pommpey
THE FUTURE ... AS IT USED TO BE
- Banned
- #1
Again, pretty grim watching after Leicester. I think we were all expecting Wilder's savaging to have had some effect and to galvanise as it had with the Wolves and later games, but it seems not.
As said, forget Euope now and congratulate Wilder, Knill, the staff and the players on what has been a fucking astounding achievement, not just avoiding instant relegation, but a high, well-deserved finish. A year ago when the programme came out and the pre-season started and the eventual signings came in, I doubt we'd have ever imagined it would turn out like this and the season would be such a fucking struggle to complete. Just say now, thanks to you Red and White Wizards.
But this match illustrated where we have to fix things for next season, not to even imagine such a high finish, but to survive season two and onwards. If it isn't pretty obvious to all that our midfield is riddled with problems, then really, I don't know what evidence you need. Again, with Norwood playing in the inverted V and again, showing off with nothing to show for it, we have what now is a worsening Berge and the Osborn/Fleck/Lundstram conundrum, of which I doubt CWAK even knows how to fix. These people are the conduit to goals and wins and it seems they don't now know what the fuck to do to achieve that. If there was a demonstration to Norwood how to put a driven, aimed cross in it was given by Siggurdsun. Frankly all Richarison had to do was redirect the ball and it was causing Henderson problems. We don't do any of that, despite at times having Basham, Berge, O'Connell, Egan and McBurnie to aim at. Our path to the front two - the fists of the team - is fucking woeful now. Whereas earlier in the season we seemed so deadly down the flanks angling into the box and delivering to Lundram or Mousett, now opposition teams find it easy to keep us passing it about in the crossing zone and eventually lose it doing so. Everton did that with us today. We couldn't get it into the front two who again (in whatever combination) spent far too much fucking time fetching it from the flanks and creating outside the box than having it to feet or head in the box. The route is there - we have Fleck, Norwood, Berge - all of whom are supposedly gifted individuals but all of who can not look up and put that telling pass in (Fleck did, just the once) It fucking galled me at one stage to see David McGoldrick, one of our forwards, collecting the ball deep in our half and taking it from in front of the back three into their half, with Sander Berge casually jogging beside him, not bothering much to take players away from McG or move into free space. I also witnessed Berge jump for a ball with one of their shorter midfielders and lose, falling to the deck. He also failed to stop DCL with his post hit in the first half. Why the fuck have we bought him, anyone? If it's to add strength to our midfield then it's not what he does. If it's to add flair, then momentarily, he can show it but fuck me blink and you have missed it. If its for creativity then tell me, what has he created? One goal and (I think) one assist in twelve appearances. It's not edifying reasoning that twenty two million is well spent. No wonder Norwood - ostensibly in his position - looks comfortable.
There's another thing. Manchester United have had (I think) eleven or twelve penalties this season. Us - one. Now you can chimp about making large about big team bias, but in honesty, penalties come about largely because one of your players is fouled in the box, or your ball or intent hits the hand of an opponent - in the box. Man U have that tally because their players take the ball into the box and are mostly challenged and fouled by the opposition. We just don't do that, do we? We don't get it into the box and invite the challenge. We simply (now) faff endlessly waiting for either players to get in position (because they have been out of the box, being part of the build up solution) or simply because players seem scared to smack the ball in at any height but with pace. Anyone who has spent ninety minutes defending knows how fucking awful a cross is, hit at pace. And its a numbers game. One will find your man (obviously if he is not the one crossing or is out wide making the chance.)
Finally, once again, Norwood again is apt to chop the ball out wide - he did it twice today that I saw. Last season at BDTBL he put a ball across the park into Baldock's path that was fucking mercurial. It couldn't have been more beautiful. Baldock ran onto it and it was a 'stand up and applaud' moment. Now he hits these balls across the pitch to Stevens and Baldock which take a fucking age to drop, and invariably he now hits it with either backlift or outstep spin which basically stops the wingback in their tracks to capture the ball. Meanwhile the opposition advance and the wingback has to pass the ball backwards. Yep. Looks fucking great. Norwood looks great doing it. The ball artfully arcs through the air on camera with the decals on it slowly spinning. But it does ... nothing.
