400 replies to this topic

[AlexT]

Anyone got any thoughts/observations on this Nick Powell? Meant to be the dog's bollocks, but I haven't seen him play much yet and am curious...

[Rorshach]

So we draw again. Again infuriating. We're much better than Norwich, even with four regulars missing. But we continue to be our own worst enemy..

Oh, and I'm not certain the free kick Norwich scored from should have been given. Looked like a clumsy fall, tbh. But we should have put the game to bed before that.

Bollocks!

[polishgenius]

AlexTimperley, on 24 November 2012 - 11:18 AM, said:

United rattling around like spare change in the washing machine at home again. They really haven't been very good this year.

Why, as a City fan, would you have posted that then? Especially since we've mostly been ace once we've gone behind.

AlexTimperley, on 24 November 2012 - 11:42 AM, said:

Anyone got any thoughts/observations on this Nick Powell? Meant to be the dog's bollocks, but I haven't seen him play much yet and am curious...

I missed the midweek game which was his longest stint so far, but from the rest that I've seen him play I've been underwhelmed. Not that he's been bad, he just hasn't shown anything special in either technique or cleverness. I get the distinct feeling Fergie brought him in to compensate for the loss of Ravel Morrison, and he hasn't yet shown half the talent that the delinquent did.

[AlexT]

polishgenius, on 24 November 2012 - 12:06 PM, said:

Why, as a City fan, would you have posted that then? Especially since we've mostly been ace once we've gone behind.


I missed the midweek game which was his longest stint so far, but from the rest that I've seen him play I've been underwhelmed. Not that he's been bad, he just hasn't shown anything special in either technique or cleverness. I get the distinct feeling Fergie brought him in to compensate for the loss of Ravel Morrison, and he hasn't yet shown half the talent that the delinquent did.

Because I don't really think me posting here has any bearing on the game. And you have to admit, United have been properly rattling around this season, comebacks notwithstanding.

Thanks for the opinion r.e. Nick Powell. Will be interesting to see how he develops and if he steps up or fades into the background. Can't think of many more high pressure places than Old Trafford to meet expectations.

Morrison is the very definition of too much trouble to bother with, even with all that talent. And he has got an absurd hair/eyebrow cut.

[polishgenius]

He was for us, certainly. It seems that Lee Clark at Birmingham has actually got him training properly and he's beginning to play really well in the Championship, so we'll see how that goes. I'm not sure West Ham under Big Sam is the best place for him to make his impact in the Prem though if he gets that far.


Have we all seen Al-Habsi's howler today? Ouch.

[Calibandar]

Quote

Have we all seen Al-Habsi's howler today? Ouch.

That is terrible, a right embarrassment.

Arsenal dropping points again, just when you thought they might start to get rolling again after the beating they gave Spurs. But no.

Edited by Calibandar, 24 November 2012 - 03:14 PM.

[My name is Reek]

BigWeirdB, on 24 November 2012 - 04:51 AM, said:

http://www.bbc.co.uk...gazine-20464371

who'd have thought it, Fergie time really does exist.

Time to check out the reactions on RAWK, he he.

[kairparavel]

Think it might be raining in London?

Also, this is great! Let the Rafa era begin!

[Inigima]

This match report does not make me feel great about my side.

[Pope Nasrudin the Second]

People are assholes, Ini.  I thought you knew?

I have often considered that it is much easier to be a fan of a foreign team.  If I were actually surrounded by West Ham fans all the time, I'd probably stop following the sport entirely.  Or I would support Wigan, maybe, so that being surrounded by other fans of my club was a virtual impossibility.

[Slick Mongoose]

Inigima, on 25 November 2012 - 01:58 PM, said:

This match report does not make me feel great about my side.

And they don't even mention the Hitler chants.

[AlexT]

We should have won that this evening. Kun may be dreamy but his header straight at Cech was laughable.

2 points dropped.

[Inigima]

Slick Mongoose, on 25 November 2012 - 04:56 PM, said:

And they don't even mention the Hitler chants.

I didn't see the match as it wasn't aired here. Tell me you're joking.

[polishgenius]

Inigima, on 25 November 2012 - 05:43 PM, said:

I didn't see the match as it wasn't aired here. Tell me you're joking.

He isn't joking.

The thing is that while obviously all fans have their embarrassing elements, West Ham fans in particular (along with Millwall and to an extent Chelsea) do seem quite determined to make sure that the whole world thinks of them as a bunch of absolute cunts.

