Anthony Gordon (now playing for FC Barcelona)

[Hovagod]

What’s the handshake thing in reference to? Has Rooney just told an outright lie? 

[St1pe]

4 minutes ago, Hovagod said:

What’s the handshake thing in reference to? Has Rooney just told an outright lie? 

First I’d heard of it as well 

[SteV]

10 minutes ago, Hovagod said:

What’s the handshake thing in reference to? Has Rooney just told an outright lie? 

Rooney said that before the game he walked past them pitchside, and Rooney and whoever else was there, went to shake his hand and he said something along the lines of ‘l better not, I’ve had the lurgy’ - all of which seems to have been true.

 

But Rooney then went on to say, if he’s got the lurgy he’s just going to pass it on to all the other players in the changing room, but Gordon was pointing out that he got changed by himself in a separate room. So Rooney needs to wind his neck in.

[AyeDubbleYoo]

I haven’t followed the details but there was obviously no way Gordon would miss the Barca game unless he was absolutely fucked. Any other viewpoint is silly and always was. 

[Kilcline]

Rooney would do well to reflect on the main reason he's getting paid to be a gobshite is that he's proven to be an absolutely dogshit man manager and football coach. Fucking idiot.

[tgarve]

11 hours ago, madras said:

Its an issue with him, hes definitely a big game player.

Definitely a big game player 

 

only scores against poor teams

 

complete contradiction

 

can people not just accept he’s one of our best players- he’s nearly got 20 this season now, how many does he need to get to be shown some respect - 40? 

 

 

[Miggys First Goal]

1 hour ago, SteV said:

So Rooney needs to wind his neck in.

What neck?

 

[madras]

6 minutes ago, tgarve said:

Definitely a big game player 

 

only scores against poor teams

 

complete contradiction

 

can people not just accept he’s one of our best players- he’s nearly got 20 this season now, how many does he need to get to be shown some respect - 40? 

 

 

Hes got to play well consistently.

[tgarve]

6 minutes ago, madras said:

Hes got to play well consistently.

He does and he’s our best threat

[Bellis80]

Why would you sit on the bench if you got changed in a different room?

[SteV]

3 minutes ago, Bellis80 said:

Why would you sit on the bench if you got changed in a different room?

Cos there’s nowhere else to sit?

[Bellis80]

There’s seats next to the dugout.

[AyeDubbleYoo]

Surely sitting outside facing forwards is totally different to being in a room with the entire squad. 

[Kilcline]

9 minutes ago, Bellis80 said:

Why would you sit on the bench if you got changed in a different room?

There's probably a significant difference in spreading/contagion risk indoors versus outdoors even if you're sitting right next to someone outside.

 

*Disclaimer - I'm a marketing and communications consultant not an epidemiologist 

[Superior Acuña]

1 minute ago, AyeDubbleYoo said:

Surely sitting outside facing forwards is totally different to being in a room with the entire squad. 

 

Aye. They're just trying to reduce risk even if they can't eliminate it, doesn't have to be all or nothing! Yes there's prob some risk to those on the bench but it's lower and it's a more difficult problem to solve. In an enclosed changing room - higher risk and easy to solve.

[Deuce]

37 minutes ago, Kilcline said:

There's probably a significant difference in spreading/contagion risk indoors versus outdoors even if you're sitting right next to someone outside.

 

*Disclaimer - I'm a marketing and communications consultant not an epidemiologist 

COVID did make armchair epidemiologists of us all tbf  

[Deuce]

Since becoming first-choice CF (against Liverpool), he has 3 goals and an assist in 6 league matches.

 

His movement and work rate are top notch and he’s a very good finisher. It’s his best position and I think he’d agree. Only thing you’d want to see more of is an aerial presence, but Isak wasn’t exactly known for his aerial prowess and still knocked in plenty. Replacing Wolte with a proper #10 behind him would unlock things quite a bit…I wonder if we’d try Bruno in the role when he comes back.

 

                    Gordon

Barnes          Bruno           Elanga

           Ramsey       Tonali

[Kilcline]

6 minutes ago, Deuce said:

Since becoming first-choice CF (against Liverpool), he has 3 goals and an assist in 6 league matches.

