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Pre Season 22/23


EBS1980
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how do we have so many shit players still playing for us? I mean Djenepo. Awful. Why at left back. Adam Armstrong just isn’t up to it. Why Perraud only for last ten? Why can’t Redmond kick a ball straight? Why so little creativity? So much work to be done. Fear for us this season. 

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Just now, CanadaSaint said:

I think we’re close to having a much better back three but not if Bednarek is part of it. He’s a very reactionary defender, which forces the other two to cover for his inadequacies. I’m not sold on Lyanco but in the absence of a new CB I think he’s the better choice. And he’s more comfortable on the ball.

If Ralph drops Bednarek I think he might give Stephens a go.

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FT 1-2.

Not bad, not great.

Think it’s fairly likely that next week we’ll start with the side that started today with the exception of A.Armstrong instead of Mara.

Standouts today were Aribo’s goal, Djenepo did well, Bazunu looks quality with the ball at his feet. Lavia was quite tidy but needs to impose himself more, JWP wasn’t quite at it today. The three CBs got undone for both goals, worrying switching off and basic mistakes that we’ve seen time and again.

We had some decent chances but don’t look particularly ruthless up front. Mara didn’t get into the game so don’t know what to make of him yet but he’ll need to have more impact than that to get a starting slot.  As it stands I think we’ll miss someone like Broja, someone capable of holding the ball up and relieving the pressure.

Bring on next week, but it’s gonna be a tough game.

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1 minute ago, DT said:

how do we have so many shit players still playing for us? I mean Djenepo. Awful. Why at left back. Adam Armstrong just isn’t up to it. Why Perraud only for last ten? Why can’t Redmond kick a ball straight? Why so little creativity? So much work to be done. Fear for us this season. 

Djenepo has looked like the player I hoped he would be. And defensively solid too. Why do you think awful?

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That was a good test against a technically superb team.

I was quite pleased with how we played, like the way we were progressing the ball through midfield and the move away from safety first passing from defenders to midfielders and back again.

Quite impressed with Bella-Kotchap, especially his passing. He put in 2 of our most dangerous crosses of the whole game. 

Djenepo did well again until he got anywhere near goal and Aribo's goal was superb. 

Surprised Adams didn't get a run out, seems to have slipped behind Armstrong.

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8 minutes ago, saintant said:

If Ralph drops Bednarek I think he might give Stephens a go.

You could be right. But while Stephens is the better defender of the two IMO, his party trick is bringing the ball out of defence with composure and then promptly giving it away.

Today would have been the ideal time to give Bednarek one half and Stephens or Lyanco the other, to see which of them dovetails best with Salisu and Bella-Kotchap. That's exactly what pre-season is for, so it makes you think that Ralph sees today's choices as his best three.

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23 minutes ago, DT said:

how do we have so many shit players still playing for us? I mean Djenepo. Awful. Why at left back. Adam Armstrong just isn’t up to it. Why Perraud only for last ten? Why can’t Redmond kick a ball straight? Why so little creativity? So much work to be done. Fear for us this season. 

I’ll give you a clue on Perraud in the shape of an anagram.

Rocevireng Brekon Lge.

Numpty.

Edited by maysie
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After watching that today I would definitely play Valery at RCB on Saturday and drop Bednarek - the bloke is awful and doesn't want to be here. Also I'd have Adams upfront - despite not being prolific he brings a lot more to the table than Adam Armstrong.

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8 minutes ago, CanadaSaint said:

You could be right. But while Stephens is the better defender of the two IMO, his party trick is bringing the ball out of defence with composure and then promptly giving it away.

Today would have been the ideal time to give Bednarek one half and Stephens or Lyanco the other, to see which of them dovetails best with Salisu and Bella-Kotchap. That's exactly what pre-season is for, so it makes you think that Ralph sees today's choices as his best three.

When you see all five written down in the same  sentence you kind of see Ralph's dilemna. They all offer a bit of something, none of the five is standout PL quality. Guess Ralph goes for Bednarek as the experienced, hold-it-all-together, pick, and he then perms two from four to play with him. 

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36 minutes ago, DT said:

how do we have so many shit players still playing for us? I mean Djenepo. Awful. Why at left back. Adam Armstrong just isn’t up to it. Why Perraud only for last ten? Why can’t Redmond kick a ball straight? Why so little creativity? So much work to be done. Fear for us this season. 

