We knew this was going to be a difficult test and so it proved, overall there wasnt much that suprised me about sunderland but i did think we were more rodgers than Laudrup in the first half. Ash made a bad mistake and we cant moan about it as we have had our share of those go for us recently!! my take on the players today. Vorm- had nothing to do really but i do sometimes wonder about his positioning at set pieces. Ash - was sloppy in the first half and seemed to be not his usual self, got his head sorted in the second half, mr consistant is allowed the odd day off though Taylor- rash tackle and came out worst, apparently its a fractured ankle which i guess could have been worse but it does leave me worried for the next few months, which leads me onto ... Davies- Hmm.. very early days for this boy, has the build of a prem league defender thats for sure, is very raw and made plenty of basic errors, that is to be expected though and he should be proud of his overall contribuition, other teams will definatly target him thats for sure, if he comes through that then we have gained another gem of a player,his run in the team will either make him or break him..and us ! Rangel- Vintage rangel today,was underused in the first half but made his effort count double in the second half chico- Or Mr Phsyco as he should be called had a great game up until he decided to take Saha's head off! we knew this boy would collect his share of red cards so i guess we take the rough with the smooth on this one, id be intrested to see if we could appeal as he actuallly made no contact with saha's head..which was a shame really(might as well be hung for a sheep as a lamb) De guzmen- slowly getting into his zone, had his best game today, more so in the second half, his fitness seems to be getting up to prem level and he was able to help leon out alot more. Britton- 2 bad passes means he had a shocker today...nah, still class ! Routledge- Awesome yet again and im fearful of what his chances will be when hernandez starts to figure, has the skills to pay the bills and looks very comfortable on the pitch right now, has been 9/10 every game this season. Dyer- Same old same old, nothing knew to write about him !! probably the new heartbeat of the team and a player which alongside leon fans idolise the most. Michu- Take a bow son!! and Laudrup can take a bow for what is turning out to be the signing of the season, seems to enjoy the odd tackle as well which is nice to see. DG- well, probably his quietest game for a while,was stiffled by the mackems, i cant help but think that he looks half a second slower than others when it comes to getting a shot off, this is a minor complaint and we cant follow his running off the balll which sometimes goes unoticed by many, i do feel it effects his game however, takes one for the team yet again. Ki - Looked very impressive to me, busy player with great skills and close control, gonna be a hit here im sure..where he will play is another probelm though, looks like its between him and de guzmen, was it a coinsidence jonathan had his best game with Ki sitting on the bench watching ?? Tate- To be honest looks a bit over weight and also looks a bit out of place nowadays, nice to know he gives 100% for us and all that but i do worry when our defensive options are so limited that he is the next man to come in behind ash and chico. Overall we have to be happy with a point today, the team showed that it had balls and was up for a fight, last season this game would have been beyond that, laudrup has to me showed that he can make great substitutions and use the bench to our advantage, saha dived and got our player sent off though chico was a bit daft to try and kill him over on the touchline !! Im more than happy with the attitude and fight showed by the players, their goals wernt really created but were results of our poor play, this wont happen every week, the pleasing thing was how we reacted to adversity and we reacted very well !! thoughts on the game ??
To come from behind twice is not the usual Swansea way,so I suppose that's a real plus. Someone wrote last week about the rashness of Chico and hoped that Mr. Laudrup would have a quiet word with him. Either,a)he didn't talk to him,or b)Chico didn't listen. Taylor could be out for a very long time.
Chico has had a reputation for loving a tackle, he was lucky earlier in the game even though he got the ball, it will be intresting to see how he copes from here on in as refs will no doubt be aware of his karate skills !! Taylor being out is a massive blow and im not sure if davies will be good enough to cover long term, very unlucky to lose a key player after just 3 games
I thaught all the players done amazing today and was most impressed by de guzman. His distribution wa amazing today.
De guzmen had his best game thats for sure, was busy around the field aswell, which makes me wonder about Ki coming in and putting pressure on his position. we seem to be reasonably strong around the field apart from defense. Chico is probably going to miss some games and we also have Taylor out so thats 50% of our first choice back 4 missing for the next 3 games which kinda sucks! not sure if we can access the loan market, anyone know the rules on this?
