Unai Emery

[Paul.S]

I cant see how any person will or ahould be happy with a 10th place finish tbh. We dont have to call for unais head but we can openly discuss our displeasure at finishing there.

I thought the plan was to not just be a one season wonder according to monchi and vidagamy but we have got worse. Facts

Lower league position
Less clean sheets
Lower points total

And to be honest we are playing worse than last season   the first half of last season was one of the best seasons of football ive seen since the o neill days

I remember last season we could change the team for the conference games due to the standard of opponent. This season, every game in Europe is tough against top class teams.
The disruption caused by the loss of Luiz and Diaby can’t be overlooked and neither can the injuries. As people have pointed out Newcastle suffered in the league and so would any club under our circumstances.
We cannot compete on 3 levels with the squad we have. It’s a miracle we are where we in the CL and there’s not a chance we can replicate last season league form while we are in it.
The only criticism of Emery I can make is the defensive side of the team. That is woeful and yet we’ve had about 13 different central defensive combinations this season with Kamara standing in for a few games.
We don’t have the depth to do what clubs like Liverpool do. It’s simply an impossibility.

[itbrvilla]

You may be right but that doesn't explain the slow on pace of play and general lack of urgency. Almost every team we've faced in the league can move the ball quicker than us. This 'control' is just as a bigger problem as the defence. We don't create anywhere near as much as a result and seems unwilling to adapt or mix it up.

[Paul.S]

I’d argue we’ve missed a stack of chances this season.
You have a point regarding the speed (or lack of it) that we play at but we do make chances. For me, it’s the defensive side of our game which is hurting us. Having to score at least 2 a game to win is a tough ask every game.
A fit Onana (I know) and a fit Kamara makes a huge difference to us and also having Barkley coming off the bench to relieve McGinn or Tielemans.
I’d also say the decline of Bailey has been another factor Emery couldn’t see coming and neither could I.

[andyh]

The best teams in the league now play more attack, pacey, incisive football and are not afraid to ‘go long’ or ‘chuck it in the box’
Liverpool being a prime example.

I’m not saying we need to go back to hoofing it, but we need to mix it up more.
Tippy, tappy, sideways, backwards is a bit outdated now.

[Brazilian Villain]

Tippy, tappy, sideways, backwards is a bit outdated now.

Unless you're a Northern Soul dancer.

[dutchvilla]

Our best goal this season isn't Duran Vs Everton but Duran Vs Man city - three passes on the ground from our keeper to their net. The problem isn't playing out from the back but the fact that becomes a centre back standing still with the ball while the other players, instead of finding space, are standing still themselves.

[Demitri_C]

I cant see how any person will or ahould be happy with a 10th place finish tbh. We dont have to call for unais head but we can openly discuss our displeasure at finishing there.

I thought the plan was to not just be a one season wonder according to monchi and vidagamy but we have got worse. Facts

Lower league position
Less clean sheets
Lower points total

And to be honest we are playing worse than last season   the first half of last season was one of the best seasons of football ive seen since the o neill days

I remember last season we could change the team for the conference games due to the standard of opponent. This season, every game in Europe is tough against top class teams.
The disruption caused by the loss of Luiz and Diaby can’t be overlooked and neither can the injuries. As people have pointed out Newcastle suffered in the league and so would any club under our circumstances.
We cannot compete on 3 levels with the squad we have. It’s a miracle we are where we in the CL and there’s not a chance we can replicate last season league form while we are in it.
The only criticism of Emery I can make is the defensive side of the team. That is woeful and yet we’ve had about 13 different central defensive combinations this season with Kamara standing in for a few games.
We don’t have the depth to do what clubs like Liverpool do. It’s simply an impossibility.

I would argue we have more options now compared to last season especially in attack. Its just unfortunate  most of our injuries have been in defence  and the middle of the park. But the away form is really poor  i think i looked at a stat and its 15th best in league. There lies the problem

[ez]

We are scoring in most games this season. If we had just an average amount of clean sheets I reckon we would be up there in the top five now. 

[Aldridge Villa]

We are scoring in most games this season. If we had just an average amount of clean sheets I reckon we would be up there in the top five now.

Yep and if my Auntie had you know what she’d be my Uncle.

[aj2k77]

We are scoring in most games this season. If we had just an average amount of clean sheets I reckon we would be up there in the top five now. 

Our goals scored is the 12th best. That's not good either. 12th best attack and 15th best defence means we've scraped through quite a few games and got blown away in others. We are nowhere near being the 5th best team in the league, many others have been way more consistent and either threatening or more solid. We've only scored 3 more than the Dogheads.

Average in attack and poor in defence. This season has been poor from Emery and the coaching staff.

[PaulWinch again]

It’s because the controlled style is clearly aimed at trying to stop us being exposed, which isn’t working, and at the same time it’s undermining our strength of incisive dynamic attacking.

[Sexual Ealing]

We are scoring in most games this season. If we had just an average amount of clean sheets I reckon we would be up there in the top five now. 

Our goals scored is the 12th best. That's not good either. 12th best attack and 15th best defence means we've scraped through quite a few games and got blown away in others. We are nowhere near being the 5th best team in the league, many others have been way more consistent and either threatening or more solid. We've only scored 3 more than the Dogheads.

Average in attack and poor in defence. This season has been poor from Emery and the coaching staff.

If this is your smalltalk I can't wait till you get dirty, juicy boy.

[Smithy]

Clearly we're not as good as last season.  Our well-drilled high-line worked wonders last year until it started getting found out towards the end of the season.  This year he's not found a structure for the defence that's as a strong as it needs to be.  But, I think he will.  Whether that means some personnel changes in the summer, or not, I have no concerns whatsoever that the trajectory is up, and that Unai will keep us up towards the top end of the table for the long-term.

[Ian.]

Tippy, tappy, sideways, backwards is a bit outdated now.

Unless you're a Northern Soul dancer.

Why has this suddenly appeared constantly in my Facebook feed? I don’t want to see it but it does make me stop and watch, like a car crash and for a few seconds I’m thinking’s it’s really bat shit crazy.

[Pat McMahon]

It’s because the controlled style is clearly aimed at trying to stop us being exposed, which isn’t working, and at the same time it’s undermining our strength of incisive dynamic attacking.

I think it is also a ploy to help players manage so many games, by giving them breathers - low intensity spells - during a game. I get the logic of this but Konsa as playmaker isn’t really working.

We also had the weird standoff last night where Martinez had the ball for what felt like 30 seconds because Mateta refused to fall into the trap of pressing him.  We didn’t seem to have an alternative, though in the 2nd half we did score from a long ball from Olsen.