pmcla26

He is a good footballer but not English football suited, he’d be good for a Europa league side abroad. We’ll never see the full potential of Soumare. It’s been a bad move for all parties, unfortunately.

One of Ayew/Reid was okay as a runner (even though we have Kasey who can do the same if really needed, so still would’ve preferred neither), but both was just so stupid. Skipp, and them two was £30m + wages outlay wasted. Could have signed young like for like back ups with potential for our forwards and Ndidi for less than that if we’d have been brave enough.

It's amazing how bad some of these old games look now

Paulo Sousa's downfall was that he was trying to make shit players play good football, Cooper's is that he's trying to make good players play shit football.

I'd give him Ipswich game as long as he uses the same system as last week and has proven that he has been able to coach short comings (which we wouldn't have suffered from under Maresca coaching the same system) from it out of last week. If we lose then he's got to go.

Yep, Skipp is a good player but really wasn't any need to sign him for so much money when we have Wilf. Could have spent that on a striker. I'm assuming something to do with Maddison money was involved (maybe same reason we were linked with Longstaff i.e. Barnes money)

He's probably a better manager than his tenure at Man United has shown but I really can't stand him - wouldn't want him here. The lack of respect he showed Ronaldo was staggering.

Just done a fiver on Conceicao on Paddy Power. 50/1, boosted it to 55/1, £280 return.

Really thought they'd just keep plodding along with him considering they didn't sack him in the summer or when Tuchel was available. Not sure who the outstanding candidate(s) is/are. Probably have a bounce with Ruud and it be Ole 2.0 for 18 months.

He got to a place he was too good for under 18s, he was doing well at 21s level, then got injured in FA Youth Cup game (under 18s). Don't think he was too good for 21s at the time but he was ready for a loan to a lower league club. His injury has really set him back. I think he's still got a good chance of making it with us but might be KDH style where he breaks through at 22/23 years old.

That midfield would get completely over run and the front 3 is grim.

Jayden Oosterwelde David Hancko Facundo Medina Pascal Struijk Don't think any of them would be cheap but they could all be good. We missed a trick with Arthur Theate in the summer.

Hermansen Ricardo Okoli Coady JJ Soumare Skipp El Khannous Fatawu Edouard McAteer

Hope we don't abandon this set up after one match. We played well in the first half. I'd like to see McAteer back in amongst the subs, though. We need some pace off of the bench in the wide areas with Mavididi and Fatawu starting.

He offers nothing of benefit in that system (the one we should have built on upon promotion and playing it all last season), yet he’s still probably one of our better players. Coopers got a conundrum now and it’s because we had a poor window diverting from our strengths.

Okoli in the Faes role and a better ball player to play the Vestergaard role. Evans and Soyuncu 19/20 style.

So much potential but loses his head or chooses the wrong passing option time and time again when the going gets tough.

It’s not an issue with the 11 that started, it’s the lack of like for like signings in the summer to bring on that gave us no options tonight.

Ward been on the bench all season instead

Thanks Steve

Unfortunately, I think you're right. I also worry that he might use the Maresca formation but have Ndidi/Winks as the double pivot like second half last week, not realising the role of having a right-back or a centre-back being the one to step into midfield in possession and just going straight 3241 all game, even without the ball.

19/20 and 20/21 our January windows were terrible, we should have spent more to get over the line with Champions League qualification - the gamble would have been worth it rather than the one we took in summer 21/22 that led to our demise.

Mads Ricardo Faes Okoli JJ Winks Ndidi Buonanotte Fatawu Mavididi Vardy

I still wouldn't swap our Abdul for Facundo if it was a choice between keeping one permanently.

I don't think Buonanotte is more than a £45/50m player. Dani Olmo went for not much more in the summer.