Henderson 7/10: Good stops and unlucky with the goal. We now have our final 90 minutes of free use out of this kid and fuck me are we gonna miss his athleticism, confidence and ability when he goes
Baldock 7/10: Again, energetic, aggressive and dedicated performance from George B. The marauding ventures forward though came to fuck all because no one wanted the responsibility of putting the ball in the box
Basham 7.5/10: Again, fucking no idea why he was hooked. Why not bring Jags on and stick him in midfield in Berge's position? Great player.
Egan 6.5/10: Decent performance vs DCL who looked to get the better of him at times
O'Connell 6/10: Did his best against a tricky front two. Not his best outing for us
Stevens 4.5/10: Thought he looked knackered and under confident throughout the game. Poor performance by him TBH
Berge 4.5/10: He slipping backwards now. I did think that the past few games might be showing us something but it's clear, the EPL is way above his output level
Norwood 4/10: Yup, keep 'em coming Ollie Fanclub. Pretty piss poor. That free kick he took which hit the first man as a starting point.
Osborn 7/10; Pommpey likes a trier. Okay, he's did a few iffy passes but n honesty - is Fleck 'now' any better than him?
McBurnie 5/10: No service
McGoldrick 7/10: Just for trying to do most of the team's jobs for them, especially the midfield
Sharp 6/10: Loses a point for miscontrolling our only clear chance - but again, way too far from his home in the penalty area
Fleck 5/10: Added nothing
Lundstram 5/10: Added nothing
Zivkovic 5/10: Chased about a bit, but how is he meant to make an impact pressing and closing down by the JS/SS corner flag?
Amazon Prime: 2/10: Shuddervision most of the time, and I have a decent broadband speed. My mate had Halley's Comet being kicked about on the hallowed Desso too. Fucking dismal coverage. Whoever is the producer isn't a football follower. I care not a jot to lipread Wilder for twenty long seconds, watch Walcot ambling for his shower or some mid distanced shot of Acholetti shrouded by out of focus, blurry characters, when I can hear the ball being booted about on the turf. I'd also like some captions on when players are being subbed, your amateurish shower of fucking shambolic shitheads. See Sky, BBC and BT? Watch and learn. The whole idea of you cornering their market is 'being better'. And for fuck's sake, get a co-commentator whom we can audibly decipher. This isn't the SPL whereby viewers understand the complex caledonian vernacular.
And finally, it is 'Greasy Chip Butty', not 'The Chip Butty Song'. Fucking heathens.
pommpey
As said, forget Euope now and congratulate Wilder, Knill, the staff and the players on what has been a fucking astounding achievement, not just avoiding instant relegation, but a high, well-deserved finish. A year ago when the programme came out and the pre-season started and the eventual signings came in, I doubt we'd have ever imagined it would turn out like this and the season would be such a fucking struggle to complete. Just say now, thanks to you Red and White Wizards.
But this match illustrated where we have to fix things for next season, not to even imagine such a high finish, but to survive season two and onwards. If it isn't pretty obvious to all that our midfield is riddled with problems, then really, I don't know what evidence you need. Again, with Norwood playing in the inverted V and again, showing off with nothing to show for it, we have what now is a worsening Berge and the Osborn/Fleck/Lundstram conundrum, of which I doubt CWAK even knows how to fix. These people are the conduit to goals and wins and it seems they don't now know what the fuck to do to achieve that. If there was a demonstration to Norwood how to put a driven, aimed cross in it was given by Siggurdsun. Frankly all Richarison had to do was redirect the ball and it was causing Henderson problems. We don't do any of that, despite at times having Basham, Berge, O'Connell, Egan and McBurnie to aim at. Our path to the front two - the fists of the team - is fucking woeful now. Whereas earlier in the season we seemed so deadly down the flanks angling into the box and delivering to Lundram or Mousett, now opposition teams find it easy to keep us passing it about in the crossing zone and eventually lose it doing so. Everton did that with us today. We couldn't get it into the front two who again (in whatever combination) spent far too much fucking time fetching it from the flanks and creating outside the box than having it to feet or head in the box. The route is there - we have Fleck, Norwood, Berge - all of whom are supposedly gifted individuals but all of who can not look up and put that telling pass in (Fleck did, just the once) It fucking galled me at one stage to see David McGoldrick, one of our forwards, collecting the ball deep in our half and taking it from in front of the back three into their half, with Sander Berge casually jogging beside him, not bothering much to take players away from McG or move into free space. I also witnessed Berge jump for a ball with one of their shorter midfielders and lose, falling to the deck. He also failed to stop DCL with his post hit in the first half. Why the fuck have we bought him, anyone? If it's to add strength to our midfield then it's not what he does. If it's to add flair, then momentarily, he can show it but fuck me blink and you have missed it. If its for creativity then tell me, what has he created? One goal and (I think) one assist in twelve appearances. It's not edifying reasoning that twenty two million is well spent. No wonder Norwood - ostensibly in his position - looks comfortable.
