Steve Earle

He’s not a footballer, is he? Has literally no chance of ever holding down a place at a PL club. Debates over Gray & Iheanacho I get. There’s surely no room for a debate over Ghezzal!

I think that whatever Brendan decides to do with Iheanacho (and Gray) will tell us a lot about him. And them. Both need a miracle worker to transform them into reliable PL players. Is that Brendan? Or would he be deluding himself?

What will Rodgers do this summer? Sell because the lad simply isn't improving, or keep him in the belief that he's the one who can turn Gray into a consistent, dangerous PL player where Ranieri, Shalespeare and Puel all failed?

And yet...good though both Barnes and Gray were last night, our front three look a long way off say, Mane, Salah and Firmino. Just saying.

8.5 Ricardo 7 the rest except Kasper, Wilf, Maddison 6 each, Gray 5

Don’t agree, sorry. Perreira was good in both aspects of his game. If we don’t buck our ideas up he’ll go to a top 6 (or equivalent) side next summer or the one after..

Perreira good. Morgan decent. Evans & Chilwell too. Rest poor, or very poor. Squad not good enough. A year will help the likes of Ndidi, who can’t presently pass water, and maybe just maybe Iheanacho could yet be a PL player. Striker needed 1 January!

Any concrete news on this? Ghanaweb reporting as above, but ESPN saying out for the season.

Thought at the time that that had been a career-ending performance. Not so angry now, more sad. Wes found games against Huddersfield, Wolves reserves and Newcastle easy enough. But play him against a proper PL side that doesn't play with a Rondon-ilke lump up front and it's plain to see. He's gone. Step forward Jonny Evans. Next season's back four will very likely be Perreira Soyoncu Maguire Chilwell, but this season is about giving Ricardo & Caglar time to acclimatise.

Agree with a lot of that Shane. For me Perreira would get a 6 (5 when defending, 7 when attacking). Morgan & Evans both solid 6s/almost 7s for me. Thought it was Evans' best game for us and it's not at all obvious who'll partner Maguire on Saturday. Ghezzal seems so easy to defend against, one footed in the extreme, no real pace. But scored a great (and important) pen. Shame our best two chances fell to Albrighton - finishing is his weak spot. I think like many he faded in the much more evenly contested second half, so I gave him a 6. Special mention for Gray who I rated at 7.5 (rounded up for voting). Came on and was the Gray we know he can be, rather than the Gray he so often is.

Er, Gray IS in my XI!?! You’ll be right though that our second team will be much better than Wolves’. I wouldn’t however fancy our second XI’s chances against their first team. All depends on Nuno...

Here goes: Ward Perreira Evans Soyuncu Fuchs Silva Iborra Ghezzal Okazaki Gray Iheanacho Shouldn’t be far off?!?

This

Why is the thread in Transfer Talk closed? Nothing on Official site yet?

Albrighton for Ghezzal & we’d be in agreement. Subs too. Like others I’m worried by our slow starts. I was there last night & Fleetwood reserves started too quickly for us, could easily have scored in first two minutes (that was I think their last chance). If we start like we have all of the past four games this one could be over in ten minutes.

Agree with LA. First and final goals were worth going for. Though Silva and Shinji were average-to-middling, which worries me if/when Maddison picks up an injury or loses form/confidence. Our left side were superb throughout. Everyone else enjoyed an easy training exercise. Benkovic for example would have been more tested in his last U23 game.

Outstanding last night, MOTM. Would have given him a rare 9 out of 10 but for the last 15-20 minutes when he both tired and tried to hard to get himself on the score sheet. Don't understand the knocking of this guy. He is Milner-like in his steady reliability. Would always be in my match day squad, if not always starting.

Several posters have Iheanacho & Okazaki in the team. There’s just no way both can play when we face Liverpool on Saturday without Vardy. At best, they share 90 minutes IMO

This is the team I’d pick. It won’t be he one that Monsieur Unpredictable picks! Ward Amartey Evans (c) Soyuncu* Fuchs Silva Choudhury Iborra Ghezzal Iheanacho Diabate subs Jakupovic Benkovic Elder King Albrighton Gray Okazaki * Johnson if Soyuncu not yet fit. Iheanacho to play max 60 mins, Okazaki to replace him.

He’s looked way off, a shadow of the player who finished last season ahead of Gray. Don’t know why. i suspect he’ll play in the League Cup, and might make the bench while Vardy’s suspended. But he’s 4th choice wide player at the moment

You wouldn't if you'd seen him in pre-season or in last night's game!

Anyone know what’s happened to Sam Hughes, aka ‘the next big thing’?

I didn’t to be fair, but I’d trust a coach over a player in those circumstances anyway, wouldn’t you?

I’m afraid I disagree with you on both. I’d have remembered just how poor Amartey was last time he played against Man U & played Ricardo at RB. And the manager was in a better position than any fan to know just how tired Maddison was when making his changes.

That was about the last minute attacker signing wasn’t it?!?