is from 2 mackem women via Facebook.

He's going outlast religion isn't he Be him and Shola, here until 2050.

When I was younger I'd play football 2 or 3 times a week and I wasn't an athlete by any stretch of the imagination. When I was a kid I'd play from morning to night, 7 days a week. It's bullshit.

Well exactly. If we have a gameplan, a way to attack, then we can use that for every match. "Same as always lads, get at them, bodies in the box, look for the overlap and get the defence up to the half-way line." Worked for Fergie for 30 fucking years.

Yeah, you've got most of them too far forward there.

Oh, and Man U are playing away, have all but won the league anyway and are already a goal up. Today we were at home against our biggest rivals. Fucking cowardly disgrace.

Again, an interesting choice of words that shows him up for the coward he is. He doesn't want to win. He wants to avoid defeat. That's a massive difference.

I just flicked the Stoke - Man U match on to see how Man U are set up. When they're starting an attack, the defence push up to nearly half-way. I mean right on it, past the start of the centre-circle. They have 3 forwards in or on the edge of the area, with one man out wide on each side. If the ball DOES go wide, the fullback overlaps on that side. Contrast that to us. The defence stay camped deep in our half. Cabaye and Tiote are in the centre circle (if we're lucky) with Gouffran and Sissoko wide and Cisse alone in the box. It's dire.

See this is just symptomatic of the man. Note the choice of words: "We didn't look organised". He wants us MORE organised, MORE disciplined. MORE defensive. If he'd come out and said "We didn't look threatening" or "We couldn't break them down" it'd be far more in line with what everyone else thinks. There's nobody in here that thinks our lack of organisation was to blame for todays inept performance.

What? We weren't clinical in front of goal and they were. What tactics would you have employed chris? I watched Barcelona in the CL semis, wanting to see how a good team sets itself up. Now I know we don't have the players Barca do, but Sunderland are not exactly PSG either and the aim is the same either way, or should be: Try to score goals. So anyway, EVERY time Barcelona attacked, they had six men ahead of or trying to get ahead of the ball. Normally at least 2 or 3 in the box increasing as they get close to the opposition goal. Contrast that to us. We attack with Cisse, Sissoko and Goufran. Everyone else sits back for the majority of the time. We don't need 2 holding midfielders ffs. That's crazy. We need 1. Cabaye is completely hamstrung by playing there, he should be further up. We play to deep. We defend the edge of the box, sometimes inside of it. That invites pressure on us. We should be pushing the back 4 higher up which in turn pushes the midfielders closer to the attackers and gives the opposition less space to play in. Yes, that means teams can play in behind us but we're over-cautious to the point of stupidity. We need to spend less time worrying about the opposition and more time making them worry about us. Perversely, that will almost certainly mean we concede FEWER goals as we'll not be on the back foot all the time. We never attack with more than 3 players unless a full back has overlapped. It's my main bugbear. Defending sides just find it too easy to nullify that kind of static - safety first approach. And Cisse is usally by himself with two or 3 players around him. Indeed. We play a counter-attacking game but we counter-attack with THREE fucking players. OK, sometimes a fullback gets up as well but it's still not enough. It's shit and predictable. The ball just goes straight back to the opposition and we're back under pressure again. Our crosses are often with the wrong foot. Inswinging crosses simply do not consistently lead to chances being created as you've got no space to play the ball into and the defender is facing the right way to clear whilst the forward is looking back over his shoulder and away from the goal. Any player tasked with putting crosses in should be on the correct side to do so. If they can't play there, sell them and get some in that can. And I don't mean HBA and Gouffran as their job is to support the striker (well, it should be) and not to put crosses in for Cisse all on his own (which is often the case). I'm mainly talking Santon and Jonas being used down the left with no effect whatsoever. And don't even start me on the penises. When did we last score from a corner? Can someone actually tell me?

I'm sure Redknapp turned us down at some point in the past, or am I remembering incorrectly? I wouldn't want him for that reason alone, as if he came now it would be for him, not for us. It would be the managerial equivalent of signing Nicky Butt or Michael Owen. No thanks. Plus he's an abhorrent shitstain of a cunt.

Wont happen as he doesn't want to move from the South Coast. This. He won't leave Sandbanks. Not sure why mind, it's nice there but not that nice. Only round the corner from me, I've cycled past his a few times hoping to see him so I can give him a slap.

What? We weren't clinical in front of goal and they were. What tactics would you have employed chris? I watched Barcelona in the CL semis, wanting to see how a good team sets itself up. Now I know we don't have the players Barca do, but Sunderland are not exactly PSG either and the aim is the same either way, or should be: Try to score goals. So anyway, EVERY time Barcelona attacked, they had six men ahead of or trying to get ahead of the ball. Normally at least 2 or 3 in the box increasing as they get close to the opposition goal. Contrast that to us. We attack with Cisse, Sissoko and Goufran. Everyone else sits back for the majority of the time. We don't need 2 holding midfielders ffs. That's crazy. We need 1. Cabaye is completely hamstrung by playing there, he should be further up. We play to deep. We defend the edge of the box, sometimes inside of it. That invites pressure on us. We should be pushing the back 4 higher up which in turn pushes the midfielders closer to the attackers and gives the opposition less space to play in. Yes, that means teams can play in behind us but we're over-cautious to the point of stupidity. We need to spend less time worrying about the opposition and more time making them worry about us. Perversely, that will almost certainly mean we concede FEWER goals as we'll not be on the back foot all the time.

What?

I'd get rid now, and have an interim manager until the end of the season. Carver or anyone really. And use the time between now and the new season to get the right bloke in.

I don't understand people saying things like this, that would be the worst time possible to replace a manager. Yeah you're probably right, we did it once with Bobby and it was a shocking decision. Not really thinking straight about it after that performance. On the one hand I really do think finishing 5th and signing the players he has deserves to give him more time. On the other, given how we've played for the majority of the season (even taking injuries and not really replacing Ba into account) I wish we had a manager who could get us playing in a more entertaining fashion. Basically what I'd like is a real life Football Manager holiday scenario where we could holiday for half of next season and if the players have gelled and we're doing great keep him, if it's this same old clueless nonsense, get rid and start the season again He deserves no credit at all for signing the players. That's Carr and the board. He deserves some credit for 5th, but that was largely due to the players being new and un-Pardewed. This season, he's coached all the life and movement out of them and we're getting worse, not better, under his tenure. It's visible for all to see.

Clueless man, absolutely clueless. Attacking approach? No shape to this tactics. Sissoko falls down deep to pick up the ball why Cabaye and Tiote act like f***ing quarterbacks. Are you kidding me? This isn't football. Never been and never will be. This. 100% this.

That's it for me. I've had enough. Sick of being outplayed by shit teams when we've got plenty of more than competent players. Out please.

Even Quinn can't say Taylor deserved a yellow.

Quinn not even suggesting Rose could have had a red.

Hard to say they don't deserve it. We really need to step this up.

Quinn really making no attempt at impartial commentary whatsoever, the tedious shitcunt.

Same here. And since I have to be sober tomorrow to get the wife from the airport in the evening, I'm just going to get plastered tonight. That way I should wake up just nicely for the match.

I'll give you a hint: I'm not being entirely serious.

He'd be a fairly decent player if someone could spend 5 minutes teaching him the offside rule.