Manchester United Banter 3

12 Feb 2026 09:39:36
Seems Tommy Tuchel is about to sign an extension with England so we can rule him out as next head coach.

So who’s it going to be?

12 Feb 2026 10:04:52
Seems a bit prudent. I'd wait until after the penalties at least.

12 Feb 2026 10:12:24
I think that come the summer the real top names will be off the table, Tuchel gone, Enrique talking with PSG about extending. Depending on how Nagelsman does with Germany he could be available but would have to wait deep into the summer which is not ideal.

Likely we will be looking at the next level of managers who all come with an element of risk.

12 Feb 2026 11:05:24
It's going to be Carrick if he does a good job.

12 Feb 2026 12:10:32
Yh with each manager that gets ruled out over the next couple of months, all roads will point to carrick, unless we implode this season and end up 6/7th.

Side note on Tuchel, that interview he had in 2024 must have been a car crash from the clubs side, he seems actively not interested in joining us, Ineos/British Cycling must have come across really poorly.

12 Feb 2026 13:55:16
Come June I think ancelloti and naglesman could be off the table aswell nothing suggests there going to leave there jobs with Germany and Brazil.
Tuchel has signed a new deal so he off
Luis Enrique I can either see him staying at PSG or going to city.
Xabi Alonso is most likely going to Liverpool
I think our options could be very limited and leave a pool of
Glasner
Carrick
De zebri
Iraola
While they are all decent managers none of them inspire confidence for me
Glasner and de zebri create problems every where they go with the board and players we've sacked or last 2 managers who had these problems.


So what's that leave
Carrick and iraola maybe and outside shout for conte although he seems happy back in Italy at napoli.

12 Feb 2026 15:51:03
Deschamp will be returning to club football as well, but I suspect Carrick will get us into the CL and will get the gig for a few years, hopefully if he does then the current coaching set up also stays.

If/ when it falls apart I think Southgate will eventually happen.

12 Feb 2026 20:55:26
It’s a decent point Grim. Can’t discount Southgate at this stage.

12 Feb 2026 09:31:01
Tuchel not going to be an option then if you believe today’s reports. Least it gives clarity good and early if that was the route we were heading down.

12 Feb 2026 13:37:05
Yes it is better to know early one way or the other.

12 Feb 2026 09:04:07
Being widely reported that Tuchel is to extend his England contract to 2028. That will disappoint those here who want him as our next manager. Personally, I'm pleased.

12 Feb 2026 10:04:56
Im pleased too.

12 Feb 2026 12:15:17
Yeah I am happy with that too.

12 Feb 2026 12:18:17
What are people's thoughts on what our strategy should be for a new manager? If we look at Cuty's roadmap, they went for Mancini and Pellegrini before graduating to elite and hiring pep.

So both Mancini and Pellegrini brought a culture, play style and success and then Pep has built on that.

I personally think its a ridiculous ask to actively seek some kind of SMB and SAF characters. They're bi-generational managers.

Id prefer proven like those two pre-pep managers

My top 3 would be.

1.Ancellotti
2.Mancini (amazed this has never cropped up, he's a transformation manager)
3. Conte

They are not up and coming, they're serial winners. All match the gravitas of the club with only Conte being the outlier in being a little fiery.

Thoughts?

12 Feb 2026 18:31:39
What about McKenna.

11 Feb 2026 18:33:14
Just when I start to feel a bit of pride again in our club, 'ole Jim has to come out with his stupid comments. I hate that he ever came to us.

11 Feb 2026 19:40:23
Hes a disgusting c-unit, who moved to Monaco to not pay tax, utter rat. Typical billionaire bull, look poor man, that foreigner is taking your cookie, whilst he hoards 1000's!

11 Feb 2026 20:25:00
All those immigrants coming over scoring goals for us.

11 Feb 2026 21:32:03
Many immigrants in Monaco?

11 Feb 2026 22:09:58
The problems that billionaires have to cope with…hard times!

11 Feb 2026 22:12:14
He’s good with figures! 58, million in 2020? Gone up 12 million in the last five years? Slightly off there Sir Jim!
I wonder what he paid off ETH and Rubin? No wonder we’re skint!

