1 step forward, 2 steps back. May have been a bit unlucky today, but poor goal to concede. We just won't score enough goals to make up for a single slip in defence. Sometimes the simple explanation is the right one, we need a new striker, maybe two. Best go with three, to be safe.
Havent been able to watch the match but this is pretty much the story of our season so far. I'll be surprised if we're not saying it in June.
92 teams enter the league cup every season so there must have been over 150 different teams entering over the past 20 years. In those 20 years there have been just 11 different winners. So it's actually not really attainable for many teams at all considering less than 10% of teams that have entered in the past 20 years have won it! As for the FA cup, that has even more entries so is even harder to win. People that no longer care about cups don't make much sense as football is a game based on trophies and winning. There is no trophy for a good premier league finish unless you are number 1. If you're happy to just to be competitve in competitons every year then fair enough. I would actually like us to be the best in a competiton and win it personally.
Really hit home tonight when Alonso's first goal for Chelsea was a better finish that we seem to be incapable of this season and it was on his weaker foot! If Redmond could of done that on Wednesday we'd have one foot in the final...
With a severe lack of ambition @ the top has really left this team wanting. Maybe Puel has been chucked in at the deep end,but for the club to not back him is one hell of a gamble. Selling players not replacing them is a recipe for disaster. Reed pull your fingers out and prove that Puel is the right man and give him some money to spend!!!! Anyone would think it's his bloody club
Can sort of agree with you but he certainly took opposing CB's focus off Long et al which definitely benefitted us. Also, as previously mentioned, even when he was "dropped" we played a different way which we don't have now.
Puel will sit down with Reed to discuss the possibility of signing a striker! Only 14 days into the transfer window and it clearly hasn't become apparent to him or those above until now!!!
But that includes teams much, much lower in the football pyramid than ourselves. If we were in League 2, certainly...I wouldn't be thinking that finals appearances are very achievable. We're not, though; while 92 teams enter the League Cup, by the time we entered the competition it had already been winnowed to 32. If you assume it's a mere coin flip between all of those teams, our mean time to happen for an EFL Cup finals appearance is 16 years, but realistically it's quite a bit less as we're heavily favoured over the majority of the teams in the draw for that first round. Add in the FA Cup (where the MTTH is 32 years on paper, less in practice) and, as a mid-table PL side, we should reach a cup final, on average, at least once a decade.
First season back in the PL we were 14th at the end of the season, If I recall correctly. We're on a good path to finish lower this season. And back then we had Fox and Hooiveld in the lineup.
It's so easy to just moan and groan about spending the cash. I have no doubt that they are trying hard to bring at least one or two in but we know there are so many teams trying to do the same. I think everyone knows it was an error not buying another striker in the summer and then that mistake has been compounded with Austin's injury and Long's deficiencies. Very soon we will only be playing once a week, with Boufal back and Puel having time to work with the players properly for each game and I fully expect an upturn. It would be fantastic if we could find a performance at Anfield to get us a Wembley final to look forward to.
Not wetting the bed but how exactly do think we will finish in midtable when we are unable to score any goals and are conceding in every game? Genuine question. I am seriously hoping for some investment because the likelihood of a turnaround in form are slim on recent evidence. J-Rod is the only attacking player who has a glimmer of coming right. Long is not working in this squad, Redmond needs another couple of seasons to become the goal scoring threat he needs to be. We are so close to being a menacing side and yet we are soooo faaar away.
Boufal is a fantastic attacking midfielder? For those brought up watching the sublime pieces of skill that can turn a game (MLT), Boufal offers plenty of the same. First season in a new league, off the back of a nasty injury and he's already lit up St Mary's with some worldies. Give him some time to find his consistency. I think he's superb.
That does raise questions about our stated model, however. To date, we have pointed to the black box as our panacea whenever we sell our best players. If it is indeed extremely difficult to find adequate replacements, to the extent that we may have to go without at a position of great importance in consecutive windows, it's time for a re-think.
I said earlier that I honestly think our promotion team would beat this one if we play like we did today. Lambert and Lallana would have had a field day on the break.
Not sure I agree about Jay. He has shown the potential to come right if given a run of games. He's close. His game against Pool in the cup was great just Redmond and Cedric letting him down a bit. Oh and you've done a great job today giving the board a target for their displeasure : )
I think his attitude on the pitch stands out too much. If he could pull his head in and become less of a twat when reacting I think we'd see his performances improve. I think he's too wound up.
