vs Spurs was fun - but now to serious business. No let up here. Same lineup here that started against Spurs. The Hammers ought to be feeling happy about securing their status for next season, so hopefully Andy and Kevin have led the boys on a weeklong bender.
I'm sure AC will be really up for this one. He's the kind of big forward that has on occasion caused problems for the defense. Will Buck bring Sahko in to play Carrol or trust Skrtel and Agger not to get bullied? Pretty sure big Sam will park the bus and make it hard to break them down.
Big Sam will as you say park the bus and try to wear down our attack. His old fashioned football can and will cause problems for more progressive teams. That's why struggling teams bring the likes of him and Bruce in as managers. Pick up a draw or the odd famous win over big clubs and stave off relegation. Got to get around, behind the bus, for an early goal and make them come out to play.
This will require breaking them down and starving AC of good crosses. It will be a lot less fun than Spurs, I fear.
I'm hoping for an early opener from a set piece to get them out of their shell a bit. They'll doubtless be fouling SAS and co quite a bit.
chel$ki cut them to shreds but were let down by their finishing. We shouldn't have any such problems with our finishing. 5-1 is my prediction. Danny, Danny, Luis, SG (pen), Carroll, Luis.
Hope we get a ref with courage to call the fouls that will surely be leveled on our front three...Hope those front three play hard and take the fouls like men and not "look for the call" as they are so accused of doing...Hope we get an early goal and don't look back... In for the win!!
Just a thought of bringing back the 3 at the back? I know with the way every ones playing don't mess with success but on paper a 3-5-2 could make sense Skrtel, Agger, Sakho, Sterling, Johnson as wingbacks (Sterling R, Johnson L) Gerrard, Hendo, Coutinho Suarez, Sturridge Just an idea against a team that will sit back and try and play crosses in the box. Also maybe Lucas for Gerrard. My understanding is Gerrard has to make it to April 10th without another yellow. So with that in mind start him on the bench to guarantee he plays against City. And if things aren't going well we can risk it and put him in.
We were actually playing 3 at the back parts of the Spurs game. Gerrard was in-between the 2 CB's and often covered when one or the other drove forward.
yeh I saw that we have been doing that a bunch, Gerrard almost like a ball playing sweeper. Not sure I like it against Carroll though, but you are right with the way our backs play we are essentially playing with wing backs already.
That has never stopped us from conceding goals against such teams-- Hull, Stoke, Fulham, West Brom, Cardiff etc. I simply think some our players simply get complacent and not paying these scrapping teams the respect they deserve. I mean, we have conceded an average of about 3 goals against the above while limiting the top teams to pot shots and beggarly returns.
This is the kind of game that often troubles us. I'm gonna say we win uncomfortably, 2-1 with them all over us at the end.
We've come a long way just in the last 3 months, let alone the season. The speed and confidence up front and the back line getting to enjoy playing together. Normally I'd say that this is one of those games that give us trouble, like Sunderland. The first half with Sunderland we totally dominated. Then after the half it seemed the 'overconfident button' had been pushed and we took it out of overdrive and nearly paid for it. BR will have had a 'chat' about that I'm sure. We do need that early goal and continuous pressure though.
I know he is really big on video review so hoping he puts together a montage of the wasted shots against Sunderland, and then maybe show them one of the great team goals they have scored to remind them what they can do. Getting properly nervous. This one checks all the boxes for a classic banana skin.
SG is probably the best of the three in the air and the most likely to smack the sh*t out of Carroll.
Normally I'd be a wreck. But I'm actually quite confident - first time in a long while I've felt like this in the days before a match.
If I remember anything about Carrolls time at Liverpool, it's that no matter what the other player did to him in the air the free kick was always given against him.
I think we have discussed Carroll to death - but we made a huge mistake in signing him. It's not that he didn't want to do better here - he just isn't that kind of player that will give it his all the maximum amount of time possible. He will have flashes here and there and remind people he can be a beast - but he's a modern day footballer who makes a ton of money. He and so many others simply don't get motivated the way a Suarez or Gerrard does. He did score some good goals for us - and knocking Everton out of the FA cup semi will always be special. But in the end - and we can all agree - BR flat out knew what he was doing when he decided that Carroll wouldn't fit his style or what he was trying to build here.