Djenepo has arguably been our best player this pre season and Parraud is recovering from a bad injury.

But no yeah, it's Ralph who's clueless, not our spoilt brat fanbase.

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2 minutes ago, sandwichsaint said:

When you see all five written down in the same  sentence you kind of see Ralph's dilemna. They all offer a bit of something, none of the five is standout PL quality. Guess Ralph goes for Bednarek as the experienced, hold-it-all-together, pick, and he then perms two from four to play with him. 

But that's my concern. I suspect that most of us see Salisu and Bella-Kotchap as the first CD picks - the issue is the third one. Surely Ralph has seen enough of Bednarek's inadequacies to realize that it may well not be him, and today's meaningless game was a perfect time to experiment. My biggest problem with Ralph is his obstinacy and closed-mindedness, and today was yet another example.

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Well that's pre-season out the way.  Overall I'm pretty disappointed.  I don't like the 3 at the back formation because we don't look any more solid and we certainly don't create any more chances.  Appreciate it's only pre-season and it'll probably be better once the games are competitive but there's not been many bright spots for me.  New signings have generally been OK but as a team we haven't looked that slick and frequently seem to be struggling to get to grips with the formation. 

I enjoyed the Monaco game but the rest has been poor fare.  Hopefully gets better and I've seen enough pre-seasons to know that they're not fantastic indicators of how a season will go but, at the moment, I'm not exactly buzzing for the new season to start.

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50 minutes ago, DT said:

how do we have so many shit players still playing for us? I mean Djenepo. Awful. Why at left back. Adam Armstrong just isn’t up to it. Why Perraud only for last ten? Why can’t Redmond kick a ball straight? Why so little creativity? So much work to be done. Fear for us this season. 

Oh dear!!

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1 minute ago, gammon cheeks said:

Adam Armstrong played up top on his own and got fook all service to be honest .

This is the big problem, the service to the strikers is shocking. We have no player willing to take a pass of any risk between lines or in gaps. Some of the runs AA and others make are good runs but the pass goes safe 5-10 yards sideways and then usually ends up back to the keeper. 

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Just got back; thought I'd post this before having my view infected by this thread.

It's bloody hot watching in the Itchen, won't be doing that again.  Only upside was being right behind our dugout so got to see Ralph, his coaching team and the subs in action (at times more interesting than the game).

Surprisingly small crowd.  Got smaller by 1 when one of the larger attendees just about managed to run the length of the pitch before getting a ban.  That and a flair going off when we scored were embarrassing fan-related lows.

On the pitch I thought Stu was our best player followed by Djenepo.  Both looked really fit and were at the heart of most of our good play (both should have scored as well).  Of the newbies, Aribo stood out.  Wasn't sure of his position in the first half, and Ralph seemed to struggle to get him playing where he wanted, but he's a beast of a player with great touch.  And the goal was obviously testament to his balance, power and control. Mara looked rusty.  Lavia took a while to get going but grew into the game.  Bazunu was ok, but haven't yet seen the potential I was hoping for.  He's also not as big as we're used to (but obviously much more agile). Kotchap is a mountain of a defender; we're certainly much better equipped for physical power and stature than last year. 

I quite like the 3-4-3 formation.  Our wing backs are suited to that.  I think Lynaco or even Stephens would suit the centre of the three more than Bednarek (or perhaps Kotchap with Valery in the right side?).  If we're going to stick with that formation Bednarek is not really suited to any of the roles.  So it will be interesting to see how that plays out.

I am no clearer how we'll do this season but our squad is much stronger.  We need one more striker but I can't see us getting another full back.

As for next week I'd expect o see Adams in for Mara and Romeu for Lavia and otherwise the same line up as today

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1 hour ago, DT said:

how do we have so many shit players still playing for us? I mean Djenepo. Awful. Why at left back. Adam Armstrong just isn’t up to it. Why Perraud only for last ten? Why can’t Redmond kick a ball straight? Why so little creativity? So much work to be done. Fear for us this season. 

Spanner. 

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1 hour ago, Bad Wolf said:

Djenepo has arguably been our best player this pre season and Parraud is recovering from a bad injury.

But no yeah, it's Ralph who's clueless, not our spoilt brat fanbase.

