Arsenal 3-1 Saints - Match Thread

[Give it to Ron]

I was concerned by performance at Bournemouth players not putting it in just cannot say that today worked really hard for each other.

[Cumbria Saint]

If we were viewing that performance from a position where we were already on say four or five points I think we would see that as a pretty OK display against one of the free hit teams.

[Lone ranger]

Can’t SR just buy Brentford or at least their manager. They’ve already got the right shirts! …and they play exciting football….

[Andrew Watson]

Having just watched game on Sky - Match of the day,the effort was there,but had the ball dropped more kindly for Arsenal in our box,the game would have been over in 15 minutes. As for the tippy tappy at the back,what a total nonsense and we gifted them all the goals,the manager talks utter nonsense and god knows what game he is watching each week.

[saintant]

4 hours ago, Holmes_and_Watson said:

It will be exactly that.

The logic being that having him race forward, when the rest of the team is not set up for that sort of run, means there's greater risk when we concede possession.

And that systemic approach is what RM is looking for.

While we get excited seeing a player start an attack, or show some momentum, RM just sees the gaps and the risk.

We've had at least one player comment that they have to relearn basic football instincts under RM.

The way RM wants his teams to play strangles the life out of any creativity, it stops us playing with any freedom and the squad is suffering because of this rigid belief that we have to pass the fucking ball to death. It is boring to watch, uninspiring and results in soft goals being conceded time and time again. Nothing will change while RM is in charge and those thinking he will get results if we just persevere are just fooling themselves - it aint going to happen.

[OttawaSaint]

2 hours ago, Roo1976 said:

no mate he turns up for Arsenal

That's probably news to Arsenal fans...

[OttawaSaint]

Very Saintsy to have a heroic defeat to a big club. Next part is to be totally abject in the 6 pointer that's coming up. 

[Cabrone]

The result is pretty irrelevant but in Onachu, Dibbling, Archer and Lallana there may be a workable attack. Add a properly coached defence and a hard working midfield and we could at least be competitive.

We were always going to struggle but a better manager would be able to get enough from this team to at least keep them in the final shake up.

[FarehamSaintJames]

Just watched the three minute highlights on YouTube, we absolutely gifted them their goals again. 

Imagine if they just leathered it out or leathered it long once in a while.

[sledger]

5 hours ago, Sarisbury Saint said:

Lesley had a poor game against Bournemouth, he was all over the place.

hes so slow that death would outpace him

[Kermitzasaint]

My main take from that was that the squad is capable of competing. 

Russell Martin is not. Needs to go immediately 

[St Steve]

 

[rooney]

We just keep giving the ball away/ First and third goals and for  second they were all ball watching. This is down to lack of quality of the players.

[Whitey Grandad]

57 minutes ago, rooney said:

We just keep giving the ball away/ First and third goals and for  second they were all ball watching. This is down to lack of quality of the players.

Mentally overwhelmed.

[Charlie Wayman]

Truth is this was a total mismatch and the outcome was certain even when we surprised even ourselves and nicked a goal. It was a miracle that we reached HT without conceding. The only bright spot for me was the well taken goal by Archer that bodes well for his future. Given decent service he could prove doubters wrong. Good to see KWP back and living up to his reputation. He is a class player and one of very few in our squad who deserves to be at this level. Heaven knows why Martin felt the need to sideline him for a couple of matches. Don't hold your breath that the penny has dropped though.

 

[Sarnia Cherie]

7 hours ago, FarehamSaintJames said:

Just watched the three minute highlights on YouTube, we absolutely gifted them their goals again. 

Imagine if they just leathered it out or leathered it long once in a while.

If only. How much longer does RM have to watch us gift goals by playing the way we do until the stubborn so and so makes a change of direction? If he persists then  there is only one direction for him and that's out of the door. 

[AlexLaw76]

14 minutes ago, Sarnia Cherie said:

If only. How much longer does RM have to watch us gift goals by playing the way we do until the stubborn so and so makes a change of direction? If he persists then  there is only one direction for him and that's out of the door. 