There's another thing. Manchester United have had (I think) eleven or twelve penalties this season. Us - one. Now you can chimp about making large about big team bias, but in honesty, penalties come about largely because one of your players is fouled in the box, or your ball or intent hits the hand of an opponent - in the box. Man U have that tally because their players take the ball into the box and are mostly challenged and fouled by the opposition. We just don't do that, do we? We don't get it into the box and invite the challenge. We simply (now) faff endlessly waiting for either players to get in position (because they have been out of the box, being part of the build up solution) or simply because players seem scared to smack the ball in at any height but with pace. Anyone who has spent ninety minutes defending knows how fucking awful a cross is, hit at pace. And its a numbers game. One will find your man (obviously if he is not the one crossing or is out wide making the chance.)
Finally, once again, Norwood again is apt to chop the ball out wide - he did it twice today that I saw. Last season at BDTBL he put a ball across the park into Baldock's path that was fucking mercurial. It couldn't have been more beautiful. Baldock ran onto it and it was a 'stand up and applaud' moment. Now he hits these balls across the pitch to Stevens and Baldock which take a fucking age to drop, and invariably he now hits it with either backlift or outstep spin which basically stops the wingback in their tracks to capture the ball. Meanwhile the opposition advance and the wingback has to pass the ball backwards. Yep. Looks fucking great. Norwood looks great doing it. The ball artfully arcs through the air on camera with the decals on it slowly spinning. But it does ... nothing.
Henderson 7/10: Good stops and unlucky with the goal. We now have our final 90 minutes of free use out of this kid and fuck me are we gonna miss his athleticism, confidence and ability when he goes
Baldock 7/10: Again, energetic, aggressive and dedicated performance from George B. The marauding ventures forward though came to fuck all because no one wanted the responsibility of putting the ball in the box
Basham 7.5/10: Again, fucking no idea why he was hooked. Why not bring Jags on and stick him in midfield in Berge's position? Great player.
Egan 6.5/10: Decent performance vs DCL who looked to get the better of him at times
O'Connell 6/10: Did his best against a tricky front two. Not his best outing for us
Stevens 4.5/10: Thought he looked knackered and under confident throughout the game. Poor performance by him TBH
Berge 4.5/10: He slipping backwards now. I did think that the past few games might be showing us something but it's clear, the EPL is way above his output level
Norwood 4/10: Yup, keep 'em coming Ollie Fanclub. Pretty piss poor. That free kick he took which hit the first man as a starting point.
Osborn 7/10; Pommpey likes a trier. Okay, he's did a few iffy passes but n honesty - is Fleck 'now' any better than him?
McBurnie 5/10: No service
McGoldrick 7/10: Just for trying to do most of the team's jobs for them, especially the midfield
Sharp 6/10: Loses a point for miscontrolling our only clear chance - but again, way too far from his home in the penalty area
Fleck 5/10: Added nothing
Lundstram 5/10: Added nothing
Zivkovic 5/10: Chased about a bit, but how is he meant to make an impact pressing and closing down by the JS/SS corner flag?
Amazon Prime: 2/10: Shuddervision most of the time, and I have a decent broadband speed. My mate had Halley's Comet being kicked about on the hallowed Desso too. Fucking dismal coverage. Whoever is the producer isn't a football follower. I care not a jot to lipread Wilder for twenty long seconds, watch Walcot ambling for his shower or some mid distanced shot of Acholetti shrouded by out of focus, blurry characters, when I can hear the ball being booted about on the turf. I'd also like some captions on when players are being subbed, your amateurish shower of fucking shambolic shitheads. See Sky, BBC and BT? Watch and learn. The whole idea of you cornering their market is 'being better'. And for fuck's sake, get a co-commentator whom we can audibly decipher. This isn't the SPL whereby viewers understand the complex caledonian vernacular.
And finally, it is 'Greasy Chip Butty', not 'The Chip Butty Song'. Fucking heathens.
pommpey
