Bailey

There first 3 are unproven, proven not good enough and injured for most of the season. Siggy is the exception, Klaasen is likely to play in central midfield ano I've covered Rooney. Other two unproven but with potential. I'd argue that our attackers aren't as good as last season.

You all know we can just bring in an extra coach without sacking one of the current staff?

A day after they played Southampton and with a new manager at the helm.

He's better at right back

Howe is the English Martinez. Some of the football will be great but you will go through spells of shipping 4 or 5. Poch wouldn't go near us. It's definitely to early to talk about replacing Koeman but he still has a fair amount to prove. I hoping that in a months time we won't need that proof any longer.

Not really. We have a striker on thread decline, a high potential but unproven in the league striker playing wide and DCL. Sigurdsson will be solid but nothing more.

Just been doing some more background reading on Koeman to get a better idea of what he has tried to achieve at other clubs and then what changed at Southampton while he was there before considering how his Soton teams compare to where we are now. His main formation of choice was 4231 (same as we play), defensively solid (as we are) but in his 2 years there they went from not scoring a goal on the counter, tor scoring the most counters in the league the next season. I think we play more like his first season, possession and pressure, with movement and link up play creating chances rather than counter attacks and direct running. Thats why we seem to have a lot of central players as the wide men are meant to get close to the striker, but if the striker doesn't hold onto the ball we end up getting pinned back like we did today. His Soton side weren't bleseed with pace either. It was mainly one side, with Mane or Long and then creativity on the other ( Tadic/Elia and on occasions Davis). The midfield used to switch between a 1-2 and a 2-1. If we want 2 deep we have Gana and Schneiderlin with Klaasen, if we want 1 deep (which we saw today) we have Davies and Klaasen ahead of Schneiderlin. The defense more or less picks itself, with the question mark over the right back slot. Defensively both sides are almost identical. The difference in attack. As it stands we don't have a proven target man, we don't have a pacey wide man and given our pursuit for Siggy I can only expect that he will be the 'Tadic'. The 'Mane' was bound to be Bolasie and I guess Sandro was expected to be short term solution although I'm not convinced that's his game. Lookman could also be this player but he hasnt really been used recently.I don't know where this leaves Rooney (or Barkley). I don't know why you would buy two strikers and have a young lad coming through and then say that you want another? It just seems all a bit confused and I expect that keeping them all happy could lead to shoehorning most of them into the same side. Koeman hasn't exactly had a stellar management career, it's been very up and down. He has won some trophies, he has ruffled a few feathers (Niasse isn't the only one to be shut out), he likes to use the media to get what he wants (like today!) But the most positive thing for us is that the longer he is with a club, generally the better he does.

I think that if you listen to any managers press conference they all follow the same repetitive nonsense. Some are more honest at some points than others but then less so in other places and some like to talk more than others but it's the same rubbish. Not that I blame them, it's the same boring questions every week!

There first bit is agreed but the second isn't. Thats how we have played under Koeman since he came here. From his post match interview you could tell that he was expecting us to hold onto the ball more as he went up to DCL.

Is Gylfi going to add anything more than we have already? From the right surely he is in the same mould as Rooney, Klaasen, Barkley?

There is definitely still hope that our performances will pick up as they did in our first game against Spurs last year. Hopefully he will have them 100% fit this time!

After that game I'm not sure what's best. Don't forget this is 2 games in 2 days for Sevilla so we should have been stronger at the end. Maybe things will click as thr season progresses but at the moment the playersame we have brought in offensively are making no difference to the ones from last season. I think it's a tactical/philosophy thing more than a player thing.

Completely disagree. I'd have him startinh on the right ahead of everyone else at the moment.

Another boring and defensive half of football. It's a waste to play Rooney, DCL or Sandro wide so I think we need to play 442. Maybe put Klaassen wide and use Mirallas/Lookman left. We can't keep giving the ball back to them so cheaply and we need to start playing in their half not ours. Keane and Pickford both looking excellent buys.

Holgate very nearly got caught out.

No definitely, can't fault the player he is doing all he can. I know what you mean about Klaassen. Covering lots of ground without making an impact. I've never seen a keeper complete so many passes.

Sandro and Rooney wide doesn't work. They don't know where they should be.

What a surprise. DCL losing pobsession whenever the ball is played to him because he is isolated and always under pressure. Solid save from Pickford. An equaliser is coming.

Baines stops a certain goal. They are trying better team and starting to threaten now.

That looked a penalty to me and not a booking for Davies for diving!

Glimpses of ability!? Probably our best player over the last 4 years or so since he came into the side.

Service up to the striker is still inconsistent. DCL fighting for scraps.

I like our line up too depending on how those front 3 line up. DCL up top and the other 2 supporting from wide would be great. Looks a strong Sevilla lineup too but I think a fair few of them played yesterday. I expect a lot of changes from both sides at half time.

And depth... he is one of the few actual wingers we have.

I'm not a fan of Gibson either.