Crikeym you're a hard bunch to please. Lots of work needs to be done to undo the damage of the latter Wenger years.  You hardly thought a top 4 spot and "St. Totteringham (sp.) Day" was guaranteed did you?

Mind you I remember some of your lads wanted Pochettino out during the summer

If he goes then it's not the end of the world.  It will cost them a massive amount to pry him away from Spurs though. I think he'll stay.

So sorry for the typo- not sad at all to pick someone up on that. Have a chat on ur fred with ur troll pal that hates ur managar - nock yaself out wiv the spelling hinestine.

'daft' the discription of ^^^^^ supporters on the radio today.....said because they never learn their numerous lessons.

Chelsea very much a one man team, and Tottenham will bottle it as usual when the pressure is on. HTH.

Our defending is awful. Can only envisage that Emery will have to revamp the whole defence next summer. Maybe Sokratis will be spared?
Ozil the ongoing problem. Not even on the bench one game, then captain the next. Wtf?

Def fearing the worst tomorrow. Our defending could be said to be worse now than under AW. I know we have injuries but there doesn't seem to be any system in place. We don't seem to mark opponents at all.

when did Spurs not bottle it (ie won something) would be a more appropriate question.

They bottled it last year against Juventus when Juve needed 2 goals with less than 30 mins left. They didn't bottle the league the year Leicester won it, they bottled second place that season, their chance to finish ahead of Arsenal for the first time in 2 decades or so when they were 3 ahead with 2 games left and 2 ahead with 1 game left but lost their last 2. Arsenal bottled the league that year but nobody on here is claiming they didn't.

why are you still talking about Niles at CM? He is not match fit and hasn't impressed after playing a handful of games after a broken leg in August and there are at least 2 or 3 midfielders more deserving of a CM start? Bellerin and Mustafi are both injured and not expected to feature and Ozil you'd have to expect will go missing and is the last player you'd start if you want to play defensively?

You have missed the point I made re Ozil. Niles is a better player than Xhaka but let me elaborate: he is a better tackler- passer- more athletic- more mobile- more pace. These are my opinions, nothing more.

because they are match fit and Niles hasn't played at CM in a big game for over a year. Play 2 up front AND Ozil and play the formation defensively? Please explain.

It is a game-plan that has worked for us, in the past against better teams than Liverpool.

Since 29th November Niles has played in 6 games completing 90 mins in 4 of them (3 of which came in the last 2 weeks.

Niles has zero PL minutes at CM and Emery has seen him for a weeks in training but not trusted him at CM in the PL despite starting him twice at CM in the EL. Do you think you know better than the manager having seen Niles this season a lot less than he has?

I wouldn't have thought I needed to post this to other than a 55pud22 troll but... this is a forum for opinions.

Barca and Bayern Munich.

Bring Liverpool onto us, at Anfield, with our defence and with Ozil in midfield and 2 strikers ahead of him.

I put forward my thought on a way to combat them. Have you a plan of your own ?


I am no xhaka fan but Ramsey and Guendouzi are streets ahead of Niles in the pecking order at CM. I'd also have Elneny ahead of him purely on match fitness and so would the manager.

By your own criteria Ramsey it seems is not for Emery. Guendouzi is a talent but in my 'plan' I want defensive qualities and Niles qualities would better suit that system (in my opinion).

Your logic on 'fitness' baffles me somewhat. A player that has had games is less fit than a player that hasn't seems counter intuitive.

I know it's a forum for opinions. Barca and Bayern Munich? What years are you talking about? We are missing a fully fit Bellerin, Mustafi, Monreal and Holding, Koscielny is miles off the pace from what i've seen also. You are ignoring that an already weak defence is decimated and talking about playing defensive, inviting them onto us with Ozil and 2 strikers?

You are deflecting asking me for a gameplan, i don't know if there is one that will work, I just think playing like that with a weakened defence is suicidal. We would be better off disrupting their play by pressing them high up the pitch and keeping them away from our defence as much as possible as it is the weakest area of our team but that is not something you can just do in the days before a game and I haven't seen Emery do it well in an organised way with us yet. There is no way I'd start Ozil in a game like this given his track record in games like this and his complete lack of defensive input. Ramsey's situation is to do more with his contract than anything else. He'd have started way more games at CM otherwise and he's still played there a lot more than Niles. Guendouzi is much better in midfield than Niles from what i've seen and that's ignoring match fitness, which is different than physical fitness. Niles is not match fit for a big game in midfield simply because he hasn't played a big game in midfield. He's played other games there but not impressed Emery obviously. That is totally different to being able to last 90 minutes at CM which I'm sure he can. Emery prefers Guendouzi. There is no basis for dropping Xhaka for Niles in any game other than resting. And you don't have to be a xhaka fan to think that. Niles needs to play better than xhaka for that and he hasn't done that.

What games are you talking about v barca and bayern? What years, naming teams is not giving examples. what years, home or away. you must be going back years as i suspected, cherry picking from twenty or thirty games where it didn't work.

I put forward an idea of my own, you said i didn't, then in the following sentence you said we'd be torn to shreds by what i suggested. Make your mind up. Pressing is a defensive strategy which is the opposite of sitting back and has nothing to do with how good the opposition are at pressing as both teams press when they don't have the ball. United were destroyed by Liverpool sitting back and that is a Mourinho team much better equipped and organised to do that than our decimated defence.

I didn't say Xhaka wouldn't play ahead of Niles, I just think your constant harping on about a player who broke his fúcking leg 5 months ago and played 1 good game in CM last season should be in ahead of him and 3 other players is getting a bit much at this stage & is a bit ridiculous and perhaps you should give it a rest until he actually a) plays a big game at CM under this manager and b) plays well there before you start calling for players to be dropped for him. He is months away from that and may never get there FFS.

We have never pressed high up the pitch under this manager or Wenger. I'm not saying it would work with this personnel or at all but how on earth you think a strategy we have never used in my lifetime is 'the same strategy that has exposed us time and time again' is the more laughable than your calling for a guy who broke his leg 5 months ago to start in CM out of nowhere. What next, Nketiah to start up front tomorrow?

Santi? He doesn't play for us any more. He also played deep against Bayern when we lost 5-1 against them.

You have repeatedly called for Xhaka to be dropped for Niles this season. There is no basis for this. the guy is being eased back into football after a broken leg. He may not get back to the level he was at, not that that was ever first choice CM for Arsenal. I am getting tetchy because you are being ridiculous calling for a player who broke his leg 4 months ago to start in the spine of our team when he is nowhere near that level.

As I said, call for Niles to start at CM when he has played well there and shown he deserves a place in the team at CM AFTER his broken leg.

'Calm down calm down' since you like catchphrases and it seems apt given who we play later !