No honestly I hope you lot go up, a proper team with good fans . We had a chance to give ourselves a foothold in the Premier league and pissed it all away . Good luck lads
Ah, another day, another win. Makes a change! Seems strange to have complaints after a 3-0 win, but it wasn’t a particularly good start, and I’ve felt that about Rotherham and Swansea, too - I hope it’s not going to become a trend, as we will eventually be punished for it! I’m sure Bielsa will be working on this, though. The goal definitely settled us down, thankfully. I wouldn’t say it was necessarily against the run of play, but equally we hadn’t really been looking likely to get the goal. Great vision from Hernandez, lovely run (and header) from Alioski, and a cool, calm finish from the season’s surprise package, Klich. Second goal was excellent, with the movement and the ball from Douglas. Good finish from Alioski, kept his head down and just hit the target - Krul definitely should’ve done better, but no complaints from me! Third was just outstanding from Hernandez - what a player he is. The way he shifted the ball, made the space, and curled that into the far corner… Just superb. We’re honestly blessed to have him as a player, even if he’s entering the twilight of his career. Still a few heart in mouth moments defensively, usually from set pieces, but I think we’ll always have that problem just because we don’t have the tallest team. Blackman may help, as Peacock-Farrell doesn’t always look convincing under the high ball. I think it’s just the price we have to pay - more height defensively would be good, but the likes of Saiz, Alioski, and Hernandez in this sort of form going forwards make up for any defensive frailties. Worth pointing out that we still dealt with a lot of the crosses/set pieces/high balls into the box, we just didn’t always look convincing! Cooper for Berardi alongside Jansson may help somewhat, as good as Berardi has been. The Norwich winger, Hernandez, looked very tricky and difficult, but we dealt with him well for the most part. Rhodes barely got a chance, and Pukki, despite a few good touches and some nice movement, didn’t do all that much to scare us. Pinto at RB was also a bit of a menace going, almost like our own RB! Player wise, Peacock-Farrell was more than adequate, though as mentioned previously, he doesn’t convince me under the high ball. Dropped a catch (or punched it unconvincingly? It was hard to tell) at one point in the first half that could’ve been punished, but also made a few catches too. There’s huge potential in him, and he’s a very good shot-stopper, but I’m just not 100% sure he’s quite ready to be the number one in a promotion challenging side. I’d love to be proven wrong though, he seems like a great kid who’s really bought into Bielsa’s philosophy (showed great feet at times, and his distribution is generally quite good!). Ayling, solid as ever. He’s 100% a RB now. I think when he first joined he was still often utilised as a CB but he’s the best RB I remember us having since Gary Kelly. Managed to make a few runs going forward, though didn’t cause as much havoc offensively as he has done in the past. Very confident and assured defensively, though. For the amount he cost (circa £500k, if I recall?), has there been a better signing for us in the past ten years or so? Jansson looked a little dodgy in the opening minutes, but made a few blocks and tackles which seemed to help him ease into the game with more confidence and he looked solid and dependable from then on. I think teams will quickly realise we look vulnerable from set pieces and under the high ball, so having Jansson back and in form will go a long way to addressing that issue. Berardi was solid again, nothing spectacular. Doesn’t always use the ball as well as he could do, but I’m confident Bielsa will be working on that with him. He’s dogged and determined, wins far more in the air than he has the right to, given his height, and is actually surprisingly quick over the ground. Looks a lot more mature as well, but did pick up a bit of a silly booking at the end. Even if they had scored it’d only have been a consolation, and I didn’t think there was too much danger on. Definitely more than a stop-gap option now, but I think Cooper and Jansson will be our pairing once both are fully fit. Douglas is a strange one. He’s a very, very good player, and he gives us a much more balanced look in the side, as well as being a set piece expert and creating another two goals again today. However, I can’t help but feel there’s more to come from him - maybe it’s because of his incredible season with Wolves last year? I’m probably being a bit harsh on him, but I wonder if anyone else feels the same! Lost the ball a few times, touch occasionally let him down, and defensively caught out once or twice (but generally recovered well). Not sure if my expectations of him are unfairly high or if he’s flattered to deceive a little, so far. Phillips started a little sluggishly (again!) but midway through the first half he came into his own. A few of his long range balls over the top or down the sides were outstanding, and he won the ball back with tigerish aggression as per usual. Not as good as he was against Stoke or Derby, and positionally he was caught out once or twice, but it’s still very early on in the season and he’s still learning the role he’s been asked to play. Some of his blocks were brilliant, and the determination to keep a clean sheet was so evident. Still a solid 8/10 in my book. Klich - what a travesty it would’ve been to have let him go without giving him a proper chance. He’s a great player, and Forshaw is really going to have a hard time shifting him. Used the ball well, kept us ticking over at times, and almost always available in space to receive a pass. Great composure for his goal, the way he just assessed where the defenders were going and stroking it into the free space. Great stuff. Hernandez, there aren’t enough superlatives for him today. Absolutely brilliant. Technically