27 Aug 2015 04:17:56
Hello all.
Reading the banter the past few days led me to the thought that in the end there are no extra points for winning with style. A win is a win. Also picking up 1 point away at the Emirates is a good result. Would people be upset if we win the league "ugly"? I for one care about wins and losses. And no matter what I support the team.

Also check out the article on espn about Gerrard and the comments from Bruce Arena. Interesting.

Matt in Florida

1.) 27 Aug 2015
27 Aug 2015 07:50:24
I agree, these games we normally lose and they are 6 pointers whatever time of the season. When performance levels are inconsistent and the team is still finishing its feet, it is important to get a result. I was greatly encouraged to see our tactics against Arsenal has changed from last year. We are not going over to Emrites to play them off the park. Organised defensively, compact etc.

2.) 27 Aug 2015
27 Aug 2015 08:27:03
The problem is not that we win ugly but the we win by pure luck. You sometimes have teams who are very effective defensively and are not very creative going forward but have enough firepower to steal at least one goal every game. I wouldn't have any problem with that.

With us in the first three games, we gave the opposition more or less as many chances as we had, more or less the same possesion we had or more (against Arsenal we had 34% possession overall), and we weren't dominant in any area of the pitch. You can say the first half at the Emirates was maybe the exception though even then it was more a result of inexepreinced young Arseanl defenders than an organised midfield game from us. And with different (assistant) referees we could (maybe should) have lost our last two games.

The thing with luck (unlike teams who play a very effective defensive game) is that eventually it will even itself out. If we continue having so little possesion in midfield, if we let the opposition spend so much time around our box, if we don't have more planning and players who can hold the ball (other than Couts and Benteke) going forward, other teams will beat us eventually and the referees will not always give us presents.

Saying all this, of course winning by luck is better than not winning and it should give us confidence and time to work on what we need to improve. But we do have to change a lot of things in our game.

3.) 27 Aug 2015
27 Aug 2015 09:11:20
Fanobip, good post.

4.) 27 Aug 2015
27 Aug 2015 09:34:22
Spot on Fanobip.

Apart from the first 45 mts against Arsenal. We were poor in all the three matches played till now.

Lets hope Brendan have learned lessons from the three matches played.

5.) 27 Aug 2015
27 Aug 2015 10:01:29
So were all agreeing we were poor for the 1st 3 matches and we've got 7 points but your whinging like fook God help us if we'd have lost any games.
As the Eds have said on numerous occasions we still kick ourselves in the nuts and whinge even when we're playing bad or good.

6.) 27 Aug 2015
27 Aug 2015 12:52:52
I think it was Gary Player who said the more I practice the luckier I get.

7.) 27 Aug 2015
27 Aug 2015 16:51:59
Some say you make your own luck. Yes some decisions are going to go against us. But the play whilst not being fluid as we would like it is effective to a point and improved from last season. Some forget the pig awful start we made last season. We have ridden our luck yes, but considering we have half a new team and they have only just completed a 3rd prem game and are still getting to know each other they have not done to bad have they.

Performances have to be looked at in context, if we are mid table by game ten and still playing the same way i would understand peoples constant whinging.