Holmesy

I turned on at 55 minutes and saw us have all of the ball and create a boatload of chances to win the game in the following 65. Blackburn created 2 chances in the time I was watching, scoring 1. I’m not saying we were decent, the football was devoid of ideas, lethargic, rushed, players were static and we gave the ball away loads. Watching Longstaff was painful and Dan Burn’s inability to head the fucking ball at 6 ft 7 is baffling. But, we weren’t as bad as a lot of you are making out. We dominated the proportion of the game I watched and deserved to win on the balance of play. And to be fair to Blackburn, they’ve got a few players who really caught the eye.

We need a big clear out

Useless cunts!

Danny Murphy can get in the fucking sea. Insufferable prick!

Not necessarily although i'd like to see it. I just think with the pace of Almiron and Gordon, the clinical nature of Isak and the precision of Bruno and Tripper, we have the perfect set-up to hit teams on the counter. So maybe play deeper, press when the opposition cross the halfway line and capitalise on the space in behind. Basically exactly what some teams have done to us. If that's a deeper 4-3-3, fine. And not all the time, just as a plan B to see out games or against teams who are shitting on us - Arsenal, Dortmund, Forest etc.

You could be right. I suppose what this conversation confirms is that there's a definite loss of confidence in Eddie from me, given some of the things we've witnessed this season. I remember under Rafa, I just trusted absolutely in everything he did because he consistently made silk purses out of piles of shit and seemed to have a tactical answer for everything. Last season I felt the same about Eddie, but that confidence has definitely eroded a bit. Hopefully it comes back next season.

Perhaps they couldn't, and that ultimately led to their demises. Maybe they reached the limit of what they were capable of with the groups of players they had. Maybe the same is true of Eddie. Who knows?! Maybe he is literally a one setting manager. What you've described in your post is the various different ways we've tried to implement setting 1. Even when we were down to bare bones, we still had the pace and the players available to play an effective counter-attacking style, which we didn't do even once. Instead, we further rinsed the players we had trying to play high intensity front foot for 90 minutes.

You're probably spot on with that, but isn't it the manager's job to find a way around it? For me, some of the criticism of Eddie is way over the top, but some of it is warranted. One of the frustrating narratives is that he can't do anything about it when it's literally his job to do something about it. Who is it setting the midfield up to push so far forward? Who is it deciding not to play one of the midfielders deeper? Who is it not experimenting with different formations, shapes and systems to negate our weaknesses? Who persisted with probably the slowest outfield player in the PL game after game, when he was getting torn to shreds after the pedestrian midfield was bypassed? You can't say it's down to the midfield and absolve Eddie of blame, when he sets up the midfield. It's like we're stuck on one setting and people are defending Eddie by saying we don't have the right players to play that setting, so what do you expect?! Honestly, I expect us to be able to change setting.

His energy and movement are going to be so welcome, assuming he can stay fit. If we keep Livra as first choice LB and have Willock's pace in CM, i think we'll go a long way to negating some of the glaring problems we've been experiencing over the past few months.

Dan Burn

Totally understand where you're coming from, but when one player is consistently costing you goals and points, picking him is a basic error. Not just from a tactical POV as well - players will be talking, regardless of how matey they are or how tight knit they are, there will be elements within the squad that are talking about Dan Burn letting the side down and undoing their efforts. It just doesn't send a good message to other players, that consistent shit performances will not be punished. No 'elite' manager would persist with a player like this - they had/have a ruthlessness that demands higher standards, and they all would've dropped Burn a long time ago. EH has literally ignored a catastrophic weakness in our team, that every opponent has exploited to good effect over the past few weeks. They don't have to be any more sophisticated tactically than 'fast player, run at their left back'. That's as basic as it gets. It's non-league level stuff. Attacking plays in the PL should never be as simple as that, this is elite level sport ffs! Pundits have started questioning his selections and highlighting DB, journalists as well. All that stuff starts to seep into cracks that weren't there before and threaten to pick away at the positive atmosphere that has been around the club since the takeover. And it's just not the DB element that had led to some doubt creeping in - poor squad/fatigue management, mis-managing certain games eg. the Liverpool one mentioned earlier. If it was a one-off, you put it down to a bad day. But there have been 2-3 more occasions this season where poor game management and tactical naivety have cost us. I am still firmly behind Eddie Howe as our manager. I think he's been a revelation, but where I was 100% last season i'm probably more 90% now. Still firmly in his corner but with some question marks creeping in.