12 Feb 2026 08:07:40
So, are you suggesting that immigration ISN'T out of control?
I've no desire to get involved in any political argument here, but I think he made a good point and that he wasn't talking about his own wealth but about the country's wealth. I believe he was pointing out that the current.

and increasing levels of benefits expenditure are unsustainable. In that, I consider he's very much correct.
That said, I have only seen a snippet of the interview and may have missed your point and be off the mark.

{Ed001's Note - have you thought that if he actually paid his taxes, expenditure wouldn't be out of control? Rich prick points the finger at immigrants to avoid admitting it his actually his fault is what happened there. Immigration isn't out of control, it has lowered in recent years, but that doesn't suit racist rhetoric.}

12 Feb 2026 08:58:11
Racist?! Behave! I'm talking specifically about the illegal immigrants arriving by boat across the channel. I do NOT see the vast majority of those as 'asylum seekers'. I see them very much as a Trojan Horse invasion that is going to destroy this country. Absolutely nothing racist about my attitude, but it seems easy to lob the old racist card into a discussion!

{Ed001's Note - funny, I never said you were racist, but your reaction tells its own story.}

12 Feb 2026 09:08:11
You can have a nuanced argument about how much immigration has taken place in the UK, most definitely. From 2020 it seems to have gone to unsustainable levels, all parties agree on that tbf.

Jims comments however come over as misinformed and hyperbolic when he uses phrases like “colonised”. Also once you factor in the tax point and him living, for sensible reasons in Monaco, he looks hypocritical.

Combined with the fact that Man United is supposed to be an institution in the country, would expect the supposed figurehead to speak more carefully.

12 Feb 2026 09:17:35
Fizz,

Don’t want to get into a political debate, but please take a step back, do your own reading about why the expenditure and economy are failing. It’s such a lazy narrative to blame that on immigrants and what the rich people would love you to believe, it doesn’t take too much to step back and see it’s nonsense, but most are just willing to believe what the rich people tell them. If you do your own research and come up with the same answer then that’s fine, and you may have already done that, but as the Ed says, think why the rich people want you to believe it’s immigrants fault.

12 Feb 2026 09:37:16
Just when you thought you couldn’t dislike our owners any more, Jim chimes in and says hold my beer!

12 Feb 2026 10:12:26
I see the owner of betfred was the highest payer of personal tax in uk in2025 @330m and the 3rd biggest was the last that owns a large chunk of bet 365.
1. It shows how stupid people are to lose so much gambling
2.

How much tax the wealthy do pay if they are resorted for tax in the uk.
Taxation is one if the least fair responsibilities today.

12 Feb 2026 10:14:42
Ed001. No, it doesn't tell its own 'story' at all. If you knew anything at all about me or what I'm about, you would understand that it is impossible to label me as racist. The fact that your post is directly below mine and appears to be responding to my post led me to believe you were indeed pasting that label on me. Dropping the race bomb is simply a cheap shot aimed below the belt.
GDS2. If you read my post, you will see that I'm not being led by the nose by rich folk.

I am referring specifically to the thousands of illegal immigrants crossing the channel and the ongoing expenditure of housing, feeding, health care, legal fees, etc. I also made it clear that I had not viewed the entire interview, nor did I suggest a liking or not for SJR. I have nothing to 'step back' from.
I should have trusted my first instinct and avoided this thread like the plague. I shall do that now.

{Ed001's Note - ok mate, of course.}

12 Feb 2026 11:06:05
Imagine living in Great Britain, the biggest colonizer of history and then having the audacity to complain about immigration. Humanity is bigger than football. Now having said that, illegal immigration, the one where people have no plans to work but scrounge is wrong and needs to be stopped.


Without immigrants, our NHS would stop in a heart beat and our taxi system would grind to a halt (to name a few) .
Ratboy lives in Monaco and has the audacity to complain about immigrants lol.

