Kooiman

We were a man up for twenty five minutes and barely troubled them.

Am I having to explain why Sunderland winning and us struggling to a draw against ten men is a wank start to the season? I'm not hoying myself off a bridge, but howay man.

Jesus Christ. This is proving to be an awful Saturday.

Did the job as asked, it's just not the job he's suited for. Looked so much happier out wide.

God bless those who do, I don't see many positives there. Aston Villa were worse than us with 11 men, but we simply weren't any kind of substantial threat.

Will never feel the same about him after today.

He gave up arguing it pretty quick. I think he knew. No one close by, grab on the shoulder.

Quite curious to see what they view him as. He's played a few different positions.

Is it weird I'm raging watching the game knowing he could be on the pitch?

Yeah, that's a fair shout. I just think the pressure of it will define a few, and if they don't start well it'll be interesting to see how the fans react. They could also fly out the traps and do well. To your point, after the initial adrenaline dump what happens?

Football Manager has him at 80k a week FWIW.

Hmmm, interesting first game in the Premier League. I can totally see why we fancied him after watching his early outings. His link up play is good and he seems to thrive on the counter attack (some nice flicks and tricks to go with his assist). At the same time, his goal was VERY fortunate and outside of that he didn't test the goalkeeper. I reckon he gets 12-15 in the league.

Apologies if you've said already, but how's the mood in the camp? It feels like our two teams end up feeling a lot of the same things.

Huge litmus test for them tomorrow. They need the team to gel ASAP, and even then, with so many signings from abroad they want to hope they adjust quickly. We saw tonight with Wirtz, you can be the bell of the ball in another league, but adjusting to a new culture can take some time, and that's before you include the manager in that, who's never been at this level.

Maybe I've got my black and white glasses on, but the more I see of Liverpool the more I struggle to justify them signing Isak right now. Ekitike has had a bright start and looks ready to lead the line. If you sign Isak you're instantly taking minutes away from Ekitike in his natural position, whether that means putting him on the bench or shunting him out wide. Even if they're suggesting a total football in-game rotation where they alternate positions, it seems like trying to put a hat on a hat. It made more sense for us to sign both because it was a succession plan with Isak leaving 12 months later. Are Liverpool fans trying to say with a straight face that Ekitike signed up to play for them knowing they'd sign an even more expensive striker in the same summer? Sure, it's two games, but I've seen very few issues with Liverpool's attack. I've seen multiple issues with their defense. That's their priority. I would imagine Isak himself is starting to see that.