Disco Stu

Presumably, Hoffenheim identified an issue, possibly something that will recur and may require surgery. Medicals are risk assessments so the idea he can play 30 minutes doesn't prove Hoffenhiem were wrong. We don't know the facts. Lets just hope that whilst he's here, our best centre back will earn Russell's favour and get back into the team.

I'm still of the opinion we need an up front pairing rather than putting Archer in the middle on his own. If we wanted to play a lone striker, we should have signed a genuine CF. Archer thrives more when he plays off another striker. He played off McBurnie last season and Akpom the year before that. It's unreasonable to expect him to hold the ball up the way Adams could. His strength supposedly lies in his finishing. Perhaps he can form a partnership with Brereton-Diaz?

That's the famed "Goodison Park factor" 😂

Cardiff wasn't a good day for our defenders especially given the quality of opposition. Wood looks indecisive on the ball and commits far too many fouls. He's probably our least mobile defender too. Edwards put in stronger performances in pre-season and proved he could spot a pass although I can't see either one putting much pressure on Bednarek, THB or Stephens this season. Shame ABK is out of the picture.

I would understand if he played Edwards but Wood is yet to have a good game even in pre-season. Wood didn't seem like the risk averse option to me.

He thought Nathan Wood would do a better job than Armel Bella-Kotchap? Based on performances I've seen so far, Wood should be behind Bella-Kotchap and Edwards.

If only one of those six took one on Saturday 😂

He certainly was.

He always was. It's just he's been anonymous.

Need Harwood-Bellis to make a good account of himself to keep Stephens out.

No point with Armstrong as our number 9. No idea what the plan is beyond "keep the ball".

😂

Going back at every opportunity

Three of those games were against Man City, Man United and Arsenal. We also managed 5 goals. There were things to be positive about. I've never been convinced by Martin. I'm one of those of the opinion we got promotion in spite of him not because of him. I haven't been calling for his head yet but everything I've seen so far suggests he can't organise a defense and his in-game management is poor in regards to the quadruple substitution this week and essentially the same with quick fire double subs in previous weeks. If we end the month on 0 points, then I'll be Martin out. Ipswich, with a tougher start, have made a much better account of themselves so far and I don't think it's because they have a better squad. I think they have a much better manager. It does make a difference.

Disastrous day so far.

He must be wondering what he's got himself into.

I'd add Sugawara and Bella-Kotchap to that. Bednarek is adequate for bottom half too I think. Problem is none of our strikers seem good enough although I'm not sure they're being utlised optimally either.

What's up with these triple and quadruple subs we've been making? It's too much change in one go. We lose cohesion every time we do it.

I'm just pleased Russell can now save face fielding a team without Stephens. His hand needed forcing as his pride would never let him do it otherwise. Reminiscent of the Stephens injury last season.

That wasn't a problem exclusive to the Brentford game. We've started every game with BBD wide left and Armstrong wide right without a focal point. I'm hopeful we'll start with Archer in the middle today.

Presumably that's a 4-3-3 with two wingers providing the width so we end up with 1 in the middle. If we wanted to do that, we would have signed a CF. We have nobody that's successfully played as a lone CF. Archer, BBD and Armstrong all thrive playing off somebody else. Ross Stewart is not somebody we can rely on this season after such a long outlay (plus he's never played at this level). I'm interested to know what formation Russell switched to when he switched to a back 4 against Brentford. Dibling and Fernandes seemed to be providing a lot of the wide support for our attacking fullbacks. It looked like a front two of Archer and BBD to me then.

Depends what the formation is. If we play with wingers, I'd love to see Cornet on the left and Amo-Ameyaw on the right. I said in another thread I think we'd suit a 4-4-2 diamond. Ugochukwu anchoring the midfield allowing the others to provide wide support to the fullbacks in both an attacking and defensive sense. I'd expect Suga and KWP to be important attacking outlets whether we're playing 4 at the back or not. Whatever the system is, we can't persist with having our two most forward players so isolated from one another with nobody central.

BBD desperately needs that first goal. I wish we'd just play 2 up front, him and Archer together not isolated on the wing.

I'll go with ol' reliable, Jack Stephens.

I think the pressures and quality of opposition manager they face in senior club managment is a better test for their aptitude than international youth management is. They have all shown they can manage big characters at senior level and have playing or management experience in major international tournaments. They've all won silverware in senior management. They've proven they can thrive under pressure. They're all far more qualified as far as I'm concerned and personally, I couldn't care less if our manager is German. It's a one sided rivalry anyway. These are the high profile names currently out of work that come to mind but that's not to say there aren't others that are more qualified than Carsley. I'd even rank the likes of Potter and Solskjaer clear of Carsley on the basis they have both managed senior teams to silverware. Youth football is a skillset more dominated by player welfare and development than expectation. It's also a place inexperienced managers go to learn their trade. When we go to the world cup, he'll be up against seasoned managers with a lot more nous. Carsley is not the best man for the job nor do I believe he's the best man that wants the job.