Not All Blue

[royalbarclayfan]

Tettey was a giant plus
Effective without any fuss,
And that we saw ´horse´
Getting back on course
Gives grounds for some positiveness

And having Wes back goes to show
How much he can help make things flow,
We do miss his spark
When he´s off the park
As I´m sure Hughton also knows

And Bassong does sturdy the ship
When the balance threatens to tip,
On one of their goals
Only, were there holes
Which let them take even more grip

They are a top team on top form
So we shouldn´t feel too forlorn,
Not many wll find
It easy there, mind
And a 3 goal defeat´s about norm

For Man U did the same at Toon
It was all over there pretty soon,
The gap is still wide
Between the top sides
And the rest, if they really do bloom

But here we showed much better play
Than v Liverpool in every way,
And should give them heart
For the next few starts
Where we´ll seek our first 3 point pay day. OTBC

Enjoy the break all

Yours,

 

[canary-dave]

Hi RBF, I agree with all your points, it rankles with me that, as you say, we lost at the home of the European champions by the same margin as the Toon lost at home , yet, according to the media, we were "smashed" and they were merely defeated!

 

[Superman wears Grant Holt pyjamas in bed]

good stuff rbf. i think any team visiting the bridge on saturday would have been beaten. again we defended poorly at times but i think hughton is getting closer with the formation, though johnson in front of howson doesn't work - switch them round and we might be in action! very impressed with chelsea - definitely champions-elect in my eyes though still a very, very long way to go of course. a few positives though, not least holt's performance which was very good. hoolahan playing is what most want to see. tettey did ok but i would still like to see fox alongside him rather than one of howson/johnson. issues at the back remain. it seems to be individual errors earlier in the season but i thought we looked poorly organised at the back on saturday. that HAS to be sorted out or we really will be in big trouble. i don't think barnett, as good as he has been so far this season, is the answer at all. he is not switched on enough. the number of times he drops behind his fellow centre half is alarming to say the least - its really basic stuff holding the line and he is incapable of doing so. as i say, i think hughton is getting closer to getting the system right but personnel are still not playing in their best positions. i'd drop howson and johnson. bring fox and butterfield in - he could add something different going forward. play tettey and fox as deep lying midfielders to protect the back four. tettey can maraude forward when attacking. drop russell martin - he's struggling big time at the moment. bring in ryan bennett for barnett. i'd go:

ruddy
e.bennett - r.bennet - bassong - garrido
fox - tettey
snodgrass - butterfield - hoolahan
holt

 

[ncfcwonky]

The two centre backs did get the line right for, I think, Chelsea's fourth when R Martin was too far back. So I think the centre back pairing is fine, they have an understanding with each other. Unfortunately it doesn't help R Martin.

 

[Superman wears Grant Holt pyjamas in bed]

The two centre backs did get the line right for, I think, Chelsea's fourth when R Martin was too far back. So I think the centre back pairing is fine, they have an understanding with each other. Unfortunately it doesn't help R Martin.

they got it right for one goal...

they got it wrong at least ten times during the match though

its such basic concentration and positional sense, and barnett can't do it. take him out, stick bennett in - he at least has a defensive brain on him.

 

[ncfcwonky]

they got it right for one goal...

they got it wrong at least ten times during the match though

its such basic concentration and positional sense, and barnett can't do it. take him out, stick bennett in - he at least has a defensive brain on him.

Pleased that Torres is no where near as good as he used to be then!

Supers, where's your usual really long post about the weekend's game. Far more interesting than lectures!

 

[Superman wears Grant Holt pyjamas in bed]

Pleased that Torres is no where near as good as he used to be then!

Supers, where's your usual really long post about the weekend's game. Far more interesting than lectures!

i only saw a feed of the match so i don't like to write reports of games i've not been to. i could write one but i can't see everything clearly on the magic telly. not much to say anyway really - the game panned out pretty much as i expected

 

[ncfcwonky]

Fair enough.

 

[royalbarclayfan]

Afternoon fellas, would have got back to you sooner, but have been busy with the hound.

Dave, such is the media I´m afraid, they all have their favourites.

Super, totally agree with you about bringing Fox in, Tettey would be the perfect foil for him, and vice-versa, still think Barnett has looked the best he ever has done, playing alongside Bassong, whether Bennett R would be an improvement is hard to know. I also think that Martin is struggling just at the moment, not quite sure why, he seems a bit lost for pace, maybe a rest would do him good. Like the idea of 4-4-1-1 away, but not sure if it would produce enough goals at home, so maybe your 4-2-3-1 is the answer there.

 

[Superman wears Grant Holt pyjamas in bed]

i wouldn't be against martin switching to centre back.

 

[K E M P]

I think Martin is too good at going forward to be a CB, his attacking mind gets the better of him at times and leaves us exposed when he goes forward.

 

[Superman wears Grant Holt pyjamas in bed]

true. its an option though. barnett has done pretty well so far but i was amazed at how often he was out of position on saturday. it was embarrassing at times.

 

[canary_max]

afternoon. Re Fox, as far as i'm aware he hasn't started a game this season, i know there was an injury at the start of it. Is it possible that Hughton doesn't fancy him, possibly because he is not that strong in the tackle (hughton's defensiveness there).