NUFC vs Sheffield Utd match thread

[toptoon]

Like I said earlier .. We have the knack/luck of teams putting in gash performances against us . The Spuds game was described as the worst performance under Poch. The Manure performance was hailed the worst ever Man U performance, Man city were awful , now Sheff Utd .
Packing 10 players in the box and not playing any kind of football is effective .. Until the luck runs out .. and it will.
Ncle v Arsenal 38% possession
Norwich Away 36%
Watford home 48%
Spuds 19%
Lipool 24%
Brighton 28%
Lster 31%
Manure 31%
Bmouth 33%
Chelsea 28%
Wolves 43%
Whu 30%
Villa 38%
Man city 23%
Sheffield Utd 27%

With stats like these when the luck runs out we are totally f<>ked.

To say that we got the rub of the green yesterday is true but also unfair on Dubravka who was outstanding. Luck does decide football results but a lucky ricochet in the box is far more lucky than poor finishing, brilliant goalkeeping or a poor performance from a linesman.

I agree that if we carry on with tactics like yesterday we will not get many wins and we will also bore the sh*te out of our supporters and neurtals alike. But, to say we have been lucky because the opposition have played poorly on many occasions against us this season is pushing it. Because of the number of times it´s happened, it´s more likely we are stopping them from playing and getting any rhythm going.

Personally, I'm not bothered about the tactics and possession stats above when playing away from home (counter attack) but it is completely unacceptable at home, especially against non top 6.

[ghostrider]

I don't like negative football either but when it's effective in a battle it out scenario then you have to hold your hands up and be thankful for the 3 points or the spoils.
Last night was terrible football from our side in terms of offensive quality but it's certainly not always like that and is easier to take when we play like that and gain the result.

Stats mean absolutely nothing. Nothing at all.

What counts is enjoyable football and putting the ball into the net more times than the opposition. We've managed to do that by hook or by crook, regardless of whether strikers and forwards should be doing it. It's a team effort and we are certainly a team.

We don't always pack 10 players in a box but when you see it a few times it becomes everytime to some.
If we simply packed 10 players into the box all the time we would be sitting bottom because it would mean we do not get up field and clearly we do.

In some games we've had any amount of chances and didn't take them.
In others we've had very few and took one or two which have gained us the spoils.

We're 11th by playing a mad mix of football. But do you know what I like?
I like the fact that when we do go behind we come out fighting. We don't play a damage limitation exercise like a certain manager used to do and that's what I hated.

My enjoyment this season has been in one out of 3 stages. Then the other stage was "hmmmmm, well, ok." Then there was the " what the effing hell are we doing" like last night.
I didn't enjoy that game apart from the goals and a few snippets of decent play.
I spent more time saying to my son, " I can just feel Sheff Utd are gonna take us to the cleaners if we continue to play like this. This was first half.

The second half was a bit better but at no time in that game did I ever feel we were comfortable and it was definitely a game where I felt very uncomfortable.

Now you mention the luck running out. Football isn't played on luck alone and all teams rely on luck at some stage in a game whether it's a 25 yard volley or a deflection off the aris cheek, down to a VAR mess up in their favour.

But sometimes you have to accept that the league table does not lie, as we've been told time and time again.
That has to apply when we're at or near the bottom as it does if we're nearer the top.