Hammo

Seventh place is still well within our grasp. Not only do we have a decent run-in. I'd say we have the seventh most talented squad in the division. But the players have to perform - and so does the manager. I'm still not sold on him. Playing Gray in the 'hole' v Stoke was a monumental error - as was leaving Silva on the bench. And as for that halftime switch of formation at Man City... The jury's out.

Well not quite that often but enough to get a dud mark. And he messed up that one-on-one. Normally I agree with these ratings but Mahrez getting MotM for this one is very odd.

My heart sank when I saw James had again been selected ahead of Silva. I don't think James will ever be Premier League material as he's just too slow and unimaginative but......... ......I agree, he was one of our better performers yesterday - or, perhaps more accurately, one of our least bad.

You'd think there would e a 50 per cent chance of our corners/free kicks/crosses finding the head one of our own players (maybe more given that our own players are actually the target) but in reality it's got to be less than ten per cent. Why is that?? answers on a postcard please....

We need to take the game to teams like Stoke when we are at home with pace and intensity, which gets the crowd up and, in turn, drives on the players. In the first half we were so slow and ponderous in everything we did - even taking throw ins took 30 seconds or more! We have a sufficiently good squad and team to get seventh place, but keep playing like this and the season will die a painfully slow death. Other areas of weakness today: - Woeful crosses - Getting caught in possession - Gray in the 'hole' (and Puel keeping him there for an hour when he obviously can't operate there) and what's the issue with Silva, Claude?....

If Arsenal were to go all the way to the Europa League final, there would only be two possible midweek dates - the 17/18 April or the final week of the season (8/9 May). If Milan dump them out, that would free up four other midweek dates in April/May. March is out of the question because of the international break.

Was it a penalty? Probably Was it a dive? Probably Is Alli an overrated cheat? Definitely

The draw obviously wasn't fixed. Ask yourself. Why would it be? And in any case it's a good draw for us. We have an exciting home game to look forward to with a guaranteed big-match atmosphere and the prize of a semi-final at Wembley against, in all probability, another big team. Plus, the separation of the 'big four' virtually guarantees that seventh place in the Premier League - a much more realistic target for us than winning the FA Cup - will get a Europa League spot. Honestly, what's not to like??

I think we are more than capable of finishing seventh. Looking at our schedule, with so many winnable home games, I'd expect us to get around 53-56 points and I reckon that would do it. Anything less than 50 would be a disappointment. Everton got 61 points to finish seventh last season but I don't see us (or anyone else currently outside the top six) getting anywhere near that ....unless we have a 'great escape'-type finish. and then of course there's the FA Cup, in which we should definitely reach the quarter finals (assuming we play a full strength team on Friday, which to me is an absolute must) and then see who we draw...

Patience, people. He's a quality player and will prove it in time. James, on the other hand, will never be more than a third-rate plodder.

Full strength team. Why wouldn't it be? No midweek games before or after, and we're at home in a competition that we've never won.

He's a Championship player. That's his level. If we had 11 players of his ability in the team, that's where we would be playing.

Yeah, all that but... they have the worst atmosphere. It was more like a theatre than a football stadium at times today.

The inability of the team under Puel to put in a 90-minute performance, that's what. A good first half is never coupled with a good second - and vice versa.

Puel gambled on a formation change and it failed. It happens. Acknowledge it, learn from it and move on.

I'd love to see comparable stats of how many kicks all the Premier League keepers have booted/sliced/hooked straight into touch this season. Kasper must be top of the pile. He's a fine shot stopper but an appalling kicker. It's been an accident waiting to happen all season.

But he doesn't explain why he has been absent for ten days, which is what we all want to know. By staying silent during that time he fuelled all the speculation and fiction in the media. What did he expect for heaven's sake?

Those are just words. It's the action that will speak louder. But of course we should all hope they are true.

Nine days on from his transfer request, we have not heard a peep out of Riyad Mahrez. Nor has the club given us any firm indication as to what is going on - whether they are in contact with him or when they expect him back (if at all). We, the fans, are the lifeblood of the club and it's about time we were put in the picture.

Well it gave me a chuckle

The speculation and fiction will continue until Mahrez ends his pathetic childish strop and explains himself. A week has passed and he's still sulking in silence? Maybe the club should hire a primary school counsellor to sort this out.

Garth Crooks' team of the week, what a joke! Does he watch every Premier League game in full in order to make an accurate judgment, or does he - like most people - take in a couple of the live games and watch the rest on Match of the Day? The latter, of course. And the reason he selected Diabate was because they picked him out on MOTD, but mostly so that he could use it as a springboard to jump on the anti-Leicester bandwagon with a sinister little dig at our club about the Mahrez situation. What an irrelevant little tosser.

The best moments in football are priceless. Maguire's goal v United, to cite a recent example. Money can't buy joy on that scale. It can't kill it either, though.

Danny Murphy played for Liverpool AND Spurs - two clubs craving that elusive first Premier League title. No wonder he despises (the ambition of) those upstart 2015/16 Champions of England with a green-eyed passion.

'Mid table form' is generous. Neither should go to Russia with England.