Can’t help but feel this weekend has been for the fans, yesterday with Palace and their fans and seeing how emotional they all were was actually quite moving and hard not to like even for a losing fan. Today it’s the turn Everton and saying goodbye to an old iconic stadium will no doubt have a tear in many eyes who I’m sure have real bond with the Club and no doubt many first went to Goodison with their parents, grandparents etc so holds a real emotional connection.
Btw its a good sign about the new owners having the womens team play at Goodison instead of knocking it down.
Not just the women's team. They're also going to be basing their charitable functions there, and looking to make it a football community hub.
Consider the 2021 Europa League final penalty shootout when two keepers dreadful at penalties let in 21 between them. Henderson watched on from the bench. It was clear even then that Henderson was really good on penalties and De Gea dreadful, he’d let in something 30 in a row at that point!. Ole dropped a major bollock there!
Are Ally Mccoist and Alan Shearer having a battle to see who can get the most Co-com jobs of the season?
De Gea's career record isn't actually that bad, but he was going through a horrendous run at that time. Overall he's saved 17.7% of penalties faced. Average of all penalties saved by all keepers in 18.7%., so he's marginally below average. Alphonse Areola has never saved a penalty (or hadn't from the stats I saw up to the end of 2024) out of 25 faced. Dino Zoff had a surprisingly low save percentage - around 8%. Paul Cooper was the king though. He saved 59 penalties over his career, including 8 out of 10 in the 79/80 season, and this was when keepers couldn't move along the line before the kick.
Hell of an end of the season for Eze, there's so much talent there but so much inconsistency. Still, given the player on the left is very much wide open I would think he's very much deserved a shot there for the June games, even if it's not his absolute best position. Even before his great run of form over the oast 6 weeks, Tuchel seemed to like him and he carried out his plan more effectively than the other wide options last time out.
Cresswell, Kilman, Ward-Prowse, (Wan-Bissaka) and Bowen start for West Ham. There are no English players on the bench. Anderson and Gibbs-White start for Nottigham Forest. Toffolo, Abbott, Yates and Hudson-Odoi are on the bench.
Exc: Crystal Palace captain Marc Guehi forced to miss FA Cup victory party after suffering complications with eye injury. Taken to hospital in an ambulance amid fears he suffered fractured eye socket. Current indications are he has severe bruising. (Sami Mokbel) https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/articles/c17rq452jr0o Will be fit for the matches in June. (Surely he won’t be left out) No ward on Wharton’s condition but he also needed to go to hospital.
Lewis-Potter starts for Brentford. Henry and Mee are on the bench. Smith Rowe starts for Fulham. King and Sessegnon are on the bench. Justin, Coady, Thomas and Vardy start for Leicester. Skipp, Monga and Evans are on the bench. Palmer, Davis, Greaves, Hutchinson and Clarke start for Ipswich. Walton, Woolfenden, Johnson, Godfrey, Chaplain and Delap are on the bench.
Wan-Bissaka has won West Ham player of the year. I thought it was going to be Bowen. Gibbs-White has scored for Forest.
White, Lewis-Skelly, Rice and Saka start for Arsenal. Nwaneri and Sterling are on the bench. Pope, Burn, Livramento, Murphy, Wilson, Gordon and Barnes start for Newcastle. Ruddy, Lascelles, Willock, Longstaff, Miley and Neave are on the bench. White has probably had enough playing time now that Tuchel can go through with his promise in March to recall him.
Squad coming Friday morning according to John Murray of the BBC. He said 11am but that might be the press conference so it could be posted at 9am like in March. He predicts Lewis-Skelly will keep his place and has wondered if White will return. He thinks it will be a strange list of players. He is thinking Murphy and/or Barnes will be recalled. And that Burn will keep his place. But he will be surprised if Wilson makes it back. He thinks Henderson is very much challenging Pickford for N.1 spot.
I don't really have a problem with Jacob Murphy making one squad on the basis of the season I guess, he has done remarkably well, but he seems a very clear hallmark of a one season wonder player. 30 year-old who's otherwise had a largely unremarkable career having a flyer. I would hope we don't really waste minutes on that kind of player, particularly given it would likely be at the expense of someone like Madueke who for as frustrating as he is is ultimately far more the kind of player you want to throw on going for a goal in the world cup than Murphy. I don't really think Pickford is under any real challenge either, certainly not from Henderson who's had a very good season but ultimately the weak areas for Pickford he's probably even worse at, and Pickford has once again enjoyed a good season after the rocky start. Really difficult to imagine Pickford not going to the world cup as a sure starter, injuries aside.