MOTD showed how many opportunities (wasted by Arsenal) we have up by fluffing about at the back

Ipswich seem to be doing the same thing. Weird obsession in England at the moment

[Sheaf Saint]

Just watched the analysis on MOTD and it just highlights how naive our approach is in falling for the pressing traps other teams set for us time and time again.

But the most alarming thing was that we are top of the table for goals conceded from errors and top of the table for times possession lost in our own half, and in both cases by a considerable margin against the next team.

That in itself should be a sackable offence. 

[Chewy]

Probably the worst possible result; we got nothing but didn’t get thumped so can paper over the cracks somewhat and extend the slow death of RM’s tenure for another week at least, possibly for another cycle of games until the following international break instead of this next one.

Without regurgitating a lot of what’s been said above, my other comment is that I think Downes is getting a bit off a bit lightly here. Big Les was really poor v AFCB and got slated and dropped - Downes was equally bad v AFCB, poor v Ipswich, and gave away the equaliser in amongst another sub standard performance yesterday. 
I really like him, but he’s not in good form. For me he plays a similar game to what Lallana has been doing and we don’t need both. I’d rather have Lallana at the moment.

Finally, Delighted for Archer - a really good goal. Please can that be an end to the BBD experiment.

[Galway saint]

RM sees the players in training and so how on earth does he conclude that Stewart is a better bet to play the lone striker role than TP. 

been said countless times before but the passing out from the back is suicidal and will continue to gift teams goals. 

I do think we have a real issue as well with the midfield not taking responsibility for taking the ball of the defenders and moving it forward. 

 

[Sarnia Cherie]

1 hour ago, AlexLaw76 said:

MOTD showed how many opportunities (wasted by Arsenal) we have up by fluffing about at the back

Ipswich seem to be doing the same thing. Weird obsession in England at the moment

It's ok of you're good at it but few teams are. I notice Jordan Pickford only plays out from the back if his defence are in acres of space otherwise he takes no chances and kicks the long ball. In the Euros he was the top of the list by quite a margin for goalies hammering it down the pitch. 

[wild-saint]

9 hours ago, sledger said:

hes so slow that death would outpace him

He looks like he a needs a hip replacement operation if you ask me. He couldnt turn the page of a fucking book let alone his body.

[saintant]

2 hours ago, Whitey Grandad said:

Mentally overwhelmed.

It's a good description of the players problems. RMs system and tactics is overloading the players mentally to the point where massive mistakes will inevitably occur in every game. We need a new manager to come in and drill the team to play a more simple and effective style that is easier to implement and reduces the catastrophic errors. Unfortunately, RM continues to live off small scraps of decent play but these small scraps are not enough to lead to the victories we need. Like many on here I am convinced a different manager and approach would get far more out of these same players but I fear SR will decide to stick with RM until it is too late. The next batch of games include some winnable fixtures and we just cannot afford to waste these chances by leaving RM to carry on doing what patently isn't and will not work for us.

[saintant]

1 hour ago, Chewy said:

Probably the worst possible result; we got nothing but didn’t get thumped so can paper over the cracks somewhat and extend the slow death of RM’s tenure for another week at least, possibly for another cycle of games until the following international break instead of this next one.

Without regurgitating a lot of what’s been said above, my other comment is that I think Downes is getting a bit off a bit lightly here. Big Les was really poor v AFCB and got slated and dropped - Downes was equally bad v AFCB, poor v Ipswich, and gave away the equaliser in amongst another sub standard performance yesterday. 
I really like him, but he’s not in good form. For me he plays a similar game to what Lallana has been doing and we don’t need both. I’d rather have Lallana at the moment.

Finally, Delighted for Archer - a really good goal. Please can that be an end to the BBD experiment.

