The Phoenix

4 hours ago, Cornish Steve said:

A wind-up if ever I read one.

You caught me . Sarcasm is my default setting in times of stress. I was considering suggesting a Duncan/Dyche double act but we’re all depressed enough worrying about todays possible cricket score that that suggestion would drive us all to drink

He needs to stay, we need him to try and keep some balance. If he was to go we’d have nobody keeping the dumb fuckers running things in check

23 minutes ago, Hafnia said:

I haven’t made you laugh be honest….  I read about this the other day.

when someone says it made me laugh you saying this, they didn’t really laugh, it’s a passive aggressive way of expressing irritation. Go one be honest - did you really laugh? 

does me having had the occasional chat with an ex Everton player annoy you?  I wasn’t even bringing him up and since the last time I even spoke to him you’ve mentioned his name a few times.  

Geez lads, we’re here to chat football. Want me to see if there’s space left on the Fury/Whyte undercard so you two can sort your beef out in the ring? 

On 21/04/2022 at 02:57, Cornish Steve said:

We'll be eager to steal a point in order to stop them winning the league, so I shall predict a draw. We stopped them winning the league a few years back, so let's do it again. They'll enter the game way over-confident, so let's take advantage of that.

I like your confidence dude but fuck me these shower of pricks ripped United a new one on Tuesday. I was unfortunate enough to be out with my red shite loving brother in law for the game (his 40th birthday) and they have every right to be confident, Thiago bossed that game and if he plays against us we’re royally fucked. Burnley winning means we need to keep the score down cause our goal difference is shite. 

Liverpool 4 Everton 0

Can we do a red card if we can’t choose a goal scorer? Keane red card

4 hours ago, Hafnia said:

Seriously?!

He literally died on the pitch…. Mentally that’s a huge thing to deal with.  In a game of footy there are moments where you will be blowing and out on your feet, to someone with a cardiac issue that’s gonna impact them massively. 
 

no one in the right minds would have predicted him to come back like this and it’s a great story. 
 

Dele Alli was the far more likelier to be able to get back to former levels. The fact that he hasn’t is why we got a deal that effectively makes it a loan deal.  

 

Brentford knew he was coming back, BRENTFORD. Their recruitment/scouting department knew so why didn’t ours!!! We’ve got to stop kidding ourselves that all of these missteps are just unfortunate, unforeseen incidents. If you fail to prepare you prepare to fail. If you’re happy to be in relegation battle year on year let the status quo continue but I for one am not happy. If it wasn’t for the fact that Norwich, Watford and Burnley are so awful we’d already be down, it’s time to break the cycle and spend some money developing our recruitment infrastructure not on paying substandard flops +£100k a week

6 hours ago, MikeO said:

As it stands we've not bought him at all, it was a free transfer with money kicking in after certain numbers of appearences, hence risk free punt.

It’s only a risk free punt if he never steps foot on the pitch. His attitude stinks and his inability to grab his “second chance” with both hands show he’s not a player we need, we’ve been enough of a rudderless ship this season without adding him to the mix. I hope you’re right that we can show him the door without cost. These types of “risk free” deals just show that the people making recruitment decisions are inept at best and total fuckwits at worst

5 minutes ago, Finn balor said:

Everton 2 - 0 dcl 

Every time I see DCL it makes me think the poor injury prone lad has done his cruciate 

2 hours ago, Palfy said:

I understand the sentiment behind what you said. I only wish we had someone in the club with the foresight to have made him an offer, but can’t complain we got Ali instead

We missed out on a world class talent and plumped for a lad with bags of potential and a terrible attitude. Why do we keep on getting the basics wrong!! There’s going to be loads of top talent around in the summer and instead of going for them well our transfer geniuses will probably put in a bid for Oxlade Chamberlain, ducking idiots

1 minute ago, Gwlad all over said:

Genuinely sad to say it  but I really get the feeling that DCL is not up to the fight for survival as he sees his future elsewhere.

There’s the door Dom don’t let it hit you in the arse on your way out  

6 hours ago, Shukes said:

He didn’t have a good game yesterday/ nothing went for him. 
I did see so many no clues in the ground though. People saying he is jumping to early, when he was yards away and was just jumping to get in front of defenders. (Basic’s, even if you can’t win it… jump)  and people screaming to close down when he was twenty yards away from the ball. …. Ye kill your energy for nothing. Manager will love that.

But his touch was clearly not there. His passing was awful, and he offered nothing attacking wise.  But look at him when he went off, he looked shattered. He didn’t look like a player who doesn’t care. He likes like a player that was trying but failing.

Did anyone notice where all their attacks came from first half? Down our right. Simple one, twos played around Gordon because he didn’t run with the player.
 

One gets criticised while another gets plaudits. This is football and the reason why goals are so important.

Not slating Gordon by the way. Love the lad and think he makes up for his failings by sheer guts and courage. Just pointing out the fine lines that football fans slip either side of.

The sooner we get rid of this show pony the better. Fit, returning from injury or out for 3 months I find him infuriating. His job is to score goals, lead from the front but he’s believing his own hype with photoshoots and the likes. Some team will either be stupid enough (United) or desperate enough for a striker (Arsenal) to pay top dollar. I say use that money for someone like Tammy Abrahams or that young kid Noni Madueke who is at PSV Eindhoven. They’re both hungry and would bring some energy to the front line. 

1 hour ago, Shukes said:

I am mate.

Rondon has offered absolutely nothing his whole time of being here.

DCL even when unfit is offering more. 
 

People who are more knowledgeable than us when it comes to football are making these decisions.

