Stottie

You didn't have to be Mystic Meg to see this one coming. Especially with all the Bernardo Silva to PSG links.

I expect us to have a nibble at getting someone's CM, but that it may well fail due to overcharging based on Jan window, us being Saudi backed NUFC, and us being Top 4 rival NUFC (for Chelsea in particular). Our lot keep stressing that we won't overpay. I see Gordon as a two-footed version of Miggy, and he eases the route to 4-2-3-1. If two of the front four can press that hard, then you don't need 3 in midfield. Not against every opposition anyway.

I would imagine the physical and tactical demands of becoming a professional footballer these days are so great than all of the genuine arseholes are filtered out long before anyone reaches the first team. This was still possible a generation or so ago, when players would have five pints on the night before. Back then, there was still enough scope to make it with talent and not so much application. Even the poster child for modern arsehole footballers, the now-aged Christiano Ronaldo, keeps himself in incredible physical condition. On the flipside, players are paid so highly these days that it is reasonable to expect far more of them. Football is one of the few places left for working class people to shine. Former opportunities in pop music and acting/entertainment are increasingly drying up, so we should not be too harsh on the few working class people left on our tvs. Not to the extent that it can affect them mentally anyway.

Sorry to big up myself, but this occurred to me when Eddie Howe came. I am pleased to say that winning the league now now looks a much bigger possibility now in Jan 2023 than it did in November 2021. If the high notes are a non-starter, even a DA-DA-DA chant would be a great salute to EH.

I agree with the concern and want to see someone come in. Tielemans or maybe someone cheaper if its just as a #6. If down to two CMs though, I think we'd go to 4-2-3-1. Howe used it against Fulham, and I doubt he'd do that if they weren't training in it already. Having Gordon and his pressing makes that formation more likely, not less.

Jan 30 now, so you'd have to think its now Tieleman's o'clock. He's been in the shop window for 29 days, but is now heading onto the "reduced to clear" shelf. Every few hours, another lower price sticker will be added over the old one.

Maybe the ideal result, better than a draw even. It cranks up more pressure on Liverpool and Klopp. They're not handling it well.

Yeah Yeah It's not fair

Given how much everyone is paying Brighton for their players, NUFC did well to get BDB for the little we paid. Our record as the best defence in the league suggests he's been doing as well as any of them.

After what happened at Everton, he's probably still traumatized about folk shouting at his car, even well meaning ones.

With the season he's been having, Maddison may now have other suitors. Us bidding for him twice suggests he must have been up for it, but we may not be his first choice now. He might have played himself a move to Man City, for example.

We're going to need homegrown players where we're going though. Agewise, a number of the ones we have, Trippier, Dan Burn, Wilson, will need replacing in a year or two. Another couple of years and possibly Pope too. Ideally, we get a number of transfers in young like Kuol so they qualify regardless of where they are from. Since Gordon is right footed, I wonder if he's seen as a potential right wingback we'd play post Trippier. Dropping a winger back in there is the trendy thing to do.

Statsbomb Kev has posted a few times about how few passes Wilson averages in a game. Haaland is the same, and he is the best in the business.

Lose him and Gordon, who despite struggling is still joint top scorer, and relegation beckons.

He hasn't looked quite himself recently, but he strikes me as someone who has "waves" of form. He came back and ended last season strongly (Arsenal home etc.), was miserable in preseason (Miggy was hot), and was then on it as soon as the season started. Since coming back from the WC, he's looked a bit miserable again, possibly a virus type thing. fwiw, I don't think Wilson should be viewed as a traditional striker with all the usual cliches about "holding it up", "leading the line", or "bringing others into play". Compared to elite (Harry Kane), Wilson doesn't really bring others into play and therefore has no assists to show for it. What Wilson does is darting runs that create space, he reacts well to situations, and is a good little poacher. I wouldn't judge his performances on "number of touches" because his will usually be lower than Chris Wood, who was far less effective.

Further to Rich's stats, we have touched the ball nearly 1000 times more than Everton in the opposition's third of the field. Passes into opposition box: NUFC 210 (3rd best) Everton 112 (3rd worst)

I follow TheOther14 so this popped up on my Twitter. Just regarding shot accuracy, but I'm sure we're all a bit sick of seeing shots flying over the bar. Gordon also has 0.27 xG per 90 this season, higher than Willock, Joelinton and Maxi in a far worse team. As a bonus stat. 2022-23 Everton with Gordon on the pitch 1095 minutes Goals for 10 Goals against 13 2022-23 Everton without Gordon on the pitch 705 minutes Goals for 5 Goals against 15 I would normally expect fans to be the best judge of their own players, but those numbers suggest the Everton boo boys have the wrong target.

Since we lowballed and had two bids rejected for Maddison, my assumption here is that we are not going to go in all guns blazing and pay over the odds for Gordon. I don't see that as a remote possibility. We have highly rated staff now, not a bunch of numpties with money to burn. Jamie Carragher just called Everton the worst run club in the country and many agreed with him. They are unlikely to have the wherewithal to extract a large fee, even if we were prepared to pay one. Yes, we may have paid big for Wood and Isak, but both were high-pressure buys. Wood was to get him in immediately for the Watford and Leeds games. Isak was after another Wilson injury. We are not desperate for a wide player, not when Maxi is not even starting. Gordon is mostly likely squad player and one for the future.

I feel dirty for clicking on a Daily Mail link, but if Craig Hope is right with 25M plus 15M in add-ons provided Chelsea don't stick their oar in, I would say go for it. The same money would have got Trossard, but there's only one of him and he's gone to Arsenal. Unlike Gordon, there is actual proof of him being a worky-ticket.

Isak in all comps is now 8 appearances 3 goals (1 a pen) 1 assist in 364 minutes, the equivalent of four games. Plus the borderline offside goal vs. Liverpool, and the 1v1 miss he created himself by stealing the ball at the halfway line. The lad's quality.

If Romano is reporting a bid, it looks like its going to happen. He's young, fast, and tricky AF, so I see a lot of potential. The gobbiness doesn't bother me. It's not my money but the fee does bother me. Liverpool paid 37.5 million for Lucas Diaz 12 months ago and he's superb, the completely finished article. Gordon seems poor value to players from overseas.

Sorry if GIggs, but just In case anyone was wondering.

Isn't it due to the 10 game rolling average dropping the Man City, Spurs and Liverpool games at the end of last season where we were outplayed? The Liverpool one, our most recent defeat at SJP, was 0-1 but they were in complete control. It flips so violently because we blew Fulham and Brentford away. The early sending off in the Fulham game was a turning point for us this season.

Can't wait for this. Away goals don't count as a tie breaker any more, do they? So we can play just the usual keep-it-tight game first leg with no pressure to get something in the bag.

It was fairly even until about 70 in when Mitoma came on. fwiw, the chance we had when Miggy played in Wilson was actually onside, and would have stood if Wilson had scored. Since he didn't, VAR wasn't used and it gets ignored as a big chance created/xG. Just on our defence, but Arsenal home xG vs. Man U =2.93 (77 minutes of which was Arsenal drawing or losing and needing a goal) Arsenal home xG vs. NUFC =0.94 (90 minutes of which was Arsenal drawing and needing a goal) Given what Saka did yesterday to England's left back, what does this say about Dan Burn? I know we adjusted within 10 minutes to help him, but Saka didn't have a sniff against us.