I think this is harsh on Downes who is clearly being overloaded and needs some help. I will keep banging on that he needs to be played as one of a two man pivot in a 4-2-3-1 formation so that he can form a partnership that will provide more defensive stability. The poor guy must feel completely overwhelmed in games at the moment because RM is providing him with zero help and he is being asked to do far too much of the work load. Small wonder that mistakes are creeping into his games as with every other player being hung out to dry in this vanity project.

[Mr X]

9 hours ago, Kermitzasaint said:

My main take from that was that the squad is capable of competing. 

Russell Martin is not. Needs to go immediately 

True, can we afford to pay his compensation now even? Madness from the club to offer a new contract bet the pen was on fire he signed it that quickly! 

[macca155]

You don't need to be a football expert (few of us are) to see that Onuachu is a significantly bigger physical threat than Stewart. What I didn't expect was his quick passing and movement. He is a handful for any centre half to cope with, you could see Gabriel was not enjoying the last few minutes of that game yesterday. Whether he can convert that threat into goals is something that remains to be seen. Nevertheless he remains a small positive within a sea of pretty mediocrity.

The next game will be upon us pretty soon and it is pointless dwelling on negatives. You have to take whatever positives you can find and build on that.

I thought Bendarek, Dibling, and Aribo were the stand outs. Joe in particular never stopped working and young Tyler continued to impress. Downes was overwhelmed by the Arsenal midfield but in fairness so are most opposition midfield players. He desperately needs support, he simply cannot do it alone. JWP would have been perfect, equally as mobile and experienced. Les at the moment looks a bit lost, so it will need to be Lallana or Smallbone when they are available. There are no other options available which is a damming indictment of our recruitment. What happens when Flynn is injured or eats something he shouldn't.

Leicester are almost as rubbish as us, so it should be a dreadful game but chances on both sides. It does give an opportunity for Russel to play a slightly more expansive game. Hopefully either SAA or Sulemana may feature as that side needs something to break the defensive mind set.

I have a bet with my Pompey supporting mate as to who will record the first win. I've a horrible feeling that bet isn't going to be paid out any time soon.

[Hedgender]

The players we have could compete if RM wasn’t such a stubborn arrogant tw*t 😡. I and many others feel now is the time for him to go 🤷🏻‍♂️

[saintant]

4 minutes ago, macca155 said:

You don't need to be a football expert (few of us are) to see that Onuachu is a significantly bigger physical threat than Stewart. What I didn't expect was his quick passing and movement. He is a handful for any centre half to cope with, you could see Gabriel was not enjoying the last few minutes of that game yesterday. Whether he can convert that threat into goals is something that remains to be seen. Nevertheless he remains a small positive within a sea of pretty mediocrity.

The next game will be upon us pretty soon and it is pointless dwelling on negatives. You have to take whatever positives you can find and build on that.

I thought Bendarek, Dibling, and Aribo were the stand outs. Joe in particular never stopped working and young Tyler continued to impress. Downes was overwhelmed by the Arsenal midfield but in fairness so are most opposition midfield players. He desperately needs support, he simply cannot do it alone. JWP would have been perfect, equally as mobile and experienced. Les at the moment looks a bit lost, so it will need to be Lallana or Smallbone when they are available. There are no other options available which is a damming indictment of our recruitment. What happens when Flynn is injured or eats something he shouldn't.

Leicester are almost as rubbish as us, so it should be a dreadful game but chances on both sides. It does give an opportunity for Russel to play a slightly more expansive game. Hopefully either SAA or Sulemana may feature as that side needs something to break the defensive mind set.

I have a bet with my Pompey supporting mate as to who will record the first win. I've a horrible feeling that bet isn't going to be paid out any time soon.

Unless RM has learned from our two games against Leicester last season this can only go one way. My worry is that they pressed us to death at St Marys and beat us comfortably but he set us up to play exactly the same way in the second game and, unsurprisingly, we were soundly thumped again.

