Gallowgate Toon

He's the strangest player I think I've ever seen. Really good footballers tend to want the ball, he seems to have no desire for that. So disappointing.

It's easy to say 'he got it wrong' but it also depends on the mentality of the players. I actually thought we started OK; we had more of the ball for the first quarter of the game, IIRC, it seemed to me that we tried to start quick but lacked the edge for whatever reason. It was after that we eased off/got nervous that it wasn't going to be easy and they grew into it, that was when we gave them far too much respect as the players' poor mental resilience shone through. Poor finishing when well on top fucked us over. Colback and Mitro, man. I think there's a tiny, tiny slither of a chance that he could stay. He seems to strike me as a man that really wants to build something, now, and I don't think he'd mind a year in the Championship on the way to growing that. He nigh on went 2 years out of the game, after all.

If only we'd bought a goalscorer in Jan Mitro could make it as a 15-a-season PL striker in time but that's not now, awful it was put to him and Cisse to keep us up. I hope he stays and continues to develop here. We've got some promising young talent at the club, I just hope we can keep the core and mix it with the right level of experience next season.

I think the mackems will lose on Wednesday, just to make the last day excruciating

Tragic performance. Absolutely no clutch in this team at all.

You fucking twat.

We need to f***ing make this count, like. Just don't sit off them.

Giving this lot far too much respect.

Reckon the mackems will pick another 4 points up this season. Hope creeping in. If only we'd drawn at Norwich, man.

You say pressure, but I'd see it as a boost as one of their fans considering they'll now see it as being completely in their hands. Of course it's ultimately a benefit to be in control of it for themselves, it's whether the team - who've not been used to getting to safety like this in recent seasons, iirc - can cope with that sort of pressure. They've always struck me as a better underdog side, they've always seemed to knack up the 'easier' games in previous years.

How much have they been out of the bottom 3 this season? There's added pressure on them now that they're seen as favourites. It's not like past seasons where they've pulled out underdog victories against 'big' sides. Their last 4 games has seen them get 5 points, I doubt they'll get anymore than that for the next 4. This is their level under Big Sam with this squad, drawing a lot. There's potential for us to get better under Benitez for these last 3. I'm going to be optimistic

They're picking up a lot of draws - 5 out of their last 7.

Exhausted

Not sure his move to start Cisse was a good one, here. We'd have a better chance of bypassing their press with Mitro starting.

Perez and Colback must realise they can't dally on the ball in these types of games, surely? Would get de Jong on to help us keep the ball in the final third. Would chuck Mitro on after an hour. Townsend left and Sissoko right and get crosses in.

Their back 6 aren't great at all. Fancy a shock win.

Liverpool and Atletico surely would be bad moves for him? His lack of work off the ball was overplayed in his time here but it's definitely not the strongest part of his game. Think he's better off staying where he is, tbh, he's got a good deal at Nice.

Didn't agree with dropping him but it worked for team shape. He could be a really good player, I have hope he can be a good all-rounder under Rafa.

He's been good. Solid player.

His position worked well with Cisse, someone out of those two positions needs to have some presence to keep the ball.

Nice and tight defensively and a tad more cohesive going forward. Good stuff.

Dropping Shelvey is not good. He's not been great since West Brom but he generally sets something up for our forwards or makes something happen on some sort of basis most games. How the fuck Gini and, to a lesser extent, Sissoko get away with it week on week is beyond me.

Garbage? He's an average Premier League winger with the potential to be a good one, but time's fast running out. Technically OK, can use both feet, has put in some good crosses for us, got some athleticism about him and already scored 2 more for us than Sissoko and also set up another 2 in that time (IIRC?). To be honest, I think he and Shelvey are decent PL players for a midtable side but they're evidently not enough for us in our current plight. Neither good enough as footballers for it nor were they the required characters or positions.

At dribbling. Nowt else, though.

It's just that simple. Even working with Rafa fucking Benitez can't get this lot of twats going. There was a point today where he just looked totally exasperated already.