Loblaw

We are playing Debrecen. If whatever f***ing side that gets put out can't't beat that lot. Then Rafa and the team should stay in Hungary and not come back.

The one that got away. We could have gotten him with the Keane money an all. Would have completely transformed the side.. The crazy thing, and for me just highlights the sh*te scouting at the Club and/or Rafa's distrust of flair/creative players, is this lad was playing for Zenit the time we bought Skrtel from them. And anyone who seen him play couldn't have failed to be massively impressed by him, and that was before he had a fantastic couple of games in the Euro's. He absolutely ran the show for Zenit on their way to the UEFA Cup.

Personally i'd be extremely cautious about selling/loaning Babel out to another Prem, side, especially a side we're going to be competing with for 4th place. Think if he has a manager who has some trust in him, and gives him a proper chance he'd become a very useful player.

Like the look of Elia, but he's only been at Hamburg a few months. Why weren't we interested a few months ago? He can play wide too fwiw. And looks a far more rounded player than Babel.

Thing is, he probably is the best defensive mid in the world. But in our system you have to have more to your game than simply defending. But at Barca, anchoring the mid-field, with little to no responsibility in an attacking sense, he'd be immense. That said, i really don't know why we've never tried something like the system Barca employ. -------Masch------ Gerrard----Lucas/Aquilani

Where did i say Johnson was pedestrian? Are you that simple? I'm talking team ethic. I agree that for much of the game today the movement was good. It's never consistent though. And too often it's without any understanding between the players.

There's this greek bloke. Great in the air. The problem is, when Carra is eligible, he'll play again, so no matter how good the other guy is, Carra will get targeted when he plays. But on the whole, in open play anyway, Skrtel and Agger take care of themselves fairly well.

Well he's rather ordinary himself, Fletcher that is. Lampard on the other hand is a Word Class player an some of his link up play with the like of Drogba and Anelka is absolutely brilliant. It's not like he shirks his defensive responsibility either. But i'm not really sure what point you;re trying to make. What pass and move were Lucas or Masch involved in tonight. Give me one instance where Masch played a neat one two with anyone around the opposition box? Same goes for Lucas. Flecther does a job similar to what Lucas does, okay, fair enough, but we have two players doing the same job. And United miss a player like Scholes badly. But they compensate for that with lots of movement, fullbacks attacking high up the pitch etc. We don't. We are pedestrian in comparison.

Riera is poo though.

fantasti

Or, you drop Masch in behind Aquilani and Gerrard who both play centrally, but in advanced roles. Lots of options you see.

Precisely. So much ball and what could either of them produce? Masch went close once with a long ranger, and Lucas i think played one really adventurous ball that N'Gog might have done better with. Very telling that.

Or, now brace yourself, he could have taken off Dirk? Move Gerrard out wide, where he had one of his most productive ever seasons for us, and where he plays regularly for England? Be nice to mix things up, every once and a while. We're just far too predictable at times.

Are you really going to compare the job Xabi done for us and the one Lucas does? Xabi, last season anyway, not so much the two before that, would always be there as an outlet. Lucas hides. Painful to see Glen Johnson pick up the ball, have acres pf space, advance, advance, and still have no one show for it. That's not all on Lucas oviously, but a large part of it is. FWIW, i thought he played well enough. But at the same time you really want to see more from central midfield when you dominate possession as much as we did.

Before he f***s off for good i say give him a run on the right. Can't possibly offer any less than Kuyt has for the past couple of months. He's got pace, can beat a man, if inconsistently, and doesn't need twenty yards in either direction to turn.

Lucas's passes i like. Sideways much? and Dirk. When he didn't pass it backwards he never found his man.

The defence aint that bad i don't think. Defending set pieces is a collective responsibility. And you'd think with all 11 in our own box we could at least have a man on either post. But you wonder does having everyone back just cause more confusion because the opposition can afford to throw more people in? But it does seem to be the same people not winning that all important ball, Carra, Skrtel, Insua probably the main culprits. You wonder where the likes of Johnson, Gerrard and Kuyt are? Those guys should be winning their fair share of aerial ball, but they don't, at either end.

Easy one this. Johnson N'Gog Mascherano

It's a fine line alright between being the best, and simply being good. Which too many of our players are unfortunately.

Another 90 minutes for Kuyt. Some things just defy all logic.

Kuyt again proving his uselessness. Can't even control a ball hit straight at him, chest height.

Glen Johnson has caught Jermaine Pennant looping cross syndrome.

Unbelievable. Proof if ever there was we simply don't work on set-pieces.

This is slipping away now.

So Aquilani is only fit enough for ten minutes now is it? What's he doing on the bench if that's the case?