HaydnNUFC

He's not been that effective there for us and he's coming off the back of a season of 10 goals and 10 assists from the LW. Moving him to accommodate Barnes who has yet to show signs when starting games hasn't bore that much fruit the few times we've done it.

Wilson's injury record has always been as it is since 2015, most of which under Howe himself. If they couldn't see that then, bliddy hell. With Almirón, again on naff squad planning, lack of ruthlessness/boldness etc, he shouldn't have been given a new contract in February 2023. We should've cashed in after that form he just wouldn't have replicated as his value would never have been higher and he was still under 30. Its that sort of outgoing we've deliberately seemed to avoid outside of selling Chris Wood. As I said in the Howe thread also, I'd have (the potentially unpopular opinion of) not renewing Joelinton's contract summer just gone and selling him for a younger, more designated DM. I'm not suggesting us signing a RW instead of Gordon. It was putting the £40m we spent on Barnes on a RW and we'd likely have had a decent pool to pick from given we had the pull of CL football.

Last summer was a disaster/failure, whatever way you want to put it, but summer 2023 has put question marks over the what the strategy was that window given our lack of tactical evolution following it. We signed good players but Howe hasn't found a way to best implement them yet, we've just put them into the system that got us 4th 2 seasons ago. Same again this season. RW has been a outstanding weakness for a while imo. We haven't signed a recognised one in 7(!) years. Could become 8 if we don't get one in January. Almiron's goalscoring run in October '22 he never looked likely to replicate, and the season prior to it most of which was under Howe he achieved 1 goal and 0 assists in 30 appearances. Benitez had sent Murphy out on loan 5 years ago due to being surplus to requirements. Just looking like poor medium-long term squad planning and it's a big part of why we've looked unbalanced for a while.

Its not an error per se, but baffling? I'd say it's looking like it is. Our right hand side is an absolute mess. Because of the lack of evolution in our tactical set up going forward we are still reliant on Trippier, who's 34 and has had the vice captaincy took off him, as we still look more balanced when he plays even now. Tino, as promising as he is, has a different game to Trippier; his game is not overlapping and sticking crosses in. It's his ball carrying and dribbling, and still I'd argue he's more of a defensive RB than an offensive one. So when Tino plays, we have a defensive RB and two ineffective RWs, as we have neglected to improve that position for so long. Whilst we have an £80m outlay on two LWs, both of whom Howe can't get starting together and playing we'll together. Perhaps it's hindsight, but Mitchell is looking all the more spot on when he says there was little strategy in our signings. Summer 2023 is looking ever more a watershed to me.

Bruno being used as the base of the midfield 3 stops him getting forward more often. He shouldn't be our DM/base, we should've signed one. Leads onto my (one of my ) unpopular NUFC opinions that I never thought I'd disclose; I wouldn't have renewed Joelinton's contract in the summer. I love him and he's the personification of the club since the takeover, but I'd have thought about selling him in the summer and bringing a more designated DM in. Whether it affects squad harmony or not, these sort of decisions in terms of outgoings we've avoided. And Howe has never really played a DM, arguably one of our and his shortfalls.

It's looking more and more like an opportunistic buy. He's a good finisher with good PL output and we had the chance to get him cheaper than usual due to Leicester going down rather than him being a piece of a jigsaw to a bigger picture. Hence Howe's present confusion of what do with him.

Yep. Villa, Man City, Liverpool, Brighton last season. Man City, Everton and Brighton this season.

True, but I don't think that midfield 3 is balanced. I wasn't convinced it was truly working before Tonali's ban either. I love Tonali, think he's a top class footballer, but the profile(s) of midfielder(s) we needed are still probably need are different to his. But I think that's more down to Howe and his reluctance/refusal to play or sign a more designated DM.

Won 1 game out of 7 where they've started as the midfield 3.

I'd still have sold Wood for the fee we were offered at the time, but we definitely haven't replaced him. Am aware his goalscoring return for us was poor but he offered something different and the ability to be a focal point; give us a different way of playing. Was key for that reason in that run that kept us up and in those few games around when Wilson and Isak were crocked when we finished 4th; Southampton away, Chelsea home, Leicester away. And his goal return for Forest has been very good as they play in a way to get the best out of him. We don't for our striker and haven't for too long.

Feel whenever I watch Anderson at the City Ground he's class. The one time I was really impressed with him playing for us was the last minute Isak penalty game when he come on at HT.

A very fair post, but from what's been out there across the summer up to now I don't think Howe is totally blameless for the summer. And it's looking increasingly like summer 2023 wasn't a great window either. Mainly in regard to not signing what we needed and regarding Barnes: I don't think Howe knows what do with Barnes particularly with getting him and Gordon in the same side and playing well together. Starting him or bringing him off the bench. He's a good finisher, but it's looking increasingly like an opportunistic buy imo. Made all the more odd by our galling situation at RW.

Slot and Nunez there

Non story. The hold up was about TV piracy and only ever was.

First time I've seen a ref stick with his decision after going to the screen. Good.

Dawned on me that we've lost the toss in 5 consecutive home league games.

It's Tindall apparently.

Another predictably insipid away performance and defeat, probably.

Perhaps true, yet at the same time we're seeing a continuation of absolutely useless set pieces and hopeless decision making in the final third. No clear patterns of play in possession that enable us to break the opposition down. Its not just one match, either. And I'm sorry about that. But I'm either positive or negative regarding what I see on the pitch with my own eyes in a narrow and broader context and I just can't see a reason to be positive or a reasonable counter argument (for want of a better term) for that to suggest that things are going to improve as they are. I expect us to go to Chelsea and be terrible and get beat because we usually are away against top sides and there's nothing to suggest that we won't be outside of blind faith.

I've lost an absolute ton of faith in him, personally. Almost all of it. This next stage of this whole thing under PIF, I don't think he's the man for it. I'm absolutely gutted about that, but I can't shake the feelings that I'm given from what I'm watching. It's stale as fuck.

Would love to know where that was. I can take you to where (I think) the best pints in town are but the best pint here is probably a shite one in Éire.

Howe needs to figure out how to get Isak involved in games more. The sample size where we've failed to do so is large enough now for it to be more than being down to the player himself. The way that we play hasn't evolved in a way that allows it when it should've done. Hopefully it becomes the case after he comes back but the proof will be in the pudding. Unless we can unearth an absolute diamond, he's quite literally irreplaceable imo. More so than the other top players we have.

A lot of them are. Crosses fired at pace either slightly behind them or at odd angles making them slice the ball or unable to get decent connections on them. Or they take a bobble, in Ronaldo's case against Sheff Utd. Rosenthal's is by far and away the worst. Open goal to aim at for a while, no one near him, is able to take a few of his own touches and still misses. Unspeakable levels of shite.

Will never not be convinced that Rosenthal's is the absolute worst of this lot.