Brighton (H) - Sat 30th Oct 2021 (3:00pm)

[TheHowieLama]

3 minutes ago, Strontium Dog™ said:

?

Liverpool (8)

 

Fabinho (inj)
Milner (inj)
Keita (inj)
Thiago (inj)
Elliott (inj)
Jones
Henderson

Oxlade-Chamberlain

 

Chelsea (9)

Jorginho

Kante

Kovacic

Loftus-Cheek

Saul

Barkley

Mount

Ziyech

Havertz

You forgot Pulisic.

[johnsusername]

14 minutes ago, Mark M said:

Jones and Chamberlain showing how far away they are for being good starters for us. 
Not much point in having 8 options of midfielders when some have a history of not being available/ fit enough for a run of games & others nowhere near good enough.

 

They got overrun by Preston a couple of days ago. Not a surprise to see worse happen today. 

[an tha]

5 out of 8 midfielders injured.

 

You couldn't fucking write it.

 

Fabinho is starting to worry me - such a good player and we are so much better in midfield when he plays....but seems to pick up these niggly 'knocks' a bit too regularly and they always seem to lead to 2/3 weeks out.

 

We really do need more robust footballers in the engine room.

[CapeRed]

3 minutes ago, TheDrowningMan said:

In fairness, that was a season in which we at one point held a healthy lead over them and where too many draws ultimately cost us the league.

And it was a flukey worldie by Kompany that dragged them over the line. The point I was making was that they and Chelsea  are also fallible and  assuming that today's defeat doesn't hurt them but our result hurts us doesn't make sense.

[TheHowieLama]

Chelsea is the horse to beat.

[Strontium]

6 minutes ago, TheHowieLama said:

You forgot Pulisic.

 

He's listed as a forward, as is Hudson-Odoi.

 

I think the crucial thing to remember, however, is that none of them are made from Shredded Wheat.

[3 Stacks]

1 minute ago, Strontium Dog™ said:

 

He's listed as a forward, as is Hudson-Odoi.

 

I think the crucial thing to remember, however, is that none of them are made from Shredded Wheat.

Kante is injured very often.

[General Dryness]

2 minutes ago, 3 Stacks said:

Kante is injured very often.

Luckily for them the rest of their CM options are fairly robust then.

[Elite]

11 minutes ago, an tha said:

5 out of 8 midfielders injured.

 

You couldn't fucking write it.

 

Fabinho is starting to worry me - such a good player and we are so much better in midfield when he plays....but seems to pick up these niggly 'knocks' a bit too regularly and they always seem to lead to 2/3 weeks out.

 

We really do need more robust footballers in the engine room.

Play with feathers, prepare to get your arse tickled.

[3 Stacks]

6 minutes ago, General Dryness said:

Luckily for them the rest of their CM options are fairly robust then.

Out of Stront's list, Havertz and Ziyech don't play midfield for them and Barkley isn't a real option at this point. What they essentially have is Jorginho, Kovacic, Kante, who is injury prone, and Mount. Loftus Cheek is an ok last resort depth option and Saul has barely played. In reality, they don't have more depth or quality than us in midfield but what helps them is they most often play 2, whereas we play 3.

[ManéMan]

5 minutes ago, 3 Stacks said:

Out of Stront's list, Havertz and Ziyech don't play midfield for them and Barkley isn't a real option at this point. What they essentially have is Jorginho, Kovacic, Kante, who is injury prone, and Mount. Loftus Cheek is an ok last resort depth option and Saul has barely played. In reality, they don't have more depth or quality than us in midfield but what helps them is they most often play 2, whereas we play 3.

Which is why we should really have more adequate cover.

[3 Stacks]

Just now, ManéMan said:

Which is why we should really have more adequate cover.

8 is more than enough. It's some of the players that don't play enough and should have been sold and replaced that's the problem.

[Ronnie Whelan]

Firstly, fair play to Brighton. Potter is a very good manager with a bright future. He seems like a decent man. I like their team. They play good football and are improving every year. I think they could be an outside bet for top 6 - maybe they might not have the squad to get that high. They deserved to win today.

 

We were awful for the most part. The good work of smashing our biggest rivals has been somewhat undone. The most annoying thing is we could have put a bit of ground between us and City and not be 3 points behind Chelsea. Still, all three will have draws and losses like this. It's 3 points though so that's nothing with so much to play for. 

 

A game like this can be a nice little reminder to an excellent team and a very good set of pros that you can't just play in 2nd gear against teams like Brighton and West Ham, who are desperate for a big scalp and have good players. Hopefully, a tough week with Athletico and West Ham will reset the mind.

[General Dryness]

1 minute ago, 3 Stacks said:

Out of Stront's list, Havertz and Ziyech don't play midfield for them and Barkley isn't a real option at this point. What they essentially have is Jorginho, Kovacic, Kante, who is injury prone, and Mount. Loftus Cheek is an ok last resort depth option and Saul has barely played. In reality, they don't have more depth or quality than us in midfield but what helps them is they most often play 2, whereas we play 3.

