[Albion] Premier League 1-3/4/25

[Lady Whistledown]

I’ve been saying this ALL season, they are pure anti-football, a bunch of yard dogs, basically Everton in red. Now others are starting to see it too. Nuno is the Portuguese Neil Warnock.

The difference between them and Everton is that they do have a few decent players, ie Gibbs-White and Elanga, plus the two centre halves. They are players other clubs would be interested in. Other than Branthwaite, nobody is interested in Everton's players because they're all horrible.

The rest of the Forest side are run of the mill players like Wood, Sels and, arguably Hudson-Odoi having the season of their lives, with a couple of sub-standard ones like Yates and Neco Williams disguising their own inadequacies by piggy-backing off the team's confidence.

It's going to be intriguing watching them in the Champions League next season, both in terms of how they play and the quality of their squad. There is plenty of dross in that competition so they certainly aren't going to crash & burn. And I'm sure Honest Mr Marinakis will see to it that they get reinforcements in. Atletico Madrid are proof you can play ugly football and achieve relative success at that level.

 

[Simster]

The difference between them and Everton is that they do have a few decent players, ie Gibbs-White and Elanga, plus the two centre halves. They are players other clubs would be interested in. Other than Branthwaite, nobody is interested in Everton's players because they're all horrible.

The rest of the Forest side are run of the mill players like Wood, Sels and, arguably Hudson-Odoi having the season of their lives, with a couple of sub-standard ones like Yates and Neco Williams disguising their own inadequacies by piggy-backing off the team's confidence.

It's going to be intriguing watching them in the Champions League next season, both in terms of how they play and the quality of their squad. There is plenty of dross in that competition so they certainly aren't going to crash & burn. And I'm sure Honest Mr Marinakis will see to it that they get reinforcements in. Atletico Madrid are proof you can play ugly football and achieve relative success at that level.

There are lots of differences between Everton and Forest. Forest are third, and that's for a reason - their manager has them organised and has recruited VERY well. There's so much bitterness on here towards Forest since they beat us, but how about the fact they were the most organised team most of us have ever seen? We have a wealth of attacking talent at our disposal yet couldn't score in 210 minutes against them in the past few weeks. It's not like they just defended either - they gave as good as they got and over 120 minutes were marginally the better side - although both sides were jaded after the internationals.

Everton on the other hand are just thuggish and shit and caught us on a bad day.

It's also no coincidence that no Wolves fan has got a bad word to say about Nuno either, and his success there with them was with a completely different type of team.

You're spot on about the Champions League. They'll make the last 8, maybe better.

 

[Lady Whistledown]

There are lots of differences between Everton and Forest. Forest are third, and that's for a reason - their manager has them organised and has recruited VERY well. There's so much bitterness on here towards Forest since they beat us, but how about the fact they were the most organised team most of us have ever seen? We have a wealth of attacking talent at our disposal yet couldn't score in 210 minutes against them in the past few weeks. It's not like they just defended either - they gave as good as they got and over 120 minutes were marginally the better side - although both sides were jaded after the internationals.

Everton on the other hand are just thuggish and shit and caught us on a bad day.

It's also no coincidence that no Wolves fan has got a bad word to say about Nuno either, and his success there with them was with a completely different type of team.

You're spot on about the Champions League. They'll make the last 8, maybe better.

Ah, you see I couldn't make the Forest cup game, and my view from what I did manage to see of it on TV was that it was classic Forest (this season): absolutely brilliant in defence, with a definite threat on the break. I'm not being bitter about it at all: you get what you deserve and we didn't do enough to win. I was at the City Ground earlier in the season when they ran us ragged and yet still had less possession, so I'm well aware of what they're capable of when they are on it.

That was kind of my point really: they play Evertonish football but much, much better. Because they have several better players than anyone in Everton's entire squad. It was only my thought about the way they play. I was fairly sure earlier this season that they would drop off once teams figured it out, like they did with Nuno's Wolves side, but perhaps he's evolved too, so it shows what I know.

Either way, it's amusing to see them upsetting the big clubs and depriving one of them of a Champions League spot. I really hope it's Chelsea.

