Newcastle (howay) 12.30 Saturday 30th March

buffybegood

To lose like that has completely ruined my day, quite possibly my whole weekend 😭😭😭.

steve

I just feel vey numb

thornburyiron

Attacking threat is a form off defence but we were really struggling by that point to contain them and it looked to all of us that they were going to get at least 1 goal hence the we need 4 or possibly 5 to win this. Leaving Antonio on or replacing him with another forward would not have helped.
Unfortunately bringing on an England international defensive midfielder had the opposite effect to what should have been expected.
We don’t win games without Alvarez and that’s because he doubly strengthens midfield on his own and we are without him again on Tuesday and then in Germany.

claretandbluesky

I agree about Alvarez being key to our defensive capabilities but I disagree about reducing attacking threat, it's been shown against Burnely, Freiburg, Villa and now Newcastle that we can score goals when we are set up to do so but when set up to defend we concede them. I just want us to not defend at 0-0 and not defend the moment we are 30 minutes away from a win as we have against Villa and Newcastle. it doesn't work too well for us.

thornburyiron

I can’t agree we set up to defend. We still had Kudus, Bowen and Paqueta on the pitch but we were hardly getting the ball up to them even when Antonio was still on. Having Philips on shouldn’t make us so much weaker in defence but it did.
Zouma is captain and it’s up to him to make sure we don’t go into a defensive mindset if it’s of our making but Newcastle were always on the offensive and had three times as many attempts than us.
We should be able to hold onto a two goal lead with only 15 minutes to go but just capitulated.
We’ve now conceded more goals than anyone outside the bottom 4 and we’re catching some of them up.

chicagohammer

Oh boy where to start, in total control with 20+ mins to go and whilst the penalties were a joke, especially the second one, we brought the pressure upon ourselves.

At 3-1 we were not in serious trouble and whilst I understand the theory of bringing on a defensive midfielder to “close” the game down, in practice, all it does is invite pressure upon you and even with a two goal cushion, they only need to get one back and the momentum is clearly with them.

That penalty was a joke but let’s be honest, shortly before, they created a couple of really credible chances so the writing was clearly on the wall.

IMO, This defeat was just as much on us as the dodgy decisions that went against us.

Simply put, imo, to try and close the game down with the best part of 30mins to play was a really poor decision and I hope that the management team recognize that and own it.

Up until then, it had been an entertaining game to watch and a really good overall team performance.

Ho hum

claretandbluesky

thornburyiron said:

I can’t agree we set up to defend. We still had Kudus, Bowen and Paqueta on the pitch but we were hardly getting the ball up to them even when Antonio was still on. Having Philips on shouldn’t make us so much weaker in defence but it did.
Zouma is captain and it’s up to him to make sure we don’t go into a defensive mindset if it’s of our making but Newcastle were always on the offensive and had three times as many attempts than us.
We should be able to hold onto a two goal lead with only 15 minutes to go but just capitulated.
We’ve now conceded more goals than anyone outside the bottom 4 and we’re catching some of them up.

Whoever is still on the pitch Antonio an Attacker for Phillips a DM is a deliberate defensive tactical decision, the same one that changed the game against Villa, and worked in reverse against Burnely in the second half. We are better when set up to attack a team. Newcastle are a quality side with quality players and they may have scored anyhow but I think we took away their need to consider our threat.

thornburyiron

The thing is though to my mind even with Antonio on our forwards we’re not getting the ball because the defence was under the cosh. It could easily have been 3-3 before the substitution was made.
Our defence is one of the weakest in the division and never looks like holding out and always looks like it needs shoring up. Philips should have been able to at least help the midfield quell some of the attacks but instead ends up in the area giving away a penalty. Had the penalty not been given and it never should have been then I think we’d probably have gone on to win the game The penalty changed everything.

Lukerz

The issue with the penalty is that Phillips dallies on the ball and then gives Gordon an opportunity to pinch it, which he doesn’t do because Phillips then kicks him.

It’s not hard; just clear it.

Slacker

I can’t imagine what that car journey back down south after that fiasco must be like.I’ve done it a couple of times and it’s a long,long way but at least it was on the back of a win once and a draw the other time.
It won’t make it any better for them when they watch MOD.

thornburyiron

Watching the goals again, penalties aside, Barnes was allowed to just wander through and we made pitiful attempts at a block or a tackle.
Apart from Alvarez we have nobody who’s prepared to put their body on the line to prevent a goal but they’re all quite adept at just dangling a leg out.

