At todayâs lunch time press conference, Rene confirmed that Amorebietta had picked up a âniggleâ in training and was the only doubt for Saturday. Thatâs a pity because if fit, Iâm sure he would have come in at left back. Stekelenburg will be the first name on the team sheet along with Riether, Hangeland, Sidwell and Parker. Then comes the debate. Rene also said today that, âwe sometimes leave ourselves too open£ which would suggest going back to 4-3-3 (well I hope so anyway) and the question is who will the third midfielder be? Taarabt and Dempsey play too far forward and donât provide defensive cover. Arguably Kasami as well, and although his work rate is much higher he doesnât create the risk factor that either of those two do. Iâd expect all three to be on the bench. The place then is between Richarsdon and Kara. Richardson would give more cover on the left. The favourite though has to be Kara. He didnât have a great game on Tuesday; too many sideways and bac passes, caught on the ball too often, silly little free kicks where we lost possession or ended with the ball back at the keeper. Also having played the full 90, will he be up for another challenge so quickly? Well heâs proved he can be in the past and we just seem more solid when heâs around, and also he provides the cover to allow Sidwell to roam/go forward. So he got to be good for the first 60 minutes at least. Dan Burn had a good game against Norwich and must be a contender but I reckon it will be Senderos partnering Hangeland. Up front, Dejagah is a must. Itâs not just his attacking threat but also the amount of work he puts in defending. The probable starting line-up then: â¦â¦â¦â¦.Stekelenburgâ¦â¦â¦â¦.. ..Rietherâ¦Senderosâ¦Hangelandâ¦Amorebietta (or Richardson) â¦â¦â¦â¦Karaâ¦â¦â¦Parkerâ¦..Sidwell⦠â¦Dejagahâ¦â¦â¦â¦â¦â¦â¦â¦â¦â¦â¦Kaca⦠â¦â¦â¦â¦â¦â¦â¦Berbatovâ¦..
That's as close to our best XI as possible. Hangeland back could be key, the team already looks a lot stronger with him there.
If Senderos plays we definitely lose simples, we have to keep Burn after his two displays especially in a game we are not expecting anything from so less pressure on him. Worst case scenario we lose 4-1 and it's an expected result best case we get a 1-0 and Burns hero setting up to be a regular starter for the next few months as he rides the crest of the wave
Subs are as important as the starting line-up, says Rene. [video=youtube;2cZhUuAwdSc]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2cZhUuAwdSc&feature=player_embedded[/video]
If Rene doesn't think Burn is ready to go in for his PL debut on Sat I'd rather see us go with Hughes in place of Senderos. Other than that I hope to see the same team C58 put in the op. It's a funny league - we should, and in all likelihood will, get beaten by 2+ goals, but my mind can't stop creating a narrative for the season with this being the game Arsenal slip up under City and Chelsea's pressure and we do something quite Fulhamish - win away to the top team the week after losing at home to the bottom.
I'd like to see us build on the success of Tuesday night. Most important, we should play the same system, with Kaca and Dejagah. I'd bring Parker and Berbatov back in (but sub Berba off in plenty of time if he's not having a good day), and other than that keep the same eleven. I'd expect Parker to replace Karagounis due to age and fatigue from two games in five days, but if that isn't a factor, Kasami should make way. That means no starting spots for Dempsey, Taarabt or Bent, with Bent probably the unluckiest of the three to miss out. I suspect Rene won't go with Burn (sadly), and if so I hope he picks Hughes rather than Senderos, although the return of a properly fit Hangeland plus a fit Stekelenburg will make a big difference whoever plays in the other defensive positions.
Senderos starting after Sunderland....no chance. Its Burn all the way for me. Other than that team looks about right. Dempsey and Bent will play a part.
I'm no advocate of Senderos but the stick he's getting, here and in the two threads by the Gooners, is plain wrong. For instance, the suggestion that he is solely responsible for the number of goals we have conceded this season - both goalkeepers, Riise and Sidwell, yes Sidwell, have individually chalked up far more errors leading to goals against than Senderos. For the record, he has played in 12 League games when we conceded 22 goals (5 of those were from outside the box) and in the 8 he didn't play we conceded 24. He'll be fine against his old team tomorrow.
Voice of reason there, C58. Senderos isn't great but he's certainly not as bad as people make out. But I guess with Jol and Ruiz gone, we need a new scapegoat!
Having two left-footed CB has been a bit of a problem with Hangeland and Amorebieta. Hangeland was injured at that time too. Was not an issue on Tue as Hangeland was scooping behind Burn. Burn is the new Hangeland and Hangeland the new Hughes if that makes sense.
We definitely need to have wide players and everyone to work hard. Our away form has been okay so I'm going for a 0-3 win!
C58 it's not just about his errors, it's the fact that he always looks like an error waiting to happen, normally by the time he commits his big error there have already been a few near misses, he just seems to cause nervousness in the stands and on the pitch with fans and players alike just waiting/expecting him to mess up, if we are going to get out of this mess we are going to need a confident mentality as well as playing well amongst all of us. I said earlier that when I saw Senderos named to start against Sunderland I knew we would lose, whether that feeling was warranted or not misses the point it's the fact that Senderos brings that feeling on in people which is worrying. Conceding 22 goals in 12 games he has played isn't great and for me sticking with a promising youngster who has played two decent games out of two over Senderos is preferable
Agree with captains team, there was a good balance to the team against Norwich and we have to take the game to arsenal so pace on the wings is essential. Kaca could do well against Sagna but I fear gnabry against riise or Richardson. Hopefully berbatov will be on a mission to do one over arsenal. COYW
This is the most important thing I believe. Width coupled with speed. Only one of Berba, Taarabt and Bent. And no Dempsey unless behind the forward.
Will Mr Probert, the man in charge today, again see 'the red mist'? please log in to view this image By his own standards, he's been very conservative this season only issuing 2 red cards (and 13 yellows) in his 10 Premiership games to date. Alas, he's due a rush of blood to his brain.
Line up: Stek Riether Burn Hangeland Richardson Parker Sidwell Dejagah Dempsey Kaca Berba Think we can all be happy with that.