Lets back them and trust them, rather than let our emotions misguide us.

DCL is a disappointment whether he is fit, returning from injury or out. I’d rather have a player who is 100% focused on our team flourishing that a lad more arsed about photo shoots and dicking about. Get rid of him to any team stupid enough (United) or light on strikers (Arsenal) to pay a decent wedge and take a gamble on Tammy Abraham or Noni Madueke at PSV Eindhoven.

21 hours ago, Bailey said:

You asked for it!

I would’ve added more but apparently 1 is the limit for that post

Everton 2- 3 United

Maguire own goal and DCL

1 hour ago, Tonsta said:

I haven't said much at this very difficult time, but i hope the crowd chase the board out of town.

They should be treated like Hicks & Gillet across the park, they are sucking the life out the club.

The most amateurish running of a professional football club in Europe.

Carragher was certainly correct for once, in his assessment of us.

Albert Einstein: “The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results”.

The showers of wankers at the top have been doing the same thing since they took over, throw money at the problem and hope some shit sticks. But nothing has worked so far so maybe they need to get their heads out of their arses and quit with the insanity.
 

We need to recruit wisely, work on getting young, hungry players with bags of potential and a point to prove not the overhyped, overpriced shitbags we have wasted hundreds of millions on recently. We need a manager with a vision, someone who has a background in developing talent but also has the tactical flexibility to understand that dogged performances are for now and the more exciting stuff can happen over time. 
 

We need to use Arsenal as our baseline now, formulate a 5 year plan and stick with it. If it means short term pain for long term gain we suck it up, god only knows we’ve been through some bleak times since these pricks took over. Arteta is onto something which is just another sign that the board missed the boat yet again when they overlooked him a few years back. Onwards and upwards.

1 hour ago, Hafnia said:

I've made peace with it now to accept whatever happens.

Lets be clear - we deserve to go down, because the players deserve it.  Most of them do not deserve another professional contract.  Lampard should make them watch videos of kids who have been released at 16/18 and who end up in despair.... who would run through brick walls to make their dreams of being a pro.  They are so far removed from the normal person its untrue. 

I can handle the odd miskick, miscontrol - it happens.  I can't handle players not "being bothered" to do the basics, DCL staying goalside of Tarkowski, Doucoure not closing down the throw in, Kenny choosing to shoot from 30 yards as last man.....  so much laziness and unprofessionalsim.

Steven Naismith, Tim Cahill, Marcus Bent, Kevin Kilbane, Phil Neville, Lee Carsley...........  non of these players stand out as being technically talented vs the likes of Gomes etc but you could trust them to go out and manage a game of footy.... to look at other players and demand and get 100% because they did the same.

 

 

 

You make it sound so simple Hafnia, players are at fault but some of the blame must also lie with the entire managerial team. They have to have the players pumped up and primed to go all in for the shirt, for the club, for each and everyone of us who invest our time and effort backing THEM to the hilt. Frank has won it all in the domestic game, he should be able to inspire them to give every ounce of energy, every last drop of blood, sweat and tears for the cause, for our cause. 

11 hours ago, Cornish Steve said:

I'm sure the manager knows full well what his best starting XI and formation is, but the list of unavailable players changes by the day. It's not easy to work around that.

It’s his job to work round that, he should have a plan A-Z. He wasn’t given the job for his excuse making abilities, he was given it to achieve results. If the fundamentals aren’t in place we’re going to continue to struggle. Pass to a man in a blue shirt, stay focused, cut out the schoolboy errors. These are things that you learn well as a schoolboy.

19 minutes ago, StevO said:

Act how? Firing another manager? Not for me thanks. 

He needs some guidance, if not replace him maybe somebody in an advisory role, someone like Neil Warnock, a manager who has been there and knows the dark arts of relegation. Lampard was never in the trenches as a player let alone as a manager

10 hours ago, Romey 1878 said:

What an utter shit show our entire defence is though. There's not one of them you can rely on for a multitude of reasons but you can make an argument for each and every single one of them not to be picked. That's the situation we find ourselves in.

How depressing.

What’s the fucking option if we don’t pick any of the shower of useless shits? Should I clean my boots for the Mancs on Saturday

Respect

7 minutes ago, MikeO said:

Mixed bag works for me, that suggests the odd positive.

At the moment we're living on lint covered sherbet lemons that someone found in the pocket of a pair of jeans they'd not worn for a year.

He shouldn’t have left that job, Chelsea was way above his level of experience at the time. He got found out in the long run because of his lack of experience. We can’t afford to suffer because of his accelerated career path, we need to grind out results, does he have that in his locker!!

1 minute ago, StevO said:

If they got rid of Frank it would be a fucking shambles. So he’ll probably be gone tomorrow. 

We’re already a shambles, fucking Burnley showed that, we’re a laughing stock, WE NEED TO ACT ASAP

7 minutes ago, dunlopp9987 said:

Sounds to me like a call to action for Allardyce!

Football managers are like ex girlfriends, never go back. Always remember that there is a reason you broke up in the first place

20 minutes ago, Gwlad all over said:

Also Frank was in the Championship with Derby and got them to the play offs. We do need him to stay for stability and take the challenge of getting us where we want to be. I will totally lose it with the board if he were to be sacked.

Lampard had money to spend at Derby, they backed him to the hilt and look at them now. They’re the only club in the country more screwed than we are. This club doesn’t need someone learning his trade whilst we’re in the shit, staring into a pit of misery and despair. We need action, we need results, we need a fighter not a glory boy padding out his CV