pommpey
THE FUTURE ... AS IT USED TO BE
- Banned
- #1
We've played two promoted sides now and in Leeds we encountered a side fully prepared - as we were last season - to throw caution to the wind and adapt and take the challenge on face first. They've also brought players in who are PL ready and can in fact mix it with the best. Fulham on the other hand are playing the cautious, Norwich style game of 'look at us how lucky we are to be in the big league' and their team and strategy says the same. They were the best way for us to salvage something out of what has been a pretty dismal start to our second term in the top flight and to me, three points today weren't simply a nice to have thing - it was essential. Okay,some teams are better placed to go down than us (on paper) but we are still getting it so wrong in many areas on the pitch and that reflects on the single, some-would-say undeserved point we salvaged today.
Quite simply, we are suffering from a type of 'long COVID'. Since the return from lockdown with some rare exceptions, we have been punchless, devoid of ideas and guile and looking the relegation fodder we always (secretly) thought we were. We are wheezy, slow and needing the oxygen of inspiration. It came in rare instances today, mainly at the deft, developing feet of Sander Berge who is slowly stamping his mark on a team who are now looking like they are beneath him.
The formation is dogeared and familiar and needs a revamp. Wilder (if not already) needs to be looking at something different because clearly we are being snuffed out, even by more basic teams like Fulham. If the last few games of last season and the first two minutes of this season didn't ring enough alarm bells then I don't know what will. I see many posters on here giving it the 'what's up wi thee?' when people point out the bleedin' obvious. What is obvious is that we will now be seriously in the struggle until next spring, and if nothing changes, relegated by Easter. It's as basic as that. We can't keep relying on the central three, already one Musketeer down (for a long time and how long until he's back at performance status?) to play the 'overlapping centre back' game whilst oppositions now press back and one of the three isn't set up to do this effectively. We can't rely on both wingbacks doing their touchline marauding whilst the areas are now full of defenders. Our midfield is pitifully weak, yet Wilder keeps picking the same setup, which has the same effect. And our attack is toothless and easily sussed out and wastes clear chances with profligate ease.
And we don't have a plan B either. What amounts to an alternate strategy - usually when we are up against it - is to switch to 4-3-3 and fuck the attack up completely.
Fulham were there to be beaten today. First half we showed some promise and they couldn't deal with Berge, but elsewhere we are so bloody predictable and when the opposition takes it's eye off the game and we get a ball into the zone, we can rely on our once-record signing to fucking head it wide or straight at the keeper. Is that what we bought him for?
We were always apt to be undone by the likes of Lookman, who looked like the type of player - like Cairney and Mitrovic we should have signed three seasons ago as record deals. He ran us ragged and deserved his goal. Mitrovic is now bereft of ability to execute and their penalty was as a result of Robinson's breathtaking naivety, why have your hands up so fucking high when challenging for a cross in your own fucking area? It's not as though this season - Dier and Maupay - there aren't any examples of 'seen 'em given'. It tells us all we need to know about how far the decline has set in. If Jay McEveley did this (and he did - oh, boy how he fucking did it, the clown) we'd laugh about it and be a bit mad, but it's just McEveley innit? But this is Jack's replacement, already displaced by Enda Stevens in CWAKs attempted rehabilitation of the LCB position in the absence of the Hat. And not only have we paid for O'Connell's absence and long term injury enough, he almost lost us the game were it not for Mitrovic's doppy spot kick.
So what to do? As said, we need to change the formation. I hear it when people say we can't play four at the back but maybe we'll have to learn to do so. For great periods of today's game I looked and we were our usually disciplined shape of 5-3-2, this against Fulham, newly promoted and struggling more than us. But it gives us nothing going forward. Maybe switching to 4-1-3-2 or 4-1-2-1-2 or 4-3-1-2 might give us more midfield options but again, only one player at the moment seems to be showing the ability to take us into the danger areas. We need Brooks as well, as a foil for Berge and also as a link between midfield and front. But that's not gonna happen, is it?
Out of ten
Ramsdale 7/10: Loses a point for the deseperate, dropped cross but gains it back for the follow-on bravery in blocking the shot after it. Still think he is more theatrical than effective in his attempts to save stuff. No, you're not Dean Henderson.
Baldock 7/10: Gets much the same mark every week from me as George is proving to be 'Mr Consistent'. Although he is an effective cog in the Baldock-Basham-Berge triad, he seems pinned back at times and twice today, threw it in only for the return pass to miss him and go out of play for the initiative to be lost
Basham 8/10: Still love this bloke. He is the one thing at the moment which makes watching United bearable and when Robinson is on the pitch and CWAK switches to 4-3-3, shouldn't be the sacrificial lamb to make way. He reads the game so well, picks people's pockets and moves the game up the pitch and does the essentials of defending so well. Was unfortunate to lose out to Lookman for the goal.
