View attachment 179869
A game which I would have expected to have won and we did. I still feel we lack to nouse to take games by the scruff of there neck and control them. Although we kept a clean sheet and won by two the game was much more tighter and Aston Villa could have come away with something. I'll experiment with things next game against Everton.
View attachment 179864
I don't know what happened today, I feel embarrassed and there is nowhere to hide. We didn't actually play THAT bad. To concede 6 goals is such a harsh result but that's the industry we are working in. I don't believe every player put in 100% for the entire 90 minutes today which disappoints me and they will be dropped next game.
Put to the sword today by a inform Harry Kane - one striker who I wish will play for us one day. He oozed quality and took his two goals before half-time expertly and showed us why he's recently been labelled one of the best finishers in the world. When we wanted to try get something from the game we hunted for a goal but Spurs just picked us off on the counter to seal the game, we will move on and try progress to the next round in the Capital One Cup.
View attachment 179760
We could have been alot more effective today but we progress which was the main objective prior to the match. Joshua Onomah shined once again claiming Man Of The Match and showing his talent once more, Patrick Roberts got his first goal for the club and sealed the game for us to send us through to the quarter finals.
Capital One Cup Quarter Final draw
View attachment 179757
To win the best, you have to beat the best. We will face our toughest test in the competition yet but we will go into the fixture believing we can do it and thats all I ask of them.
View attachment 179755
A great point earned away from home today. Both strikers on the scoresheet after a slight tactical tweak in formation and it served us for the better. I still need to tighten up the defence as if we could tighten up as a team it would make us a much better unit as a team. A draw was probably a fair result in the end as both teams had their spells of dominance but neither really edged it.
Didn't expect to win against either Everton or Tottenham but I could have wished the team performances was only better as I felt we laid over and just accepted defeat; I will never accept that. The other three games in the month though I was delighted with, especially an away draw against Slaven Bilic's men at their own ground is a result to take into next month and build upon.
Four points clear of the drop but some teams have a game in hand, we need a strong November to stay clear of the drop. Our heads are still held high and we are still in contention in a cup and have a mammoth month ahead of us.
Player of the month
View attachment 179752
Josh has been putting pressure on both Steven Gerrard and Ross Barkley for a spot in the first team. I see him as Gerrard's long term replacement and he has been tutoring Joshua off the field taking him to one side, there has been a huge growth in the first few month's of him being here and I'm delighted with his progress.
I'm going for it next month and I want six points from nine. I just want a competitive performance at Chelsea but I feel we have a better team than Norwich and Watford and I want us to show that.
View attachment 179729
Thats one way to start a month! A great victory at home against the Canaries who we kept in their cage today. I thought we was very, very strong today and we are growing in strength. Both wingers in Redmond and Byram got on the scoresheet but the game belongs to Charlie Austin who took the headlines with a goal and an assist to secure the points for us today.
I got my first taste of **** refereeing today. Two injust penalties to Chelsea to basically give them a rearguard going into half-time. The referee managed to miss our claim of Gary Cahill being the last man bringing down Callum Wilson only to receive a yellow card. A true piece of ****, I don't know how he can go home and look his family in the eye, we played magnificent and didn't deserve to lose today.
View attachment 179721
After the Chelsea game this tipped me even further. We gained advantage over Watford after Behrami got sent off for a two-footed lunge and we never wanted to capitalize on this. We managed to create the chances but nobody was there to finish them. As the stats show below we havn't managed to score with 4 clear cut chances! I'll be keeping an eye out for a extra striker in January as we obviously need to keep the current two on their toes.
Wanted two wins but only got one, the lads let us down in the last game I feel and we are getting dragged back in to a relegation dogfight. We have undoubted quality in our team we just need to express it more and believe in ourselves. One thing I know for sure is we need a 3rd striker to take the weight off Charlie Austin and Callum Wilson. That's what I will be hunting for in the January window for us, we need to make way for some deadwood in the team also.
Currently in no-mans-land. A few wins could propel us up into mid-table as could a few losses sink us nearer to the bottom, I've reminded the changing room that December is a month we need to buckle up and work for one another as every point is important and will be crucial.
