Rice injured and will not take part today. Knee injury so expected to be out

[redgunamo]

Having Ben White back is big and might help us keep him and Timber fit.

I don't think we will necessarily lose but I don't really see us winning. And we absolutely need to.

Premier League defences have all had too much Christmas pudding

[7sisters]

Too late. MLS slipped as he was leaving the hotel. Unfortunately, he slid along the floor and took out Raya, Saliba, Gabriel, and Merino. Knee injuries all round.

Then Saka tripped getting on the coach and landed on Odegaard and Gyokeres. Impact injuries for all. Zubimendi saw the whole thing and fainted, banging his head.

Not clear how long all of those will be out for, but the hope is it will be days rather than years.

Read it and weep. 30 fkin games since 24/25.
Jesus wept

https://www.transfermarkt.co.uk/riccardo-calafiori/verletzungen/spieler/502821

[WES]

Read it and weep. 30 fkin games since 24/25.
Jesus wept
https://www.transfermarkt.co.uk/ricc...spieler/502821

He?s like Jesus, 7s. If he played every day we couldn?t have bought him. He?d be in Italy.

[Ganpati's Goonerz--AFC's Aboriginal Fertility Cult]

A few months ago I joked that when our SIX injured forwards came back we would probably start losing defenders.....

Yesterday I joked that midfield would.presumably be the next injury crisis.....

I should probably stop joking about it

It is probably all your fault, P.

We were out of wingers, then strikers, then LCHs then RCHs then RBs and now MFs. There's only Daveeed and Kepa left to get injured at the same point.

As an aside, Triphop was looking good before the injury and Hinchappy has been looking great at LCH. Really wins those aerial duels around the half-way line and starts attacks.

Oh, and Vik looked useful yesterday. Couple of headers that were decent attempts and his link up play around the box won the corner for the first goal. Would be great to see Kai come back at his very best and then have Vik as an option, with Kai coming on for Zubi and playing inside left with Dec at DM, or coming on for a FB and playing 3 at the back and 2 up top.

[Ganpati's Goonerz--AFC's Aboriginal Fertility Cult]

Having Ben White back is big and might help us keep him and Timber fit.

I don't think we will necessarily lose but I don't really see us winning. And we absolutely need to.

Top reverse jinxing, P. Keep it up.

[WES]

It is probably all your fault, P.

We were out of wingers, then strikers, then LCHs then RCHs then RBs and now MFs. There's only Daveeed and Kepa left to get injured at the same point.

As an aside, Triphop was looking good before the injury and Hinchappy has been looking great at LCH. Really wins those aerial duels around the half-way line and starts attacks.

Oh, and Vik looked useful yesterday. Couple of headers that were decent attempts and his link up play around the box won the corner for the first goal. Would be great to see Kai come back at his very best and then have Vik as an option, with Kai coming on for Zubi and playing inside left with Dec at DM, or coming on for a FB and playing 3 at the back and 2 up top.

I also thought Gyokeres looked better. I really don't get the hate directed towards him. He is a very different striker than we are used to, but that is precisely why we bought him. He needs to adjust to the PL and we need to adjust to him.

Not sure how anyone can write him off after 19 league games.

And we pasted a very good Villa team without Rice and effectively without Saka given how bad he was. Quite the performance.

[Ganpati's Goonerz--AFC's Aboriginal Fertility Cult]

I also thought Gyokeres looked better. I really don't get the hate directed towards him. He is a very different striker than we are used to, but that is precisely why we bought him. He needs to adjust to the PL and we need to adjust to him.

Not sure how anyone can write him off after 19 league games.

And we pasted a very good Villa team without Rice and effectively without Saka given how bad he was. Quite the performance.

Agreed. He gives us something different and the fact that Kai's been injured and the starting XI changing every week has thrown him in at the deep end. He'll never be that their levels but DB10 and Titi both took half a season to show what they can do.

His skill on the edge of the box won the corner for our first.

And then switching him for Jeez confused their defence.

Given we'd already arranged Zubi as the Wigwam replacement, buying a 9 was the only signing that wasn't squad depth. And given who the options were - him, Sesko, Isak or Etitike - we couldn't have done better.

[Peter]

Agreed. He gives us something different and the fact that Kai's been injured and the starting XI changing every week has thrown him in at the deep end. He'll never be that their levels but DB10 and Titi both took half a season to show what they can do.

His skill on the edge of the box won the corner for our first.

And then switching him for Jeez confused their defence.

Given we'd already arranged Zubi as the Wigwam replacement, buying a 9 was the only signing that wasn't squad depth. And given who the options were - him, Sesko, Isak or Etitike - we couldn't have done better.

So far, the lad at Liverpool looks comfortably the best out of those signings. Doesn't mean he would have been right for us.

Gyokeres isnt great, it has to be said. But I don't think there were options that would have given us someone better than Havertz. I never thought signing a striker was going to be some huge turning point for us.

The bigger question is what does Arteta do with Eze. He is looking like a luxury item at the moment.

[Rich]

So far, the lad at Liverpool looks comfortably the best out of those signings. Doesn't mean he would have been right for us.

Gyokeres isnt great, it has to be said. But I don't think there were options that would have given us someone better than Havertz. I never thought signing a striker was going to be some huge turning point for us.

The bigger question is what does Arteta do with Eze. He is looking like a luxury item at the moment.

We just need to get Alvarez out of Atheltico in the summer. Berta has signed him once and so presumably knows his people - he can do it again.

[Ganpati's Goonerz--AFC's Aboriginal Fertility Cult]

So far, the lad at Liverpool looks comfortably the best out of those signings. Doesn't mean he would have been right for us.

Gyokeres isnt great, it has to be said. But I don't think there were options that would have given us someone better than Havertz. I never thought signing a striker was going to be some huge turning point for us.

The bigger question is what does Arteta do with Eze. He is looking like a luxury item at the moment.

Pretty nice luxury to have. Hat-trick in the NLD. And can see us, when needing a winner, having Dec-Odin, Easy - B, Kai, Leo/Gabby.

We were playing in the CL knockouts with MnM up top and no forwards on the bench. Adding Easy, Vik and Noni with no-one leaving has been a touch. It's a bit like saying Noni's a luxury, but look at that goal in the CL.

This year it's been about squad depth.

[Peter]

Pretty nice luxury to have. Hat-trick in the NLD. And can see us, when needing a winner, having Dec-Odin, Easy - B, Kai, Leo/Gabby.

We were playing in the CL knockouts with MnM up top and no forwards on the bench. Adding Easy, Vik and Noni with no-one leaving has been a touch. It's a bit like saying Noni's a luxury, but look at that goal in the CL.

This year it's been about squad depth.

But we know what Madueke does and we have seen him do it. No real problem there.

Eze doesn't replicate Odegaard's role at all. Very different players. And it is a lot of money to spend on a guy who isn't going to play much.