How you feeling two games in?

[Guest alex]

I love this myth that we are one striker away from being Ok this season.

Aren't people basically saying they'd like at least one good striker and a left-back? And even that is framed against the expectation that owner won't splash the cash. I don't think anyone is saying we're one player away from being a good side.

[JonTheMag 4]

I think we're one or two players from being a good side to be honest. Our midfield is definitely top 10 quality, and with a new left back I'd say our backline is as well. Adding a new striker could definitely push us over the edge from being lower half of the table to top-10, imo.

[Guest alex]

Okay then, someone is saying that. I'm not like

[manc-mag 1]

Okay then, someone is saying that. I'm not like

 

[Mac-Toon 1]

2 consecutive clean sheets; 3 if you included Fiorentina, which I wont. Think back to early 00's when we had gone something crazy like 40 odd without a clean sheet. It was around the time of 'We've never won in London for 30 games' I'm looking at the positives and building from the back. With this in mind; we're doing great.

 

Get this striker and LB in and we could be looking at a better season than last.

[McFaul 35]

I love this myth that we are one striker away from being Ok this season.

 

Unless Ba improves drastically we have 5 championship standard strikers. Most clubs have at least 2, if not 3, decent strikers vying for a starting spot in the team.

Ba will be alright, but Shola, Best, Ranger and Lovenkrands are all Cardiff/Birmingham level at best. I've said for weeks we need to ship some of these cunts out and get two QUALITY strikers. You don't have to be that good to come 7th and we're a potent strikeforce away from that being a target we should aim for.

[McFaul 35]

I tell you what it is though, I think the mackems are in desperate need of a top striker as much as what we are.

[JonTheMag 4]

I tell you what it is though, I think the mackems are in desperate need of a top striker as much as what we are.

 

Would you rather have Gyan or Ba?

[McFaul 35]

I tell you what it is though, I think the mackems are in desperate need of a top striker as much as what we are.

 

Would you rather have Gyan or Ba?

Ba is a goalscorer so Ba, Gyan plays when he wants which isn't very fuckin often, and NUFC have seen too many of that type of player in the past.

[Happy Face 29]

I think we're one or two players from being a good side to be honest. Our midfield is definitely top 10 quality, and with a new left back I'd say our backline is as well. Adding a new striker could definitely push us over the edge from being lower half of the table to top-10, imo.

 

Even if that were true....we're much further from being a good squad.

 

If Coloccini got a bad injury I'd have no faith whatsoever in our back line.

 

EDIT: And in the new year we'll lose Tiote and the Ameobi's for half a dozen games or so.

Edited August 22, 2011 by Happy Face

[sammynb 3342]

I tell you what it is though, I think the mackems are in desperate need of a top striker as much as what we are.

 

Would you rather have Gyan or Ba?

 

Bent

[StoneColdStephenIreland 74]

I tell you what it is though, I think the mackems are in desperate need of a top striker as much as what we are.

 

Would you rather have Gyan or Ba?

Ba is a goalscorer so Ba, Gyan plays when he wants which isn't very fuckin often, and NUFC have seen too many of that type of player in the past.

 

Mackems were gan acka over Gyan yesterday, they were wanting him to f*ck off elsewhere by all accounts etc

 

And theyre already Judging Wickham on 1 pre-season outing and 10 minutes against us

[Kid Dynamite 6961]

Whickham was pony tbf. Lost the ball every time he touched it

[The Fish 10662]

Honestly, I'll wait for Fulham game.

 

If we take 7 points from the 9 available (and specifically these 9) I'd say that was a very good start to the season. If we take 5 from 9 I'd say it's a good start to the season, 4points is pretty much what I'd have expected.

 

I'd have expected a loss against Arsenal, a draw at the mackems and 3 points from a Fulham side which does not travel well.

 

Still think the side is weak up front and now woefully short at the back. Midfield has improved and the 'keepers are good enough. If we sign Pieters or Cissokho (sp?) I'll be mollified, but nervous about the strikers. We still need to get another body up front imo.

 

All in all it's a good start, Fulham will be the tipping point for me. Win and it's a very good start, lose or draw and it's pretty much as expected.

[JawD 99]

I'm wary. We played a poor Arsenal side and didnt look like scoring. We then played a derby game where the result is always tricky and scored from a set piece. I think we are close to having a decent starting 11 IF and only IF we sign a decent forward and ideally a LB (I say a Fwd is more important than the LB). If we get both, we will have a stronger team than last season and I think we'd aim for 10th or so. Without a new forward I think we'll struggle for goals and finish similar to last season. Depth and more so quality in depth is still an issue. Best, Perch, Lovenkrands, Shola etc are all average players and cant do much from the bench. Dont know enough about Ba and Marv to judge. Also CH I thnk Taylor and Colo look decent together but thats it, where is the depth? Williamson similar to Taylor tbh in being prone to odd howler.

 

Still chuffed with 4 pts from 6 when I thought we'd do well to get 2. Ask the same question again after 6 games.

