alexf

Ritchie Jeez thought he'd played his last game. Shame about ASM hopefully it's nothing but silly rumours but pleased we get to see the return of Isak. Fingers crossed the lad can get good minutes with no issues.

Definitely starting atleast 1 possibly 2 of the next 2 games, so chance for him to stake a claim for the Fulham match with some strong performances. Hope he does ?

Feels like this could be the most important period to define how this season goes. Our fixtures look favourable but hopefully fatigue/injuries don't impact us too much and we can keep up the same levels we have set so far.

It's perhaps a compliment that some of these fans and media are so rattled by our performance. It's like they are admitting we have crashed the party and are already at their level so should not be trying to grind out a point away at the league leaders. It's like they forget that last season the majority of this squad were battling relegation. It's absolutely remarkable what Eddie and this squad are doing and we are so far ahead of schedule that it means there are still times where we can't play our normal style and need to dig in and defend well. That may still happen in the future if we sign better quality players, because sometimes you might be abit off it and playing away against a team bang in form you just need to swallow your pride and just not get beat. So yeah, while it's irritating that people are moaning on about our tactics in what, 2 maybe 3 games against the bigger teams this year? The bigger picture is we are doing what we need to do and hopefully can keep adding more quality to the group over the next few years.

They were decent. I think we quickly realised they had the beating of us and adjusted accordingly. Theres no shame in that. I would have loved to have been more of an attacking force and maybe in the reverse fixture having ASM start and eventually Isak giving us more fire power but you can see that if we had opened up even a slight bit more, we could easily have been ripped apart. We did the job, got the point and can march on against easier opposition now. City and Arsenal are clearly the best teams we faced so far, followed closely by Brighton.

Gosh out record is so dreadful here. Come on boys ?

Yeah and xhaka has been great this year also and ofcourse Odegaard pulling the strings. Gonna be an interesting battle in there.

I think that's just par for the course with footballers it seems.

It's that awkward situation where if ASM is on form, then putting him up against Ben White I think causes them a major headache and forces Saka to drop back and help double up. Which in turn relieves pressure on Dan Burn who would have a tough time against Saka. However the flip of that is potentially it does leave Burn exposed when they attack, unless Joelinton can cover that area sufficiently. I think it's worth baring in mind that Martinelli's pace will undoubtedly stop us being able to push Trippier high up the pitch like we normally do, also Tierney is pretty rapid too up against Almiron, therefore our dangerous right side may be kept quiet and we would need the outlet on the left. Really fascinating game and really looking forward to seeing how we fare against, so far, the best team in the league. Could be our first walloping or we could go there and really put the league on notice.

I imagine same team but with Wilson starting for Wood. Part of me wonders if Howe will want to go for it toe to toe, abit like the Man City game and put ASM in. I think they will have too much for us but we have proved this season we are a match for anyone and you never know in the day.

I think of it this way...he runs his bollocks off and probably has the highest running stats in the whole team...but he has to do that because he has little else. So while it is complementing the rest of the team at the moment and contributing to our high press tactics. Ideally what you want is a higher quality player with better technical ability but gives the same physical efforts, or close to. I realise those players are rare and or expensive. But that has to be the ambition. It's easier to coach a high technical player to work harder off the ball than it is to try and coach Longstaff to be better on the ball. To reach the next level and as harsh as it seems based on this year, it does feel a priority position to upgrade.

Thought he looked bit more like his old self today, i.e. some ridiculous dribbling ability. Bodes well as another option either from the start or coming on when we need him. I'd still love it if we could somehow integrate him into the current system so we are dangerous down the right and the left, but i guess we'll have to see if it's possible without losing some of our defensive steel.

Absolutly no qualms with him picking the same team essentially when we have won 6 in a row. However, I hope now we broke the streak of wins, he might be a little more open to tweaking it now and again depending on the opposition. Felt like today was tailor-made for Saint-Maximin and I thought he looked good when he came on. Also think its an example of a game where Targett over Burn might be more suitable (I know he was injured today but just an example) We're going to have to rotate and alternate once Isak is fit and if we make any stand out signings in January you would think anyways to keep the squad high energy, sharp and happy. But yeah in no way a criticism or anything, Eddie has barely put a foot wrong all year and he will guide us well. Just a shame no one could shoot for shit today

Trips in danger of getting another yellow if we keep letting gnonto run at him freely

Been in that left channel a few times with Joelinton and Willock and with Ayling now on a yellow I think it's a game suited to ASM especially with the slippery surface. I'd say Longstaff off and Joe's back into midfield

He's so dreary. Forgot what it was like to have to listen to some games on radio only. I mean the quality on display has been dismal but he make's it so much worse with his constant whinging.

This will definitely be a play and his attempt to strong arm them. He lives for getting a few quid knocked off a deal.

Always itv that seem to have the worst commentators, ever since I was a kid. Just shut the fuck up and keep your personal opinions to yourself.

Hard not to be cynical and think these "heated" exchanges are anything other than manufactured these days between the pundits.

Thanks for the heads up

Yeah personally I think our players just gave their all for 90+ mins but were out on their feet and with the ridiculous added time and then the equally ridiculous decisions the ref was making started losing their cools and getting abit desperate. The "time wasting" seemed like genuine injuries. I didn't think Chelsea had warranted a big enough threat for us to need to actively time waste.

I really didn't think he had a future here but you have to admit he's been an integral part of the team during this run. His worth ethic and intelligent movement are just let down slightly by his speed of decision making and technique. But he still has plenty of years to improve and I get the impression will be happy to be a squad player still as we progress. But it's hard to displace him from the first 11 at the moment as it may unbalance something. You could probably say the same for almost all the lads currently in the first 11.

With 14 games played and 24 still to go, it will be interesting to see if we can sustain this intensity after the world cup. Hopefully we do get a few quality additions that will help the squad depth. But no doubt the current lads have cemented their spots. So much so that people like Saint-Maximin and Isak will likely have to play their way back in.

There was a period in the 2nd where we just smothered them and they barely got out for 10 mins or so. Can tell the lads were physically exhausted by the end though. I'm actually glad we get a break to reset and go again after Xmas.

Yeah maybe his best game so far. I thought he was a beast today. Probably my motm. Hope his injury isn't too bad. Looks like it would take something bad to force him off so hopefully few weeks rest to heal up.