[Iskaral Pust]

Liverpool were a little unfortunate to only draw away at Swansea but the two teams mostly canceled each other out.

We had some good chances in the first half, with Enrique scoring a goal that was disallowed for a very narrow offside, Sterling hit the bar with a cracking volley, Suarez had a good shot blocked and Johnson's close range shot was just about saved by the keeper's trailing leg.  If we had converted just one of those I think we would have won pretty comfortably.

Fewer chances in the second half as Swansea adapted their defense.  We did have one great break-away chance that Sterling ruined with a bad pass.  Swansea had a couple of chances too late in the game when they finally had a period where they went for it, but nothing too clear cut and Reina was pretty comfortable throughout.

Positives:
Johnson and Enrique were great again, and having Johnson on the right behind Sterling helped us to be more balanced -- Wisdom and Sterling has looked vulnerable on the right.  Agger, Skrtel and Reina all looked very solid -- it's a long time since those early problems for Skrtel and Agger against West Brom and Man City.

Neutral:
Suarez and Sterling did pretty well, but Sterling especially looked tired.  Suarez was starved of service for most of the game.  Shelvey did OK after coming on -- at least he didn't miss another great chance, but he didn't get any great chances either.

Negatives:
Downing was often a weak link going forward or defending.  We needed a back-up full back today so I'm glad he was available to do a job there and keep Enrique more advanced, but Downing needs to be better on the ball.  A big negative was that central midfield trio yet again looked very weak.  Joe Allen has had a poor run for several games now.  He still has very tidy movement to create space and distribute the ball but his passes are not very creative or incisive and his defending/tackling is terrible for his current deep role: he gave up two dangerous free-kicks today.  Henderson had too little impact on the game and Gerrard looks more like 42 than 32 as he drags himself around the pitch.  He's still confident enough to spray around some incisive passes but his mobility is very poor and he is guilty of some sloppy give-aways every match -- one especially bad one today should have been punished but De Guzman took the worst possible option.  And the biggest problem was that three of them had no real shape.  They were too withdrawn from the forwards to offer any support, they didn't link up well with each other and they weren't particularly effective in tackling or winning possession.

Overall, Liverpool are difficult to beat.  They create some good chances from a combination of Enrique, Johnson, Sterling and Suarez.  They could easily have won today and moved up to 8th just 2 points behind Arsenal.  As it is, they're still only 4 points behind Arsenal.  We have games coming up against Spurs, West Ham, Southampton, Fulham, Stoke, QPR and Sunderland before any new striker can be signed in January.  All of those are winnable or could turn into draws.  I think this is a period that could shape our season.


Swansea weren't great either.  They sat very deep and seemed intent on canceling out Liverpool and looking for a fast break while our full-backs are up the field.  Not a lot of attacking shown by a home team who has been above Liverpool in the league all season.  Hernandez looked like their best player, and I was not sure why they left Dyer on the bench (he must have fancied his chances against Downing).  Leon Britton was good on the ball but most of their energy was on containing Liverpool.  Perhaps they are just picking their battles.

[polishgenius]

Dyer's been on the bench loads this season, I don't know why that is. He's almost invariably the best player when he comes on too.


I don't know what Rodgers is thinking playing Sterling so incessantly. If he ruins his career through injury I'm going to be raging and I say that as a United fan.

[Slick Mongoose]

polishgenius, on 25 November 2012 - 06:12 PM, said:

He isn't joking.

The thing is that while obviously all fans have their embarrassing elements, West Ham fans in particular (along with Millwall and to an extent Chelsea) do seem quite determined to make sure that the whole world thinks of them as a bunch of absolute cunts.

West Ham are not nearly as bad as Millwall. Nobody is.

[kairparavel]

Day 209 of the Andrew Carroll watch - Holy shit, he scored!

And apparently some Hammer fans are tools.

[Hereward]

Yeah, that was disgusting and embarrassing. I thought those Far Right days were long gone. Guess not.

[Renasko]

What a crap list: http://www.bbc.co.uk...otball/20468454

Motty basically picks players he liked the most, irrespective of their actual transfer value. Quite shocking that Roy Keane, for example, is not on the list. Yes, he set a transfer record when he signed for United, but his legacy at the club is second-to-none.

Edited by Renasko, 27 November 2012 - 01:54 AM.