[SWLondon Saint]

36 minutes ago, saintant said:

I think this is harsh on Downes who is clearly being overloaded and needs some help. I will keep banging on that he needs to be played as one of a two man pivot in a 4-2-3-1 formation so that he can form a partnership that will provide more defensive stability. The poor guy must feel completely overwhelmed in games at the moment because RM is providing him with zero help and he is being asked to do far too much of the work load. Small wonder that mistakes are creeping into his games as with every other player being hung out to dry in this vanity project.

I think Downes is a decent player who can play as a single pivot in the Championship, but let's be honest - he is being asked to do the same in probably the hardest league in the world, against some of the best managers in the world, by a manager who is giving him (and the rest of the back 6/7) absolutely zero help out there. There's a reason it's pretty much just Rodri who does that for Man City. It needs a world class player.

The closest comparison for Downes is Declan Rice - both of them are more an aggressive pressing, ball-winning 8 than a solo pivot 6, and need someone alongside them in a double pivot at this level. They can't shield the defense adequately on their own, and they can't play that crucial link role just getting, giving, retaining on the half turn. It's just not their game.

[VectisSaint]

37 minutes ago, SWLondon Saint said:

I think Downes is a decent player who can play as a single pivot in the Championship, but let's be honest - he is being asked to do the same in probably the hardest league in the world, against some of the best managers in the world, by a manager who is giving him (and the rest of the back 6/7) absolutely zero help out there. There's a reason it's pretty much just Rodri who does that for Man City. It needs a world class player.

The closest comparison for Downes is Declan Rice - both of them are more an aggressive pressing, ball-winning 8 than a solo pivot 6, and need someone alongside them in a double pivot at this level. They can't shield the defense adequately on their own, and they can't play that crucial link role just getting, giving, retaining on the half turn. It's just not their game.

I see Morgan Schneiderlin is back next week to play in the charity match. He is 2 years younger than Lallana, unattached, how about we sign him up to play alongside Downes (ignore the PL 25 man squad rule). 

[derry]

I've had time to reflect on the difference between Arsenal's about 60% possession and up to yesterday our 60% average possession. The possession was like chalk and cheese. For a start our possession is slow sideways and backwards around our last third and when we lose the ball we funnel back without pressing and passively just back off. Arsenal on the other hand get the ball straight out to their ball carriers who attack at speed and their passing is designed to cut through to create chances. If they lose the ball they swarm forward to win the ball back. Most of Arsenal's possession is in their opponent's half.

If yesterday the managers switched and Arteta was our manager does anybody think for one second we would have played the slow recycling go nowhere garbage we were trying to play. Three minutes after scoring Downes flicked the ball casually sideways to an Arsenal player opening us up and in our net ten seconds later. Sugawara, shades of Aribo against Forest needed to put his boot through the ball under pressure before gifting the third goal. The only time we looked ok was Fernandes and Dibling breaking and Archer linking plus much better when Onuachu was holding the centre.

We need to change the manager he is now the problem because of his possession obsession and the straitjacket he has imposed on the players. Goals are not going to be scored by us trying to work the ball up the field as we mostly lose it or give it away. We need to press the opponents at a high tempo and break quickly into the opponents penalty area. Martin won't change, the players need freeing up and he isn't going to do it. Under him relegation is a certainty. Continuing to do the same thing and expecting a different result is insanity. 

[WestMidSaint]

I couldn’t believe how bad their 3 goals were.
 

Downes losing the ball like that is criminal. 
 

Sugawara I think it was for the 2nd who could’ve had an entire marching band behind him for their second and he still wouldn’t have known given he didn’t check his shoulder once. 
 

Then the “assist” for their 3rd just to finish things off!!!😡

Edited October 6 by WestMidSaint

[Whitey Grandad]

57 minutes ago, derry said:

I've had time to reflect on the difference between Arsenal's about 60% possession and up to yesterday our 60% average possession. The possession was like chalk and cheese. For a start our possession is slow sideways and backwards around our last third and when we lose the ball we funnel back without pressing and passively just back off. Arsenal on the other hand get the ball straight out to their ball carriers who attack at speed and their passing is designed to cut through to create chances. If they lose the ball they swarm forward to win the ball back. Most of Arsenal's possession is in their opponent's half.

