thunderball

The fact that Ross Barkley can’t even get on as a sub suggests we are struggling for any kind of form

If we are offered £20m for McGinn this summer we should sell, put it towards a a tall, cultured midfield general.

The commentators think we are having a good game, I think we are gash again. Smith needs to sort our midfield, it just doesn’t work. We may like some of those names in there but I think we need a shake up and a new face or two. We just no longer know our way to goal, I have no idea how we create a goal. Our delivery into the box is poor and when playing around the box always look for a lay off rather than a progressive move or shot. ‘Martinez at fault for our goal for me. Sadly.

We are not ready for Europe just as we weren’t ready for promotion and as in that promotion season a decent spell belies the real standing of the squad. We don’t have the quality or quantity, nor consistency, and I worry our league performance would suffer under the strain - we can’t compete in domestic cups now where the opposition field their reserves. If we have a solid summer transfer window adding 2-3 very good players and maybe a marquee player or two, and keep Jack; kick on next season with improved performances, AND have another similar Summer transfer window in 2022, I reckon we could take on Europe without compromise. Anything before is folly and possibly detrimental to the long game ambitions. If NSWE deliver that then we have owners that are as serious as any in football, any thing could happen.

Close the thread. Remarkably, we still go ahead of Liverpool if we win our game in hand, but is unlikely to happen on current form. if anything it has shown what’s needed to kick on. I just hope our eventual drop in form and results doesn’t harm our ability to recruit the calibre of player needed to improve us.

All of Football knows this, including every single Sheffield fan to a man. Unfortunately for the fans, the owners have just shot themselves in the foot. Ego’s and football eh?

Just Wow. Sacking Wilder is nuts. He was comfortably the best asset the club had by some considerable distance . They will sink like a stone now. The ownership structure has disaster written all over it.

I think that’s on the management. And to a lesser degree lack of another alternative forward. Watkins looks fatigued now

The hardest part of this is for Steve Bruce this is a result, for us it’s a missed opportunity

Our squad is decent, our management is decent too, with jack we punch above our weight, but with NSWE money we can be the next Man City. The talent is there, the consistency isn’t. The differenece between us and a genuine top 6 team/champion is (1) experience at this level (2) more quality players in every position (2 seasons transfer windows) (3) Another forward or two. I would bet £1000 we will be top 5 in two seasons if NSWE continue their commitment.

I don’t disagree, but that doesn’t diminish continual poor performances from the same squad after we were basically the best team in the prem in December. There is no league champion that rest on their first half season performance, because you have to be good consistently.

I don’t but I want it to work. He needs to dig deep and find another gear, because I think it’s there. I think there are at least 3 midfielders in front of him at the moment.

Sadly I think they are trying, clearly Grealish is the oil in the machine and everyone gets added value when he plays, but Smith seems very slow to respond to issues but generally addresses them 4 months after they surface. We might be better come next season.

I am beginning to think Luiz offers little in the big picture.

Every podcast had this as a win, just like Sheffield it was never a banker, nothing is, in fact the bottom half is where you get the shocks. We are not in a good place and without our bright start we are right down there. We will be lucky to finish in the top half. Jack’s agent must be able to secure him a £200k+ per week deal with Purslow easily in the summer.

We were literally no better than them, so we are bottom 5 on current form. Poor. We have enough quality, it’s just not good enough.

At least it wasn’t a defeat. we are not good enough.

A very generous VAR celebration from Watkins there.

That’s the Barkley quality right there, that’s why we need to buy him

I’d have Barkley on for Luiz now. We have a very decent midfield squad, but they don’t play well together and never at the same time. They are all OK but no one is making a case for being undroppable for anyone else. If anything Nakamba maybe releases the other two as he is more conservative. I think McGinn needs a couple of games out to re-centre.

Just Watkins?

I think Watkins beats Davis in every respect. Davis is only for the romantics

I didn’t think he was. Back to his busy best but lacking in quality and his passing left a lot to be desired. Hopefully he is regaining his form but he is way off his best, maybe it his new role?

Luiz, McGinn and Ramsey have been poor. No chemistry or familiarity, just just cant see how a goal is going to happen. Watkins off tempo tonight, our bench offers nothing here, this is the big gap to fill in the Summer. I can see Mings conceding an error and them expoloiting it. Probably Gayle.

For me McGinn has been poor for a while, especially tonight.