Burn left, Manq right I'd suspect. Get a youth player on the bench instead of Gayle if he's not going to get a look in
To be fair I always said he wasn’t a striker. I said he was a wide forward, which he had been his whole career. He was improving and people were still slating him saying the bar was just low. He has since moved into midfield and improved again. Patience is required (even more so with foreign players). His attitude was never poor for all he needed to toughen up. Wood is going alright. His pressing is exactly what we need, we will of course put Wilson back in when fit. I think Wood will score soon. He came to us in poor form. He has created a lot of space for Fraser and Max to work in because he attracts centre backs to him. He batters them. He hunts them down. This idea he isn’t mobile is just rubbish. No world beater and not worth 25m but the fee is irrelevant. He is doing ok and will improve. He was a short term 5 month fix and if we keep that in perspective I think we will end up respecting the job he does like Sibierski. Remind me how many games we won or points we accumulated before he came? He is part of the improvement.
I have no issue with him one way or the other, he would never have fitted into our system currently. What will be interesting is to see what his reaction will be to the atmosphere on Sunday. I really hope we just kick on from the other night both on the pitch and in the stands.
Burn definitely fit. Late fitness test for Trippier (as in, he’s fine). Bruno ready but Howe liked his midfield against Everton. Personally think you need Bruno in for Shelvey in this one, Manquillo in for Targett and Burn in for Schar.
Yeah, I'd like to see those changes too. I think Bruno will be key to helping us contain Coutinho. Shelvey doesn't do enough to counter the movement and pace Villa play at.
There's been an improvement across the board. I think Howe needs to keep the team that beat Everton. Dropping a Shelvey or a Willock after they have delivered the requested improvement sets an uneasy precedent in my view. I'm desperate to see what Bruno can bring but that's how a squad should work. You have to bust your ass every game or as soon as your performance drops or the result goes against us we bring in replacements. If we beat Villa then we continue to stick until we lose or draw, then we change things up. The players need motivation to perform week in week out.
I don’t know if I’d drop Schar. As bad as he was, he tends to only chuck in the bad one maybe 1 in 4. So I’d gamble he’s got it out of his system. Just slot Burn or Manquillo in on the left and go again. I’d play Bruno but I was wrong against Everton so I think I’ll just leave it to Eddie as he clearly knows what he’s doing. Trippier fit is great news.
Howe knows he's got to avoid making players unhappy. If you lose a place after playing well it's just not right. Bruno will get his chance the minute someone's level drops I suspect. I'm with you though drop jonjo he was poor imo on Tuesday and he knows it
Then again Couthinho fit straight in at Villa so it's a bit of a crapshoot on when you introduce them
