Some good play against Leicester with a makeshift team. Jackson was good again with his goal a bit Drogbaesque. He is starting to look like a decent striker and works really hard. Palmer was crocked by a red card challenge but the ref turned yellow. Fernandez had one of his good games, but Lavias' absence saw Leicester often waltz through our midfield. Fofana did very well on the right and Badashielle was steady and tidy. Still not sold on Felix, but he is lively. For the life of me don't get Marescas treatment of Nkunku, had to start. So a comfortable win against an ordinary Leicester, and we now sit in 3rd place. Have to be happy with that and acknowledge the good work everyone is pitting in.
It's a shame, and I hate to call him this, but Sicknote has fallen again to the dreaded "hamstring problem". Will he ever get over it, I hope so.
It is starting to look like the end for James, which is a real loss for us and the game. Such a great player but hamstrung by a hamstring. Not much info coming from the Club, let's hope it's just a knock and not another tear.
Glad to see jackson starring again. Very pleased we have kept the faith with him and not gone for another overpriced striker (osinheim I'm looking at your for 100m+). Him and palmer are our future. Glad to see caicedo starting to be a lynchpin in our team too
Overall a decent performance. A real shame about James, you can see the constant injuries and lack of play time has seriously hampered his progress and it looks all but over for him but at least Jackson is kicking on and showing he has what it takes to lead our front line. Agree about Nkunku aswell, everytime I see him play he is a baller, yet Maresca treats him like a red headed stepchild. Dont quite understand what the guy needs to do to prove his worth. Theres even talk about him joining another club on loan in January!! Shame about the late penalty as a clean sheet would have been nice, but a standard run of the mill victory nonetheless.
We are now looking like a more settled and more focused TEAM. Jackson is a standout with his work rate, his speed and power, and his positioning and shooting has improved out of sight. Cool his head a bit , and he's a gem in the making. Casiedo is also outstanding. Our 2 young centre backs are steadying up and both can attack and pass really well. Our left backs are both really good, Gusto having a slight dip but will get back soon and Reece James a big question mark. Midfield is still messy but with Enzo on a run of better form, Maresca seems to be getting him involved well too. Badashielle looks as if he needs game time, as does Mudryk, to lift like Jackson and Casiedo did. When they were given lots of starts they slowly got better and better. Then there's Nkuku who scores goals like no one else in the starting line up. Maresca surely will get around to giving him a turn ??
One can only hope. I know a lot of his performances have been against lower quality teams in the League cup and the Europa Conference, but I have seen enough of him to know there is a talent there, and I think if he got a run in the PL starting XI he would prove a quality player, but Maresca doesnt seem to think so......we will have to wait and see I guess. There was talking of United being interested in him on a loan deal in January, I really hope that doesnt happen
He scores the kind of goals others can't , in tight areas against defensive blocks. It's a specific talent few have. Rewatching the Leicester game last night we could have really used him. Given our dominance of possession, another few goals might have been expected, but with Felix and Enzo there, neither is a great marksman. As you say, Maresca hopefully has plans for him, but you never know.
Nkunku on the score again in Germany and a very nice piece of skill indeed. He was a standout along with our Goalie, while Sancho and Mudryk also played sharply and effectively. Can't be too long before Jorgensen gets a run with the starting Team in the PL ??
We certainly seem to be building a head of steam. Todays game will be the real test though. A chance to keep pressure on the top spots and beat a well organised, determined side. I’s good to see Jackson start to deliver. He could be a key player for us down at the sharp end of the season. It’s also nice to see the workload being shared and not having to rely on Palmer.
Solid victory today. I knew Jackson had it in him, saw potential last season, he just needed to be more clinical, but he is getting there.
And just as you said, a good Team result, goals spread around, and Maresca trying a new way to use Caisedo and bring Enzo into the game more. Lots of games coming up and after Spuds game, it looks as if Maresca has the chance to really give everyone some proper game time with a run of winnable games scheduled.
Playing Enzo Caicedo and Lavia at the same time worked out well methinks. Villa could have equalised just after we got the first but a bit of luck finally went for us because that shot from Watkins was so close to going under Sanchez's leg, Fofana should have dealt with the through ball better though. Looks like he will be side lined for a while after getting another injury. Badass made his usual mistakes and he luckily went unpunished. Have to say Cuckoo is starting to look like the player that we paid so much for and all round the team looks better, long may it continue. I don't really want to mention Palmer, because I do not have the mental or literary skill to put into words how good that lad is. Hoping for a massive win against the red and white stripey dudes on Wednesday. Not getting too carried away but top 4 is not out of our grasp, given the progress made thus far this season, Maresca maybe what we have needed, hope so.
I think 4th place is totally achievable. Realistically, only Arsenal, Liverpool and City should be finishing above us, with the squad we have, I think. Our defence needs work, but going forward we are always looking like we have goals in us. Jackson has found his groove, and Cole Palmer is just a revelation. City must be kicking themselves for letting that lad go! Best player we have had since Super Frank, he is better than Hazard, and has the stats to match it. We have great options in midfield, with Lavia, Caicedo, Chucky and Dewsbury-Hall. I dont expect to stay this close to Arsenal and I dont expect us to be above City for much longer, but we should be able to grab 4th, especially since the other traditional top 4 contenders in Spurs, Villa and Man Utd have looked ropey as **** this season and are all very inconsistent. I also dont see Brighton and Forest keeping up with the bigger clubs either over 38 games, as good as they have been.
All said, things are going very well for us with Maresca in charge. He has managed to get pretty much all his" 1st 11" players to gel into a TEAM and all of them have improved. Now with things looking pretty settled, he is easing more players into game time and it looks as if we will have an excellent chance to have 2 players of pretty close ability for each position.We have some stand out performers, and others who can match them when they have a good run of form. Then there's the excellent Academy players and already signed new kids to come. We've spent a fortune and have had some failures, but I have to admit, most have proved or are proving to be good calls. Have to be thinking top 4 is very realistic now, so hats off to the squad.
yeah, so far so good. Must say i am surprised by how well maresca has done but he has really instilled a good pattern of play. Our defence is pretty bad and ropey but i will take entertaining wins and attacking football over being defensively solid
Was really happy to see Maresca make a lot of changes to the squad. Gave Nkunku a start, plus Felix as well. Nkunku gets a goal and an assist. Palmer continues being a baller. Even Sancho grabs one.
