West Ham v Wolverhampton Wanderers, Sunday 27th February, 2pm. SKY

IronHerb

As we're so poor I'm expecting a good drubbing, but then I am a glass half full type. 😆

whupathman

loss

thornburyiron

Glass half full? Sounds like you’ve not bothered to put any drink in it.

IronHerb

Let's face it from what's been posted on here over the past few weeks I'm just astounded that we are currently sitting 5th in the Prem with this current squad.

Fab - too old
Coufal - rubbish
Diop - rubbish
Zouma - sell him
Dawson - rubbish
Cresswell - top full back
Rice - brilliant
Soucek - rubbish
Fornals - rubbish
Benrahma - not given a chance
Lanzini - good sub
Bowen - excellent
Antonio - tired
Johnson - limited
Masuaku - rubbish
Fredericks - rubbish
Kral - must be rubbish
Vlasic - rubbish.

Moyes - limited.

That's why I don't join in the general digging out of players from the team I support. ⚒

OldCastleSwift

Personally, I'd like to see

Areola
Johnson Dawson Zouma Cresswell
Rice Kral
Bowen Fornals Benrahma
Vlasic

Fabianksi, Diop, Coufal, Noble, Soucek, Lanzini, Chesters, Antonio, Perkins

But we all know it'll be

Fabianksi
Coufal Dawson Zouma Cresswell
Rice Soucek
Bowen Lanzini Fornals
Antonio

Either way, it's an away win. We've struggled against Watford, Leicester and Newcastle. A very good Wolves team in great form will turn us over all too comfortably I reckon.

I'm glass half empty, by the way...

MrsGrey

Half empty? Things are looking up 🤣

PrestonHammer

We are only 5th because the teams below have 3 or more games in hand over us. Personally I'll be happy with 8th, life at the top gives you hope and it's the hope that kills you when you end up not staying there.

WHU_Champo_league_in_7_years

Can only assume Moyes is just gonna hope the players can play themselves into form as it doesn't appear that he'll rotate or change the system

So here's hoping he's right as we are lucky to be as high as we are given our performances, something needs to change if we want to stay where we are

OldCastleSwift

WHU_Champo_league_in_7_years said:

Can only assume Moyes is just gonna hope the players can play themselves into form as it doesn't appear that he'll rotate or change the system

So here's hoping he's right as we are lucky to be as high as we are given our performances, something needs to change if we want to stay where we are

Part of me thinks maybe that's what he's doing; trusting to luck that at some point the team will suddenly click again.

But there's also a part of me that knows that he literally has no other option in most positions. One striker. One fit left back. Only two midfielders he trusts in the PL. Even if he wanted to make changes, his options are painfully limited.

We were 4th or 5th, I think, when Lingard signed and his 13 goal contributions got us to 6th. Without that type of fresh impetus this January I don't think we'll be close to hanging on to 5th.

8th place finish at best this season now.

Fortuneseeker

There’s a story that DM has a fix planned for this week and playing 3 games per week over the next three may help! 🤔

PrestonHammer

Does he think he's Bob the Builder? 🤔

ASLEFshrugged

On the plus side we get 8 days off while Wolves have to play Arsenal away on Thursday. (postponed from 28 December due to Covid), 14 days after they lost to Arsenal at home

Brother_Sledge

IMO Wolves didn't look that great yesterday and were lucky to beat a weakened Leicester.

OldCastleSwift

Fortuneseeker said:

There’s a story that DM has a fix planned for this week and playing 3 games per week over the next three may help! 🤔

Which probably lends some credence to Champo's point that Moyes hopes the team plays itself back into form.

Personally I think three games in a week will make the situation worse across the board. Those single points of failure are more likely to fail through fatigue/injury and covering them will only create issues elsewhere on the pitch.

Slacker

IronHerb said:

Let's face it from what's been posted on here over the past few weeks I'm just astounded that we are currently sitting 5th in the Prem with this current squad.

Fab - too old
Coufal - rubbish
Diop - rubbish
Zouma - sell him
Dawson - rubbish
Cresswell - top full back
Rice - brilliant
Soucek - rubbish
Fornals - rubbish
Benrahma - not given a chance
Lanzini - good sub
Bowen - excellent
Antonio - tired
Johnson - limited
Masuaku - rubbish
Fredericks - rubbish
Kral - must be rubbish
Vlasic - rubbish.

Moyes - limited.