[Anorthernsoul 1221]

I'm wary. We played a poor Arsenal side and didnt look like scoring. We then played a derby game where the result is always tricky and scored from a set piece. I think we are close to having a decent starting 11 IF and only IF we sign a decent forward and ideally a LB (I say a Fwd is more important than the LB). If we get both, we will have a stronger team than last season and I think we'd aim for 10th or so. Without a new forward I think we'll struggle for goals and finish similar to last season. Depth and more so quality in depth is still an issue. Best, Perch, Lovenkrands, Shola etc are all average players and cant do much from the bench. Dont know enough about Ba and Marv to judge. Also CH I thnk Taylor and Colo look decent together but thats it, where is the depth? Williamson similar to Taylor tbh in being prone to odd howler.

 

Still chuffed with 4 pts from 6 when I thought we'd do well to get 2. Ask the same question again after 6 games.

 

This.

[Deano 0]

Very pleased with the results, slightly concerned at our lack of creativity and fire power upfront. But we all knew that anyway.

 

Marveaux and Ba getting upto speed will be a boost and will give us options and then we have the soopa barfa to come back end of next month.

 

I'd say with all of them fit and on form we DO have a very strong attacking unit along with an already evidentally strong defence, which again will only get stronger with a new LB.

 

A new striker, a new LB and players coming back to fitness, a good team spirit and tenacity about us.....things are looking good.

[TicTacWoe 0]

Looking decent so far, two more signings and I'd say we'll definitely finish top ten.

[Guest alex]

I tell you what it is though, I think the mackems are in desperate need of a top striker as much as what we are.

 

Would you rather have Gyan or Ba?

 

Bent

It's funny because a lad I know who supports them (canny sensible as well to be fair) was saying 'good riddance' regarding Bent when he went as he was going through the motions but, after Saturday, now admits that's the type of striker they need. So do we like.

[Guest Your Name Here]

Our performances haven’t warranted four points from two games - we’ve hardly made a chance from open play in 180 minutes. On the plus side two clean sheets isn’t to be sniffed at and it was vital we didn’t get off to a bad start under the current climate.

 

Still think a fit Ben Arfa will prove the difference between hovering around mid table and getting sucked into a relegation scrap.

[LFEE 0]

Our performances haven’t warranted four points from two games - we’ve hardly made a chance from open play in 180 minutes. On the plus side two clean sheets isn’t to be sniffed at and it was vital we didn’t get off to a bad start under the current climate.

 

Still think a fit Ben Arfa will prove the difference between hovering around mid table and getting sucked into a relegation scrap.

 

Spot on... Lack of creativity is worrying... Results have just papered over the cracks... Could come back down to earth with a bump against Fulham...

[Deano 0]

Our performances haven’t warranted four points from two games - we’ve hardly made a chance from open play in 180 minutes. On the plus side two clean sheets isn’t to be sniffed at and it was vital we didn’t get off to a bad start under the current climate.

 

Still think a fit Ben Arfa will prove the difference between hovering around mid table and getting sucked into a relegation scrap.

 

Spot on... Lack of creativity is worrying... Results have just papered over the cracks... Could come back down to earth with a bump against Fulham...

 

I agree and disagree.

 

We havnt created much and we all know we need a new striker, but we are also a new team finding our way together on the pitch. That will come. Marveaux, Jonas, Cabaye, Barton, Obertan and Ben Arfa are all offensive players, Marveaux, Cabaye, Barton and Ben Arfa are creative. Jonas and Obertan offer us pace and directness. Backed up defensively byt Tiote or Gosling, who can also offer goals and creativity. It will come good once settled. The fact we have kept two clean sheets is another positive.

 

We will fucking hammer Fulham at the weekend. They look wank and on the back off a 2-0 drubbing by Wolves.

 

We will be another week stronger. More understanding amongst the team and on the back of two VERY good results in the league, hopefully a confident run out and win at Scunny and then back infront of our own fans with probably a new LB.

 

4-0 S.Taylor, Cabaye, Barton and Ba

[DEADMAN 0]

i feel better now that we beat those scum bags down there

Edited August 22, 2011 by DEADMAN

[sniffer 0]

By and large you get what you deserve and we deserve 4 points. But that was the worst arsenal team I've seen for a lot of years and the mackems are the mackems. They looked a lot better against Liverpool than they did against us so perhaps a derby isn't a good yardstick to measure our performance.

 

I have no idea where the goals are going to come from up front. Even if Balsa Ben Arfa does come back and adds creativity, the donkies up front will need a hell of a lot of opportunities to even score a handful of goals. Obertan so far has shown he is fast enough but not with the ball at his feet, lightweight and lacks awareness. I'm not surprised SAF got rid of him. And yet, when we are screaming out for a forward who can make an impact in the last 20 minutes, Ba wasn't on longer than it takes for a quick fart. What does that say about a level of confidence in him? Same for Marveaux. If he's fit enough to be on the bench he should have been able to give us 20 minutes at least and get fresh legs in there.

 

Let's see what happens against Fulham who are usually well organized and can hit you on the break.

 

Still glad we've got 4 points in the bag though.

[DEADMAN 0]

i cant see arsenal doing well this season actually it would be pretty funny if they got relegated