Egan 6.5/10: He dealt with a lacklustre Mitrovic well but when we went to 4 at the back just lost his bubble somewhat. Twice he simply let him get the better of him and get a fairly easy header in.
Robinson 4/10: Really don't think he is at PL level. His legendary throws today went mainly to the keeper and he looked as though he was struggling to deal with the magnitude of the game. The penalty was just idiotic, McEveley-level wankery.
Stevens 6/10: Not enough to assess on LCB, but at LWB it was a better performance, if not legendary Enda. Still think he's on the wane now and will be shipped out next season
Berge 7/10: First half he showed some alarmingly good composure and footballing nous and tended to just shove Fulham's defence aside. It was almost Currie like at times. Second half he was not quite so prolific, but at last is showing us what he can actually do. He needs a goal or two, but then again, we all fucking do.
Norwood 2/10: Pin 'em back. He isn't good enough. Fulham and Brighton were right and today was why. For a CM defensive pivot he is so easily dispossessed and brushed aside, outfought, outrun or simply bypassed. His legendary pings are now easily read and predictable and that fucking free kick, with Berge waiting for the roll through when he then deftly chipped it over everyone's heads to the defender at the back post tells you all you need to know. If you are following this write up with slavver countering this then please provide evidence of his effectiveness today. I saw him just bustled out of the way, the ball swept off his feet and him desperately chasing his fuck ups back into our half as Fulham pounced and punished. This isn't what anyone should expect of a PL player. His contemporaries - who he will face in the next few weeks like Kante, Hojberg, De Bruyne and Henderson - don't allow this to happen. He needs dropping and shipping out. He'll never make any impact on this league as long as his arsehole points downwards. We have suffered enough.
Lundstram 5/10: Another 'bitty' game for him and again, if he's still holding out on his deal, drop the fucker and give Osborn the job to develop. Second half I was struggling to see if he was playing at times
McGoldrick 5/10: Not really sure what Didsy did today which was effective or worthy of praise but in fairness, service to him was pisspoor. Again.
McBurnie 4/10: Three, maybe four clear chances out of which you'd expect him to bury two of them. Then, second half he's out of the box playing LW.
Lowe - Not on long enough.Shame for him on his PL debut
Sharp 6/10: Just for taking the penalty like Lundstram should have taken it against Villa
Brewster 5/10: Not really on or involved to make much of an assessment. Nice to see him - at last - in a Blades shirt but hope upon hope he doesn't turn into another Mousset
Wilder 4/10: A point is a point, but he needs to have a better team formation and be brave enough to drop and rearrange the midfield to make the game winnable.
Ref 7/10: Pretty good. Think our penalty was iffy however.
pommpey
Quite simply, we are suffering from a type of 'long COVID'. Since the return from lockdown with some rare exceptions, we have been punchless, devoid of ideas and guile and looking the relegation fodder we always (secretly) thought we were. We are wheezy, slow and needing the oxygen of inspiration. It came in rare instances today, mainly at the deft, developing feet of Sander Berge who is slowly stamping his mark on a team who are now looking like they are beneath him.
The formation is dogeared and familiar and needs a revamp. Wilder (if not already) needs to be looking at something different because clearly we are being snuffed out, even by more basic teams like Fulham. If the last few games of last season and the first two minutes of this season didn't ring enough alarm bells then I don't know what will. I see many posters on here giving it the 'what's up wi thee?' when people point out the bleedin' obvious. What is obvious is that we will now be seriously in the struggle until next spring, and if nothing changes, relegated by Easter. It's as basic as that. We can't keep relying on the central three, already one Musketeer down (for a long time and how long until he's back at performance status?) to play the 'overlapping centre back' game whilst oppositions now press back and one of the three isn't set up to do this effectively. We can't rely on both wingbacks doing their touchline marauding whilst the areas are now full of defenders. Our midfield is pitifully weak, yet Wilder keeps picking the same setup, which has the same effect. And our attack is toothless and easily sussed out and wastes clear chances with profligate ease.
And we don't have a plan B either. What amounts to an alternate strategy - usually when we are up against it - is to switch to 4-3-3 and fuck the attack up completely.
Fulham were there to be beaten today. First half we showed some promise and they couldn't deal with Berge, but elsewhere we are so bloody predictable and when the opposition takes it's eye off the game and we get a ball into the zone, we can rely on our once-record signing to fucking head it wide or straight at the keeper. Is that what we bought him for?
