themanupstairs

It actually does.... because he came from France were the pace was a lot slower he could get himself back into position. He thought he could get away with it here but he can't so he's adapted his game, hardly ever see himself allow players to get in behind him anymore his positional sense is a lot better. He's had to adapt his game a bit to adapt to the league and as you say its all happy days now. There are a lot of factors that go into this. It's not only him who has adapted his game. Pardew looks to have also adapted to Debuchy's playing style. Sissoko now covers for his marauding runs, and quite often slots into RB while Debuchy catches his breath and jogs back into position. Clearly instructions coming from the manager and coaches during training and match preparation.

This whole dorty foreigners are all glory hunters is fucking bollocks. It's a fucking global sport, and has been for 20 years. My first exposure to NUFC was through watching a documentary on a disabled girl (big fan), and how her love for NUFC kept her positive and made up for all the difficulties she faced. The name of the club stuck with me, and I followed the results on ceefax and Match magazine, and by the end of that season, NUFC were promoted to the premier league, managed by Kevin Keegan. The rest is history. If that's considered glory hunting, then fuck it. Whatever. I'm still here 20 odd years later, and if any "true" supporter doesn't like it, they can fuck right off because I'm going nowhere.

In a nutshell

DAT tackle in the first half All over the park today. Stupendous effort. Should still be wearing the armband. It's not about taking it away from Colo, but rather giving it to Tiote because he has been transformed since he got it the first time round.

I know. I just thought maybe RC hasn't seen the game and didn't know about the incident.

Should have been given. Can only imagine that the referee didn't see it hit the arm and thought it hid his head. Missed call though. Just seen the replays, Mason was standing head on to it. If he's missed it, then he really needs his eyes and brain checked. Absolutely shambolic that Ramires dives to rob WBA of a win, and handballs such as Sandro's and Williams' the other night go unnoticed.

wank VP scored but she ruled it out for offside. spot on decision it was too.

Stone wall penalty should have been given tbh. Scandalous refereeing of late. This handball in the box gig needs looking at big style by FIFA.

Another own goal

Down with the mackems, you're going down with the mackems

Post of the year :thup:

MOTM today for me. World class performance. The outstanding player on the park IMO.

Surreal stuff today. To win, and convincingly, at OTT after having just been turned over by a mediocre Swansea side in midweek seemed a pipe dream. Credit to the manager for overseeing this historic day tbh. Got everything from team selection to tactics to the players' energy and mentality, to in-game management and subs down to a perfect tee. Our first 90-minute performance of the season. We were sensational. More of the same please. Take a bow Alan Pardew.

"gramatically challenged cockney" Probably his biggest failing tbh.

No you wouldn't, half the f***ers can't accurately pass a ball to a 6ft+ striker let alone hit an arm on purpose. Even if they did try, the defenders would sharp be whipping/keeping their arms out of the way which would make anyone trying it look bloody stupid. As much judgement (i.e. guessing) that can be taken out of the game the better IMO. Absolutely right. In the heat of the game, I doubt many would have the skill and presence of mind to try it often enough. The crux of the matter for me though, is whether or not the handball changed the intended direction of the ball. If the hand is outstretched in front of the body for example, it shouldn't be considered handball. If you're blocking your face, bollocks, abdomen from a shot, that's not handball obviously. The presence of the hand hasn't changed the outcome of the ball getting blocked.

Not when the judgement is poor more often than not, because the guidelines are fucking sketchy. "Deliberate"? What the fuck is that? So the ref is meant to analyze the offending player's psyche and be inside his mind to know if it was deliberate or not? And yes, it should be ok if a player is accurate enough and can think fast enough to aim the ball at an opponent's outstretched hand or arm, that they are awarded a penalty. At the end of the day, this is what football is. Playing a ball with your feet. Not your hands. It's a pretty simplistic view, but this is how you are taught what football is when you are a bairn, and the first thing you are told is that you can't handle the ball unless you're a keeper. Remy's shot last night was goal bound, almost certainly. An outstretched arm blocked it, and prevented it from hitting the target. 100% penalty, without the ref needing to judge anything if he's seen it. Simple as that.

For me this should be a non issue in football. It should have nothing to do with the handball being deliberate or not. Hardly any handball is deliberate in the way that Suarez blocked the ball on the line in the world cup. It's very simple. A hand or arm that isn't in-line with the body, and is stretched out, blocking the path of the ball, hence changing it's intended trajectory or direction is handball. Penalty, or foul if outside the box. Simple. The distance of the shot away from the hand is irrelevant. If it happens, then tough. Part of football. I'd accept conceding such penalties if it meant that this becomes a consistent way to judge them.

86 points. Could've easily been 100 had I played Shelvey ahead of Lallana.

15 times in 112 league matches. How many times have we won by two goals or more. ? Howay, I'm not that bored. Watch the match again mate, you'll be begging bimpy for more stats to look up.

This is what I'm afraid of. That this result will terrify the poor little beacon of eloquence and we'll go back to playing panic football for 90 minutes. I hope the players can pick themselves up for Saturday.

Manager of the month marra

The same tactics that has been criticized by plenty on here even after four wins... I was going to leave that for tonight and bring it up tomorrow but the claim of sitting back "all the time" after taking a lead etc, I watched west brom-villa the other week, west brom 2-0 up at half time and the second half they got battered, was that because they sat back or two teams without a gulf between them and when one takes a lead the other has more of a need to attack a bit more (like the start of the second half tonight actually). i don't think we have tactics to do that constantly, we have done it at times and we've normally paid for it, but most times it's the natural way of things like we witnessed on the box at the hawthorns. Yep, happened in one game involving 2 different teams that madras saw so we can discount it happening before our eyes as "the natural way of things" in almost every game under Pardew in which we've taken the lead. i used a recent game many would have saw as an example, you don't think it's natural that a team after going a goal down pushes on a bit more ? we saw that we did tonight got caught doing it but we did. Yes but how DARE Swansea hit us on the break knowing we'd come at them? Should have sat back and defended. It's the ONLY tactic in football. Ever!!

Don't use your own eyes to judge things man. Just look at the league table and gan to bed.

loving the :thup: all over the shop

Wish I'd have kept Shelvey on for Lallana. ffs Otherwise it's minimum 82 pts when Giroud is subbed off for Coleman.