Brother_Sledge

The second penalty should never have been given (still fuming) and it changed the feeling of the game hugely. The defence was under the cosh because we couldn't keep possession in midfield /attack so even when the defenders did their jobs the ball just kept coming back. This was due to a fair degree by Antonio coming off and freeing up one or two defenders to add to their press. Also Harvey Barnes always seems to play well against us, I know he has had a bad run of injury since his transfer, but we should have been all over that.

Yeoldhammer

I thought being as bad as Roberto would never happen again but Philips is absolutely a width hairs close of doing it.

MunichHammer

True, Philips is on an awful streak but I am more annoyed with the ref here. Neither penalty should have been given and then there was this barge by Gordon (?) on Kudus who would have been clean through. It was last man and there was no attempt to play the ball. A clear red which would have also stopped him from planting his foot in frknt of Philips.
Up until the second goal we go no decision going our way.

MrsGrey

When's the next episode of Mic'd up?

claretandbluesky

Officials are so poor and now not being able to have the decision to make in a split second ( reasonable excuse ), just how poor they are is being highlighted. With all the time in the world and a TV screen to review it on they still get an obvious decision wrong.

If he got the ball and Phillips kicks his keg away then its a stonewall penalty, but he doesn't, he if anything trips Phillips. No excuse for the review to not show the referee that. VAR is a great addition to the game but in hands of incompetent or cowardly officials it's wasted.

buffybegood

I'm obviously in a minority, but I thought both penalties were pretty reasonable, nowhere near the worst decisions we've had this season. Sure, on another day they might not have been awarded, but the long and the short of it is that Phillips kicked Gordon before he kicked the ball, he was too slow to clear it.

chicagohammer

Kalvin had control of the ball and was engaged in a perfectly normal action of striking it, anywhere else on the field and Gordon’s action of interfering with the kicking legs motion without any attempt or possibility of getting the ball would probably be interpreted as a foul on Kalvin.

That is my take on it, imo the var showed that clearly and for once the ref should have decided that the on field decision not to award a penalty should have stood.

Humpth and double Humpth

Slacker

buffybegood said:

I'm obviously in a minority, but I thought both penalties were pretty reasonable, nowhere near the worst decisions we've had this season. Sure, on another day they might not have been awarded, but the long and the short of it is that Phillips kicked Gordon before he kicked the ball, he was too slow to clear it.

Nope, the first pen was a clear offside.
The second was Phillips attempting to clear the ball when Gordon’s foot appeared from behind him,there is no way on god’s green earth that was a penalty.
Long and the short? We were absolutely done over by bad officiating.

buffybegood

For the first one, I felt Gordon went for the ball from Mavropanos's touch, so couldn't be offside. For the second, Gordon got between Phillips and the ball, Phillips kicked him, so penalty.

As I said, on another day they might not be given, but they're not the worst decisions we've been on the wrong end of this season.

Slacker

Ok I think you’re wrong but what’s done is done.Still so annoyed though.

buffybegood

Slacker said:

Ok I think you’re wrong but what’s done is done.Still so annoyed though.

That's one thing we can both agree on 😂🤣😂

buffybegood

Could anyone bear to watch MOTD? What was their take on the penalty decisions?

thornburyiron

Don’t think they really discussed them.

Kuchinghammer

Am I right in thinking clubs can ask NOT to have a referee officiate their matches? If so, the same should apply to VAR officials. They're on my list...

Lukerz

The penalty is crucial. But the reality is if Phillips just cleared the ball after that scramble that had already taken place, we win the game. Why he takes a touch - after already witnessing the chaos in the box before - I don’t know. If that first touch is a clearance, we are sorted. To start with I just thought he wasn’t at the races but now I just don’t think he’s any good.

In any case, even after 2-3, that was a flimsy effort from the side for the final 10 minutes.

thornburyiron

Just watched the game the whole way through and Newcastle could and should have easily been at least 4-3 up before Philips came on. They were carving through our middle like a hot knife through butter. Fab had saved a point blank effort, Gordon missed a simple header and how Longstaff managed to miss beggars belief. We weren’t in it at this stage.
Trying to shore up the middle was the obvious thing to do but unfortunately Philips is currently playing like some kind of AI produced dummy.

PrestonHammer

Having looked at the second penalty again, I feel Big Nose kicked Phillips rather than the other way round. I feel robbed and at the moment totally disillusioned with football and don't want to watch anymore.

EXETERHAMMER

It was a foul on Phillips. Gordon did not attempt to get the ball.
I am fuming.
VAR is killing us this season.

Barney

Moyes to blame for that. Why go defensive with 30 mins to go when we were holding our own? Ref / VAR also poor. I think the team gave up when Moyes took Antonio off. He may have been tired but I dont think he was injured. We nneded to keep the ball in their half and taking Antonio of did not help. Also disappointing they way they walked through our midfield.