If yesterday the managers switched and Arteta was our manager does anybody think for one second we would have played the slow recycling go nowhere garbage we were trying to play. Three minutes after scoring Downes flicked the ball casually sideways to an Arsenal player opening us up and in our net ten seconds later. Sugawara, shades of Aribo against Forest needed to put his boot through the ball under pressure before gifting the third goal. The only time we looked ok was Fernandes and Dibling breaking and Archer linking plus much better when Onuachu was holding the centre.

We need to change the manager he is now the problem because of his possession obsession and the straitjacket he has imposed on the players. Goals are not going to be scored by us trying to work the ball up the field as we mostly lose it or give it away. We need to press the opponents at a high tempo and break quickly into the opponents penalty area. Martin won't change, the players need freeing up and he isn't going to do it. Under him relegation is a certainty. Continuing to do the same thing and expecting a different result is insanity. 

If the manager won’t change then the manager must be changed.

[Football Special]

Went there with low expectations,  thought we played alright,  shame we couldn't have held onto the lead for a bit longer though. I blame our fans singing "how shit must you be we're winning away" 

Good celebrations in our end for Archers goal, enjoyed that, we had a few chances, Dibling good effort and Fernandes just over the bar. 

Tall Paul looked a lot livelier than we'd seen in previous cameos, need to get more crosses in for him, such a handful that he'll create space for others. Not sure if Leicester game will be right for him but he deserves some more chances to show he can make a difference 

 

[Micky]

2 hours ago, Hedgender said:

The players we have could compete if RM wasn’t such a stubborn arrogant tw*t 😡. I and many others feel now is the time for him to go 🤷🏻‍♂️

Alex Crook was on Talksport a couple of days ago saying that the club would probably stick with RM and the reason that we are going down is because of the lack of quality in the squad. He also said that our recruitment had been awful for a good couple of years, hard to argue with him really. 

[FarehamSaintJames]

10 minutes ago, Micky said:

Alex Crook was on Talksport a couple of days ago saying that the club would probably stick with RM and the reason that we are going down is because of the lack of quality in the squad. He also said that our recruitment had been awful for a good couple of years, hard to argue with him really. 

Alex Crook also flip flops between jumping on a story and going back on it.

A week ago Russell Martin was set for “showdown talks” with his job untenable. That tweet has since disappeared from Mr Crooks. 😂

He doesn’t like being called out on stuff either, like Bertrand and Ings’ new contracts - must be any day now I’m guessing…..?

[Disco Stu]

5 hours ago, Charlie Wayman said:

Truth is this was a total mismatch and the outcome was certain even when we surprised even ourselves and nicked a goal. It was a miracle that we reached HT without conceding. The only bright spot for me was the well taken goal by Archer that bodes well for his future. Given decent service he could prove doubters wrong. Good to see KWP back and living up to his reputation. He is a class player and one of very few in our squad who deserves to be at this level. Heaven knows why Martin felt the need to sideline him for a couple of matches. Don't hold your breath that the penny has dropped though.

 

I stand by the opinion he is our best player. It was a joke to drop him. If Russell insisted on playing Taylor, he should have dropped Sugawara. Sugawara has looked decent but he isn't at KWP's level.

[Tom57]

I think we defended really well in the first half but scoring like that made us our own worst enemy in some ways as we suddenly deluded ourselves into thinking we could beat Arsenal at their own game. As encouraging as it is to keep one of the best teams in the league out for as long as we did, we were basically playing the San Marino game which is pointless in any game you want to win, and which any half competent team should be able to do effectively with fresh legs for at least 45 mins. The Leicester game will have a very different approach I'd expect and we really need to win as we aren't beating Man City which would put us on 1 or 2 points after 9 games 

[hypochondriac]

Onuachu Archer 

Fraser Downes Lallana/Fernandes Dibling 

 

Would give us more a goal threat than we've had so far. 