So they have Jorginho, Kovacic, Mount, Kante (sometimes), Saul and Loftus-Cheek. At the moment we have Henderson, OC, and Jones. Our best players are made of biscuits and theirs aren't.

 

 

 

 

[J-V]

28 minutes ago, an tha said:

5 out of 8 midfielders injured.

 

You couldn't fucking write it.

 

Fabinho is starting to worry me - such a good player and we are so much better in midfield when he plays....but seems to pick up these niggly 'knocks' a bit too regularly and they always seem to lead to 2/3 weeks out.

 

We really do need more robust footballers in the engine room.

Well you could many people did in the Summer.

[3 Stacks]

5 minutes ago, General Dryness said:

So they have Jorginho, Kovacic, Mount, Kante (sometimes), Saul and Loftus-Cheek. At the moment we have Henderson, OC, and Jones. Our best players are made of biscuits and theirs aren't.

 

 

 

 

Yes, at the moment. Not sure why you're getting mad about it. Also, Mount and Kovacic weren't available for them today.

[dockers_strike]

Well for the first time in living memory, I had to use Turnstile G down at the Kop end instead of my usual Turnstile K due to the massive queue stretching to the Annie Road gates! What could possibly go wrong?!

 

Over all, that was a very disappointing performance and I have to say, Brighton deserved a point for their 2nd half performance. A switch seemed to have been flipped for both sides after Sadio's 2nd goal was ruled out.

 

We started quite brightly and a lovely ball once again by Mo put a golden opportunity at Henderson's feet. And he hit a sweet ball that sailed into the net for a rare Henderson goal after just 4 minutes.

 

Alli had to be smart to block a thunderous shot after Brighton caught the defence flat footed. Alli had to repeat the trick again when Bissouma had a shot that he turned onto a post.

 

The inevitable happened around 17 minutes with Keita again going down injured and needing to be replaced. I feel for the lad, I really do but this just getting ridiculous. You cant have a pro player who manages to play for the odd game here and there then picks up lots of niggling injuries. Good goals aside, it's time Jurgen and the coaching staff realised Keita's body is not up to the PL rough and tumble.

 

Move him on, for fuck's sake. We probably wont get much for him but for me, it's time to cut the losses.

 

Keita was replaced by Ox who was promptly involved with creating Sadio's first and as it turned out, legit goal. Later on in the game, Hendo gave Ox a real bollocking for the lead up to Brighton's 2nd. I dont get why he wasnt bollocking Trent, Robbo and Konate seeing as they were getting pulled all over the place all game but, hey ho.

 

Brighton continued to have dangerous moments as I said, mainly because Trent and Robbo were constantly being caught either out of position or giving the ball away cheaply.

 

But, Im convinced if Sadio's 2nd and our 3rd had of stood, the 3 points would have been secured. It's clear VAR ruled the goal out and Im sat down the other end of the ground so I cant say VAR got this wrong.

 

What I will say is the Brighton keeper pissed about with the ball, Sadio closed him down and the ball's nestling in the back of the net. Not one Brighton player appealed to the ref, they were all throwing daggers at the keeper. So, it's tough to see that goal ruled out presumably because the ball touches Sadio's arm or hand. That's the rule though.

 

Despite Mo having a goal ruled out for offside, it seemed Sadio's effort flipped the switch for both sides. Brighton continued to press and got a foothold in the game when they pulled one back before half time.

 

My mates say it was a cross and not intended as a strike at goal. Im not convinced. Alli was a little off his line and had the Sun in his eyes. It looks to me like Alli lost the ball in the glare of the Sun but, the damage was done.

 

The 2nd half was a complete shocker. I really dont think we could have much to complain about other than our own performance if we'd have lost that game.

 

Potter had clearly tweaked his tactics during the half time talk and they exploited gaps in our team and poor play. Too often Bobby and Curtis wanted too much time with the ball. It's a thing with me I know and I keep saying it but, we seem to bounce off the oppos when going in for tackles.

 

The oppos seem to me to win more 50/50 tackles than we do. It's gauling seeing 2 or 3 of our players go to close down the oppo with the ball and see the oppo leave our 2 or 3 players in their wake.

 

When the equaliser came, I dont think anyone in the ground was surprised as we had seemed to have lost the plot big time.

 

Jurgen needs to sort out these lapses in defence that are costing us goals. Brentford lost again today while we drew 3-3 with them. This is at least 4 points we've dropped from winning positions.

 

It has to be said we missed Fabinho for the game. The result is majorly disappointing seeing city lost and chelsea won.

 

To be honest, I dont think anyone deserves to be named MoTM after that performance. Sort it out boys.

[General Dryness]

1 minute ago, 3 Stacks said:

Yes, at the moment. Not sure why you're getting mad about it. Also, Mount and Kovacic weren't available for them today.

Who's getting mad? Their midfield options are less injury prone than ours. I'm not sure why you keep coming back at me as if you're trying to disprove that. 

[TheHowieLama]

Big fan of Bobby Dazzler but he stunk the place out today.

