Wurzel

Got to a first for this place - unanimous on this week's scapegoat. RH has to take the blame for this one. Any PL match, let alone one with the chance to go third, is *not* the time to be experimenting. Even more so after he saw how quickly he needed to change things last week. Hopefully he is now clear in his mind on one thing. However he *wants* to play, he needs to accept that with current personnel our best defence is Cedric/Valery Yoshida Bednarek Bertrand and they should be starting every game when fit. And unless the opposition tactics deliberately restrict the forward runs of the 2 full backs, that's still one of our best attacking options too.

Why would anyone need resting? 8pm Friday > 7.45pm Tuesday (possible pens but no extra time, in a game we should win in second gear) > 3pm Saturday. Even the traveling time for the 2 aways is pretty minimal. If they can't manage those 3 games without needing a rest (genuine injuries aside) they really shouldn't be playing at this level.

Hey this is Saints we're talking about. I'd feel safer at 15-0 up with 6 minutes to play.

Saw Pompey supporting friend last night. He's not bothered getting a ticket as he can't bear to watch us thrash them. His prediction 4-0 to us. Guess they're not all deluded after all.

I was listening to 606 on Saturday, they were insisting the opposite, that Premier League has decreed the flag *should* be raised for offside but the referee won't whistle for it unless it's obvious. Guess we'll all get the hang of it eventually.

But surely they all burn up those excess calories roaring on their team, singing their hearts out and making SMS that intimidating fortress that opposition players and fans alike fear to enter. Then again ......

Neither of them have PayPal so they couldn't order a new one from EBay

The original delay anouncement stated it wasn't UA's fault( nor SFC not the sponsor) but a third party issue, and again this was reiterated at the recent forum. Maybe these cheap ones on offer are the real deal but we're "intercepted" whilst being delivered. Can't think what 3rd party apart from the shipping company could be responsible for a delay

I'm pretty sure he'll be in demand at some point by many but my point was I'm not so sure he'd be that interested. His comment that even with unlimited funds his ideal purchase would be Mbappe 5 years ago (not now) gives the impression he's more interested in "projects" than simply playing financial fantasy football. Probably I'm wrong, almost certainly it's wishul thinking but I get a different feeling from RH than any previous manager since LMac that he intends being here a long time.

For once I'm not so sure. That answer he gave to the stupid question about who would he sign if he had unlimited funds - "Kylian Mbappé five years ago" - just strikes me that we no have a someone who actually sees himself in charge of a long term project and not one of the usual journeyman/stepping-stone/in-it-for-the-money types. Much as I thought MoPo and RK were great, I never felt they were anything other than here till they're offered something better comes along type appointments. No doubt it's a bit of wishful thinking but I really get the feel that RH and SFC are the perfect match and he's here for the long haul.

Remove that awful sash and make their badge symmetrical with the Umbro logo and that would be a pretty decent shirt. Area covered by the sponsors logo definitely looks too big (but difficult to judge as no-one AFAIK has ever had a diagonal one before, and after seeing this never likely too again). And what's with the full stop? Or does .com carry on over the shoulder?

That's him halfway down that mountain in the background. He's so keen this year he's done a second lap of the cross country run while the others pose for photos.. Look closely though, he IS smiling.

Hands up, me too. Even when he left I thought he was over-rated. To me his running with the ball always looked more accidental than skill (bit like Woody's description of Buzz Lightyear "that's not flying, that's falling with style" ). Happy to admit how wrong I was.

Surely that's not going to stop you. Not after all your skills learned on HERE

Two WWC matches in a row with not a single interruption for VAR ( both had at least 2 incidents that would have been referred earlier in the tournament). Has FIFA been reading this thread and sent out an unofficial edict to stop ****ing about with it ? Sent from my ONEPLUS A3003 using Tapatalk

Was that Les Reed's bald bonce appearing several times last night at the England Woman's game when the camera was focusing on Beckham? If it was he had FA blazer/tie on, what's his role there now?

Think average "action" time is 59 minutes, so even 30 minutes each way should see more football than we do now

Something I've long supported. 4 linos, 1 each quarter means every situation gets 3 viewpoints, 1 from each side and the referee's from somewhere mid-pitch. Any doubt in referee's mind , seek help from 2 linos, majority decision counts. It would be quick, simple, importantly can still be applied at any level of the game, and whilst not guaranteed to be correct 100% of the time, would probably get most debatable decisions right (which is probably no less than VAR can claim). I'd be interested to hear Whitey Grandad's (or anyone else who has refereed) views. Would it help? or would it create more confusion?

I think the craziest decision of all is telling the linesmen (sorry Assistant Referees) NOT to flag for offsides but let play carry on and sort it out later. I sort of get it, if they flag and get it wrong then a goal may have been scored had they not flagged. But they are now flagging once a move breaks down several seconds later. If they are confident enough to flag then they should be flagging when they first spot the offence. If they're not sure then don't flag at all, the opposition have got the possession back anyway

Well that only leaves the manufacturer or the delivery company. Hopefully the contract has a huge late delivery penalty so we can up our bid for Che Adams

Having just watched them all again I agree with you, rarely needs a second touch, gets it, hits it. Also I'd say his body shaping for 4 or 5 of the goals scored from 12 to 18 yards out look to me like the ball should be going the other side of the keeper, it's no wonder they seem slow to react Sent from my ONEPLUS A3003 using Tapatalk

2 observations . A lot of them were in away games, so hopefully suit our pressing/counter attacking style. A lot were "opportunist" goals. Some see that as lucky or lacking in skill. I see that as someone with an eye for what's happening and reads the game and anticipates well. Knows where the ball is going, knows where the goal is. 1 question. For a lot of them the keeper seemed to go down slowly to low/ground shots. Are they just crap keepers in that league or is he beating them with unexpected power and/or disguised direction?

Errrr.. bearing in mind the word was used in the first sentence and the whole post was about it then I think it's safe to say yes, I've heard of perspective. As I'm sure you're aware it's the whole reason the 18 yard line appears to slope up towards the top right and the 6 yard and goal line to the top left, towards eventual vanishing point. There's only one place that the yellow line should run at right angles to the touchline and that's dead centre of the width of the picture. And it definitely isn't centre it's roughly 2/3 across it. It would probably only make a tiny difference over the distances involved but when they are seemingly deciding offside/onside by millimetres it's important.

With VAR and the new clarification/interpretation of handball it seems to me it's time to start considering different degrees of penalty. At the moment Scenario 1 Player running through on goal unopposed rounds keeper and is deliberately pulled down from behind by keeper just as he is about to roll ball into empty net. Scenario2. Player attempts a cross from the side edge of the penalty box, into a crowded area. It's 50:50 whether a forward or a defender will get to that cross first, and even if a forward gets to the ball first no guarantee he will score from it. VAR spots a minor unintentional but definite deflection of the cross by a defender's extended arm whilst trying to stop the cross out on the edge of the area. At the moment both result in the same reward/punishment for the attacking/defending sides. Not sure how to improve it though. "Normal" penalty for Scenario 1, normal direct free kick inside the area for Scenario 2? Maybe a MSL style penalty run on goal from 35 yards as an option?

Big team bias? There was clearly French encroachment on the retaken spot kick. No VAR looking at that then ? Sent from my ONEPLUS A3003 using Tapatalk