Pilko

To be fair though, they don't continually invite pressure onto themselves by playing hit and hope balls to the opposition defenders - they pass the ball on the deck and retain possession. For me, every player in a Premier League team should be having an impact on most games, either offensively or defensively but preferably both. Simpson doesn't have an impact on any game unless he makes a goal line clearance - he is one of the most anonymous players i've seen. Modern top-level fullbacks have so much more to their game than Simmo - look at Rafael, Clichy, Kolarov, Kyle Walker, Baines, Richards etc etc. The gulf in quality and technique is absolutely massive He has an impact by knowing things like where he's supposed to stand, which is very important as a defender. Kyle Walker strikes a ball well and runs fast but defensively he's an utter mug. Who would you rather have between Simpson and Walker? Depends what sort of team I'm putting together really. I wouldn't want either long term. Walker's been culpable for every goal we've scored against Spurs since he's played for them. Simpson's never made an utter cock up like Walker did a fortnight ago when he gave the ball away on the edge of his own box and gifted Chelsea a goal. Anfield last season, Bellamy's freekick was a massive massive rick, clueless positioning, indecisive and got in Krul's way.

All 7.45 CL games BTTS All 7.45 League 1 games BTTS Benfica/Celtic X, Cluj/Braga X, Valencia/Bayern X, Juventus/Chelsea X

Marveaux is not a good option either. He did more positive things in the final 10 or so minutes against Swansea than Anita, Tiote or Sammy did over a full game (or nearly, in Sammy's case).

I voted 2, it's not impossible but it's very very very unlikely imo.

Elliot Tavernier Coloccini Williamson Ferguson Anita Bigirimana Gutierrez Ben Arfa Marveaux Shola or Cisse That's about as best as we're gonna get imo. I'd quite like to see Amalfitano start though.

Boring 1-0 win with a goal from an unlikely source. So, someone who isn't Ba.

Up there with Fat Head bringing on Beye and Faye to turn around the deficit at Derby. It should have been Amalfitano.

Pardew is starting to see that he's turd - he actually gets subbed now!

That little interview on Match of the Day really fucked me off. "We didn't have Cisse, we didn't know til late, big blow for us" 1) he's been shit anyway all fucking season - and you'd STILL have played the fucker 2) If there was a reasonable chance of Cisse NOT playing then why not focus on the alternative instead of just hoping? 3) casually ignores the piss poor performance and second home defeat to a no-mark side 4) we'd have still lost with Cisse in the team

agree. He needs to take responsibility for these last two games.

Our best player today. Sick of silly tossers shouting "PASS THE BALL MAN!" at him. Which statue exactly is he meant to pass to?

Pardew shat his pants at half time. If we got to 65-70 minutes and it was still 0-0 then that was the time to introduce Shola. Shola himself didn't do too badly tbf, it was just totally the wrong sub at the wrong time.

I don't hate him either, however his presence and ability with a football irritates the hell out of me. Today though, he couldn't even do the bit he was supposedly good at - win headers. He's a very limited defender but probably the least of our worries tbh. We don't look like scoring and that's a bigger concern.

That lack of attacking coaching is starting to seep through. Comment overheard in the Leazes that sums today up: "Whey, if we wah playing at Twickenham we'd be fuckin' battering them like".

Despite the result I thought he looked in much better fettle today. Should never shoot though.

He was awful today. He didn't win a single header, Michu and then Graham were able to bring the ball down and lay it off every single time. It really hurt us. I'd love to have him at fourth choice, see him get half a dozen starts a season. I'd probably be able to tolerate him then.

Haha, how embarrassing.

Oh, and precisely why did Anita go to LB and Santon RB after Simpson was subbed? The consensus in the leazes was that Pardew had forgotten to tell Anita that he and Santon needed to swap flanks.

I'm gonna be livid if he ends up being the scapegoat for today. He didn't pull up too many trees but he was withdrawn waaaaaay too early. He was the least of our problems. Shola should not have been introduced until after the hour and Fergie should have stayed on. He was doing OK.

Who subs a lively left winger at half time for a battering ram, 'route 1' centre-forward, in a home game which is very much there for the winning? Pardew may have got us into Europe but he proved his cowardice today. The ground emptied at 0-2 but folk may as well have fucked off after Michu got the opener. Clueless performance, as soon as that goal went in we were beaten. Pardew just doesn't know how to change a game, and it cost us dear. Marveaux was probably the best player all afternoon and he played about 14 minutes. P.S. I don't think Williamson won a header all game. His performance today was the worst I have seen from an NUFC defender since the days of Boumsong. Weak as water and absolutely gutless.

Same here. Can't believe I'm getting a train up tonight so I can go to this, looking forwards to the faces and the drink more than the actual game.

Like fuck are they 10p anymore.

Come on for the last half hour to put himself about and bully the centrebacks. Shola is as Shola does.

From 35 yards, after a shit Joe Hart headed clearance.

Hart is in shocking form at the moment. Then again, there's fuck all genuine competition for him at City or for England. That's probably why.