[3 Stacks]

4 minutes ago, General Dryness said:

Who's getting mad? Their midfield options are less injury prone than ours. I'm not sure why you keep coming back at me as if you're trying to disprove that. 

I was talking about depth and numbers in midfield and comparing that to Chelsea. You're the one that mentioned injuries to me, I quoted you one time. Everyone knows we have injury problems in midfield, you're not splitting the atom here.

[dockers_strike]

3 minutes ago, TheHowieLama said:

Big fan of Bobby Dazzler but he stunk the place out today.

Have to agree and I love Bobby. But he wasnt alone today either.

[Dr Nowt]

Cunt draw.

[Bruce Spanner]

10 minutes ago, dockers_strike said:

Well for the first time in living memory, I had to use Turnstile G down at the Kop end instead of my usual Turnstile K due to the massive queue stretching to the Annie Road gates! What could possibly go wrong?!

 

Over all, that was a very disappointing performance and I have to say, Brighton deserved a point for their 2nd half performance. A switch seemed to have been flipped for both sides after Sadio's 2nd goal was ruled out.

 

We started quite brightly and a lovely ball once again by Mo put a golden opportunity at Henderson's feet. And he hit a sweet ball that sailed into the net for a rare Henderson goal after just 4 minutes.

 

Alli had to be smart to block a thunderous shot after Brighton caught the defence flat footed. Alli had to repeat the trick again when Bissouma had a shot that he turned onto a post.

 

The inevitable happened around 17 minutes with Keita again going down injured and needing to be replaced. I feel for the lad, I really do but this just getting ridiculous. You cant have a pro player who manages to play for the odd game here and there then picks up lots of niggling injuries. Good goals aside, it's time Jurgen and the coaching staff realised Keita's body is not up to the PL rough and tumble.

 

Move him on, for fuck's sake. We probably wont get much for him but for me, it's time to cut the losses.

 

Keita was replaced by Ox who was promptly involved with creating Sadio's first and as it turned out, legit goal. Later on in the game, Hendo gave Ox a real bollocking for the lead up to Brighton's 2nd. I dont get why he wasnt bollocking Trent, Robbo and Konate seeing as they were getting pulled all over the place all game but, hey ho.

 

Brighton continued to have dangerous moments as I said, mainly because Trent and Robbo were constantly being caught either out of position or giving the ball away cheaply.

 

But, Im convinced if Sadio's 2nd and our 3rd had of stood, the 3 points would have been secured. It's clear VAR ruled the goal out and Im sat down the other end of the ground so I cant say VAR got this wrong.

 

What I will say is the Brighton keeper pissed about with the ball, Sadio closed him down and the ball's nestling in the back of the net. Not one Brighton player appealed to the ref, they were all throwing daggers at the keeper. So, it's tough to see that goal ruled out presumably because the ball touches Sadio's arm or hand. That's the rule though.

 

Despite Mo having a goal ruled out for offside, it seemed Sadio's effort flipped the switch for both sides. Brighton continued to press and got a foothold in the game when they pulled one back before half time.

 

My mates say it was a cross and not intended as a strike at goal. Im not convinced. Alli was a little off his line and had the Sun in his eyes. It looks to me like Alli lost the ball in the glare of the Sun but, the damage was done.

 

The 2nd half was a complete shocker. I really dont think we could have much to complain about other than our own performance if we'd have lost that game.

 

Potter had clearly tweaked his tactics during the half time talk and they exploited gaps in our team and poor play. Too often Bobby and Curtis wanted too much time with the ball. It's a thing with me I know and I keep saying it but, we seem to bounce off the oppos when going in for tackles.

 

The oppos seem to me to win more 50/50 tackles than we do. It's gauling seeing 2 or 3 of our players go to close down the oppo with the ball and see the oppo leave our 2 or 3 players in their wake.

 

When the equaliser came, I dont think anyone in the ground was surprised as we had seemed to have lost the plot big time.

 

Jurgen needs to sort out these lapses in defence that are costing us goals. Brentford lost again today while we drew 3-3 with them. This is at least 4 points we've dropped from winning positions.

 

It has to be said we missed Fabinho for the game. The result is majorly disappointing seeing city lost and chelsea won.

 

To be honest, I dont think anyone deserves to be named MoTM after that performance. Sort it out boys.

 

Sexrex in the house, bringin' then facts!

[General Dryness]

13 minutes ago, 3 Stacks said:

I was talking about depth and numbers in midfield and comparing that to Chelsea. You're the one that mentioned injuries to me, I quoted you one time. Everyone knows we have injury problems in midfield, you're not splitting the atom here.

Fucking hell, you're like a little dog with a bone. The conversation was about the injury proneness of our players. I'm not sure where you're going with this. I think, as usual, you're slightly blinded by your overwhelming need to appear to be the bestest at knowing stuff about football.

[an tha]

22 minutes ago, J-V said:

Well you could many people did in the Summer.

I was one of them to be fair.

 

It was always gonna be a problem having so many of our midfield options be either unreliable fitness wise or not good enough and in a couple of cases both.