Agree with what others have said, defense is a serious problem, particularly Stephens. I was watching on a dodgy stream so was difficult to determine who was who at times, but could always find Stephens as he just looked out of place. When ever someone was caught out of position or completely missed a tackle in defense, i knew that was him.
It was that jogging bit that annoyed me. With his time at Spurs he should have known that Kane had the quality to pick Son out with a pass and got on his shoulder or even goal side. A lot to talk about when Ralph sits them all down at Staplewood.
I can see big Vester and Fraser being brought in to deal with those long direct balls at windy Turf Moor...
It's pretty obvious to me that we need to sign a Cahill, Terry, experienced leader at the back. No idea who's available though.
Agree with a lot of this but picking scapegoats after a defensive performance like this could be short-sighted We used to play a high line and always kept three at the back, either one of the full backs or a midfielder, we now appear to be playing 2-4-2-2 It would work better if we NEVER gave them any space, but it means you have to constantly press KWP was in the centre-circle when they played the ball forward to Son in the 45th minute, going in at HT 1 up would have been a massive psychological boost Although the signs had already been there that we were going to mess up defensively at some point Inept defensively and apparantly to attempt to deal with the issues that were there for all to see Other than that I thought we played much better and should have won Djeneppo MOTM
Well Ralph has promised two players in (assuming Boufal leaves) and I suspect he is not the sort of person to panic buy. (Danso wasn't a panic buy - he was never played as a CB and turned out to be too argumentative.) That said, you have to ask yourself which is more likely - the team that went 7 games unbeaten at the end of the season have suddenly forgotten how to play football or we are sorely missing the 3 midfielders who were barely featuring toward the end of last season? I think your reference to VVD and Fonte is a good one. A class defender (VVD) can make even a mistake prone CB look good. It's all about leadership which we have lacked at the back.
Been calling for it for about three years now, the defence has been underfunded compared to the rest of the squad but we have wasted money on Vester and Hoedt too.
I get his point, but hes also moaning at having to bring youngsters on with no squad depth. Ralph wanted a small squad, supplemented by those young players so he cant have it both ways.
Aren't we all? But let's not allow that to start another Gao bashing burst... ... they are clearing trying to sign a couple (and offload a couple). It's not always that straightforward!
Disagree that Danso wasn't a panic buy. He was absolutely brought in to placate the fans/Ralph who knew a CB was essential. The nature of it was clear that he wasn't anywhere near our first choice.
I just wish we had had the chance to see him at centre back. I only really remember his second or third appearance at left back (home game) and Ralph gave him a bit of grief for his positional play. He turned around and gave a mouthful back. I knew then he would never be part of Ralph's plans!
I don't think Ralph has promised it at all. He's said that's what he wants, but that's very different. Wishes and wants don't always happen. Just ask the manager of the team who have just stuffed five past us - he was very vocal throughout his time at Utd about how he wanted better CBs. He never got them. Of course it's very good to hear that Ralph was additions. I'd much rather he was giving interviews like today's, than pretending that the squad is fine. But a manager wanting players doesn't always equate to managers getting players. (But getting five put past you does help!)
