I do wish "lack of ambition" was on the swear filter. What does it mean? I'd like a clear, concise explanation of what exactly it is that displays a "lack of ambition". By all means say we should have signed a striker in the summer. By all means say we need two up front when Shane's playing. By all means complain that the thought that Charlie would replace Pelle and JayRod would be scoring for fun again was optimistic. Rolling out "lack of ambition" has literally no evidence to back it up. I won't bore anyone with a list of our finishing positions since the Liebherrs took over - we should all know it by heart - but "lack of ambition" isn't what leaps off the page. So, what is a "lack of ambition"? Vin
. And by this point in the season we'd played 25 games. This season we've played 32 games. That just might be a factor. Vin
Winning the cup will of course change how this season is perceived. Semi final by itself means nothing.
Lack of ambition for me...... stop the every player has his price line, stop selling our better players. Wanyama DIDNT want to move,he got fed up with club selling great players and replacing them with inferior ones,he once went into see Koeman and Koeman wanted him to commit to the club,when Victor told him how could he commit when the manager doesn't see a future in the club that says to me that they lack the ambition,to sell whom we have and replace with Austin for me was a risk,but as you say it's how we translate "lack of ambition" is all down to opinion,and mine is STOP selling our best players and replacing them with cheaper alternatives. But I respect your opinion of how you see lack of ambition
Better ask Leicester fans about step backs, they were Champions last season!....that's just the way the Premier League is, below the top six it is dog eat dog and we don't have a divine right to be in the top ten. As Vin has pointed out, the sheer number of fixtures this season almost guaranteed that we would not replicate last season's league position. The season is often made up of peaks and troughs and things look worse right now because we are in a trough. I expect our results to pick up and we will probably finish in the top ten again.
Tell you what, if Austin had stayed fit (yes, I know) we'd be 8th or 9th now and not terribly concerned. Puel has been really rather unlucky that Long appears to have forgotten where the goal is, Jay hasn't really recovered to be the player he once was (yet) and Tadic is having a horrible run of form. As Beef said, let's let the board sort out a more coherent strike force this month (surely they must do?) and then we can start to make a fairer judgement on the coaching of the side. Right now he's hamstrung. I hope we land Gabbiadini soon. Like, before the second leg of the cup.
At the end of the day, apart from maybe Beefy and Puck, is there anyone on here who would have swapped around these two 1-0 scorelines this week, if given the option? I'm not saying that I'm happy with today, not at all. But it wasn't our most important game of the week (in my opinion). And I will equally take a defeat against Leicester/Swansea in exchange for another win over Liverpool. And then also take a defeat against Watford in exchange for a win against Utd (or Hull) in the final. (All of this said. If we get to 1st February and the board haven't done anything to try and solve our offensive issues, then I don't even want to think about the fallout)
I just can't stand the negativity on here every time we don't get the result we may deserve. Yes we all agree we need a striker, but let's face it we won't get Defoe, so who do we go for? There is no one - let's get behind the team and the manager like true fans. God knows what this site will be like if we lose the 2 cup games ...... I'm off until everyone settles down ....
What does this actually mean? We cheer on the team at games. We go on a saints forum every bloody day as we care so much. We argue with each other over the fantasy that football is anything more than a bunch of guys chasing after an inflated piece of material. How are we "negative" or not "true fans" if we use the forum for its proper purpose: forum ˈfɔːrəm/ noun 1. a meeting or medium where ideas and views on a particular issue can be exchanged. "we hope these pages act as a forum for debate" synonyms: meeting, assembly, gathering, conference, seminar, convention, colloquy, convocation, congress, rally, council, symposium, conclave, congregation, synod, diet; More I am really scratching my head as to what on Earth you mean. What is negative about assessing a situation and discussing it? The situation isn't good - so most assessments reflect that. Curiously, that suggests they are not negative at all - and that what you are really saying is we should all be optimistic about the team. That's fabulous - but no less delusional or limiting as someone who comes on here with no other aim than to post "negatively". There are things wrong at the moment. We use the forum to discuss them. We work out a little of our frustrations. We go do the other things in our lives that actually matter. Sorry, but that seems to me to be the right way to use a forum.
A game which we won with a goal from the centreback and an own goal..from a centreback. All that despite playing brilliantly over two legs, losing the first one to a single shot on target. Honestly, its like our season has been scripted each game using the cut n paste option. This is why I'm not blaming the manager.
Long was never a good converter of opportunities. His goalscoring last year really came from a simple fact: we provided him with a tonne of gilt-edged chances, and he took...well, some of them. Here are his goals from last season. In order, we have: i) Great work to burst through on goal. Keeper took the ball off his feet. Scored at the second opportunity from a wide open header. ii) Good back post header from a cross against a smaller defender. Got a run on him because the defender was watching the three (!) other players in front of him making runs in the box. iii) Shot on the break hit the keeper, rebounded off Long and in. iv) Put through on goal, good finish. v) Good back post header from a cross. vi) Pass from Mane 2v1. Absolutely wide open...couldn't miss. vii) Played in, finished. viii) Early ball into a largely empty box, good header. ix) Open header from a cross. x) Defensive error and Long gets in on goal, finishes. xi) Walks through the entirety of the Newcastle defense, because Newcastle defense. xii) Open header from an early cross because Villa had gone home mentally. xiii) Scored on a cutback on the break. The thing to note is that almost all of those were early in possessions. The others mostly involved mistakes, either forced or unforced...overloading the box caused a defender to hesitate for ii), he got a couple headers in acres of space because teams shut off completely, Newcastle's lost the concept of ambulatory motion, etc. Which isn't to denigrate Long, but he'll only get you goals in the right setup; he doesn't finish well in traffic (or overall), but he's a menace in the open field. This season, he's either isolated up top, or waiting for crosses in a congested box with perhaps one other teammate, where he is well attended to by the defense most of the time. He was never going to score many in this team.
Bang on. Well done breaking down his goals. If anyone would like to break down the number of missed chances he's had over the last three seasons, that would be more informative. He's not a goal scorer, he's a bloody pest who is excellent at jumping, breaking up the game and winning free kicks. He musty be a nightmare to play against but only because he's so not dangerous but oh so annoying.
He can be a goalscorer, in that he'll create holes when we're moving quickly, which will create chances, and he'll bag some of those. But historically, his goalscoring his run the gamut from "adequate" to "suboptimal" depending on what surrounded him; his tally of 10 goals was a career high in the PL, as was his rate of one goal for every 211 minutes. Since WBA bought him in 2011-12, he has bagged one every 279 minutes, if he were to be brought on late in the next game and score, his goal rate this season wouldn't be that far off his career numbers.
Just another point - if Virgil's header had been an inch either way, we'd have a deserved point from today. It wouldn't mean we needed a striker any less, but we really were unfortunate today.
We have 17 games and we need 18 points or six wins to be safe. **** the FA Cup play the kids. Do our utmost to get to the League Cup Final but focus on getting those 18 points for safety. I don't give a toss for what has happened before, that is history. What is important now is the future and securing our status as a PL team