12 Feb 2026 11:08:53
🍿🍿🍿🍿 😂😂😂

Bloody foreigners!

12 Feb 2026 11:18:38
Since Brexit, and us leaving the Dublin convention, the number of “ boat people” coming across the channel has quadrupled, because they couldn’t then be sent back. Hope you didn’t vote for that Fizz!
By the way, I’m an immigrant and I came across on a boat! And, I’ve been paying taxes for 60 years!

12 Feb 2026 12:27:41
Net migration is likely to be in a negative by the summer. I wonder what Nigel and his cronies will have to talk about then. Labour are sorting immigration, once they do the narrative around them ‘should’ change, but with our media run by the rich, it’s important to get your information from a wide range of sources.

Farage has come out and backed the Rat’s comments, if you’re not a billionaire and you’re thinking of voting for him this should tell you all you need to know.

12 Feb 2026 13:31:37
Brexit - and in particular the extreme interpretation of it that has been adopted - is a far bigger drain on the UK economy than anything Jim spoke about. The worst case economic forecasts of its impacts are actually very close to what's happening. The UK clearly needs to re-establish relations with Europe. That can all be true and not imply that wanting to have more control of borders is racist. Control though is often launched on with language like "close the borders" or "invasion" or by automatically linking societal issues with immigrants.

That is racist (or more precisely it is xenophobic) unless there is evidence behind it. For instance data shows that immigrants are net contributors and proportionally commit fewer crimes. But wanting to ensure the rate of population growth is managed so that services can scale accordingly etc is all fair. I think Jim Ratcliffe has veered towards xenophobia here but as Fizz said that does not negate all his points.

12 Feb 2026 13:42:43
The man who lives in a tax haven to avoid paying his fair dues, who has seen his individual wealth skyrocket over the past few decades, and has taken his companies out of the UK to avoid paying tax, is actually not the problem.

No, the real problem is immigrants because they are the ones responsible for lack of state revenue, the cost of living crisis, below inflation wages, and housing shortages.

This has nothing to do with the persistent concentration of wealth in a ever narrowing percentage of the global population, and everything to do with bloody immigrants.

12 Feb 2026 14:12:31
Not a big shock this is how Brexit Jim thinks.

12 Feb 2026 14:59:51
Hes a moron and every day i dislike him even more. He doesn't know his ancestors were romainians!

12 Feb 2026 15:25:57
Patrick, by the way, my father is also an immigrant, and he too came across on a boat! He served this country and has been paying taxes for longer than 60 years.

12 Feb 2026 17:44:36
We’re all immigrants Fizz! I think you should let your father retire!

12 Feb 2026 17:58:42
Danny, immigrants are not responsible for lack of state revenue. They, in the long term, contribute more in taxation than they do in claiming benefits.
Housing shortage? Thatcher selling off council houses anything to do with it? Successive governments not fulfilling building targets?

12 Feb 2026 19:15:02
Patrick, tax is paid on pension.

12 Feb 2026 19:28:45
Get the Saudis in, least they've got nothing dodgy about them.

12 Feb 2026 20:33:36
Wow!

What a thread to walk into first thing in the morning! Calm down people.

NHS would stop in a heartbeat - gold!

12 Feb 2026 22:02:28
Keefy- can’t tell if that’s sarcasm or you agree with my comment re:NHS.
If you agree - fair.
If you disagree you’re entitled to. However unless you work on the frontline as I do and have knowledge about the ethnicity of staff then I’d be happily engage in convo.

13 Feb 2026 05:14:13
Don't the Rat's companies also receive handouts from the government that are being paid for by taxpayers as well? So not only does he not pay taxes, he actively takes money out for his own benefit as well.