If you like multiple step overs with no end product and losing the ball In Key situations plus headless chicken impersonations and embarrassing attempts on goal then I guess Djenepo is your man

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5 minutes ago, DT said:

If you thought that display was good you’re in for a pretty tortuous season

umm, our opponent today was the same Villarreal team that was in the Champions League semifinals, right?

what were you expecting?

 

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Bit of a shame considering the new additions to go through all of pre season without trying the 4-2-2-2.

Obvious we will play 3CBs for the first few games. Personally still not keen on it as we are a better team when we play with two genuine strikers and in a 3CB system usually one of them at least has to have some composure on the ball.

Still lacking up top and at CB to be genuinely optimistic about our chances this season IMO. We are likely to be in the bottom 6 come the end of the season, and almost certain to be after the first 5 or 6 games.

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Only watched a bit, but Djenepo looked good I thought, albeit I’m not sure the stepovers are doing him any favours!  

I do wish we’d look to be a bit quicker at getting the ball into the box sometimes.  We get a quick breakaway with someone dribbling down the wing, but instead of crossing in and having players busting a gut to get on the end of it, the winger will cut back away from the goal and look to pass inside.  Every. Single. Time.  

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1 minute ago, Dusic said:

Bit of a shame considering the new additions to go through all of pre season without trying the 4-2-2-2.

Obvious we will play 3CBs for the first few games. Personally still not keen on it as we are a better team when we play with two genuine strikers and in a 3CB system usually one of them at least has to have some composure on the ball.

Still lacking up top and at CB to be genuinely optimistic about our chances this season IMO. We are likely to be in the bottom 6 come the end of the season, and almost certain to be after the first 5 or 6 games.

I’m wondering, if we have a poor start to the season, will we just switch back to 4-2-2-2. I can’t believe Ralph will bin it off entirely. I think we tried it for a half in our second game but aside from that, 3 at the back. Personally I prefer a 4.

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10 minutes ago, SaintTex said:

umm, our opponent today was the same Villarreal team that was in the Champions League semifinals, right?

what were you expecting?

 

To not give away soft goals and create more chances

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1 minute ago, Chez said:

Not watched any of the pre season. Does it look like any of the signings will be starters?

Aribo, Bazuna, maybe Lavia. All solid additions. May have to start the striker but looked off the pace today

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7 minutes ago, Chez said:

Not watched any of the pre season. Does it look like any of the signings will be starters?

I reckon todays lineup will almost be the starting lineup next week. Pretty confident Bazunu, Ketchup and Aribo will be in. Lavia probably too. New kid Mara got called out by Ralph so possibly will just make the bench.

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2 hours ago, DT said:

how do we have so many shit players still playing for us? I mean Djenepo. Awful. Why at left back. Adam Armstrong just isn’t up to it. Why Perraud only for last ten? Why can’t Redmond kick a ball straight? Why so little creativity? So much work to be done. Fear for us this season. 

I am confused...most of the posts from people that watched the game (I didn't) said that Djenepo did really well. Which is it? Did he so well or was he awful?

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18 minutes ago, The Kraken said:

I’m wondering, if we have a poor start to the season, will we just switch back to 4-2-2-2. I can’t believe Ralph will bin it off entirely. I think we tried it for a half in our second game but aside from that, 3 at the back. Personally I prefer a 4.

Agree to a point but with so many new players they don't really have any experience of the 4-2-2-2.

Also think it would really suit all of them.

As we have seen under Ralph, when its played well it is a formation that can attack really well. I think he has lost confidence in our ability to defend and wants the extra CB but in the PL we could defend brilliantly and still concede twice because most teams have quality attackers. We will always need to be a threat to get results and I think this formation takes too much of that away personally. 

Unless we sign a quality striker who transforms the attack...

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2 minutes ago, Dusic said:

Agree to a point but with so many new players they don't really have any experience of the 4-2-2-2.

Also think it would really suit all of them.

As we have seen under Ralph, when its played well it is a formation that can attack really well. I think he has lost confidence in our ability to defend and wants the extra CB but in the PL we could defend brilliantly and still concede twice because most teams have quality attackers. We will always need to be a threat to get results and I think this formation takes too much of that away personally. 

Unless we sign a quality striker who transforms the attack...