Charlie takes it as he's carried on leading the line well and has been our main threat infront of goal. It is key we can keep him fit all season as his goals are vital for us.
A hectic month and some tough games in there.. Double headers vs City and Liverpool are games which we will need to pick our opportunities to attack and try get something. I want atleast 2 wins from the other games. We need to start picking up points again otherwise we will be right down there with the rest of the relegation fighting teams.
We've achieved a mammoth upset here and should have won it in normal time until we was pegged back by Jesus Navas. From there City was the stronger team to end the game and looked more threatening in extra-time. But we kept our rearguard and when they was reduced to 10 men we went in search for a winner. It had to be decided by penalties and Callum Wilson was the player who secured a Semi-Final spot for us. I'm excited to see who we get.
Well if we want to progress to a final we are going to have to beat the best. We dispatched City but Chelsea will know they are a step away from a final aswell. In the other game Arsenal will have to be favorites but Middlesbrough wont lay down and let them have an easy path into the final. There are many more twists and turns!!
View attachment 179624
I'm tearing my hair out. We've had the better chances in the game and managed to lose it! It shows we are lacking real quality to what other clubs have, we need to make the most of this as it will define our season whether or not we will avoid the drop. I'm disappointed today and gave the lads a true grilling. We was **** to put it bluntly.
View attachment 179622
A smashing result! Infact excellent, this could be a crucial point come the end of the season. We defended with our lives today and didn't allow City to have it their way. They dominated possession and had more chances which was expected but the scoreline at the end was the main thing. A point in the right direction for us.
View attachment 179620
It's been a tough season so far. We had an electric start but we do need reinforcements it needs to be said, with our policy in the club we need to offload some at the same time. As a team we sometimes play excellently whilst others we can look a million miles apart. Like I said ending December strong will be a massive lift for us, I've already had re-assurances from the chairman that he knows with our limited budget and squad that I'm doing the best I can.
Suicidal. I need the transfer window immiediately. With only one shot on target; Sunderland score. We have been shameful at both ends this season and this 6-point relegation battle only made things harder for us, we go to Liverpool next in hope we can pick up anything.
View attachment 179610
To lose any game after being 2-0 up is criminal. But when you retake the lead and 10 minutes to go, it's horrific, we just froze under the pressure. I've gone home miserable as we've chucked away 3 points to a massive team. This makes the next game vs West Brom a must win or we WILL drop into the relegation zone.
View attachment 179606
There it is! The long overdue win for us comes in a dominating victory over West Brom. We put in such an unexpected performance it could have been more in terms of goals. Today our shape was exceptional and we worked as a team to ensure we could keep all three points today.. Onto our last game of December against Liverpool.
View attachment 179603
It's a cruel, cruel game. A week ago Liverpool snatched 3 points from us in the last 10 minutes and this week they've denied us 3 points with the last kick of the game. I am sympathetic for the lads today because they built on the previous result and worked their socks off and deserved the three points today.
View attachment 179602
Highs and lows of the month, highs being we progress to the Semi Finals and we ended the month strong, perhaps deserving to win our last three games and the negatives of losing to Sunderland and throwing away both leads against Liverpool.
View attachment 179601 Four points clear, but could have been six and we would have been two positions better off. It's football though and I believe when we enter January we have a easier set of fixtures than most and we should build up some ground.
Player of the Month
View attachment 179600
No questions about it, we had Sam down as a right-back when he came to us but his emergence on the right wing and impressive performances have merited him that spot. 3 goals this month and by far our most impressive player, we will be looking to get Sam tied down to a longer contract in the near future.
We could be out of all the cups at the end of the month or we might be looking forward to a Wembley final and a place in the FA Cup 4th round. In the league I want us to put in a good performance at Arsenal and look to get points from the Swansea and Leicester games.
View attachment 179596
Luck must never be on our side I swear! After magically taking the lead vs Arsenal, a minute later Nacho Monreal swung in a cross which the wind took and ended up in the top corner. It would have been a terrific 3 points for us but it wasn't to be. A point against Arsenal I would have taken pre-match so I'm happy.