13 Feb 2026 08:47:22
Fizz, may your father continue to pay taxes for many more years. Did he hail from the Emerald Isle?

13 Feb 2026 09:00:31
I was loving the NHS and heartbeat link. Calm down!

13 Feb 2026 09:12:31
But for what it’s worth I do agree.

13 Feb 2026 10:55:13
Patrick, indeed, he does hail from The Emerald Isle. Born and raised in Curry, County Sligo.

13 Feb 2026 12:09:18
I wonder what the players think about his comments, we're a squad full of immigrants or sons of immigrants. These joint owners are as bad as each other in different ways, I hope I live to see the day when we're bought out by a lesser evil. P. s the term 'race card' f**ks me off no end, it says more about the person saying it than who it's targeted at.

(Brown boy born and raised in England, living in Aus last 11 years)

13 Feb 2026 19:07:27
He employs thousands of people in the UK who will most likely pay tax in this country. a lot of British reside in Monaco to avoid tax. Everyone would if your accountancy firm recommends it.

Dont remember Piers Morgan calling out Arsenal for paying their players through their Jersey office.
SJR has a point and is allowed an opinion. Maybe worded more carefully. The over-reaction is not a surprise and anyone who think Brexit (in name only) and governments want to solve the issue are deluded. They skew the numbers on everything including immigration. How can they even know who has arrived and how many? Only goes to boost the black market economy and or increase the public burden. The public sector has to be paid for by the private sector, private sector must be bigger than the public sector to pay for it. Its always been like that. The NHS is failing as there are very few jobs for skilled/trained and hardly any jobs.
Many people are leaving this country who were born here more recently but all is positive as it at least keep the net migration lower.

11 Feb 2026 11:41:02
Morning from a long way away

I managed to watch the game with no sound due to the poor coverage here. The WiFi stinks.

Slow cumbersome with little idea on how to deal with the low block. Disappointed in that and also same team selection. No freshening up. Surely they knew West Ham would sit deep so Sesko should have been more prominent in selection, either starting or coming on earlier. No real speed or fizz in our passing, didn’t move them out of position. Mainoo lost his man for their goal, Lammens and Yoro did well to give us the chance of a point. Why didn’t Amad shoot right at the end?

Right here is a thing, from memory we have had 5 extremely marginal offside decisions go against us in the last 5 games. The third goal against City was in my opinion almost criminal, there was a discrepancy in the photo and the VAR image, the body shape didn’t look the same. Last night the call against Cas looked ridiculously minute. There was an excuse given weeks ago for a Liverpool goal of a built in 5cm allowance, where has that gone? No mention of it since. Why are United not questioning the PGMOL on the consistency and accuracy of VAR? Are the images exactly matching at the exact correct moment of impact on the pass? Does the photo exactly match the body shape? VAR looks unreliable and frankly biased to me on that basis. Is there any independent technical checking of VAR? What detail is there of the 5cm allowance or did they just make that up?

11 Feb 2026 13:43:37
The VAR problem is refs abdicating accountability. It’s easier for them to let the technology make the decision than take responsibility for it. Last night was a prime example.

The offside rule is in place to ensure fair competition between attackers and defenders. If the attacker is way in front of the defensive line, they have an unfair advantage. Casemiro was inline with the defender in every practical sense. His knee or toe being in front of the defensive line gives him no material advantage. He just got on the end of the cross ahead of the defender.

Implemented as a tool to help refs make better decisions, the VAR official would explain the specifics of the situation, and the ref could use this to determine if the attacker had a material advantage - i. e. make a decision guided by the spirit of the game. Instead, the ref is told if any fragment of the attacker’s body is beyond the defensive line, and that’s the decision.

The bottom line is that the technology isn’t inherently bad, more that the level of officiating is, and refs prefer to allow VAR to make bad decisions than to use it to help them make better ones.

11 Feb 2026 13:45:18
My issue with VAR is how it’s positioned. It’s looking for any reason, however minute that is, to disallow a goal, and not why a goal should stand. Every goal we score I’m waiting for it to be chalked off. It’s not great entertainment.

As for last night, low blocks have been our issue for years. Won’t be solved in one game.

