Unai Emery

[Rudy Can't Fail]

Also, on the Olsen caveat thing, he'd kept a clean sheet at Spurs in his previous game.

I randomly watched a load of footage of the 76-77 season yesterday, my God Mervyn Day was in a 'difficult moment' using the modern football parlance

Mervyn Day was at West Ham at that time. I don't think he joined us until the dark 1980s days between winning the European Cup and relegation.

I think Lee is referring to the home game in August 76 where we beat West Ham 4-0. Mervyn was in goal for the Spammers. Two each from Graydon and Gray. What a season!

[Somniloquism]

With all due respect, what hyperbolic nonsense

If there is “no such thing as inferior opposition” (that’s the nonsense bit) what difference would sending our strongest team out have made?

We were playing a league two side, there should have been no need to play our strongest side whatsoever - he did what absolutely every single other premier league manager does in circumstances like that.

The players let him down. Specifically whichever one it was that failed to even attempt to close down at the corner for their second goal.

Stevenage were never going to roll over and let us beat them, were they?  They knew beating us would be a big scalp, possibly the biggest day of their career ... look at Ronnie Radford, for example - everyone knows who he is, and it's off the back of a single goal in the FA Cup which happened a decade before I was born.  Those Stevenage players were 100% guaranteed to work harder, and play better than potentially at any other moment this season.  Upsets happen because one side is greatly underestimated by the other.

The players we put out should've been able to raise their game high enough that it wouldn't have mattered how well they played, though. You'd expect Premier League squad players at the very least to be well-above-average-Championship quality, like Hourihane or El Goalzi for example.  I think it's reasonable to think that Emery should've either done more to make them raise their game, or played different players.  However, it's not all on him.  Those players are responsible for their own performances, and they simply weren't anywhere near the required standard.

We seemed to play it so slow and didn't stretch them at all. Our goal was class with several one touch passing through the packed midfield but it was pretty much the only class play in the whole game from us. The rest was ball retention against a side that was probably too slow or not fit enough to actually be pulled out of position much so the players did not know what to do. I suspect playing wider and quicker might have been the better tactics on the day.

So I do think the players let us down, but the managers gameplan did as well.

[Dick Edwards]

Also, on the Olsen caveat thing, he'd kept a clean sheet at Spurs in his previous game.

I randomly watched a load of footage of the 76-77 season yesterday, my God Mervyn Day was in a 'difficult moment' using the modern football parlance

Mervyn Day was at West Ham at that time. I don't think he joined us until the dark 1980s days between winning the European Cup and relegation.

I think Lee is referring to the home game in August 76 where we beat West Ham 4-0. Mervyn was in goal for the Spammers. Two each from Graydon and Gray. What a season!

Aah, that makes sense. I remember Day was very highly rated at a very young age and his best years were in his teens, unusually for a goalkeeper.

Ray Graydon - what an underrated player. Scored a lot of goals for us from the right wing.

[KevinGage]

I’m with Aftab. He’d already used the “I need to see if Olsen is as shit as he looks card” in the League Cup defeat, so to pick him again was just stupid.

Aye, the Liverpool home game n'all.

The data was in.

I wouldn't have been against some of the regulars being rotated if there were any concerns about injury or burnout etc. But the manager makes himself look like a plum if he says he's taking the FA Cup seriously this year and then picks the side he did.

We weren't getting relegated, so it's not as if we could do without the distraction of a decent cup run.

[rob_bridge]

I’m with Aftab. He’d already used the “I need to see if Olsen is as shit as he looks card” in the League Cup defeat, so to pick him again was just stupid.

Aye, the Liverpool home game n'all.

The data was in.

I wouldn't have been against some of the regulars being rotated if there were any concerns about injury or burnout etc. But the manager makes himself look like a plum if he says he's taking the FA Cup seriously this year and then picks the side he did.

We weren't getting relegated, so it's not as if we could do without the distraction of a decent cup run.

Well let's hope it a lesson learnt. Forever.

[LeeB]

Also, on the Olsen caveat thing, he'd kept a clean sheet at Spurs in his previous game.

