It May Come As A Shock To Some

[Nebraska Red]

but we are not going to win every game this season against teams that , on paper and according to the knowitalls at SKY, we should be able to beat. sometimes the other team may play to a higher level than usual.

 

Rafa is not always going to put out a team that many on here want to see.

 

There are going to be games when we look poor.

[Knox_Harrington]

It won't come as a shock to many. Because we aren't f***ing children.

 

But if we don't win at least twenty five and probably twenty eight of those thirty one games we should win then we won't win the league.

 

We now need twenty five from the twenty seven which remain as far as I'm concerned.

[psl]

It won't come as a shock to many. Because we aren't f***ing children.

 

But if we don't win at least twenty five and probably twenty eight of those thirty one games we should win then we won't win the league.

 

We now need twenty five from the twenty seven which remain as far as I'm concerned.

 

We won't get that but I don't think that the league will be won with as many points this time around.

[Knox_Harrington]

We won't get that but I don't think that the league will be won with as many points this time around.

We'll almost certainly need upwards of 85. Twenty-five wins from those 31 is 75 so we still need ten or more from Chelsea, Arsenal, United home and away and Everton away. Having failed to beat Chelsea that means we probably need nine from two home games and four away games. Considering our record in these fixtures under this manager, there's a massive improvement required even to reach nine. So...

 

Twenty-five wins from that thirty-one has to be the baseline of what is required whether fewer points will be required or not. And being realistic we need twenty-eight.

[baja the hut]

It won't come as a shock to many. Because we aren't f***ing children.

 

But if we don't win at least twenty five and probably twenty eight of those thirty one games we should win then we won't win the league.

 

We now need twenty five from the twenty seven which remain as far as I'm concerned.

 

 

I am actually going to have settle for a draw today, because, honestly, with the chances they had they should have buried us.

[Rimbeux]

Pompey were dreadful for the first 25 mins, competent for the next 20, and ok for much of the 2nd half. That was not a side playing above itself or particullarly well, they're much better than that.

[David Hodgson]

but we are not going to win every game this season against teams that , on paper and according to the knowitalls at SKY, we should be able to beat. sometimes the other team may play to a higher level than usual.

 

Rafa is not always going to put out a team that many on here want to see.

 

There are going to be games when we look poor.

 

 

I'm sorry, but it may also come as a shock to some that sometimes a brilliant manager gets things very very wrong.

 

What's the point in trying to be an apologist for that. We were bloody awful. It wasn't hard to predict that a tough away game had just got 100% tougher when looking at the team we put out.

 

That was a bitterly disappointing performance. We had a chance to frighten Portsmouth with the team we could have put out. Instead we gave them an almighty lift. I'm no traditionalist who says put the same 11 out every time, but there's freshening things up, and then there's downright perversity.

[Nebraska Red]

i'm in a cracking mood and happy to be an apologist.

 

only Rafa , and the players, know who was ready for a full 90 minutes.

 

the 11 we put out at the start should have been able to beat Portsmouth and we did have a few chances to do so.

 

i'll go for the safe bet and trust the manager's judgement on this one.

[JohnnyH]

i'm in a cracking mood and happy to be an apologist.

 

only Rafa , and the players, know who was ready for a full 90 minutes.

 

the 11 we put out at the start should have been able to beat Portsmouth and we did have a few chances to do so.

 

i'll go for the safe bet and trust the manager's judgement on this one.

 

You may want to believe that the manager is incapable of ever making a mistake, but I am not. Rafa tried to prove a point today like he has a few times in the past, and yet again he has got it wrong by playing a weakened team against a good team instead of waiting until we are at home at the weekend against Birmingham.

[David Hodgson]

i'm in a cracking mood and happy to be an apologist.

 

only Rafa , and the players, know who was ready for a full 90 minutes.

 

the 11 we put out at the start should have been able to beat Portsmouth and we did have a few chances to do so.

 

i'll go for the safe bet and trust the manager's judgement on this one.

 

 

Why ? We were patently sh*t. We weren't unlucky. Just rubbish. The 'fresher' players looked heavy legged. I think Rafa just played the mathematics of rotation once too often, gambled and lost. It's a formula that has cost us in the league before.

 

In the past it's not been the end of the world because we've been happy being a top 3/4 team. Now we want the league, these games are all cup finals. F*ck Porto away. We can play a dour guilesss team in that one and eek out a draw. I'd enjoy the turgid predictability of it. But this was crucial. As Knox sayss, there just aren't enough points to write off if we're serious about the title.

