Kingfisher

Bent was struggling under AM. I think Benteke has come in and done well, we can't really play them both IMO.

The HS2: High-speed rail route phase two details have been announced. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-21221828 I think the whole thing is a massive waste of money. Some of the stations aren't even going to be in city centres. Joke.

Wright was a defender, size is more important there yet he made it. Hight wise loads of great midfielders are 5'7. I don't think size is the issue here.

Alan Wright?

He did what footballers do week in week out. Time wasting, feigning injury, behaving in general like a prat. Football just isn't the sport it used to be, all this behaviour came in from abroad as well I might add. Kids watching the game now thing it's a normal part of the game, they've not seen anything else - very sad for the future of the sport.

Cant defend, poor finishing.

.............................Guzan.............................. Lowton........Vlaar............Clark..........Bennett .................Westwood......Delph..................... ...........................N'Zogbia............................. ........Weinmann.....................Gabby............... ............................Benteke..............................

3-4-3 I meant in other words the generic wingback system however specifically lined up we are needs to be replaced with aback 4

Lambert needs to drop the 5-3-2, it's not working. That's his decision and his fault. Don't get me wrong I think he had a great record and fully support his appointment, and actually like him. But he's not above criticism here. We need Dunne back, a simple back 4. We need to take pressure of the young lads at WB by making them orthodox FB's. We need KEA back, I gather he is in the Africa for a while which is a shame, big player for us, should never have been dropped. Put 3/5 in CM and 3/1 up front. (4-3-3/4-5-1)

He'll definitely rise.

Sorry there is some confusion. I'm not talking about CB's playing FB at all, of which I'm not really a fan. As for a CB playing WB, not a chance, I don't know where this has come from in your post. I'm saying Barzagli plays in a back three and has none of the physical attributes you say is essential to the role, he is a classic CB. He plays very well there by all accounts. You could argue Serie A doesn't have the abundance of pace that the PL does, and this weakness of Barzagli's would be exposed here, but I think this is a moot point as I've explained earlier. BTW I'm arguing all this but I think we should go to a back four as soon as Dunne gets back. Nothing to do with Baker, I think Bennett and Lowton aren't up to the job of playing WB, not yet at least.

Andrea Barzagli isn't agile or pacey, he plays the position perfectly by all accounts, with great awareness and strong tackling being his forte.

He doesn't look particularly slow for a defender, or too slow for the league. I don't think you need extra pace above and beyond what a normal CB requires to play 'that' position. What you do need is positioning and awareness and he looks promising in that department. I think you're stretching your argument beyond anything grounded in reality by using his pulled muscle as a reasoning point. He's going to have to sprint and turn quickly wherever he plays, all through his career, he's a footballer. The pulled muscle was bad luck.

Don't play it long unless you have to is my opinion on the game. But to play it short you have to have players who can pass obviously, and players who can find space, obviously, and be organised. What I can never ever understand, and this is a real bugbear with me, the diagonal ball into the box in open play...why??? It is never and has not ever been a particularly fruitful ball for any team in my memory, even the teams set up to play 'long ball' yet outside the top teams it happens regularly in this country. Never really see it on the continent.

If he played CB in an orthodox back four he'd come up against players like Suarez, Silva, Aguero, Walcott, Hernandez etc anyway, so I think the premise of your argument that Baker can't handle small nippy players so can't play either side of a back three is a bit of a moot one.

I think a CB, especially one who has played FB in his career should fit into a back three easily, and although still lacking experience, Baker has those credentials. As for having to be smaller to deal with agile wingers, well these days many of the top strikers are small and agile, if Baker can't deal with that he's not got a future at the top level. I think a big lumbering dinosaur like Dunne would struggle to have a top flight career if he was starting out today because he really does struggle against small tricky strikers. Saying that I'd have him back in the side for the rest of this season because despite that he has the experience to organise that mess at the back.

3-4-3 we played and started with, ...............Vlaar....Clark.....Baker........... Lowton..........................................Bennett When Baker got caught he had moved across to cover Bennett who had bombed forward, probably.

Immaturity throughout the side. They all just went into hang on mode in the second half, the early goal also didn't help. Can't defend set pieces for toffee.

Charles 'the turn' N'Zogbia. How does he do it? How does he turn players so consistently? Ball comes to him, back to the defender, blink of an eye he's around him and gone. Shame his decision making isn't always the best, saying that two assists so far today.

I don't see the Bannan/Beckham comparison, quality aside they're two different players. I think Bannan is more like Scholes, but obviously nowhere near as good! Scholes keeps it simple most of the time, picking the right pass will improve Bannan's game a lot IMO.

OMG that blowhard actually had me rooting for Piers! I've come across this asshole before accidentally when searching for a picture of the one show's Alex Jones boobies. Edit - when I say come across...

Yeah, so maybe in reply to Tony the two aren't related.

The Tories are as totally incompetent in government as they were in opposition, and have never had a single decent policy.

Guzan 6 - wasn't that involved Lowton 5 - some good things but also beat once or twice Clark 6 - didn't do much wrong Baker 6 - didn't do much wrong Stephens 5 - nice shot, otherwise poor Delph 5 - was involved but generally, poor Westwood 5 - poor Holman 6 - looked the most likely to create something N'Zogbia 3 - useless and far to lethargic Weinnman 4 - unusually poor Benteke 7 - wasn't anywhere to be seen on the rare occasion we crossed it, why? Poor decision making at times, but was a handful. Agbonlahor 5 - didn't have an impact Bowery 5 - not enough time Bannan 5 - poor I'm a support Lambert but he needs to sort this shit out before the end of this month.

No. If you were a manager and a scout said 'I've found this defender' your first question should be 'can he defend?' if the answer is no, then you don't bother with question 2, 'can he pass?'. Clark can't defend.