Europe_93

Liverpool owe us 3 European Tours. The fact that Everton are the unusable turd of the premier league shows how unfair football is when you consider how their lack of application cost us in 85

In 85 we got relegated with 49 points, a staggering 13 wins & 10 draws. If you look at the league tables now, points and goal differences from past you can see just how the league has become the haves and the have nots, sort of 3 or 4 mini leagues emerge within the premier league itself. What that really means is the league is not compteitive. That can't be argued when teams lose 3 games on the spin at home 5-0 or more. It is only going to get worse. I'd be more than happy if they created a European soccer league - so long as they don't let those teams play in a national soccer league, it's pain enough to see the big 6 field reserve teams that batter everyone in Carabo Cup / FA Cup and perenially take all the final spots... If you wanna go, off you go!!! We need to sort out financial fair play - and have a much more equal distribution of funds, control ownership input and probably have a wage cap or a maximum salary cap for teams - relating to the league rather than the club, big clubs don't really want to do this, they have the money this is their advantage. What we have now is a joke, a team that can spend half a billion in a transfer window - how does that ever equate to financial fair play.

Like what you did there 😂

I understand that, but if we write off this season instead of pushing it does mean we will lose Sara / Rowe / both in the summer, and thus likely be weaker next season. I wonder what the upside in waiting is, does it mean that who Knapper has in mind is a slam dunk...

I do wonder how much influence Knapper has been, i.e. interesting that we have tightened up defensively since he arrived. At the AGM it seemed that Attansio had money to spend if required in this window, so I do wonder why we haven't. We have demonstrated at full strength we can be a match for most in the champioship, but under strength we struggle, which would indicate this window was the time to take a risk (we will sell in the summer and be worse next season one would imagine). Also there seems a misalignment in that Wagner doesn't want to lose anyone from a bloated squad and has said so in press, whereas we have shifted Forshaw, potentially Placheta - which flies in the face.

Rovers - 1-1 draw and out on penalties, as we bench key players for WBA game, and then aren't able to turn around the game.... WBA - 1-1 Leeds lose by about 3 goals

Agree that's the key position and ideally supports the releasing of Sara to attack - Declan Rice could transform us into play off contenders. But I I'd rather spend the money on a manager.....

Seems like a no brainier… brought is as striker competition/ cover didn’t play consistently when the main 2 were out 🤷‍♂️

I watched him for a season at Newport, they were quite entertaining at that time with Ollie Cooper, Baker-Richardson and Dominic Telford…. He was really good, reminded me of Madison in that he always looked to make something happen. I always thought he’d be good in the champs but wonder if he would have the pace and power to be premiership. Not the holding player we need, as others have said…

Imagine if they sponsored the River End 😜

I don’t see any proven players that would be able to come in and hit the ground running wanting to sign for a manager that has to odds on to lose his job before end of the season. My fear is the decision has been made to prop Wagner up with good signings, making him look better than he is so to speak… why worry, well I just don’t think Wagner has the ability to take us up… so we risk spending on symptoms rather than addressing the route cause. In the summer we went experience now it seems youth, and for the next manager what then? The only coherent policy is to improve the squad you have. But window by window overall we are set to become weaker, money dictates. The only thing that bucks that trend is a good manager at this level. The outs will be really interesting. The ins are only likely to be players unproven at this level, possibly some good loans.

But VAR have called it as OK? Not sure you can then subsequently ban him - unless you meant the officials

The merest of contact, but it is a contact sport.... I think it is the rule that needs looking at because it encourages this 'excentuating behaviour' i.e. the winning of a penalty. The rule should be changed (if it isn't already) to something like 'the player fouled him' meaning either deliberately fouled him, or accidentally made contact with enough force as to stop the player getting the ball. Bit ambiguous I appreciate but next thing we'll have is 'I felt his breath on my boots'...

I hear you and think this to some extent too, but I would hope that the rhetoric to Knapper is more "take your time and make sure the next appointment is the right appointment". They must see that our current CEO / manager is not delivering. Attansio is quietly influencing the octagenarians, I suspect if he were in sole charge things would be different, but making sure he is not rocking the boat too wildly - it sort of demonstrates he sees this as a long term project.

Dimi is aligned to the way Wagner wants to play - high full backs, but his defending is not the best. I don't think McCallum is trusted by Wagner, and Placheta is a square peg in a round hole at full back. The situation is symptomatic of where the club finds itself, not quite the quality required, but struggling to afford better.

Wagner is at the wheel and we are on the road to nowhere….. Today a decent result, but will be viewed as half glass empty, that’s down to the defeats preceding it…. He’s presided over two awful runs, and has lost the trust of the fans…. now we wait….

Rowe, Sara and Sainz is what I have been wanting to see all season. With those attacking players on the field the full backs could be more focused on defending duties in general play and not (both at the same time) so high and wide, leaving us exposed in transition. Then with midfielders filling a more natural space hopefully they would be willing to take the ball - whereas now, no one is looking for it. How many times from goal kicks do we go Duffy, Stacey - punt down the line to Rowe, touchline on his one side, defender at his back happy to go through him and no support if he does get it under

This is a subject close to my heart, literally, I had a sub-ICD fitted back in Sept, because I have suspected hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. The device would kick start if I had a cardiac arrest, it's about half the size of a mobile phone and lives under my armpit. I fully understand why he would want to continue, I only played at local level, and I am 52 now but I still play whenever I can. It's not elite sport I know, but my heart rate when running is often high 165 too over 170 bpm, so at it max. Is it sensible, probably not, but doctors talk about risk and indexes, at the end of the day you still have to live your life and be happy, I could stay at home and be inactive but that only works to a point, where the weight likely piles on and that in turn brings it's own challenges. I believe individuals have to be responsible for their own health & life, that's what patient choice is, So while everyone looks on, and thinks he's nuts, he probably just thinks "don't cry / worry for me, this is what I want to do, I accept the risk". Fair play to him.

Sounds pretty spot on to me, they were clearly the better footballing team playing with confidence, we have better top individuals - but are under performing as a team. Our players need to be willing to take and support the ball better, their players did this. Much of this is coaching. What we did show is 90 minutes of fight and concentration in a match for once this season. Very happy with a point, hopefully we’ll be in a better space next time we play them.

92-93 I bought the white and purple away kit instead… I did buy it 93-94 for the tour though, it’s etched in history now

I'm thinking if we win at Portman Road, in one of our darkest periods, Ipswich will lose all hope of ever beating us again... the equivalent of a Klose equaliser but drawn out over months / years hopefully.

It's really hard to launch the ball into Row z when you are running backwards

I think in the old days managers could fall on their sword and resign, Bond replaced by Brown, Machin, Stringer, Walker and so on…. But these days the back room team pretty much come as a package, then you have the responsibility to think about the futures of all those that have followed you. You can see how that becomes more difficult.

I ask myslef at times, if the manager wanted to expedite his sacking what would he do? Err... Keep the same back four and the same defensive midfielders that have let in the most amount of goals... keep the same tactics with high full backs, keep sucking the oppositon on to us while making errors and conceding... The only time he has changed the back four was to bring in Fisher for Stacey, who in fairness is the last defender I would change at this stage.

Shane Duffy…. absolutely massive…. I mean the advertising board is only half way to his knee and he’s sitting across 7 seats….