alexf

I dunno what Miggy's circumstances were but for Joelinton, I think drink driving is a pretty shameful thing and probably shouldn't be incorporated into a celebration.

Come on then, apologise for being wrong.

Love how I keep reading that it was our B team. I would say this was comfortably a C team. Still had the likes of Barnes, Murphy, Miley, Anderson, Tonali all missing who would have started if fit. Plus players like Lascelles rested due to filling in for Botman recently. Plus as mentioned, essentially playing with 10 as Ritchie's legs went about 2 years ago.

Love him. Looked every bit a senior player aswell after coming on so early. Put a really good performance in, especially first half. Was surprised to see him on the left for a change but he was very effective in what he did.

Anyone else really curious as to how the Matt Targett in the deep Bruno midfield role experiment would have turned out. ? Was the most unexpected performance looking at the line up but it just proves why he is levels above the likes of Ten Hag. He makes perceived shit players look good and functional.

Crikey I forgot about him. He's an energiser bunny. Just never gets tired.

I mean we essentially won that with ten men aswell. No disrespect intended to Ritchie ? but he barely got near the ball, other than a few set pieces early on, and couldn't get near a player to make a tackle either. Felt bit sorry for him, must be hard as a professional when your legs have well and truly gone.

I actually thought he was a yard shorter which is why he was frustrated first half. Made great movements but didn't have his usual explosion to pull away. It's still there but just needs to keep building up the minutes and sharpness. But the goal was down to his directness and confidence. Hope he can stay injury free now.

Fantastic again. Didn't expect him to be so good defensively. Seems to be pocketing anyone who comes up against him. But then he had the confidence to just burn through the whole team and put it on a plate for Miggy. Think he has earned the trust of Howe now to get more minutes in the league and help keep Trippier fresher/try something differently tactically.

A colossus tonight. Just hope he can recharge ready for the weekend. Him and Almiron put in great shifts as the two first teamers who didn't get a rest.

What a story. Like a new signing him finally being back. Adds some depth defensively. Easy to forget he was one of the first to get Howe'd when he deputised for Trippier so well at the end of the 21/22 season. Chuffed for him tonight. Him scoring the 4th would have been too much ?

Is it wrong that I'd rather go out to them in the semi than lose a final again? They are the only side I would fear in the final, due to our mental block against them it seems. I think we would beat every single other side. Chelsea away is the the only other banana skin but we are a better team, they just have plenty of individuals but hopefully they are still faltering when we rock up.

I'd rather think of it as us taking out potential winners earlier and leaving us an easier fixture in the final. For example I'd rather face Liverpool over two legs in the semi of we get past Chelsea, than a one off game in the final.

Did Bowen just say "europeanly"??

Love him. So glad he's back. His ceiling as a player is so high. He would be in the England squad already if he hadn't been injured. Took that goal so well.

What happened to that A.Murphy who played preseason? Looked decent.

What happened to that A.Murphy who played preseason? Looked decent.

That phrase is synonymous with the Ashley years for me.

Salty.

His performance at the weekend has made me sour on him a little. That defending for our 4th is really atrocious. He just gives up.

Plot twist when it turns out LFEE is the next Jimmy Saville and has just lured him back to his lair.

Yeah noticed Isak's first touch after coming on at the weekend was a magnificent touch and turn all in one motion after receiving a ball drilled into him.

I still think your squad depth is stronger than ours. I believe you guys had a head start on investment before us and it shows in the squad depth. However I think we are both similar in that a few key injuries or suspensions could derail our form. (Bruno, Isak/Wilson) for us and probably (Watkins, Douglas Luiz) for you. I think the strength of the opposition for us in the CL is going to impact us more than you in the Conference league though. You could easily play and B/C team I feel and still progress to the latter stages, whereas we are almost rotating in the Prem already to save first 11 for CL.

All credit to Howe and the coaching staff. You could see all our patterns of play now are so engrained in the squad that they all know exactly what they are doing. You can slot in different players, (Lascelles, Murphy, Wilson instead of Botman, Almiron, Isak) but the system and pattern remains the same. This is why we are having the success we are. Yes, congrats to these players for carrying out the instructions so well. But when other fans are confused how we are so good, when they see people like Burn, Longstaff, Almiron, Murphy etc lining up for us....players they may historically have thought are not top tier. It is because of Howe and the coaching that they are able to carry out these tactics, which in turn makes them appear better players than they were before. It makes me even more excited for the future and why this slow build is so enjoyable. We are witnessing the the evolution of this team and as Howe is provided higher ceiling players as we go (Bruno, Gordon, Isak etc) You can just see how we will keep getting better and better.

How good are Dortmund then? See they are unbeaten so far in the league.