I randomly watched a load of footage of the 76-77 season yesterday, my God Mervyn Day was in a 'difficult moment' using the modern football parlance

Mervyn Day was at West Ham at that time. I don't think he joined us until the dark 1980s days between winning the European Cup and relegation.

I know mate, it was footage of all teams not just us

[LeeB]

Also, on the Olsen caveat thing, he'd kept a clean sheet at Spurs in his previous game.

I randomly watched a load of footage of the 76-77 season yesterday, my God Mervyn Day was in a 'difficult moment' using the modern football parlance

Mervyn Day was at West Ham at that time. I don't think he joined us until the dark 1980s days between winning the European Cup and relegation.

I think Lee is referring to the home game in August 76 where we beat West Ham 4-0. Mervyn was in goal for the Spammers. Two each from Graydon and Gray. What a season!

Aah, that makes sense. I remember Day was very highly rated at a very young age and his best years were in his teens, unusually for a goalkeeper.

Ray Graydon - what an underrated player. Scored a lot of goals for us from the right wing.

Yes, I was aware Day was a real prospect but had lost his way. I was watching that unfold over that season, though to be fair some of West Ham's defending in front of him was comical

[Ads]

I like that we have an identity and a clear way of attacking and defending.

[LeeB]

I like that we have an identity and a clear way of attacking and defending.

It's all I've wanted for so long that I'm almost like I'm not that bothered by the results, but then they look after themsleves when you do this properly

[Ads]

I like that we have an identity and a clear way of attacking and defending.

It's all I've wanted for so long that I'm almost like I'm not that bothered by the results, but then they look after themsleves when you do this properly

I know what you mean. I love winning mind, but its just enjoyable. The way the defence slow the tempo and look to wait for ill discipline in the press as they cycle with the midfield and then bang! 1, 2 touches and we've hit the space with a full back or Ollie or whatever carving through them.

I know we're a jam tomorrow club, but seeing what this manager has done with this squad so far, adding real high quality to it will make next season exciting.

[LeeB]

I like that we have an identity and a clear way of attacking and defending.

It's all I've wanted for so long that I'm almost like I'm not that bothered by the results, but then they look after themsleves when you do this properly

I know what you mean. I love winning mind, but its just enjoyable. The way the defence slow the tempo and look to wait for ill discipline in the press as they cycle with the midfield and then bang! 1, 2 touches and we've hit the space with a full back or Ollie or whatever carving through them.

I know we're a jam tomorrow club, but seeing what this manager has done with this squad so far, adding real high quality to it will make next season exciting.

It's the thought of an actual structure in place, something permanent that can be built upon. Something that improves the players that commit to it, so we're always more than the sum of our parts.

[pauliewalnuts]

I like that we have an identity and a clear way of attacking and defending.

It's all I've wanted for so long that I'm almost like I'm not that bothered by the results, but then they look after themsleves when you do this properly

The other day I heard Matty Cash talking about Emery, and as well as going on about how they analyse the match together the next day, he also talked about how Emery gets him to do different things match to match - go forward under different circumstances etc etc - he went on to say how they give them precise instructions on what they want each player to do for each match and it varies depending on the opponent.

Fuck me, how long have we wanted a manager who understands that, rather than same thing, week in, week out (MON style)?

[Bad English]

"Leon, I want you to run into your man, fall over, flail about, and knock a last-ditch pass to their keeper."

[Bully2345]

Oh good. Time for some more Bailey-bashing

[Drummond]

I like that we have an identity and a clear way of attacking and defending.

It's all I've wanted for so long that I'm almost like I'm not that bothered by the results, but then they look after themsleves when you do this properly

I know what you mean. I love winning mind, but its just enjoyable. The way the defence slow the tempo and look to wait for ill discipline in the press as they cycle with the midfield and then bang! 1, 2 touches and we've hit the space with a full back or Ollie or whatever carving through them.

I know we're a jam tomorrow club, but seeing what this manager has done with this squad so far, adding real high quality to it will make next season exciting.

It's the thought of an actual structure in place, something permanent that can be built upon. Something that improves the players that commit to it, so we're always more than the sum of our parts.

It feels like we know the future is bright this time, rather than just hoping. If things go wrong in the meantime, well that's what happens when you try and change it about. We're being brave, looking forwards, looking at the right end of the table now.