We made it a tough game ourselves. there is no way we would have drawn this match if ash and co were on their game. chicco did not help being to reckless at times and i thought in the last game with west ham that this guy had better watch himself as he will get sent off......sunderland stuck to their game plan and we did not but we still should have won.....
Fair point Dai, As h had an off day but to me he is a rock normally, these things happen and we have had our share of similar luck this season so no complaints on that front from me really
Would prefer Jazz to Davies , Ki should start a few games at the expense of De Guzman , Routledge is earning his starts & should start next game . If we want the best out of Chico we'll have to deal with an event from him like today a few times a season , Williams looked a bit uninterested & overconfident as last man back on a difficult pass to Vorm that should have never happened , Vorm almost got a finger or two on that first goal .. was a great effort . Overall , were going to have a superb season !!
The loan market is closed to premier league sides now, we can only loan out, we can't bring anyone else in at all. The only exception would if for example all our keepers were out injured.
thanks valley, that could be a serious blow to us then, Jazz is an option but doesnt seem to be in favour, the player who likes like they could play there is the new signing Ki !! sounds stupid i know but has all the attributes to play as an attacking full back, it would also let de guzmen continue his progession in centre midfield
Very kind to Vorm there. Thought their second goal was as much his fault as their first was Ash's. Routledge or De Guzman MOTM. Both played very well. Encouraging performance from young Davies too.
ash made a stupid mistake for the fist goal and the free kick was a harsh decision and fletcher did well which gave them the second goal! I was a bit concerned about Ben Davies but thought he had a good game, the best players IMO De Guzman & Routlage. michu did his job but went missing for parts of the game, and Ki looked amazing and he changed the game when he came on very exciting player! what i want to know who do you drop for Hernandez? What a team we have this year!
Agree with you NJ a fair assessment of all. One questioned answered which was asked on this board last week. Could we come from behind and chase a game absolutely and with 10 men.
Despite shipping two goals, I take more positives from todays performance. Positives: The 'bouncebackability' was there for all to see. Last year, Newcastle had a similar effect on us on clinical finishing, but we could not break them down despite controlling the ball, we also showed vulnerability against Wolves when we decided to sit back. This year, we have a different monster under ML!! His signings have had a positive effect and he/ they must take credit. Can you ask any more of a return from Micho? De Guzman played his best game by far! Ki did the business when called on to help turn what should have been a spring tide of Sunderland attack. Chico ..... well , crazy moment but cannot fault the commitment and steel shown so far - so what if we don't become top of the fair play league this year ... what good did it do us last year! With 10 men, if one team was going to win this, it was us. Under BR, it would have been from plan A to Plan Z (sit back and keep fingers crossed). Today, ML took the Premier Bull by the horns. Negatives, are the unfortunate injury to Taylor and Chico's Bruce Lee moment (and like Lee, he mises on purpose showing his amazing control for cinematic effect). We shall see where Monk lies in ML's plans .... will Bartley get the bench (who knows). Can Mr Evans or Jazz (when injury free) step up? With the plethora of 'easier' games to start with this is possibly the worst case scenario, as points will become harder to win in the 2nd quarter of the season. Momentum is critical. HOWEVER today Swansea proved they can play, dominate and have a threat when the chips are down. We payed good money or invested faith for these youngsters like Bartley/Richards/Evans etc ... this could be the making of a stronger squad of future Premier proven players! Bottom line, 10 years ago we were bottom of the football leagues and today we smile along with some of the players that got us up to where we are now ....2nd in arguably the best league in the World / playing great football/ in a solvent club!!! My glass is definately half full!!! STID
After two what could be classed as "comfortable" games Sunderland were always going to pose a different challenge. After the first half performance I was so impressed the way we controlled the game in the 2nd half. Even when were down to 10 men there was only one team trying to win the game. Michu's stock is rising fast and we have loads of competition for the midfield places but my concern is the cover at the back especially if we get more injuries. My comment on Chico is I wish I could get my leg up that high! 2nd after 3 games with 7 points - that will do me.
I said from the end of the last season we needed more cover at the back, I am guessing here that monk will not go on loan to bristol city if that was the plan, at least not until chico is back from his 3 match ban. I can't see us appealing this one as we'd lose and it will go up to a 5 match ban.
