2015-2016 Premier League Season

well it's good to be back.

ManUre and the Spuds look solid but unspectacular - please god we finish above Spuds

Not much else going on this early in the day/season except Sunderland are taking a hiding against Leicester - three down in less than half an hour

Everton are losing to new kids Watford

We got Leicester after arsenal. Gulp.

that's not a pleasant thought...

Norwich were robbed of a perfectly good goal that would have swung the game...

Swansea look good but can't quite get past a decent ten man Chelsea (only injury time left in this one)

Palace netted three times so look to be continuing their good form since Pards took over.

Bournemouth couldn't find the net - which will cost them but looked decent otherwise.

Watford didn't look bad and to be honest, Everton were a bit slimy to get anything out of the game


Sunday's game against the Arse will tell us a lot... we've not looked good so far in pre-season... I'm hoping for a big step up in effort and application come tomorrow morning.

Bloody Chelsea cost me a few bob

I note cabaye scored today.

westhamonkey wrote:

that's not a pleasant thought...

Norwich were robbed of a perfectly good goal that would have swung the game...

Swansea look good but can't quite get past a decent ten man Chelsea (only injury time left in this one)

Palace netted three times so look to be continuing their good form since Pards took over.

Bournemouth couldn't find the net - which will cost them but looked decent otherwise.

Watford didn't look bad and to be honest, Everton were a bit slimy to get anything out of the game


Sunday's game against the Arse will tell us a lot... we've not looked good so far in pre-season... I'm hoping for a big step up in effort and application come tomorrow morning.

I don't see it telling us much at all. We haven't beaten them since 2007. It will tell us a lot about our style of play; that's all

Should have played a strong team Thursday and a full strength team today, and put in one of those heroic park the bus displays and hope to frustrate le arse. Trying to match them at football could prove lethal

Tony P wrote:

westhamonkey wrote:

that's not a pleasant thought...

Sunday's game against the Arse will tell us a lot... we've not looked good so far in pre-season... I'm hoping for a big step up in effort and application come tomorrow morning.

I don't see it telling us much at all. We haven't beaten them since 2007. It will tell us a lot about our style of play; that's all

interesting... you try to counter my point by supporting my point...

there's a lot you can tell about a team other than looking at the result.

(note: while typing this, we just scored... but I'm gonna try and say what I was going to say before we took the lead with an excellent goal from Kayoute)

The game tells us a lot because Bilic put his stock in this game not the Euro game - so his team selection is very significant.

Nolan is a sub - so clearly not one of the players Bilic sees as his starting XI

Collins is a sub too - so his poorer performances in Europe and possibly last season seem to have hurt his chances of first team action.

He's playing a 4-4-2 formation - which is better to see than our perennially failed 'one up top' - and he seems to prefer Karate as support for Sakho (although he doesn't have much in the way of options)

He also picked Reece Oxford to face Arsenal - that shows he's not (perhaps) scared to give youth a chance if he feels it's needed.
He could easily have picked Nolan and Noble in midfield - experience against a top Premier league team... but he didn't.

3 Yellow Cards in the first thirty minutes - shows we're still the reckless/lazy/thoughtless team that picked up three reds in europe in the last month - that's worrying.

Only 5 shots in the first half - so we're still not making as much of a fist of attacking as we should.

Watching the game, I see the same thing that drives me crazy about us all the time. Take a butchers on TV and see if it's just me...
The oppo attacks from left to right...
Every... EVERY time... there's a player open on the side towards the bottom of the TV screen... so our left flank if you're looking out from Adrian's POV. Unmarked... acres of space to run into.

That's Cresswell's side... but I'm not blaming Cresswell... this is something I've been seeing in our play for YEARS... I don't get it... so many goals come from this... an uncontested cross or a player cutting inside from this unmarked position.

Maybe it's the angle of the TV screen... but this is a year on year situation that I'm always seeing... and I just don't get it...

So the game - even at half time is telling us a lot - a lot of the same frustrating things we've been seeing for a long old time.

But Kayoute looks solid, Payet is our best player... Sakho is good but needs service and support...

Now the 2nd half will show us whether we're still the same West Ham that can't hold onto a lead.