Probably the worst performance under Emery, but you have to ask yourself if we ever even looked that bad under Gerrard? One shot on target all game – the goal I had already left the stadium for. It was simply spineless and I actually had a great point made to me yesterday, as follows:
Our usual lineup would consist of starting players like Watkins, McGinn, Torres and instead we start Abraham, Lindelof, Barkley and Sancho etc.
Who signed all of the players that put in that spineless performance today? And who did we play them instead of? It’s very clear that we dropped Gerrard, Smith and Bruce signings and played a lot more Emery signings than usual.
I’m sorry, but the recruitment under Emery has simply not been good enough. I do not know how much control Unai has had over this matter but it has still not been near good enough.
I’ve said this a few times this season, how we are 5th in the league table I genuinely do not know. We have zero attacking presence at all.
I put in a comment last night about how we’d fluked where we are this season, I can explain. Our whole season has been built on a good run of form, which was saved many times by long shots.
The statisticians and pundits were right – it is simply unsustainable, and ever since the first side clocked they need to close us down on the edge of the box whilst holding shape on the wing to ensure our only option is to pass sideways, that’s when our season totally capitulated.
Notice how I didn’t even account for attackers making runs down the flanks? It simply isn’t applicable, they will either lose the ball on their own (like Rogers yesterday) or they will get bodied off the ball within three seconds (like Sancho……. yesterday)
A very negative post but a reality check. If we go and beat Forest, we have beaten a relegation fighting side at home in a competition that we should be winning. It is season saving, but I wouldn’t go as far as to say the negative fans are in the wrong if we go and win that game, it is perfectly plausible.
A post pointing out a lot of the flaws within our side, and what bugs me the most is that this is what we’ve largely put up with for years, and nothing has been done about it. If we do not sort our attacking force out then I can’t see us winning another game this season. We must now look to Thursday, the biggest Villa game of my lifetime.
UTV
I think we need that Gibbs White cannot play to equalise our current dilemma. Probably just dreaming. I always find it difficult to understand that the same people that give out about the old days and heavy wet footballs do not seem to mind players wearing reinforced face masks. I’m not going to make a call about the game because I want so much that we win both tonight and the final.
New rules being tested to prevent timewasting in the World Cup, that I like.
Throw-ins and goal kicks
Building on last year’s widely welcomed change in the Laws to prevent goalkeepers from holding the ball for too long, the AGM confirmed the extension of the countdown principle to throw-ins and goal kicks.
If the referee considers that a throw-in or goal kick is taking too long or is being deliberately delayed, a five-second visual countdown will be initiated. If the ball is not in play at the end of the countdown, the throw-in will be awarded to the opposing team; a delayed goal kick will result in a corner kick to the opposing team.
That should stop those long throw specialists from crossing from the other side of the pitch.
Time-limited substitutions
To further streamline match flow, substituted players must leave the field of play within 10 seconds of the substitution board being displayed or, where no board is used, upon the referee’s signal. Should the player fail to leave within this time, they must still exit the field; however, the substitute will not be permitted to enter until the first stoppage after one minute of play (running clock) has elapsed.
Off-field treatment and assessment
Where a player receives on-field assessment for an injury, or their injury causes play to be stopped, the player will be required to leave the field of play and remain off for one minute once play (running clock) has restarted.
Players in verbal confrontations who cover their mouth will receive a red card.
Subs will have 10 seconds to leave the pitch otherwise their replacements must wait 1 minute.
Rodger is not running he’s jogging, that header is a penalty all day long,