Yep Gray would get us up the pitch better by actually making some runs and.being tenacious in the exact way that Hernandez and Diame aren't. He can also finish well like Hernandez can, but he'll get in far more goalscoring positions through his work rate.
No one who was remotely involved in the goal was offside but three City players in a neighbouring postcode were.
The thing I really don't get is when it stopped being the case that if it came off a defender you weren't offside. When the keeper saves it why does it matter where someone was stood when the shot took place?
Meylers mistake changed the course of the match, before that we were holding out brilliantly whilst showing a bit of threat, in fact I thought we were the better team until that. God knows what he was thinking but thats football I suppose. Powell looks excellent to my eye, and please can we have H Mag back in the team somehow, his up and at em attitude is a joy to behold. Huddlestone was great today with Powell and I thought our midfield was better than theirs until the goal went in. If only Ramsey had stuck one in his own net to give us a chance... UTT
He switched off completely, unfortunately i was right next to it where I was sitting and none of us could believe it
Hard work reading that match thread it has to be said, seems to be 5 pages of Hat making unfunny comments about Huddlestone and the rest Sydney Arguing Tiger talking bollocks. Tigerrev is right about Powell going for the glory goal, he should have passed to Odubajo but there were a lot of positives tonight and until the calamity we might have got a result or at least taken the match to extra time
He's deoranged Phil too, got a photo of him and Jake Bumfriesian and it didn't fragment the lens with his orangeness
Setting up as 3-5-2 was okay. Our back 3 did well, they were tight and moved to threats well. It was unfortunate that the telling threat came from their own midfielder - it was a shocker, time to move on from it. Arsenal fed off the confidence the lead gave them, it's what good teams do. I don't know why Dave was played on the left, but we were not doing too badly. We were getting balls in, our set-pieces were markedly improved, but we are both unlucky and inept in front of goal. Sort one and it will sort the other. Meyler was poor throughout, his play and touch was cavalier, unthinking and worthy of a full- out rollicking; it had far more to do with a slack attitude than a lack of the most basic ability and application. He should not see the sheet for some time to come. The midfield, with that one exception, moved it and actually looked capable of winning the game. The attack didn't, they were nondescript to the point of it being amusing. Diomande isn't even a striker's arsehole. Powell was too busy trying to be cool and the answer for everything. Aluko, hmmm, Aluko, enough said. But the substitutions stole the night for the sheer lunacy of throwing 'A' players into a lost 'B' game. Does Bruce (and Phelan??) really think about what they are doing? Glad that's done with. UTT.
I thought Aluko did more than Powell all game when he came on, got through I think Elneney - and almost drew a red - but his pass to Dio was misplaced because Dio has no positional sense at all. If Dio had run on for the through ball instead of cutting across to basically run into an Arsenal defender, he could have been through on goal. Powell was Powell. He has a great, classy touch, but he is far too full of himself for what his output has produced. People will say I've never given him a chance, but I haven't seen anything in any of the games he's played to prove my original assessment wrong. It would help if Bruce actually played him as a striker though if that's what he was recruited for.
I don't even think the officials know what the actual offside rule is now. It has been made far too complex now. I'd like to see a return to the old offside rule of you're either offside or you aren't. None of this active nonsense.
I'll probably get shot down, but I think 352 at the moment might suit us best. Magurie has probably been our best player since Dawson's injury so deserves to be in the team, Snodgrass and Clucas aren't exactly tearing up trees, Diames best form for the club has come playing in midfield with Hudds and Jake, and it allows 2 proper strikers, though there's only Akpom at the club that fits that apart from Abel.
We've said it a few times. We do genuinely look more of a threat going forward, particularly with our rampaging midfielders upfront.