[SotonianWill]

17 hours ago, Give it to Ron said:

I was concerned by performance at Bournemouth players not putting it in just cannot say that today worked really hard for each other.

Judge them by games against Bournemouth previously and Leicester coming up, not Arsenal. Crap players will always find the extra percent against the top teams - as we saw in our last Premier League season.

 

It’s against the smaller teams where our performance matters. 

[Doctoroncall]

21 hours ago, Convict Colony said:

also where the fuck is sulemana ? he was close and meant to be nearly availble early sept

Will be back at End of the month, after international break. 

[SouSaint]

3 hours ago, WestMidSaint said:

I couldn’t believe how bad their 3 goals were.
 

Downes losing the ball like that is criminal. 
 

Sugawara I think it was for the 2nd who could’ve had an entire marching band behind him for their second and he still wouldn’t have known given he didn’t check his shoulder once. 
 

Then the “assist” for their 3rd just to finish things off!!!😡

It's even more criminal when you notice the run KWP is making on the left hand side. We had a great chance to catch them out if we went long. 

[Saint Fan CaM]

Where to start - difficult to analyse that, but there are some key points.

1. Pairing KWP and Manning was a good move to contain Saka, however inevitably the method broke down at least once and most obviously when they scored when the two of them tried covering the same ground. For me that’s poor preparation and planning.

2. Suga and Downes were our weak links, however in both cases they were often left on their own to cope in situations. Again that’s poor planning.

3. Arsenals press and general defensive setup was the best I’ve seen in ages. Ours is a universe away and another example of poor planning.

4. When TP and Archer came on we looked so much more potent. There seemed to be more belief displayed by the team. Did someone say poor planning? Yep, why don’t we play our best players and best team consistently?

5. Dibling looked like his old self back out on the right wing, but why the inconsistency?

So, poor planning and inconsistent team selections. We all know where the responsibility lies. Times up Russ…you’ve had a fair crack and the one thing that is consistent is the manner in which we lose games. You’re not giving our players what they need to score and win games of football. We waste so much time when in possession, it’s little wonder there so few chances created in the final third.

Final thought. Such a shame to see Stewart get injured again, but he’s clearly not the answer…not enough dynamic movement on or off the ball. What a waste of money and squad place he has been.

[Midfield_General]

1 hour ago, hypochondriac said:

Onuachu Archer 

Fraser Downes Lallana/Fernandes Dibling 

 

Would give us more a goal threat than we've had so far. 

Yeah, something like that. 

Not many teams are going to sit deep against a side like us that they perceive to be crap, so that should mean that there's usually going to be space in behind that we should be able to exploit if we're set up right to do it. This is what I'd like to see given a proper run of games:     

                    Onuachu

  Archer                          Dibling

                     Lallana

       Fernandes     Downes

 

(Then when Lallana runs out of steam, push Fernandes into that more advanced role and put Aribo or Les alongside Downes) 

Archer and Dibling both want to be running into space with the ball at their feet, so have Onuachu provide a focal point, holding the ball up to let them both run off him, and get Lallana and Fernandes focusing on getting their heads up and providing more penetrative through balls like the peach from Fernandes for our goal yesterday. 

Edited October 6 by Midfield_General

[david in sweden]

After buying him for 18 mill. ..and then loaning him out for a season, at last we saw Onuacho on the pitch, and not a bad sub. performance either.

As we now have more strikers on the books than in living memory and almost none of them can score (with exception of U18's Dibling), and now

Archer (who came off the bench in order to score ) ..it's long overdue for Onuacho to get a start,  he may be the last chance to save Martin's job.

Edited October 6 by david in sweden

[derry]

1 hour ago, david in sweden said:

After buying him for 18 mill. ..and then loaning him out for a season, at last we saw Onuacho on the pitch, and not a bad sub. performance either.

As we now have more strikers on the books than in living memory and almost none of them can score (with exception of U18's Dibling), and now

Archer (who came off the bench in order to score ) ..it's long overdue for Onuacho to get a start,  he may be the last chance to save Martin's job.