 

[Simster]

Ah, you see I couldn't make the Forest cup game, and my view from what I did manage to see of it on TV was that it was classic Forest (this season): absolutely brilliant in defence, with a definite threat on the break. I'm not being bitter about it at all: you get what you deserve and we didn't do enough to win. I was at the City Ground earlier in the season when they ran us ragged and yet still had less possession, so I'm well aware of what they're capable of when they are on it.

That was kind of my point really: they play Evertonish football but much, much better. Because they have several better players than anyone in Everton's entire squad. It was only my thought about the way they play. I was fairly sure earlier this season that they would drop off once teams figured it out, like they did with Nuno's Wolves side, but perhaps he's evolved too, so it shows what I know.

Either way, it's amusing to see them upsetting the big clubs and depriving one of them of a Champions League spot. I really hope it's Chelsea.

On the one hand you say they play Everton football but with several players much better than Everton's. Yet on the other, in your previous post, you listed two as utter crap (Yates and one other) and most of the rest as "run of the mill".

The fact is, they are a good side. They are third, and 9 points clear of Manchester City. I'm still struggling to see the similarity with Everton, frankly.

 

[Lady Whistledown]

On the one hand you say they play Everton football but with several players much better than Everton's. Yet on the other, in your previous post, you listed two as utter crap (Yates and one other) and most of the rest as "run of the mill".

The fact is, they are a good side. They are third, and 9 points clear of Manchester City. I'm still struggling to see the similarity with Everton, frankly.

But a lot of their squad is run of the mill. Some of those players have gone their entire careers without a season like this. Sels is 30 odd- where's he been all this time if he was so good? Wood has had peaks and troughs in his career but is still a good, solid journeyman who's landed in absolute dreamland this year. It's not a dig: nearly all clubs have players like that in their squads (I mean, in Everton's case literally all of them). Webster. March, Dunk. Players who are always there, pretty much always solid, but other clubs aren't sitting there thinking "Let's buy him" unless they're available really cheaply. Guys like Will Hughes, Harrison Reed. Dwight McNeil. Lukas Fabianski.

They're obviously doing superbly this season but that doesn't suddenly make Matz Sels the best keeper in the world. He's batting some way above his average right now, and logic dictates a return to the statistical mean at some stage. Either that or the Champions League money rolls in and Marinakis goes banzai trying to replace them all. Either way, Nuno has achieved the feat of making a winning team that is greater than the sum of its parts.

Maybe Brentford would have been a better analogy in terms of style than Everton. I can see how comparing anyone to Everton could never be anything less than an insult, but I do completely understand why the original poster said it.

 

[Guinness Boy]

I'm not sure we can really judge Potter until he's had a season to recruit.

We know that his MO is lots of sideways passing and possession, but if he can recruit a team that fits that philosophy and continues to improve then he's doing his job. Meanwhile, I am amused at how dull his current team are while playing this way.

Which rather suggests he has no plan B, something RDZ was regularly accused of.

Surely the plan here should have been more pragmatic football and grinding out some results to get in with the fans until they could recruit more cultured or creative players. Instead it's like trying to get Millwall to play like Brazil.

 

[Simster]

Which rather suggests he has no plan B, something RDZ was regularly accused of.

Surely the plan here should have been more pragmatic football and grinding out some results to get in with the fans until they could recruit more cultured or creative players. Instead it's like trying to get Millwall to play like Brazil.

Firstly, I agree with you - my suspicion is that Potter only has one way of playing (just as RDZ had only one way of playing).

But given that Potter has come into that club with no threat of relegation whatsoever, he can afford to spend this third of a season finding out who will fit in with his style next season. If it's more of the same by Christmas (boring, toothless etc) after he's had a clear out and recruited his own players, I'd expect most West Ham fans to be calling for his head. Until then, he's not being judged fairly.

 

[Simster]

But a lot of their squad is run of the mill. Some of those players have gone their entire careers without a season like this. Sels is 30 odd- where's he been all this time if he was so good? Wood has had peaks and troughs in his career but is still a good, solid journeyman who's landed in absolute dreamland this year. It's not a dig: nearly all clubs have players like that in their squads (I mean, in Everton's case literally all of them). Webster. March, Dunk. Players who are always there, pretty much always solid, but other clubs aren't sitting there thinking "Let's buy him" unless they're available really cheaply. Guys like Will Hughes, Harrison Reed. Dwight McNeil. Lukas Fabianski.

