Erikse

That header gave "bend it like Dan Burn" a whole new meaning. A header that literally bent just enough to go in.

Hope we get to see him start alongside Wissa when he's back and fit. He does some great stuff when he drops deep, but then he won't make it into the box when our wingers are attacking, and they usually can't do it on their own either (except Barnes sometimes). I didn't really believe the talk about him being a 10 (false 9?), but he really does play like one, and I think we would benefit from playing a more direct striker infront of him considering our style of play.

Almiron was immense in the high press. Was probably our best player on that specific trait? Atleast top 3. Also did so much work defensively. For me Elanga needs to outplay Almiron by a margin with what he does on the ball to be better, because he will probably never be as good as Almiron off the ball. So far he hasn't been better on the ball, but there's no way an in form Elanga isn't better with the ball. That's a pretty low bar to beat.

I just checked, that's the only goal that was from open play, and not from set piece. Hall has 2, and Livra 1. Obviously he's a threat from set pieces nomatter where he plays on the pitch. And yes the others are not a goal threat either, but they can put in crosses.

Yeah I edited it in while both of you were typing.

From open play or set pieces? I guess he can get into the box for a header from open play, but I can't remember it happening. I do remember that cup goal from 2-3 years ago, though. 4-0 vs Leicester I believe.

It depends what you mean by "not even shite". I mean, I'm sure all our CBs can be "not shite" in the same way at fullback if they were forced to play there, except Lascelles.

I'd imagine that Schar at right back would be similar. I mean sure, he can use his strength and pull off some decent short passes, but that's about it. That's a pretty low standard.

Pretty much useless whenever he passes the halfway line and tries to attack from the left. Just look at the shot attempt he had for instance. It has been a big handicap offensively, and the difference on how we progressed with the ball on the left was obvious when Hall came on. You can't ever expect Burn to beat a single man with the ball in his feet. That's pretty damn bad for a PL left back, of any side.

Literally night and day on the ball compared to Burn. The polar opposite. We've missed this.

Feels good to have a striker who is actually useful in the last 30 when we are leading.

I feel like Trippier often puts too much weight on his through balls nowadays.

Yeah, in both CL and for England he has faced weaker opponents. It's probably more down to that.

PSV - Napoli 6-2

I was wondering if the handball rules were different in the CL.. I've seen way worse not get given in PL this season.

I know the change of formation hasn't worked at all, but I do wonder if there was ever a world where a 3-5-2 could have worked, with Gordon and Murphy on each wing, and Osula + Wolte up top. That way we wouldn't be playing 2 centrebacks at each fullback, and rather 3 at the back. It's a little more offensive than the 5-3-2 that we failed at earlier in the season. Probably not something worth considering anymore anyways with Hall getting back into fitness, though.

If we are going to become regular european side then that's a struggle that we need to handle every season.

Didnt't know where to post it, but since takeover: Signings from outside the PL: Bruno Trippier Tonali Woltemade Thiaw Botman Isak Minteh Total: €347,5m Sales: Isak Minteh Total: €180m Net: €167,5m Signings from PL: Gordon Hall Livramento Burn Barnes Elanga Ramsey Wissa Pope Osula Ramsdale Targett Wood Kelly Total: €414,25m Sales: Wood Kelly Total: €42,5m Net: €371,75m Overall I our hitrate when signing players from other leagues has been out of this world. Absolute bargains all of them, and a huge profit on the 2 sales. The PL signings are looking like a mixed bag. A bit early to judge a few of them, but currently the biggest question marks are really the wingers, and possibly Ramsey. We still have a done decently well from buying within the league, but only Livra and potensially Hall looks like high value signings, while with the signings from outside the PL all of them has been of very high value, except for Trippier. Obviously you can argue that signings like Burn and Trippier was also high value for what they've done for us, but that's a different discussion.

If you mean my post, that's not what I meant. There are many things in between going full Klopp and going full Guardiola. Imo Howe is trying to not go all in on high pressing/intensity like we used to (intensity and high press is not the same as counter attacking). That's understandable given how many games we have to play. That doesn't mean that we are now trying to go all in on possession instead. Going all in on intensity has contributed a lot to our success under Howe, but that doesn't mean that we won't be able to be successful with a slightly different approach if we manage to find one that works for us. I think Howe still want us to be direct when attacking, hence why he is going for players like Elanga and Ramsey (and that's coming from someone who isn't convinced about those signings yet). I expect us to atleast play with more intensity than the last game in the next few, as we really need to turn things around.

I think that was in the FA Cup quarterfinal. My stats were league only. I think he got a direct red in that game that you talk about.

If we go for “intensity is our identity” this season, half of our team will be out with injuries, and the rest will be ran into the ground. It's easy to identify the problem, but knowing the solution is more difficult. I think this is his struggle now. I think he's trying to be more conservative with our energy since we have 2 games per week. He did that at the start of the season during our last CL season, but reverted back to going all in on intensity, as he couldn't find an alternative style that worked. As we know that resulted in an absolute nightmare with the injuries and fatigue. He is trying to avoid that this season, but it seems like he is struggling to find a more moderate way of playing, as intensity has allways been his style. Atleast that's what I think is the problem. I think he's still trying to figure out how he can win while also keeping his players fit through some serious load of gametime. We have more depth this time though, so maybe I'm wrong, and he does want us to play with lots of intensity. It just seems like he has abandoned the constant high pressing style, presumably because it's not sustainable. Now, having some natural fullbacks available would be useful aswell. Our fullback sitaution is a nightmare. I hope we can sign a right back in january.

I was looking at his stats, and noticed something. I'm not saying getting a bunch of cards is a good thing, but I feel like it's a testament to the change in aggression and mentality. He showed that aggression against Liverpool, and it got him sent off, but he was doing well before that red. In his best season he got 10 yellows, while ever since that he has gotten just 2 in the league. Some players needs to be mental to perform at their best. Take the emotional side out of lets say Bruno or Joelinton, and they are not that useful anymore.

Think this could to be one of those seasons that some teams have where we struggle in the league, but go far in the cups and/or CL. Even if the league goes to shit for us, we still have other tournaments.

Atleast he's 21 and has potensial. He also suits their playstyle more than Gordon imo.

Would be surprised to see someone like Liverpool or Chelsea be in for him now. They will be aiming for players like Semenyo.