 

His movement and work rate are top notch and he’s a very good finisher. It’s his best position and I think he’d agree. Only thing you’d want to see more of is an aerial presence, but Isak wasn’t exactly known for his aerial prowess and still knocked in plenty. Replacing Wolte with a proper #10 behind him would unlock things quite a bit…I wonder if we’d try Bruno in the role when he comes back.

 

                    Gordon

Barnes          Bruno           Elanga

           Ramsey       Tonali

Last night the aerial ball was to Woltemade who, especially in the second half, won a lot of first headers and quite strongly at that.

 

I'd love to see us try this, unfortunately for the aerial option the answer is remove Barnes.

 

You either play Joe there, or you play Woltemade there as an inside forward, and swap Tonali and Ramsey so you get Sandro's engine to cover Hall, but with Nick we lose something from the press 

[HayDen Traces]

Watching Villa. He's levels above Ollie Watkins in the striker role. 

[Smal]

You don't even have to be a good finisher to play up front in this team. We create so many tap-in chances as long as you are elite at being in the right place at the right time. His goal yesterday was case in point of that. I'm not sure any of our other strikers get there.  

 

It could work really well on the face of it. As with everything it'll be better when Bruno's back too and you get more reliable penetrative passes like Tino's surprisingly good one yesterday. 

 

I just really want to see him do perform well in a 3pm KO against, ie, Fulham before I fully embrace him as a player. 

 

 

Edited March 15 by Smal

[toon25]

7 hours ago, Virtua Stiva said:

If Wissa ever looks like the player we thought we’d bought, shift him out to the left hand side and keep Gordon up front. 

 

Absolutely not 

 

[toon25]

4 hours ago, SteV said:

Rooney said that before the game he walked past them pitchside, and Rooney and whoever else was there, went to shake his hand and he said something along the lines of ‘l better not, I’ve had the lurgy’ - all of which seems to have been true.

 

But Rooney then went on to say, if he’s got the lurgy he’s just going to pass it on to all the other players in the changing room, but Gordon was pointing out that he got changed by himself in a separate room. So Rooney needs to wind his neck in.

 

If he could fucking find it.

[Geogaddi]

Looks a completely different player when he is up front now, pressing and grafting like mad. Fair play to him, if he continues doing it then he will certainly stop getting stick.

 

 

Edited March 15 by Geogaddi

[Lush Vlad]

1 hour ago, Kilcline said:

Last night the aerial ball was to Woltemade who, especially in the second half, won a lot of first headers and quite strongly at that.

 

I'd love to see us try this, unfortunately for the aerial option the answer is remove Barnes.

 

You either play Joe there, or you play Woltemade there as an inside forward, and swap Tonali and Ramsey so you get Sandro's engine to cover Hall, but with Nick we lose something from the press 

Big Joe can help with being the target for headers. He already does it really well when he is a bit of a midfield target man, if that is even a thing  

 

We look for him to play out of trouble and over a press with more sort of mid-range passes. He is decent in the air and back to goal when in the middle.
 

I think we will look for him to be the target from longer balls now too. Off the ball, he is often more advanced and up with Gordon when pressing, anyway. So I don’t think being a bit further forward now and then as a direct option will be a problem. 
 

Been mentioned a few times. But we look much more fluid in attack since Gordon played centrally. Certainly seems to be more licence to roam for the forwards and midfielders. 

[Kilcline]

6 minutes ago, Lush Vlad said:

Big Joe can help with being the target for headers. He already does it really well when he is a bit of a midfield target man, if that is even a thing  

 

We look for him to play out of trouble and over a press with more sort of mid-range passes. He is decent in the air and back to goal when in the middle.
 

I think we will look for him to be the target from longer balls now too. Off the ball, he is often more advanced and up with Gordon when pressing, anyway. So I don’t think being a bit further forward now and then as a direct option will be a problem. 
 

Been mentioned a few times. But we look much more fluid in attack since Gordon played centrally. Certainly seems to be more licence to roam for the forwards and midfielders. 

Aye, Joelinton has been class as a target man/outball in general this season, so that would be my favoured solution to the hypothetical 4-2-3-1 idea. 

 

What's let us down has been the lack of closeness for Joe to drop it off or someone to win the second ball if it doesn't stick.

 

That being said, I think Joe has generally done that role when Pope has played, and dealing with a Pope field goal-esque punt and a Ramsdale mostly deliberate pass is a different kettle of fish, so that may change things and solve the shortcomings too.