Gallowgate Toon

Is this the place where we can discuss if the DoF model is overrated, btw? Long-term strategy role but the vast majority all seem to hop about every couple of years while talking a load of management speak shite. Similar to managers, the good ones are really good and the rest aren't. Feels like everyone thinks they need to have one in some guise but I'm not sure that's the case.

I thought Howe's comments on players being unsettled was actually quite masterful - extremely out of character for him to say something like that so it felt purposeful. Well, it worked for me, as it immediately took my attention away from anger/frustration to thinking about support for Sunday. Maybe it wasn't by design but it tied in very well with his unity comments from earlier in the presser.

Obviously, it's always been part of the game, but that Longstaff quote is really, really sad when you read it in his voice What an abomination PSR is. The whole thing is fucking disgraceful.

Yes, you can famously only work to solutions with other grown adults through hypnotism. His role is meant to be the strategic figurehead of all football operations ffs. Surely, any DoF worth their salt would be working with the right people to set up the processes they believe in? Working with something he doesn't believe to be right/sustainable and instead succumbing to it while collecting big wages would be very poor indeed. If Howe was to go, Mitchell would be instrumental in that decision and the main lead sorting his replacement. He has plenty of power.

If Mitchell is 'dancing to Howe's tune' and going against his own beliefs then he simply isn't cut out to be a DoF and he's stealing a wage. Luckily, he isn't.

I really don't rate their business that highly squad feels imbalanced and I don't think their spine is strong. Big unknowns with the coach too. Obviously, I'd love to have been as busy as them in the window.

A proper Howe streak with some batterings will get everyone back in good spirits.

Pressing and intensity will still be a big part of what we do when at our best - I personally don't care for possession control as the main thing but it of course has a place in the toolkit. Howe said in today's presser a few are still working towards fitness - you can't do the pressing approach fully if you're carrying players not fit enough to execute it. Might explain our drop-offs after 20 mins in the last couple of matches.

I still feel excited about what we've got available when the majority are fit & firing. We have some fantastic footballers and, imo, genuine versatility in a number of positions that means we have some actual tactical flexibility, providing we stay largely fit. We could quite easily roll from 4-3-3 to 4-4-2 to 3-5-2 in a game without making many subs. We've already seen Howe messing about with the shape a bit with 4-4-2 this campaign, and we ended the Forest game playing 4-2-3-1 with Bruno playing ahead of Joelinton & Longstaff etc. Our best side until the next window is genuinely tricky to pick in a few positions imo. The biggest thing for me is we find ways to consistently get B.I.G together in the attacking spots.

Tbf, he did, but he asked about 'working relationships' from the bit that I saw. Did a little stutter as well as he initially asked while ED was staring him down.

Dunno if it's been wrapped up in Tweets yet but he was asked if we only had 1 target and he said no and outlined reasons why it'd be bad for things like negotiating power if that was our approach. We missed out on multiple targets, apparently.

I just don't think what's happened this window reflects this small pool of elite players stuff. We've been linked to Guehi and Olise, yes, but also been linked to or signed: Kelly Osula Tosin Trafford There's obviously a level of comfort in improving the squad but we suddenly switched to just focusing on 1 player mid-way through the window and decided to stop all focus on a RW as well despite having good cash to play with?

It'll be interesting to see if Hope has the balls to ask Howe this outright tomorrow in the presser.

This briefing is ominous though, even though it's likely shite. Just don't believe Howe signed off on the Tosin strategy and then said said it's Guehi only.

Seems we'll only go for squad fillers if they're 'free' or about £10m...

The idea we've gone from Tosin being the CB target (who'd have been a competitive squad player, no doubt) to Guehi only just can't be right.

I think the seeming lack of outgoings is a bigger worry than the incomings, tbh.

I genuinely don't believe that Howe would rather spend the next months without anyone else unless it's Guehi - the framing of it is interesting. And even if that was the case for CB, what about RW if we've got money to spend now?

Club has taken a risk that going to the wire would get them what they want, seemingly. Very bizarre ordeal. It'd be absolutely disgraceful to not get at least one of a RW or CB in. There are many players out there who would more than do a job for us.

Hall did look really good the back end of last season so he clearly has the capability but he's young & learning his trade so it feels like he's going to naturally have these highs/lows throughout the campaign. He's a fantastically versatile option for us in that he can stick to the line or invert and I think we'll see the big benefits of that throughout the season.

Some big calls for Howe here. A few pick themselves but feels fairly open competition for a number of positions depending on the gameplan. Hall/Kelly Tino/Tripps Sean/Sandro Starting Barnes and Gordon together (plz, for the love of God)

He started his Leicester career on the right iirc. Absolutely no reason why we can't concoct something with both him and Gordon in the side.

We'll get a lot better. Still so early in the season and feels obvious to me we've got mixed sharpness, confidence etc. I think we've actually had some positive spells in both of the last 2 games for us to build on.

Top pen.

I keep getting frustrated that we're taking it long from GKs etc. and then see our defence trying to build play Disappointed in Hall, like. Fairly standard stuff for an away cup tie very early on in the season. We just need to build some rhythm.