Deuce

Too bad we don't play 4-3-3 though.

I honestly wonder if we couldn't make a profit by flipping him to a Championship side. Have to think a lot of teams would pay for "PL experience." And play who? Does it matter?

TBF, this thread is about Willo. We're not discussing grand strategy in here. Like I said before, Willo just perfectly exemplifies the underlying problem with this squad. Not that he's necessarily the problem.

I honestly wonder if we couldn't make a profit by flipping him to a Championship side. Have to think a lot of teams would pay for "PL experience."

Willo is not good enough and never has been. He isn't even good enough to be 5th choice at this level. He is a Championship CB. Just. Couldn't agree more but surely you agree that it's hardly his fault that he is our 3rd choice when he should be about 6th! Of course mate, really is down to board that. But rather like Simpson i think Pardew sees Willo differently from us and the rest of the people with normal football thinking brains. Well it's simple really. Pards sees in Simpson and Willo two capable defenders. They do what they're asked: defend. Great at parrying away loose balls out of bounds, but ask them to navigate back up field, distribute out of the back, or contribute in any way to a free-flowing kind of football and they're completely useless. One thing that just typifies the difference between Taylor and Willo, for instance, is how they handle the loose ball. On a break with a defender, Willo does enough to get to the ball and concede the throw-in or corner. He's done his job and prevented the direct shot on goal. But he hasn't really neutralized the threat, just delayed it. Taylor gets to that ball, turns it around, and makes the pass up field. He's prevented the shot and neutralized the threat. Willo has zero ball skills. None whatsoever.

Would anyone honestly not take 'Arry Redknapp as manager at this point? Not that Ashley would spend the necessary cash to get him.

Absolutely. Think he's just out of his depth tbh. Agreed. I think Pards is a very good and capable PL manager. But he just doesn't have the chops to make a mid-table team a Champions League team. Which *should* be our goal as a club. easy now. Which part of that statement do you object to? the transformation of a midtable team into a champions league team, jesus its like it just rolls off your lip,. that is a tougher task than you may think, managers that are capable of doing that dont usually join clubs like nufc. This team did finish 5th last season, which I don't attribute purely to Pardew's wizardry or pure dumb luck. Should not the goal of this club be to challenge for a Champions League spot? Finishing 5 with or without Europe competition makes a huge difference. To the owner, definitely a no, because it means he has to spend money. Pretty obvious, no? In fact there isn't a team that can transform into a champions league team without spending huge money. Probably Sir Bobby has already spent the least. Qualifying would undoubtedly line Ashley's pockets. Even after spending to upgrade a CL squad he'd come out with a profit. I just don't understand the mentality in English football that sees fans content with mid-table finishes. Perhaps staying afloat is good enough for teams like Wigan. But the goal for this club, as far its fans are concerned, should be to win hardware and/or qualify for Europe every single year.

He shouldn't be made to feel that he's the only capable player in the attacking third. The off-the-ball movement from the front 6 is daft.

Absolutely. Think he's just out of his depth tbh. Agreed. I think Pards is a very good and capable PL manager. But he just doesn't have the chops to make a mid-table team a Champions League team. Which *should* be our goal as a club. easy now. Which part of that statement do you object to? the transformation of a midtable team into a champions league team, jesus its like it just rolls off your lip,. that is a tougher task than you may think, managers that are capable of doing that dont usually join clubs like nufc. This team did finish 5th last season, which I don't attribute purely to Pardew's wizardry or pure dumb luck. Should not the goal of this club be to challenge for a Champions League spot?

Absolutely. Think he's just out of his depth tbh. Agreed. I think Pards is a very good and capable PL manager. But he just doesn't have the chops to make a mid-table team a Champions League team. Which *should* be our goal as a club. We're not a midtable team, and Pardew isn't very good at anything besides talking s**** We are at least a mid-table team. We're just not playing like one. I don't believe it was completely random that we finished 5th last season. This team does have a lot of talent and is capable of challenging for a Champions League spot on their best day (with a couple more additions).

Absolutely. Think he's just out of his depth tbh. Agreed. I think Pards is a very good and capable PL manager. But he just doesn't have the chops to make a mid-table team a Champions League team. Which *should* be our goal as a club. easy now. Which part of that statement do you object to?

Absolutely. Think he's just out of his depth tbh. Agreed. I think Pards is a very good and capable PL manager. But he just doesn't have the chops to make a mid-table team a Champions League team. Which *should* be our goal as a club.

Nah, I'm with you on that. Same. Though when push comes to shove around a new contract, Ashley better be coughing up an amount adequate to keep him here. Which is to think about.

Easily our best player this season. Brace yourselves for his inevitable sale next year.

I agree on Williamson, but it's our lack of an attacking plan that is killing is. True. I'm at the point where I don't believe Cisse and Ba can both stay on this team. We need to pick between one or the other. They can't play together in a 4-4-2 and we run the risk of pissing one of them off by playing both in a 4-3-3. We lack a 3rd striker, 3rd centreback, and a starting RB. Cabaye is continually played way too deep, which leaves a huge gap between the midfield and strikers. We have no one really capable of threatening down the wings, one player capable of delivering great crosses (Fergie), and a defensive midfield that either crushes bones and draws cards or has no teeth.

People are getting too hung up on Williamson. He's not the sole problem with this team, but merely typifies the problem with this team. Wild lack of depth is killing us.

I'd agree he is clueless not playing hoofball + tight defense when we are forced to use Willo. At face value it seems preposterous to point the finger at Mike Williamson for bad football. But the truth is, you've got a player in the team that can't play the ball out of defence, that the midfield have to protect, and can't form part of a high line because of his lack of pace. He should be nowhere near this team. There's no excuse for it, either. Bingo.

We've got our best squad in a decade. 3 centre backs , one of which is Williamson , says different. We have no depth. True enough. The depth on this squad is appalling. Williamson is simply not a PL player, it's criminal that he's been trotted out as often as he has.

Very excited to see what this squad can do, especially against a full-strength Russian side.

Cisse has earned himself a few games on the bench. Just doesn't have it right now.

The only way we'll win a penalty off Dean is if Tompkins takes off his boot and slaps Shola with it

Cisse needs to come off, Ba's been the hot hand this season. Bring on Bigi for Cisse, allowing Cabaye to push forward. It's the fucking formation man. Always is.

Krul, Colo, Santon, Anita, Vučkić, Tiote, Cabaye, HBA, Ba, Cisse, Ferguson

6 points from Cameron thanks to the CS. 8 points from Ruiz, a shrewd pick-up earlier this week. Went from a front 3 of Ba, Tevez, Fletcher to a front 3 of Ba, Ruiz, Van Persie. Lost 12 points from 4 extra transfers but I was a sinking ship before.