Sibierski

They’ve gambled in a different way to what we did last season. We gambled in sense of knowing FFP was going to fuck us but didn’t move anyone on in gamble to get back into Europe. Villa have gambled by buying to get into Europe. Worthwhile gamble by Villa because it’s indirectly resulted in a domestic cup run which has giving them a great chance of a cup.

Win the home games, draw away games (expect Leicester one that has to be a win), we 100% finish top 5. It’s the home games I’m not confident in ironically, where at start of season away form was questionably bad. We just seem to have no composure at home.

The senior pro who ripped his pec muscle fighting for a ball off the pitch. He’s been a good servant in past, but he’s days are long gone and he’s shown nothing all season. When he comes on, we’re also playing with 9.5 outfield players.

What has this guy got on Howe? It’s criminal he’s taking minutes away from Osula.

Christ. We seriously need to get better at game management in standard home games, not sustainable this across future games.

Maybe some subs to take sting out. It’s wild Osula can’t be trusted at all.

Get in. Needed that, now to get some composure back.

Amazing how our frailties are on show again, despite a team that’s packed out with experience Caraboa a distant memory.

Fuck off with Callum Wilson. Can the management team finally realise he’s a busted flush ffs.

Should kill this off inside 10 mins of 2nd half IMO. We go 2-0 up, Brentford will just go through emotions and accept a 2-0 defeat.

Perfect time to score. Now for us to do a prem classic 2nd half of not turning up

Oh Isak

That’s a stinky Brentford side which will just be sat deep, spamming balls long. Got to manage the ball well and not overcommit like we’ve done in past, 90 minute game.

Incompetent accountants.

They’ll spend big because they have shown to want to max out every £. Also now got the caveat that the players they’ve signed recently all have good markets to sell on if required. They should be well positioned to cement themselves as a competent top 10 side if they don’t fuck it real bad in summer.

He’s loads worse

Both unsuccessful Thankfully work quiet on Monday, so blocked out diary to get them on general sale.

I’d also argue that if you got a functioning team, you can have a group of CMs that are 7 out of 10s if it works as a unit. Liverpool under Klopp was just that.

We don’t have that in Gordon though. Just because he’s been rolled out there in desperate times, doesn’t make him an option because we all say how much we drop with him up front. Can argue we have Joelinton also as a striker option, but again we all know we wouldn’t want him playing up front.

Each time I see Anderson, it hurts me so much. Should’ve been a CM here for good majority of his 20s and we never got to really experience him because of the unfortunate injury last season Going to be more painful in seasons to come when he breaks into England team.

I’d also argue the best Man City version was one that had two strikers in Aguero/Jesus. I 100% believe clubs will from next season onwards want to have two strikers because of how the game is evolving. Sides are building up more in a 3-2 + whatever shape, and that shape is either 4 attacking mids and one striker, or 3 attacking mids and 2 strikers. The goal threats are the strikers if wide men are not racking them up.

Not that good based on? I’d like to think Howe would take someone like Delap (players that are eager to learn/develop) to new levels and £40m will be great buy. For other post about free transfers, do we really want to clog squad up with guys like KWP/DCL that don’t move the needle at all and could become a burden. We got lucky (might still not be the case depending how Juve season goes) with shifting Kelly on.

Teams have done well against them, it’s just a lot of results keep going Forest way as the underlaying stats says so. They’ll naturally drop off next season because training and match prep in like 48 hour turn arounds is a completely different ball game. Howe touched on this I think it was for the League Cup SF. Where he said our experience and learnings from the required short turn around match plans from Europe helped him plan and implement for the Arsenal game.

Someone like Mbeumo would tick that 2nd striker option whilst being RW, but his signing is peak value with little resale profit. So maybe Delap could be the opportunistic move we’ve done in past, with RW to be a low cost shrewd signing, which Mitchell is there for. Say we have £60m earmarked for ST/RW. Would people like it to be Delap £40m and RW £20m, or DCL £0 and Mbeumo £55m.

We’ve seen some evolution this season of almost being a 4-4-2, so a 2nd striker or someone that’s clearly more suited through the middle would get loads of minutes and be as valuable as other outfield positions. Like Man Utd have Zirkzee to go up top, Villa have two in Rashford replacing Duran, Chelsea have two in Nkunku/Jackson, Liverpool as mentioned, Spurs have two in Solanke/ Richarlison, Man City signed Marmoush as they only had Haaland. Arsenal weirdly have Jesus/Havertz. Big sides have two IMO, Gordon as that 2nd for us is never it. We all say it when he plays up top, and I’m sure it’s a viewpoint expressed by Howe too behind closed doors, and for one reason or another, Osula hasn’t been that this season for us.