I’d really love that to be the case, but I can’t see anything other than Dan Burn at left back getting dry bummed by Saka, us conceding another 3 goals and Eddie doing exactly the same the following game. He just seems determined to keep Burn in the starting lineup regardless of consequence. 3 CBs, with Livra in at LB would make so much sense, but I fear it’s wishful thinking.

It is 100% Eddie Howe’s fault, 100%. Burn is absolutely the wrong choice for whatever we’re trying to execute right now.

I am, I really am. Thanks for making me see the error of my ways. Ever thought of being a therapist?

So change the system so we can accommodate two fullbacks. Virtually every other team in the league manages it - Liverpool play with Trent and Robertson, and last time I looked they were pretty fucking good! No one is holding a gun to Eddie’s head telling him he has to play a lopsided formation, with Burn dropping into a 3 to allow Trippier to get forward. It’s his system. And it currently doesn’t work! So change the fucking system. When Tino was starting games, the world didn’t end. In fact we looked more balanced and better defensively than we do now. We’re not suggesting some wild, experimental setup that’s never been seen before. We’ve seen it, and it worked. That’s why we’re so incredulous at this predictable clown show we’re being served up.

No, not all of them but you could make an argument for probably 4-5 out of the last 10. Of course the system exposes him, which is why his continued selection is so completely baffling. It’s basically an indefensible move on Howe’s part. “It’s not Dan Burn’s fault, it’s the midfield not giving him protection”. Right, but they’re not giving him protection every game, leaving him one v one against pacey wingers who rinse him. That’s just the way we play, so don’t fucking pick him. Whichever way you try to justify Dan Burn’s selection, you can’t. It doesn’t make sense on any level. Whether it’s Burn’s fault or not, he should not be playing.

This is the argument I don’t get. We are literally shipping 3 goals per game on average. Every time Dan Burn goes anywhere near the halfway line we are in danger of conceding on the break. Are you suggesting we’ll ship 4 per game if we swap Burn for Livra, who actually has the pace to get back? People are making arguments against certain changes as if we’re defensively solid. Our defensive system doesn’t work, at all. Changing it is the only thing that makes sense.

Burn dropping into a 3 means nothing though when you’re conceding goals for fun. Defending the player because he slots into a defensive system that doesn’t work, isn’t really defending the player….or the manager

We have a player in the first team who is single handedly costing us goals on a consistent basis and yet there’s no danger of him being dropped. Whichever way you look at it, that is shit management. Going into every game knowing you have to score at least 2 goals to win it because your loyalty to a player who should’ve been dropped weeks ago means we’ll definitely concede at least 1 is fucking ludicrous. It’s beyond comprehension. The idea that what Burn gives us in other areas makes up for his calamities is total bollocks. With him in the team were shipping goals for fun. Where’s the danger in swapping him for someone else? We concede more? Not going to happen!

FFS! Permacrock!

Really like the 3pm PPV idea! And the banning for chucking stuff. Both top ideas!

I genuinely think you could fix it in an hour. 1. If there’s contact anywhere on the pitch, and you choose to go to ground rather than the contact taking you to ground, it’s a dive and a booking. 2. Handball rule goes back to deliberate handball only. None of this silhouette shit and players playing with their hands behind their backs. They have fundamentally changed the handball rule and it doesn’t work. 3. Immediate yellow card for any ref intimidation 4. If we have to keep VAR, use it for offsides only. Give them 15 seconds to make a decision and if they can’t, the benefit of the doubt goes to the attacker like it always used to 5. Mandatory half time strippers

I think Palmer is already as good as Madison and he hasn’t hit his ceiling yet, whereas you could argue Madison is as good as he’s going to get. Palmer is also a fair bit younger and more versatile. To get a player of his quality for just £40m was always going to be great business. I doubt he’ll be on £75k per week for long.

Unless the keeper throws it into his net or has an absolute howler, it's unfair to blame them for stuff like that. They are the absolute last line of defence. He never even thinks about coming out for that if he has faith in the back 4 to get back. The fact that we have the slowest defence in the league is the cause of that goal, both physically and mentally. Saying Dubs should've done this or that is bollocks - if he had stayed on his line and Elanga still scored, people would be saying he should've come out. If you watch it again, he actually closes the chance down really well and limits Elanga's options, he just leaves his legs open to the nutmeg - if you want to criticise him for anything, it would be that and even then it would be extremely harsh. We consistently play a high line against pace, with one of the slowest defences in the league. The blame for that doesn't lie with Dubs.