11 Feb 2026 13:59:37
Danny

I think the technology is not accurate enough. One or more frames can make a difference. The
City one, there was a clear difference between the photo and VAR image, clearly looked a couple of frames at least different and if they are going to have such minute decisions the technology needs to be similarly accurate and I don’t believe it is. It needs to be reviewed and Utd need to ask questions. It needs independent review of the system.
Then tell me why there was a 5cm allowance for Liverpool and no one else?
It stinks quite honestly.

11 Feb 2026 15:24:32
My problem with the VAR offside reviews is when they deem the player that plays the pass has first made contact with the ball. It's looks like even this moment can cover the span of several frames which could be the difference between the goal scorer being onside or not.

{Ed025's Note - thats a very fair point Peter..

11 Feb 2026 15:32:56
Exactly that Peter, which is why it should be used as a tool and not a decision maker. The technology will never be 100% perfect or accurate. It should only be used as a visual indicator to help refs decide.

11 Feb 2026 16:05:02
I do agree Danny. Although it I just don't see how that works on the pitch. We can't have the referee running over to the monitor for every marginal offside. It will be as stop/start as the NFL.

There's only one way to fix VAR and that's to throw it in the bin. The game is dead.

{Ed025's Note - im with you Peter..

11 Feb 2026 16:29:24
How many frames is the ball touching the passing foot? Who checks it is the exact match to the frame where the player is? Is it an exact match? Is the system calibrated? Is the system verified by independent experts? Are decisions further reviewed for accuracy of the equipment? Does the accuracy vary from ground to ground?
I go back to the third disallowed goal v City, the VAR player image looked different body shape to the photo as if two or three frames different.

Something is not right and the Refs are hiding behind it. Then what about this 5cm rule?

11 Feb 2026 16:49:12
No mention of how bad Shaw was OP? He stinks, need to get rid of him, takes the piss out of us every season, plays well under a new coach or pre International tournaments, horrific.

11 Feb 2026 17:12:29
Red man. All the questions you are putting forward are valid.

Something is definitely not right!

I disagree however with your point that referees are hiding behind it, I feel that the referees are scared of it tbh. Does anybody enjoy their job when their decisions are constantly undermined? Some of the cup games earlier in the season were probably the best games to watch as they had no VAR and I remember a commentator pointing out how happy the refs were and he was right. Massive smiles on their faces, joking with the players. They were having fun and the games were fun to watch (except the Grimsby one 🤣) .

VAR was supposed to eliminate controversy. Ironically it has caused more controversy than there ever was.

I genuinely believe that over the course of a season the game has been compromised. The big prizes (forget the trophies, I'm talking about £££) will go to the highest bidders if this carries on. Maybe it has already started.

11 Feb 2026 17:56:22
I think the game last night is just another case of highlighting the limitations with our squad.

It's the first time in months where they've had to play 2 games in 4 days and the performance was flat.

Maybe we could/should have mixed up the team selection to try and freshen things up, but who exactly do we bring in and for who?

Can we drop Shaw or Dalot with Dorgu injured, and Mazraoui only just making his way back from an injury? Would Malacia and a not fully fit Mazraoui played better?

Or should we have started Yoro and/or Heaven for either Maguire or Martinez? Is it a great idea to throw young inexperienced CB's into an away game against an aggressive side like West Ham? Probably not.

So is it midfield where we try and freshen it up? Drop one of Mainoo or Maguire for who? Ugarte?

With Mount is out injured, then the only forward options to change things with the front four is Sesko and Zirkzee. In hindsight there was maybe a case for starting Sesko, but who should we have dropped? Bruno, Cunha, Mbeumo or Amad? Also Sesko has shown how he can change things from the bench, would the others offer a way to mix things up from the bench? Probably not as they offer a lot of similar things.

This squad seriously lacks quality in depth, and it certainly isn't even close to being ready to play 2 games a week for the majority of the season and maintain performances/results.

What was promising though was the never say fie attitude, the determination to fight back and not lost the game.

11 Feb 2026 17:59:01
Scholes

Said a few times about Shaw, if you recall I was very annoyed about ETH selling Alvaro who then cost Madrid £50+M.