 

It ain't over, obviously, but this was a real kick in the teeth. How you can in a good mood after watching your team play like that really escapes me. I'm gutted.

[Nebraska Red]

You may want to believe that the manager is incapable of ever making a mistake, but I am not. Rafa tried to prove a point today like he has a few times in the past, and yet again he has got it wrong by playing a weakened team against a good team instead of waiting until we are at home at the weekend against Birmingham.

 

 

i never said I believed he was incapable of making a mistake, I just said I will go with him on his selection for today.

 

not for one moment do I think he was trying to prove a point by sending out the team he did today.

 

we have a huge squad of proven internationals and the manager has to know which of these he can rely on as the season goes on.

 

maybe today's game will have given some insight and valuable knowledge.

 

any how, the college gridiron day is about to start and I am off to watch the games from now until midnight.

 

GO BIG RED, let's hope we can beat the mighty Trojans of USC.

 

 

 

"How you can in a good mood after watching your team play like that really escapes me. I'm gutted. " we didn't lose, the Yankees won last night and I have carte blanche to watch TV all day from the missus, college gridron, golf and baseball.

Edited September 15, 2007 by Nebraska Red

[David Hodgson]

i never said I believed he was incapable of making a mistake, I just said I will go with him on his selection for today.

 

not for one moment do I think he was trying to prove a point by sending out the team he did today.

 

we have a huge squad of proven internationals and the manager has to know which of these he can rely on as the season goes on.

 

maybe today's game will have given some insight and valuable knowledge.

 

any how, the college gridiron day is about to start and I am off to watch the games from now until midnight.

 

GO BIG RED, let's hope we can beat the mighty Trojans of USC.

"How you can in a good mood after watching your team play like that really escapes me. I'm gutted. " we didn't lose, the Yankees won last night and I have carte blanche to watch TV all day from the missus, college gridron, golf and baseball.

 

Well whoppee dooo for yoooo.

 

I'm off to murder someone.

Edited September 15, 2007 by David Hodgson

[realtarragona]

Think it was a mistake to rest both Gerrard and Torres. We lacked ideas without both of them. You could see the difference when Torres came on especially. I don't mind a few changes here and there but they're our two best players going forward and Portsmouth away isn't easy. We were lucky to get a point though looking back at the game. A lot of poor performances out there.

[Rimbeux]

i never said I believed he was incapable of making a mistake, I just said I will go with him on his selection for today.

 

not for one moment do I think he was trying to prove a point by sending out the team he did today.

 

we have a huge squad of proven internationals and the manager has to know which of these he can rely on as the season goes on.

 

maybe today's game will have given some insight and valuable knowledge.

 

any how, the college gridiron day is about to start and I am off to watch the games from now until midnight.

 

GO BIG RED, let's hope we can beat the mighty Trojans of USC.

"How you can in a good mood after watching your team play like that really escapes me. I'm gutted. " we didn't lose, the Yankees won last night and I have carte blanche to watch TV all day from the missus, college gridron, golf and baseball.

 

 

He went with a team and a gameplan that Redknapp would have been only too happy with, one which hardly posed a threat to a team that started off the game s***ting it's pants, they were there for the taking.

[David Hodgson]

Think it was a mistake to rest both Gerrard and Torres. We lacked ideas without both of them. You could see the difference when Torres came on especially. I don't mind a few changes here and there but they're our two best players going forward and Portsmouth away isn't easy. We were lucky to get a point though looking back at the game. A lot of poor performances out there.

 

I also don't get the substitution policy. Things looked bad by half time. Even 5/10 mins into the second half you could see it was only going to be more of the same. So why put the subs on in drips and drabs. I notice Ferguson and Mourinho being pretty quick to take firm action from the bench when the tides against them.

 

Rafa's not alone in his substituing policy but I do like to see decisiveness from the bench when changes are needed. why not throw Torres and Gerrad on from the start of the second ? Give the rest of the team a lift and frighten Portsmouth.

[David Hodgson]

He went with a team and a gameplan that Redknapp would have been only too happy with, one which hardly posed a threat to a team that started off the game s***ting it's pants, they were there for the taking.

 

The attack was punchless and paceless.

 

I felt gooing into this season, that although we'd strengthened, we'd now left ourselves with only one true pace option in attack - Torres.

 

Am I allowed to say that £9m for Anelka or Owen would have looked a bargain in games like todays ?