superb, and his vision is unrivalled. Even at his age he’s still in superb condition. Created a lot of opportunities, used the ball well (and kept it, too). His goal was outrageously good. To think we weren’t sure he was worth a two year deal - brilliant player. MOTM all day long. Alioski was excellent - he can blow a little hot and cold at times (Swansea being an example of him at his worst), but this was the perfect example of him at his best. Defensively got through a lot of work and defended well from the front, and his energy levels are brilliant and fit the Bielsa system perfectly. His movement was excellent all game - his header for the first goal was a very good effort, and his goal was a great move and a good finish. Delivery not always on point, but he used the ball fairly well and helped keep us on the front foot after the first goal. Saiz was actually the worst of the front four, and it’s very rare we can say that! He wasn’t bad by any stretch of the imagination; he still looked threatening, carried the ball very well, showed nice touches and generally ran Norwich ragged. Annoyingly, though, if he’d just released the ball earlier or looked up once in a while, it could’ve been 4/5/6-0. His use of the ball and decision-making was unfortunately quite poor today, but even then he was still terrifying the Norwich defenders. He could be a Premier League player (and a very good one, at that) if he just learnt to release that final ball/pass at the right time! One of Roofe’s quieter games, but even then he was a menace, defending from the front with determination and energy. He makes space so easily, stretches defences, runs the channels, and shows great touches with nice lay offs. No goal today, and not many opportunities, but still a very decent performance from him. Substitutes wise, I thought Bamford was decent, again. He always looks hungry when he comes on, had a few efforts, and is full of energy and running. Great touch to take down Douglas’ ball over the top, but was unfortunately offside. Seems madness to have a £7m striker on the bench, but Roofe has been nothing short of brilliant so far, so he’ll rightly have to wait his place! Harrison and Baker didn’t really have much time or opportunity to create much of an impression, but I’ve previously spoken about how impressed I’ve been with Baker. Harrison hasn’t quite had the same impact on me, but I thought he was decent at Swansea last time, and he seemed keen to get involved again today. I’m sure his time will come soon enough! Overall, it was a good performance. Norwich looked tidy in spells, and built up some pressure towards the end of the first half when we did look a little vulnerable, but we were never seriously under pressure. Seems weird to say I’m not convinced by us defensively after we keep a clean sheet in a 3-0 win, but I can’t help but think teams will very quickly realise that we look vulnerable when the ball comes into the box. Some of the blocks were outstanding but they looked a little desperate - that said, the desire and determination to keep the ball out of the net is fantastic to see. Big improvement on the Swansea game, and offensively we look such a threat.
Credit where it's due. At least you come back on here after you have lost, not like those other fans who used to frequent this site.
He’s the best defensively. We have a team of players who can distribute well, all he has to do is stop the other fckers scoring and give the ball to someone else.
Not often I read a post as long as that. Agree with most of it. For me Ayling and Klich are amazingly better this season (I know Ayling was good enough before, but he’s really something in this team). Phillips demonstrated why Bielsa was right to start him even after that early subbing in the last game. Douglas will get even better, it takes a while to gel with a new team. Bamford - same again, he’ll get better.
Pretty much summed up my thinking, Kiwi. Really enjoyed the match, but oddly enough, was a bit keyed up throughout it, even when 3 up. Never thought we'd lose, so can't place where the nervousness came from. Silly old sod, eh? Whilst reading your comments about Pablo, my thoughts wandered to Gordon Strachan. I wonder how many years Pablo has left? As many as wee Gordy? Hopefully a good few if he's going to be this consistent. This is his best-ever period whilst playing for us. He's been a bit hot & cold in the past, but now he's like a spring lamb, gambolling through each match. Hope he can keep it up. Bielsa seems to have found all his buttons & got the combination right. MOT
Reading your post, I've just remembered that Douglas didn't have any pre season game time with Wolves. Guess that puts him a wee bit behind the others - but you'd never guess it, really.
Phillips is one of a very small handful that can deal with being subbed after 30 minutes and put it behind him. It’s good because players know that if they fail they’ll be yanked off, they also know it doesn’t spell the end AKA Klich last season. Phillips and Alioski were poor last time out, Harrison and Baker were okay but they didn’t grab their opportunity with both hands
I think the main thing for me regarding Pablo is that he recently came out and said he's still learning new things under Bielsa's management - really puts paid to the whole 'footballers can't improve after a certain age' argument (I think videos games like Fifa and Football Manager are probably primarily to blame for that kind of narrow-minded thinking). Pablo is still improving now - as you said, this is his best period with us. He was excellent for most of last season, but this season he just looks superb.
Love Kalvin Phillips but what on earth was the idiot doing there, could have been a foul, could have been a card and he could have injured himself. Should have saved his energy when the game was won* *I had money on Leeds to win and both teams to score....
I would think we are all nervous and will be the whole season with a bit of luck. Don't mind the stress if it's worth it. Dare we begin to dream