11 Feb 2026 18:04:58
Should have been bombed out years ago.
Imo will go down as one of our worst ever signings.

11 Feb 2026 18:45:57
I can't remember was it was here mouthing off that this squad could have competed in the cl and come in top4 in the epl. On the neck of 2 good wins at the time.
🤣🤣🤣
This is a really weak squad or 1st 11 can compete in their next days but after that there is little or nothing.

12 Feb 2026 08:09:21
I remember who it was ken. 🤣🤣🤣.

11 Feb 2026 09:02:39
What should happen in the 12-day break our team now has?

Carrington, every day working on fitness?
Reserves sitting deep and starting 11 working on breaking down a low block?
A couple of behind-closed-door friendlies?
A warm weather camp abroad?
A straightforward break for all to recharge?

11 Feb 2026 09:15:07
Try and break the mould of Eth 2.0 would be a damn good place to start after that performance.

11 Feb 2026 09:27:09
A point against what is now a well drilled team, in form, fighting for their lives away from home. Take your medicine and a point, learn a lot from it, and move on to a similar team who we should beat.

Loving the finish from Sesko - slow burner but yes beginning to earn to the Utd shirt now. West Ham blocked the spaces brilliantly nullifying Amad, Cunha and Mbeumo. Should have gone more directly sooner.

11 Feb 2026 10:16:53
There rumours of a friendly against AC Milan in Saudi Arabia. But I don't think thst is happening.

11 Feb 2026 18:09:39
I do find the concern fans have over a low block to be slightly out of proportion in my opinion.

There is a reason why poorer sides tend to use it against sides with superior players, it's effective and statistically the best chance they have of getting a result.

Only the very best sides can consistently play against a low block and beat it. Typically to beat a low block you need one of three things.

1. A mistake from the opposition, someone not tracking their runner, losing their individual battles, giving the ball away in a dangerous place, or gifting a penalty.

2. A moment of unbelievable magic and invention from a player who does something you just can't stop. Hitting a 40 yard screamer into the top corner, dribbling past 4 or 5 players with the ball glued to his foot, rising 2.5m into the air to head a ball home that no one else can reach.

3. Having a team full of world class players who can just relentlessly pummel the opposition until they break and concede.

That's it. There is no clever tactical plan to make good to average players suddenly capable of consistently beating a low block through the brilliance of their play.

I mean Arsenal have spent over a billion creating a top class squad, and even they tend to rely on starting 4 CB's to overwhelm the opposition at corners to consistently beat low blocks.

We are a long way from having a top class squad to be able to overwhelm the opposition and beat the teams that will let you have the ball and stick two banks of four in front of the ball. We will have to rely on either moments to brilliance or the opposition making a mistake. Neither of which you can consistently rely on.

11 Feb 2026 07:53:57
Very poor goal to conceed, Shaw at fault and Martinez was bad for the cross. what's really frustrating is it the team only increased speed of play and intencity after tgey scored, should be starting like that great finish by Sesko for our goal and a big shout out the Lemmens who made save at 1nil in extra time. On we go.

11 Feb 2026 09:22:57
Never let the ball bounce at the back. Golden rule of defending in football.

11 Feb 2026 10:58:07
Martinez covered the near post, The goal was started by Shaw letting the ball bounce and mainoo not tracking his runner that he looked at just before and let him get in front of him. the football yesterday was awful to watch I suspect we spent 70% of the game walking around.

11 Feb 2026 13:37:26
Martinez stood virtually still rather than going out to try and tackle or at least prevent the cross. He was absolutely at fault.

11 Feb 2026 14:15:17
4 errors in that passage.
1 Shaw let the ball bounce like an 10 year old.
2 she them jumped into a table went to ground like a10 year old
Martinez didn't cover quick enough
Mainoo let his man run into the space un matched.