[Skillz]

As far as i am concerned it was a fair result. Still disappointed but i feel Rafa had to play Crouch and Benayoun at some point and they were relatively fresh. Unfortunately they did not take their chance as well as we would of hoped. Crouch started really well but then was disappointing, Benayoun had a terrible game. Alonso had one of his worst games for us IMO and Mascherano now deserves to start (hard to say that, i really rate Alonso).

 

On top of that Voronin is a good 4th striker, not the second coming and Pepe was MOM for an outstanding exhibition of keeper domination. He is Rafa's best buy so far for me.

 

At the end of the day the most startling thing to come out of the day was Rafa playing counter attack after the subs!

[Rimbeux]

As far as i am concerned it was a fair result. Still disappointed but i feel Rafa had to play Crouch and Benayoun at some point and they were relatively fresh. Unfortunately they did not take their chance as well as we would of hoped. Crouch started really well but then was disappointing, Benayoun had a terrible game. Alonso had one of his worst games for us IMO and Mascherano now deserves to start (hard to say that, i really rate Alonso).

 

On top of that Voronin is a good 4th striker, not the second coming and Pepe was MOM for an outstanding exhibition of keeper domination. He is Rafa's best buy so far for me.

 

At the end of the day the most startling thing to come out of the day was Rafa playing counter attack after the subs!

 

 

Tuesday

[Skillz]

Tuesday

 

I know what you are saying but both of these players should of been well up for it today, they were fresh and it represented the opportunity for them to state their case for selection. Crouch did start well but soon lost it and Benayoun was very poor. Privately i expect Rafa to be extremely hard on those players, as well as Xabi who was crap today.

 

I am actually happy cos we got a point but i feel Rafa truely understands his squad now.

 

As much as i like Xabi, Mascherano deserves to start with Stevie now and Torres and Kuyt are our best front 2.

[Rimbeux]

I know what you are saying but both of these players should of been well up for it today, they were fresh and it represented the opportunity for them to state their case for selection. Crouch did start well but soon lost it and Benayoun was very poor. Privately i expect Rafa to be extremely hard on those players, as well as Xabi who was crap today.

 

I am actually happy cos we got a point but i feel Rafa truely understands his squad now.

 

As much as i like Xabi, Mascherano deserves to start with Stevie now and Torres and Kuyt are our best front 2.

 

 

Maybe he does, maybe he thinks they didn't execute and will go with it again. I think he's playing with fire leaving both go to guys on the bench, and setting the team up to go long like that. Agree that you'd think there would be some more spark, more signs of freshness, but think the go long tactic does encourage players to sit in and not commit to attack with high tempo.

[kop205]

It won't come as a shock to many. Because we aren't f***ing children.

 

But if we don't win at least twenty five and probably twenty eight of those thirty one games we should win then we won't win the league.

 

We now need twenty five from the twenty seven which remain as far as I'm concerned.

 

How many points/wins do Chelsea and United now need? Given that they have dropped points in games that presumably that they would have expected to win?

 

Not totally disagreeing with you, just think that you are over simplifying.

[Rimbeux]

How many points/wins do Chelsea and United now need? Given that they have dropped points in games that presumably that they would have expected to win?

 

Not totally disagreeing with you, just think that you are over simplifying.

 

I think what Knox has made a good case for, is that we either do it in the winnable games, or have to go to places like OT and Chelsea and collect all three points to get a title competative points total, which is harder and far away from what we've looked like doing.

[Nebraska Red]

so many people are buying into the SKY hype.

 

5 games in , 3 wins, 2 draws and no losses, yet today's draw is seen as a disaster. and we have people telling us how many wins we must have to win the league.

 

what's it going to be like when we actually lose a game?

[Skillz]

At the end of the day i feel some of our players played well below par today. Benayoun, Crouch, Alonso, Momo, Crow and even Pennant was not up to scratch.

 

Not gonna have a go at Rafa when he is let down by so many players.

[John am Rhein]

We'll almost certainly need upwards of 85. Twenty-five wins from those 31 is 75 so we still need ten or more from Chelsea, Arsenal, United home and away and Everton away. Having failed to beat Chelsea that means we probably need nine from two home games and four away games. Considering our record in these fixtures under this manager, there's a massive improvement required even to reach nine. So...

 

Twenty-five wins from that thirty-one has to be the baseline of what is required whether fewer points will be required or not. And being realistic we need twenty-eight.

 

Winning the League is hard