Chris_R

Seems Burn's dance was actually just an impression of Joelinton's driving...

There's never an excuse for drink driving, it's incredibly fucking easy to just not have a second drink if you are driving. Or better, have none. You know you need to drive, as you presumably drove there. And that's for all of us, rich and poor alike. But when you're a multimillionaire with levels of disposable income that we mere mortals can only dream of, it becomes even more baffling. You're not even trying to save taxi money here, you're just being a fucking thoughtless, selfish, brainded cunt. Idiot.

Fuck I feel old now. That was very nearly 30 years ago and I remember it like yesterday. What baffles me even more is that if you'd talked to me in 1993 about a game held in 1963 I'd have thought it was almost prehistory. Fuck.

Yeah of the 2 I much prefer Willock out wide to Joe. He's got the raw pace which you want there to frighten defences and Joelinton has the strength to dominate the centre where I often feel Willock is a bit lightweight.

That's because in the cups they have to give a share of the revenue to the opposition, and so are required to accurately report their attendances and can't just hoy 10k tickets in a bin on a public street and declare them "sold".

Already said I'm doing that.

Well not really. Those putting him on the wing have an opinion, which of course they're entitled to, but it's just an opinion and it's not based on what he's done in the past. I'm countering it with evidence and historical facts. He isn't (and never has been) a winger.

What evidence? He's not played there. 48 of his last 50 games have been as a central striker. All he's said is basically that he'd give it a go. But he's hardly going to say that he'd refuse to. See above. There's no evidence that this is the case at all. If you think otherwise, please tell me which matches he impressed you in playing wide? I'm not saying it'll never happen - twice in 50 games it has, but that's not enough for people to be putting him there in future lineups. It'll not happen with any regularity at all. It'll be Isak or Wilson, not both. And rightly so, even though I love them both. You don't sign a 6'4" striker for club record money and stick the poor cunt on the wing.

Yeah, sure he played a bit on the left wing for Barca. But their striker then was prime Lionel fucking Messi. And when Isak has been modelling his game on Henry, are you telling me with a straight face that he was modelling it on Henry the winger? Anyway sure, let's put Isak on the wing. And Almiron at left back, Wilson in goal, Bruno at centre forward and Pope in centre midfield. All of those make equal sense, but hey let's do it because then we get Wilson and Isak in the team together and that's all that seemingly matters.

Agreed. But Howe hasn't done that and has given no indication he will, and Isak hasn't played there anything other than a couple of times in his career. Otherwise he's always been a central striker, and considers himself such, and that to be his position. I've no idea about where this nonsense about him playing wide comes from, but it's not from reality or history. Anyway, I've said enough on the matter. If people want to continue putting him on the wing in team selections despite the evidence before them, crack on.

I don't think you understand the definition of 'literally', because he didn't 'literally' say that at all. He just alluded to it. He said "I am a centre-forward. That is my position and where I am best. Then I think I have quite a wide game, so could do other things as well, so that is not for me to decide." Where there does he 'literally' say he could play wide? He doesn't. I'd allow that he suggests it might be possible in a non-committal way, but no more than that. Plus he's likely responding to a direct question of "could you play wide", to which he's hardly going to say "no, I'd absolutely refuse" He gives a diplomatic answer, but the stress is on him primarily saying he's a centre forward. Which he is. Fucking hell, surely we all remember Allardyce sticking Shola on the wing because he was a bit leggy? Let's not do this. Isak is a striker. We're not going to play our club record signing out of position. If we wanted a £60m winger, we'd have bought one. He's a striker, and always has been. He has never been a wide forward or winger. It'll be one of him or Wilson, not both which is a shame as I love them both, but we're not going to be putting square pegs in round holes moving forward, especially not with our record signing. Anyway, it's been a great match tonight and I'm getting another beer.

Not even the biggest in the last 12 months for me. If we'd not beaten Leeds away last year, things could've got really ugly.