11 Feb 2026 07:39:05
{Ed's Note - BullysBoy II has posted a new article entitled, Wolves Selection Debates Need Better Perspective

11 Feb 2026 02:36:40
I do hope we start Yoro against Everton over Maguire. Need pace in the backline to play a higher line. Can't break teams who are happy to counter otherwise, which is what I suspect Everton will do.

11 Feb 2026 06:05:21
I think Carrick fell into a bit of naivety naming the same team for all 5 games, yes they have done very well, but the very best make tweaks against different teams as required Carrick got a bit caught up riding a wave of the last 4 games, when alarm bells should have rang and a few tweaks should have been made, yes it’s hard to change a winning team but that’s what sorts the real managers from the pretenders….

Having said that hopefully he learns from it and we move on, we escaped with a point, now few tweaks for the next…. I appreciate what he got on the bench and squad is poor, but just a change is sometimes good enough.
I think him and staff will realise this and not follow the nativity of RA and never learn.

11 Feb 2026 07:08:25
With the drop off we have seen with subs it is hard to change a winning team, however with it being a short period since the Spurs game there was definitely a logic to mix it up.

Unfortunately as we keep saying the drop off in performances from the bench means that would have been a risk, however I think starting Sesko for Cunha might have been the one change with Cunha coming on fresh second half.

Biggest issue was once Sesko was on not getting enough crosses in, when we did they looked panicked.

However, 5 games on from Amorim we have picked up 13 points and are in the running for champions league, we would have all taken that at the start.

10 Feb 2026 22:36:08
The unbeaten run under carrick continues. Not the great performance but a decent point away from home against a team in decent form who are fighting for their lives. We always struggle away to West Ham so we all knew that this was a hard game.

Happy to sesko again, great finish…near 2 week break now b4 Everton so plenty of time for rest and recuperation and some work on the training pitch too! then it’s the final push towards the end of season.

10 Feb 2026 22:49:23
Disappointing results tim wan bissaka with the usual goal line clearance against us first thoal was crucial and unfortunately Martinez switched off again.

10 Feb 2026 23:23:20
Mistake not starting Sesko. Amad shouldn’t have started as his main threat is pace and beating his man but there was no space, and never was going to be. They were compact and fluid and made it difficult. We needed the first goal and after they scored just sat in.

Hopefully carrick learns - at least should’ve bought Sesko on half time or even 55 mins! 13/15 points from a tough run and top 4 is safe for this week of games. Need to plan for Everton - lack of game time could work against us though - not playing enough.

11 Feb 2026 01:02:47
Shaw didn't do well in the first instance either. Couldn't deal with the high ball and then took himself out of the play with a missed tackle.

Yoro made two saving tackles. Kept us in the game. Sesko's finish was superb. Kobbie played really well. Mbuemo and Amad couldn't find any space. We'll have the same issue against Everton.

11 Feb 2026 02:01:05
4 wins 1 draw in 5 is top 4 form. Drawing a tricky away game midweek after short rest is not that big a surprise. Keep moving forward and don't let the nay sayers bring the doom and gloom after a couple of dropped points away from home. This epl is like that this year.

11 Feb 2026 05:58:32
Don’t matter how we dress it up, trying to mitigate it over 5 games, tonight was very poor performance, which is a worry that we still struggle to break teams down for some reason we just run out of ideas against the lower teams, our forward line looks poor in these games and the build up gets so slow, it’s pedestrian

I appreciate you all think Martinez is a great CB, but he is poor, in fact I would say our whole back 4 and there replacements in this squad are all average at best and not one of them is at the required level, yes they get by but come on be serious not one of them would get in Arsenal squad let alone team and surely as they are top of league that’s who we should measure against and the level required.

Midfield is not our only problem CBs is a real mess.

What was you all saying previously when I said Deligt can’t be relied on because he misses so many games through injury!

For one reason or another the whole back line is just nowhere near good enough.

11 Feb 2026 07:30:01
Amad was by far the worst player on the pitch for me, why does our best goal threat get moved out of his main position for Amad who has not done a lot this season in fact he has only ran around. very rarely does you contribute for goals and assists.