Earl Hafler

City have turned Haaland into Lukaku and they're worse for it

The easy cross / chipped pass that he hit too low ( I've forgotten who was free on the edge of the area ) Frimpong did about seventeen of those.

Now we need a midfielder

Don't know why but thought Sesko had been at a PL club and was on loan.

Pronounced more like Bacala from the Sopranos.

Yeah but selling Morton probably freed up some smart people money and allowed them to waste it on vanity projects Chiesa as a cult player is laughable, considering we had Origi.

We've a few NHGs who'll barely play this season and should've been sold / released.

Newcastle have signed Gonzalez for £52m There are players about like Sangare and I don't understand how Hughes and the club have allowed this to transpire Jürgen will need another hair job with all the head shaking.

Didn't say they were.

4-3-3. Wirtz as inside right, Gakpo ( or Barcola ) inside left Wirtz can go central as Szoboszlai makes his forward runs We're going into a PL season with three central midfielders ( that you wouldn't mind starting most league games ) Absolute f***ing joke.

It helped them improve several places up the table

Utd signed three strikers from PL teams last season and this summer it's the turn of the midfield. £70m on Baleba following Santos and Tielemans

All these conversations are mad given the squad options available just over two years ago. ( obvious penalty kick there for someone )

A good DM and we could see Jacquet making Matip like forays in the opposition half, which often disrupted their defensive lines. And a decent DM will cover his instinctive stepping out of defence and closing down before the opposition has time to turn and develop the attack. This season could be so much better than it will be.

Hightown Growler

It's not just about staying back, though. They need the anticipation and desire to think about where the weak spot is if that attack breaks down. Like, Virgil shouldn't have stepped forward to fill the space left by Gravenberch. He's not 26 years old now and, as captain, I'm expecting him to be shouting at one of them to stay back.

Yeah, I was referring to that point. Neither possesses that level of defensive awareness and Mac Allister isn't the answer Seems like we've just abandoned the idea of signing that type of midfielder

Top class DM supporting them would be interesting Gravenberch passed well enough during the first half of 24/25, when running through midfield at a defence which didn't have 8 players set up on the edge of the area Virgil as last man ten yards inside their half for Newcastle's first goal was just bonkers.

True but ultimately I'm think he lacks that pace or ridiculous skill level which makes a winger but that can be affected by confidence He lacked genuine support from the fullback yesterday and too often was running back towards our goal before he'd touched the ball.

And why a club like ours needs, ideally, a manager of Jurgens stature / experience . DOF overseeing a coach hasn't really worked in the PL, has it ? Iraola could be different gravy potentially but FSG are tying one arm behind his back

Ten of the match day squad which beat Spurs to win the title have gone, including several leaders / influential players He should never have been appointed because it seems like we were a bullet point for his CV

Hopefully the two in midfield is due to lack of options

We spent almost f*** all but 24 was arguably as bad.

We don't have the wingers so, until we do, I'd play him in a front three but then we've selection issues in midfield because we're short on numbers Hughes has been signing players for a system we didn't play and potentially for another ultimately flawed ( the c*** thought we were a stepping stone so wasn't that concerned ) He must be a Manc.