This is my worry too. Ralph is understandably concerned that we might ship a lot of goals so he'll go tight in defence and that might mean we'll create very little. I'd rather we take risks and see if we can score some goals because we are never going to be a side that keeps many clean sheets. For us attack has more often than not been the best form of defence.

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Dear Ralph,

Has it dawned on you that Aribo can play as a striker? You seem to like experimenting with things so I'm just wondering why you've not given him a go up front, particularly when he played so well in that position for Rangers?

Maybe you have plans to experiment with him as a centre back or a goalkeeper? 

I don't have a clue what you're doing but I get the impression that you don't either. 

Enjoy the season.... if you last for than 10 games. 

Regards. 

Sidney. 😉

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1 minute ago, Sidney Fudpucker the 3rd said:

Dear Ralph,

Has it dawned on you that Aribo can play as a striker? You seem to like experimenting with things so I'm just wondering why you've not given him a go up front, particularly when he played so well in that position for Rangers?

Maybe you have plans to experiment with him as a centre back or a goalkeeper? 

I don't have a clue what you're doing but I get the impression that you don't either. 

Enjoy the season.... if you last for than 10 games. 

Regards. 

Sidney. 😉

MLG in 3...2...1...

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30 minutes ago, DT said:

Aribo, Bazuna, maybe Lavia. All solid additions. May have to start the striker but looked off the pace today

Excellent. Will Lavia replace Romeu or will we play a three?

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13 minutes ago, saintant said:

This is my worry too. Ralph is understandably concerned that we might ship a lot of goals so he'll go tight in defence and that might mean we'll create very little. I'd rather we take risks and see if we can score some goals because we are never going to be a side that keeps many clean sheets. For us attack has more often than not been the best form of defence.

Have we addressed our problems? I don't think so. We needed quality at CB and have just bought another inexperienced mediocre player in Tommy Ketchup.

By playing 3 CB's it gives us less options going forward, which is where we have actually strengthened. Our inability to buy quality CB's will really restrict us. 

We're having to play in numbers to compensate for our inability to buy quality defenders who can lead. 

 

Edited by Sidney Fudpucker the 3rd
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3 minutes ago, Sidney Fudpucker the 3rd said:

Have we addressed our problems? I don't think so. We needed quality at CB and have just bought another inexperienced mediocre player in Tommy Ketchup.

By playing 3 CB's it gives us less options going forward, which is where we have actually strengthened. Our inability to buy quality CB's will really restrict us. 

We're having to play in numbers to compensate for our inability to buy quality defenders who can lead. 

 

Just out of interest, how do you know that he is mediocre?

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45 minutes ago, The Kraken said:

I’m wondering, if we have a poor start to the season, will we just switch back to 4-2-2-2. I can’t believe Ralph will bin it off entirely. I think we tried it for a half in our second game but aside from that, 3 at the back. Personally I prefer a 4.

Yep. 4 at the back with Lavia playing a defensive role in front of the back 4. Apparently he was amazing in that role for City's U-23's. 

Stick Aribo up front. He can clearly score goals and did a great job for Rangers when called upon to play as a striker. 

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1 minute ago, Sidney Fudpucker the 3rd said:

Have you seen him being anything other than mediocre and inexperienced? 

He looks no better than what we already have. 

Well done for giving him 4 (only 2 of those full) pre-season games. More than we usually give new players.

Edited by S-Clarke
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7 minutes ago, Chez said:

Excellent. Will Lavia replace Romeu or will we play a three?

Maybe, but I see them as very interchangeable. I'd probably go with Romeu on Saturday because of his experience.

We've been playing with 3 in midfield most of pre-season, so it will probably be the same again. Romeu/Lavia then Ward Prowse and Aribo with 2 up front.

The full backs are playing very high so it's 5 across the middle quite a lot of the time.

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1 minute ago, Chez said:

Anyone else got an an assessment of B-K from what they have seen so far?

He looks like a very imposing CB, quick and strong. Able to recover quite well if he's caught.

He looks raw around the edges, which is to be expected of a 20 year old, but physically he adds a lot to our backline which we didn't have before. Certainly don't see him as being 'the same' as what we already have.

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2 minutes ago, Chez said:

Anyone else got an an assessment of B-K from what they have seen so far?

I only saw him today but he's strong, pretty quick and good on the ball. He's such a new player and getting used to the people around him so will no doubt get caught out at times until he plays more games.

Looks a good signing.

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