We were always apt to be undone by the likes of Lookman, who looked like the type of player - like Cairney and Mitrovic we should have signed three seasons ago as record deals. He ran us ragged and deserved his goal. Mitrovic is now bereft of ability to execute and their penalty was as a result of Robinson's breathtaking naivety, why have your hands up so fucking high when challenging for a cross in your own fucking area? It's not as though this season - Dier and Maupay - there aren't any examples of 'seen 'em given'. It tells us all we need to know about how far the decline has set in. If Jay McEveley did this (and he did - oh, boy how he fucking did it, the clown) we'd laugh about it and be a bit mad, but it's just McEveley innit? But this is Jack's replacement, already displaced by Enda Stevens in CWAKs attempted rehabilitation of the LCB position in the absence of the Hat. And not only have we paid for O'Connell's absence and long term injury enough, he almost lost us the game were it not for Mitrovic's doppy spot kick.
So what to do? As said, we need to change the formation. I hear it when people say we can't play four at the back but maybe we'll have to learn to do so. For great periods of today's game I looked and we were our usually disciplined shape of 5-3-2, this against Fulham, newly promoted and struggling more than us. But it gives us nothing going forward. Maybe switching to 4-1-3-2 or 4-1-2-1-2 or 4-3-1-2 might give us more midfield options but again, only one player at the moment seems to be showing the ability to take us into the danger areas. We need Brooks as well, as a foil for Berge and also as a link between midfield and front. But that's not gonna happen, is it?
Out of ten
Ramsdale 7/10: Loses a point for the deseperate, dropped cross but gains it back for the follow-on bravery in blocking the shot after it. Still think he is more theatrical than effective in his attempts to save stuff. No, you're not Dean Henderson.
Baldock 7/10: Gets much the same mark every week from me as George is proving to be 'Mr Consistent'. Although he is an effective cog in the Baldock-Basham-Berge triad, he seems pinned back at times and twice today, threw it in only for the return pass to miss him and go out of play for the initiative to be lost
Basham 8/10: Still love this bloke. He is the one thing at the moment which makes watching United bearable and when Robinson is on the pitch and CWAK switches to 4-3-3, shouldn't be the sacrificial lamb to make way. He reads the game so well, picks people's pockets and moves the game up the pitch and does the essentials of defending so well. Was unfortunate to lose out to Lookman for the goal.
Egan 6.5/10: He dealt with a lacklustre Mitrovic well but when we went to 4 at the back just lost his bubble somewhat. Twice he simply let him get the better of him and get a fairly easy header in.
Robinson 4/10: Really don't think he is at PL level. His legendary throws today went mainly to the keeper and he looked as though he was struggling to deal with the magnitude of the game. The penalty was just idiotic, McEveley-level wankery.
Stevens 6/10: Not enough to assess on LCB, but at LWB it was a better performance, if not legendary Enda. Still think he's on the wane now and will be shipped out next season
Berge 7/10: First half he showed some alarmingly good composure and footballing nous and tended to just shove Fulham's defence aside. It was almost Currie like at times. Second half he was not quite so prolific, but at last is showing us what he can actually do. He needs a goal or two, but then again, we all fucking do.
Norwood 2/10: Pin 'em back. He isn't good enough. Fulham and Brighton were right and today was why. For a CM defensive pivot he is so easily dispossessed and brushed aside, outfought, outrun or simply bypassed. His legendary pings are now easily read and predictable and that fucking free kick, with Berge waiting for the roll through when he then deftly chipped it over everyone's heads to the defender at the back post tells you all you need to know. If you are following this write up with slavver countering this then please provide evidence of his effectiveness today. I saw him just bustled out of the way, the ball swept off his feet and him desperately chasing his fuck ups back into our half as Fulham pounced and punished. This isn't what anyone should expect of a PL player. His contemporaries - who he will face in the next few weeks like Kante, Hojberg, De Bruyne and Henderson - don't allow this to happen. He needs dropping and shipping out. He'll never make any impact on this league as long as his arsehole points downwards. We have suffered enough.
Lundstram 5/10: Another 'bitty' game for him and again, if he's still holding out on his deal, drop the fucker and give Osborn the job to develop. Second half I was struggling to see if he was playing at times
McGoldrick 5/10: Not really sure what Didsy did today which was effective or worthy of praise but in fairness, service to him was pisspoor. Again.
McBurnie 4/10: Three, maybe four clear chances out of which you'd expect him to bury two of them. Then, second half he's out of the box playing LW.
Lowe - Not on long enough.Shame for him on his PL debut
Sharp 6/10: Just for taking the penalty like Lundstram should have taken it against Villa
Brewster 5/10: Not really on or involved to make much of an assessment. Nice to see him - at last - in a Blades shirt but hope upon hope he doesn't turn into another Mousset
Wilder 4/10: A point is a point, but he needs to have a better team formation and be brave enough to drop and rearrange the midfield to make the game winnable.
Ref 7/10: Pretty good. Think our penalty was iffy however.
pommpey
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