We were disastrous on Saturday.
The biggest worry for us this season is that the players aren't that bad. They can't really be accused of not trying, as we have done with players in the past, and it's a decent group on paper. Our issue is entirely the manager. We just find ways of conceding and the organisation/structure is not there. On Saturday the idiot in the dugout decided to tell us to play out from the back against one of the best pressing sides in the league. If we sack him and get a replacement in now, most would expect us to survive with relative ease. If he remains in charge, we will probably go down.
We somehow find a way of scoring a lot of goals, which are often down to individual quality, although we do sometimes put some good passages of play together to be fair to O'Neil. That's where the credit stops.
I'd go for our XI to be this.
Sa
Doherty, Bueno, Dawson, Toti, Ait-Nouri
J. Gomes, Lemina
Guedes, Larsen, Cunha
Can be a back three as above. Also, Ait-Nouri pushes up to left-midfield, Toti to left-back to make it a 4-4-1-1. Could be either setup and can switch mid-game.
Sa could be dropped, but he's already acknowledged that Sam Johnstone isn't as good from crosses, so would be surprised if he came in against you.
He decided to leave Dawson and Bueno out on Saturday and it was a massive mistake, even if Dawson was awful when he did come on. But he won't do that again.
Semedo picked up his fifth booking on Saturday so is suspended, which is a big blow, as Doherty is nowhere near his level now.
Anyway, we have the same confidence in our team as you appear to in yours. It's the same with the manager.
I expect you to win because we will find a way to concede, and it will probably be from a set-piece, but in truth any result is possible.