If Martin picks Onuachu and he helps lift our performances Martin needs to be sacked for not trying to keep him last year and for not using him this year. If Onuachu is picked then Martin if he's still manager must tactically try to get the best out of him and ditch the possession obsession.

[suewhistle]

11 hours ago, macca155 said:

What I didn't expect was his quick passing and movement.

Must admit similar thoughts here about Onuachu. Good to see Archer so clinical too. But all three goals conceded needlessly, it can't continue like this. Downes is looking overwhelmed.  Although possession is better that not being in possession we seem to specialise in achieving that negative change, so why not do so further up the pitch? 

I've only just dipped in to the end of this thread so what's been said about VAR? They took their time, then showed a player who looked offside, drew a line which still showed him offside and then pronounced 'goal'. 

[Whitey Grandad]

5 hours ago, suewhistle said:

Must admit similar thoughts here about Onuachu. Good to see Archer so clinical too. But all three goals conceded needlessly, it can't continue like this. Downes is looking overwhelmed.  Although possession is better that not being in possession we seem to specialise in achieving that negative change, so why not do so further up the pitch? 

I've only just dipped in to the end of this thread so what's been said about VAR? They took their time, then showed a player who looked offside, drew a line which still showed him offside and then pronounced 'goal'. 

I believe that being offside is factual but interfering with play is subjective and the decision rests with the onfield officials.

[david in sweden]

13 hours ago, derry said:

If Martin picks Onuachu and he helps lift our performances Martin needs to be sacked for not trying to keep him last year and for not using him this year. If Onuachu is picked then Martin if he's still manager must tactically try to get the best out of him and ditch the possession obsession.

to be fair, the loan deal to Turkey was made shortly after RM arrived and as he was committed to his % possession formation it may have seemed an 

obvious move bearing in mind Onuacho performances in the spring 2023 weren't convincing, in a side where some others were much worse than him. 

He was bought for Nathan Jones' set-up, but then subsequently ignored by Selles for the remainder of that relegation season. 

Recalling Peter Crouch's short sojourn with us (almost 20 years ago) which began with people laughing at him, before realising that although he seemed

to move like a robot,  every pace he took was 2 meters long and he outpaced defenders over the distance he covered - if not for speed, BUT he did

score goals and could (laughingly) ...even see over the top of defenders heads at corners and set-pieces.

Regardless of the comparative differences between the Turkish and Belgian leagues(?) , Onuachu showed that he could score goals, and give assists.

 

Certainly the next 6 weeks' fixtures will be the critical time for Russell Martin to prove himself, or face the inevitable consequences.

No one should be sacked for losing to Arsenal .. or even Man City, and the prospect of picking up points from November's games v. Liverpool and Brighton

seems highly doubtful (on current form), but in between ...we face Leicester, Everton and Wolves who are all treading water in the places above us. 

Failure to get a good points return from those games will be catastrophic going up to the Christmas / New Year period. 

 

Whatever is needed for RM to " tweak " his formation must to be done  if Onuachu is to be of value to us, as the other strikers have failed miserably so far. 

 

[derry]

I'm not advocating Martin's sacking because of Arsenal. I am advocating sacking him because he is wedded to a way of playing that apart from needless high risk possession in our own half inhibits our chances of winning because it gifts the opposition easy goal scoring chances. The players are in a possession straitjacket and sometimes we don't even get out of our own penalty area. It's not a tweak that is needed it has to change to a high tempo safety first, pressing the life out of the opposition and fast breakaways, the only way the underdog can survive. One of Onuachu's strengths which appears in many of his goals is to angle and time his runs to get across defenders and finish close in in the goal area with either head or feet. We need to put the ball in there for him and the other strikers. that isn't going to happen often enough playing Martin's way. If the club gave him the choice of ditching the play out from the back and going more direct as we did in the play offs that would be a start otherwise it's time to part company. We don't need another financial crisis so relegation needs to be avoided.