2021/22 Rafael Benitez

[NilSatisOptimum]

West Ham are better than us, we also were technically playing with 9 men, so I can’t get too upset about yesterday.

It’s going to be a long, long dull season, get used to it.

Big lowering of expectation now, very close to getting into top 4 last season, pretty sure we would have done with Goodison full that and awful home record would have not materialised as it did.

 

[Mat70s]

Big lowering of expectation now, very close to getting into top 4 last season, pretty sure we would have done with Goodison full that and awful home record would have not materialised as it did.

Possibly true. However, every other club were subjected to the same conditions and home form was (I think) broadly poor for a lot of sides so there was a collective deflation of home results.

 

[little elfin]

He wasted 80 mins on Iwobi.
He wasted Gordon's development.
He wasted my time watching it.lol

 

[d34noj]

Slowly but surely we are turning into the Everton I knew we would be under Benitez.

Where's his fan club this morning? Still defending his selection of Rondon and Iwobi I'd imagine.

 

[RB4EV]

I don't have a problem with his plan A tactics on the whole. I think it suits our group of players. Mina plays yesterday I reckon we don't lose that game. DCL plays and we win it. But you're right there is no plan B.

Not so sure what could have been plan B when there is no one of note on the bench that can significant change the shape of the team and allow for better penetration.

Benitez is not the kind of coach who will take risk if he think the possibility of concede more goal is higher than scoring one if he make changes.

 

[LocalNative]

Richarlison
Gordon - Gray - Townsend

That would be a dynamic front line and should help see us through the next couple of games. Really need DCL back too, hope the rumours aren't true there. If we have to depend on Iwobi and Rondon much longer we're in deep trouble.

 

[LocalNative]

Slowly but surely we are turning into the Everton I knew we would be under Benitez.

Where's his fan club this morning? Still defending his selection of Rondon and Iwobi I'd imagine.

Not sure about this mate. We put in our best performance of the season against Utd before the break and probably should've won the game. Yesterday was a shocker, but at risk of sounding like a broken record these things happen. The squad is dreadful and not helped when you're missing 3 key players in Richy, DCL and Mina.

The bench he's working with would make any Prem manager sick. How have West Ham built a more competent squad than us ffs!?

 

[Bluerover]

Big lowering of expectation now, very close to getting into top 4 last season, pretty sure we would have done with Goodison full that and awful home record would have not materialised as it did.

Goodison was pretty well full yesterday and it might as well have been empty for all the atmosphere there was.

 

[Toffeelover]

Slowly but surely we are turning into the Everton I knew we would be under Benitez.

Where's his fan club this morning? Still defending his selection of Rondon and Iwobi I'd imagine.

That for me is indefensible.

 

[Toff33Blues99]

We are unlucky with injuries but we didnt deserve the win I've already said that.

Manager / players / DOF all take the blame but you only want to pick out the "FSW" not the GK who cant catch a ball or the wide player who missed a sitter or the DOF who has left us with a threadbare squad of rubbish.

The wide player who the manager brought into the team ? That's on the FSW, iwobi is dreadful. Also left out our best header of the ball against the team who are 1 of the best at set pieces.
Bad bad decisions, much like the midfield was in need of fresh legs and Rondon was pathetic again

 

[longers]

Big lowering of expectation now, very close to getting into top 4 last season, pretty sure we would have done with Goodison full that and awful home record would have not materialised as it did.

We wouldn’t have had anywhere near as good an away record if there were fans though.

 

[Thomasc]

Goodison was pretty well full yesterday and it might as well have been empty for all the atmosphere there was.

Tbf, who’s going to get even the slightest bit excited watching turd footballers like Iwobi and Rondon stumbling about everywhere?

 

[ToffeeTim]

Goodison was pretty well full yesterday and it might as well have been empty for all the atmosphere there was.

Is it any wonder when our gameplan was to sit off, park the bus and let West Ham dictate the game. The atmosphere is dependent on the gameplan from the manager and the application of the players. It wasn't good enough in a winnable home game. Where was the intensity from the team?

Can you blame supporters for not being enthused watching that passive rubbish

 

[Toffe3m4n]

Thought we were unlucky in some ways but at the same time I wasn't all that upset about the final result on the balance. West Ham have got a good side there and are, admittedly, ahead of us currently (which galls me to say and does upset me in the grand scheme of things, but here we are). The injurys also don't help, obviously.

I think (hope) Benitez takes days like this on board and will use them proactively through the season to improve.

 

[MACCA75]

Richarlison
Gordon - Gray - Townsend

That would be a dynamic front line and should help see us through the next couple of games. Really need DCL back too, hope the rumours aren't true there. If we have to depend on Iwobi and Rondon much longer we're in deep trouble.

I’m not sure we get the best of Gray in this role. He tends to move him out wide when this isn’t really working.
Strange that we once had lots of number 10’s but now don’t have any.