I didn't say he couldn't play wide, I said he doesn't play wide. It's literally written there, so I'd appreciate it if you don't change the meaning of my post by altering the words, because "couldn't" and "doesn't" are entirely different. He also doesn't say he can play wide, he says he could play wide. Future tense vs current tense. Again, it's very different and the actual words matter. Isak has played 48 of his last 50 games as a centre forward. I don't see anyone posting Wilson-Isak-Almiron as a line-up even though it's not much less likely than seeing Isak there yet still people persist. Of course I could be made to look daft if he ends up getting regular games there, and I acknowledge that small risk but if it happens it certainly is not based on anything he's done previously in his career and I really cannot see that we smash our club record to buy one of the hottest and best centre forwards in Europe then shunt the poor fucker out wide in anything other than the most desperate circumstances for single game instances to cover a really unlucky injury crisis. Seeing him on the wing would be a massive shock, especially if such an injury crisis isn't in play.

Congratulations on bolding the wrong part.

Moukoko, like Isak, is an out and out striker who doesn't play wide. Wouldn't stop people posting lineups with an Isak-Wilson-Moukoko front 3, even though those 2 are about as likely to play wide as Wilson is. We're not going to (potentially) be dropping huge money on 2 of the hottest striking prospects in Europe, just to play them out of position. It would be madness.

Until his next transfer.

Moukoko would be an astonishing signing and I'd not bat an eyelid at him getting £150k/week.

Everyone is so on the defensive now with a stray mackem floating about. Cut him a bit of slack unless he does something silly.

What if it didn't? You wanted 35 minutes but we played most of our first team for the last 36 minutes (counting stoppage time) and only scored one. We also conceded one! So 35 minutes would have been no guarantee to beat them, because it didn't tonight. For the other 60 minutes, our reserves lost 1-0. So, what if we'd done as you asked and started with the first team players, and were 1-1 after 35 minutes? What then? Keep them on? How long for? We've seen a 1 goal lead wouldn't be enough (Fancy our reserve players in a shootout? I don't), so surely you need at least 2? There's no guarantees in football. We could easily have gotten to 60-70 minutes without being 2 clear, then our players are fucked for the next match. But then you have to play them in that one because if you cannot rest them for a FA Cup 3rd round match, you sure as fuck can't rest them for a LC Quarter Final. But because they're tired and playing PL opposition, they could easily lose that too. But they'll play the full 90 and so will be even more knackered to face Fulham, who we must beat to keep our top 4 ambitions alive. You see the problem yet? We have a good first XI but a shit, paper-thin squad. We can't fight on all fronts this season, it's not possible.

We fielded the team we need to tonight, given our other commitments and ambitions. Absolutely no issue with Howe's team selection, most of those players would have been (you hope!) banging his door down for game time, and almost all of them disappointed when given the chance. That's on them, not Howe. Manquillo - Did OK. Nothing spectacular, but he was OK, probably the only "change" player to not blot his copybook tonight Lewis - Looked shaky as fuck, he was just an accident waiting to happen Lascelles - Showed why Schar is keeping him out and will continue to do so Anderson - I have a little sympathy for - He clearly didn't cover himself in any glory but I think Sheff Wed targetted him a bit and always had 2 men closing him down. They probably identified him as the "danger man" from the starting XI after his L1 exploits last season. Still, did nothing. Wood - If he was a racehorse he'd have been shot at full time and right now would be being turned into a pot of glue Murphy - Shits the bed when the ball is at his feet, he just never has a plan on what to do with it. He's so pedestrian with the ball and needs 2-3 more touches at all times and is utterly infuriating to watch. Dubravka - Like Lascelles, shows why he's not number 1 and never will be again Ritchie - Far from the worst on the pitch, but finished at this level. And tonight that level was L1 Ultimately, you cannot carry that many sub-standard players in a match. That lot wanted their chance, they got it and they blew it. What's important now is how we respond to this as a club. We're currently top 4. It's now abundantly clear that half our squad is L1 quality, and if we get injuries our chances at the top end of the table are done. We need to bring at least 3 competent footballers in to give us that strength in depth so we never have to rely on any of the above players again.

I was screaming at him to drive forward when he had that one on one but he just jogged slowly until another few defenders got back. It was tragic but encapsulates him as a footballer. He just doesn't know what to do with a football.

Our "strength in depth" is a fucking joke like. Absolutely lifting. Still fair play to Sheff We'd. They've deserved this.

I've been desperate to like Wood, to see the good in him and hope he comes good, but that's it for me. Beyond horrific.

It isn't https://www.footballcritic.com/alexander-isak/player-positions/91776

Murphy so shit there, just must get his head down and drive, he was one on one but just jogged.