They're obviously doing superbly this season but that doesn't suddenly make Matz Sels the best keeper in the world. He's batting some way above his average right now, and logic dictates a return to the statistical mean at some stage. Either that or the Champions League money rolls in and Marinakis goes banzai trying to replace them all. Either way, Nuno has achieved the feat of making a winning team that is greater than the sum of its parts.

Maybe Brentford would have been a better analogy in terms of style than Everton. I can see how comparing anyone to Everton could never be anything less than an insult, but I do completely understand why the original poster said it.

Ah now I'm finding myself largely in agreement with you. We can't be disparaging of Forest given what they've done this season because it comes across as very bitter. And yes, I think your comparison with Brentford is much fairer because any comparison with Everton is going to be considered somewhat toxic. They have been dogshit for years and are the epitome of how crap clubs are run.

 

[Hiheidi]

Firstly, I agree with you - my suspicion is that Potter only has one way of playing (just as RDZ had only one way of playing).

But given that Potter has come into that club with no threat of relegation whatsoever, he can afford to spend this third of a season finding out who will fit in with his style next season. If it's more of the same by Christmas (boring, toothless etc) after he's had a clear out and recruited his own players, I'd expect most West Ham fans to be calling for his head. Until then, he's not being judged fairly.

With the oldest squad in the PL this season, I wonder how many of those that need clearing out they'd be able to sell for what they'd need, assuming a lot of them are on decent wages too? Kudos looks the most sellable, but surely he'd be one you'd want to keep. And they are still waiting the outcome of the Paqueta - which could result in a ban, so loss of an asset.

 

[Lady Whistledown]

Ah now I'm finding myself largely in agreement with you. We can't be disparaging of Forest given what they've done this season because it comes across as very bitter. And yes, I think your comparison with Brentford is much fairer because any comparison with Everton is going to be considered somewhat toxic. They have been dogshit for years and are the epitome of how crap clubs are run.

Yep. It's disappointing to imagine that having stunk the PL out for nearly 30 years now, they might begin to be less awful. They deserved their stint in the Championship like so many others, yet they've always dodged the trapdoor.

That said, it's hard to imagine world class players are suddenly going to rush to join the Everton revolution on the back of a shiny new stadium and, er, David Moyes. They'll still be picking up the Bobby Decordova-Reids of this world. Probably also Lesley Ugochukwu and whoever Man United are struggling to cast off this summer, just like they always do.

 

[Hovegull]

I see Leicester have already packed up for the season

Ensico starting for Ipswich
Buonanotte on the bench for Leicester - which says a lot

 

[Whoislloydy]

Southampton 1 - 0 Palace

 

[LamieRobertson]

AliMac poleaxed….surprised the Everton player wasn’t shown red

 

[wapuy]

The difference between them and Everton is that they do have a few decent players, ie Gibbs-White and Elanga, plus the two centre halves. They are players other clubs would be interested in. Other than Branthwaite, nobody is interested in Everton's players because they're all horrible.

The rest of the Forest side are run of the mill players like Wood, Sels and, arguably Hudson-Odoi having the season of their lives, with a couple of sub-standard ones like Yates and Neco Williams disguising their own inadequacies by piggy-backing off the team's confidence.

It's going to be intriguing watching them in the Champions League next season, both in terms of how they play and the quality of their squad. There is plenty of dross in that competition so they certainly aren't going to crash & burn. And I'm sure Honest Mr Marinakis will see to it that they get reinforcements in. Atletico Madrid are proof you can play ugly football and achieve relative success at that level.

To compete with top clubs, they need to improve not only their squad but also their strategy.

 

[LamieRobertson]

Bournemouth losing now

 

[Hovegull]

Everton playing better than Liverpool….

 

[HCxUK]

Palace still losing at 9 point Southampton.. they must have celebrated hard after winning the FA Cup on Saturday!

 

[pigmanovich]

Palace still losing at 9 point Southampton.. they must have celebrated hard after winning the FA Cup on Saturday!

It’s all those European games they have don’t you know

 

[Han Solo]

Looking forward to the game tonight. 99% chance of getting a good laugh of some sort.

 

[Hovegull]

I’ve come to look forward to the post match sum ups from Ange. I hope this one doesn’t disappoint