That's why I don't join in the general digging out of players from the team I support. ⚒

Nail/ hammer/ contact.
👏👏👏👏👏

Yeoldhammer

Expecting Wolves to roll us comfortably.
One of the best defences in the league and have started to score at the other end in the second half of this season.

welovethehammers

Very controversial post but I think playing the same team and formation isn’t going to work. It hasn’t been working recently and I don’t see the logic in playing a way that hasn’t brought us success for a good period of time now. I also feel the monotony isn’t good for the players as they’re mentally and physically going through the motions now.

—————— Areola ——————
Johnson Zouma Dawson Cresswell
—————— Kral ——————-
———— Lanzini — Rice ———
Bowen —————-—— Vlasic
———-——- Soucek ———-——

If not working, bring on Antonio for the second half for Soucek (or move Soucek to midfield and take off Kral for Antonio).

Soucek’s form might have dipped but when he played in a more advanced role when Rice wasn’t playing a few weeks back, he played very well. He was also good last season when getting into more advanced positions.

Lukerz

Areola
Johnson - Dawson - Zouma - Cresswell
Kral - Rice
Vlasic - Soucek - Fornals
Bowen

I agree with mixing it up. This also gives us options on the bench to bring on.

OldCastleSwift

Lukerz said:

Areola
Johnson - Dawson - Zouma - Cresswell
Kral - Rice
Vlasic - Soucek - Fornals
Bowen

I agree with mixing it up. This also gives us options on the bench to bring on.

You seem determined to have Fornals on the wing. Genuine question, do you think he's good enough there? He's more of a No8 or No10, IMO.

Lukerz

I stick him there because I think some of our best football is when he has played there. When we played well earlier in the season Fornals played on the left & interchanged with Benrahma.

claretandbluesky

I didn't see the Wolves match yesterday but from those I have seen lately they have looked very good. I think as we were the surprise package last season they may well finish this season with a decent attempt at spots 4-6.

Tough match on Sunday.

IronHerb

It will be tough for sure yet Leicester should have won the game yesterday but squandered some good chances.

Fortuneseeker

IronHerb, Best hope all our chances fall to Jarrod Bowen then.

IronHerb

Absolutely.

Slacker

OldCastleSwift said:

Personally, I'd like to see

Areola
Johnson Dawson Zouma Cresswell
Rice Kral
Bowen Fornals Benrahma
Vlasic

Fabianksi, Diop, Coufal, Noble, Soucek, Lanzini, Chesters, Antonio, Perkins

But we all know it'll be

Fabianksi
Coufal Dawson Zouma Cresswell
Rice Soucek
Bowen Lanzini Fornals
Antonio

Either way, it's an away win. We've struggled against Watford, Leicester and Newcastle. A very good Wolves team in great form will turn us over all too comfortably I reckon.

I'm glass half empty, by the way...

Well, knock me down with a feather.😳

jay_in_cpt

You asked…. 🪶🪶🪶🪶🪶🪶

Kuchinghammer

I'm disappointed Moyes hasn't been able to bed in more young players so far. Several have ability and need big match experience. It's no use parking them on the bench and then selling them cheaply. Use their energy and enthusiasm. Perkins is the obvious one to use when Antonio is knackered, but midfield could benefit too.

Brother_Sledge

I think a 4-3-2-1 could work better than the 4-2-3-1 we have been playing recently.
Areola
Johnson , Dawson , Zouma , Cresswell
Soucek , Rice , Lanzini
Bowen , Benrahma
Antonio

ASLEFshrugged

Energy and enthusiasm are all very well but maybe Moyes doesn't think the current crop of U23s have developed a level of ability to play in the Premier League.

Perkins has only just stepped up from the U18s to the U23s, a bit early doors to stick him in the first team.

Kuchinghammer

"ASLEFshrugged">Energy and enthusiasm are all very well but maybe Moyes doesn't think the current crop of U23s have developed a level of ability to play in the Premier League.
Well obviously Moyes thinks that, but the only way to find out is to give them 20 minutes here and there. Rice wasn't great when he first played, he learned from experience. Besides, energy and enthusiasm is all we need at the end of a tough match. All IMO 😉

ASLEFshrugged

Kuchinghammer said:

Well obviously Moyes thinks that, but the only way to find out is to give them 20 minutes here and there. Rice wasn't great when he first played, he learned from experience. Besides, energy and enthusiasm is all we need at the end of a tough match. All IMO 😉

I disagree. There was lots of talk about Rice before his first team debut but unlike a lot of young players in the past like Reece Oxford Rice has lived up to the predictions.

And I disagree that all we need is " energy and enthusiasm" at the end of the match, what we might need is experience and thinking to save a point or keep all three.

Our season is at a very difficult point, we could end up anywhere from 4th to 10th, Moyes isn't going to risk it just to give kids 20 minutes playing time.