Southend United v Leeds United Official Matchday Whinge

[The Subhuman]

You can always tell the state of a teams finances by the quality of the pre-season opposition ...this year feels like back to the bad old days of Ken Bates' pre seasons and early Cellino. We should be playing in a 4 team comp somewhere.

[Cjay]

I'm shouting NO at the screen before he plays that ball

It infuriates me.

1 in 5 a game doesnt mean you should keep doing it.

[Cjay]

and yet it found his man, Roberts touch took it out....and 20 times more accurate than the backwards Alioski hack. What did you make of Ayling's lovely 5 yard pass to their player deep in our own half ?

The one after did, just about.

I counted 2 that went straight to a Southend player with no Leeds player within 20 yards and 1 that went straight out

[The Subhuman]

Not sure where he came on but Tyler Roberts looked more attacking mid than forward today ....

[1964white]

It infuriates me.

1 in 5 a game doesnt mean you should keep doing it.

Get use to Cjay it's seriously looking like Captain Chaos will partner Pontus this season

I truly despair !

[The Subhuman]

Would have scored had Phillips not gotten in his way...

[Cjay]

Both of them should be keeping each other company on the bench .. .

[1964white]

Would have scored had Phillips not gotten in his way...

I thought KP & Forshaw were very good in our midfield

Ayling is a wing-back & was our most attacking threat, could have had a hattrick, without Luke our attack would have been thoroughly poor. I thought he defended well considering all the miles he runs up & down that right flank, so much energy in that heat. Unfair criticism for Ayling I think

Saiz & Alioski were awful when you consider the opposition we were up against

Best players

Ayling
Phillips
Berardi
Forshaw
Dallas

in that order

[Cjay]

Think there is a chronic lack of creativity in our team, someone able to make something happen, play the killer pass in the centre of the pitch.

Forshaw is tidy but doesnt really make those sort of things happen, Phillips is all guts and energy but lacks technically.

Saiz just looks shot, losing possession and rarely plays the right pass.

Pablo is able to but he is 33 and will need a rest.

Ronnie V isnt that sort of player.

Baker may be, Klich can but whether at this level i dont know.

Defence is really worrying but so is the other end, much work to be done.

For what its worth today did highlight how good a signing Leonardo Ulloa would be, physical and able to hold up the ball, challenge for crosses and win knockdowns.

[1964white]

and yet it found his man, Roberts touch took it out....and 20 times more accurate than the backwards Alioski hack. What did you make of Ayling's lovely 5 yard pass to their player deep in our own half ?

Yes he made a couple of errors but I can forgive him for those after a huge contribution & massive shift throughout the game. Without Ayling we'd have lost that game as we did many times without his services for half of the season

11 x Aylings & we'd win the championship

11 x Roofe's, Saiz's or Alioski's & we'd be bullied out of the majority of our games as was the case last season

[gessa]

Yes he made a couple of errors but I can forgive him for those after a huge contribution & massive shift throughout the game. Without Ayling we'd have lost that game as we did many times without his services for half of the season

11 x Aylings & we'd win the championship

11 x Roofe's, Saiz's or Alioski's & we'd be bullied out of the majority of our games as was the case last season

Yet, you ridiculed those of us that gave Ayling MotM, I think it was Cardiff last season, and completely lamblasted him most games before his injury.

[The Subhuman]

I thought KP & Forshaw were very good in our midfield

Ayling is a wing-back & was our most attacking threat, could have had a hattrick, without Luke our attack would have been thoroughly poor. I thought he defended well considering all the miles he runs up & down that right flank, so much energy in that heat. Unfair criticism for Ayling I think

Saiz & Alioski were awful when you consider the opposition we were up against

Best players

Ayling
Phillips
Berardi
Forshaw
Dallas

in that order

Ayling and Roofe
Beradi
Forshaw
Alioski through he has to cut out this diving in without any thought

[The Subhuman]

Think there is a chronic lack of creativity in our team, someone able to make something happen, play the killer pass in the centre of the pitch.

Forshaw is tidy but doesnt really make those sort of things happen, Phillips is all guts and energy but lacks technically.

Saiz just looks shot, losing possession and rarely plays the right pass.

Pablo is able to but he is 33 and will need a rest.

Ronnie V isnt that sort of player.

Baker may be, Klich can but whether at this level i dont know.

Defence is really worrying but so is the other end, much work to be done.

For what its worth today did highlight how good a signing Leonardo Ulloa would be, physical and able to hold up the ball, challenge for crosses and win knockdowns.

Only any good if you have a scoring mid or second striker getting on the end of it. We probably won't play a second striker and I'm not sure there's a good goal scoring mid in the squad. The Man city lad would give us that but makes Hernandez a back up and Saiz redundant

[The Subhuman]

I think Ayling will be key in MB's system this season but as a wing back and a 3 man defence. He's less important in a 4 man defence. If I were MB I'd convert him to an out and out winger if we go 451, he's most of the way there already.

[Cjay]

Yes he made a couple of errors but I can forgive him for those after a huge contribution & massive shift throughout the game. Without Ayling we'd have lost that game as we did many times without his services for half of the season

11 x Aylings & we'd win the championship

11 x Roofe's, Saiz's or Alioski's & we'd be bullied out of the majority of our games as was the case last season

can you win the Championship with a -142 goal difference when all the Aylings are caught out of position?

[Cjay]

Only any good if you have a scoring mid or second striker getting on the end of it. We probably won't play a second striker and I'm not sure there's a good goal scoring mid in the squad. The Man city lad would give us that but makes Hernandez a back up and Saiz redundant

Have a point, didnt think of that.

I'm alright with Saiz being redundant, sell for 7-10mil buy Vydra, job done.

[1964white]

Yet, you ridiculed those of us that gave Ayling MotM, I think it was Cardiff last season, and completely lamblasted him most games before his injury.

He had a poor run of games but he was just starting to find his form before his injury.
Since his return from injury Ayling's form v QPR & the two friendlies have been nothing short of magnificent after his horrific injury.

I raved about Saiz's early form last season but it soon degenerated after his spitting incident

Pontus was magnificent in his first season at Leeds, not so good in 2017/18 although there were reasons for his loss of form. His quality soon returned in Sweden's WC campaign

Opinions can change....I'm always prepared to give credit where it's due

Still waiting to change my views on Cooper, Alioski & Roofe....I could be waiting a long time

[The Subhuman]

Saiz' form never really changed. He got a free ride to start as teams had no clue, once worked out he became very quickly what he is now, poor end product in general with the odd moment of genius which unlocks any defence. Think I was saying that 6/7 games in last season. Still holds true. He's gotten to what 28? without really threatening top level football.

[The Subhuman]

He had a poor run of games but he was just starting to find his form before his injury.
Since his return from injury Ayling's form v QPR & the two friendlies have been nothing short of magnificent after his horrific injury.

I raved about Saiz's early form last season but it soon degenerated after his spitting incident

Pontus was magnificent in his first season at Leeds, not so good in 2017/18 although there were reasons for his loss of form. His quality soon returned in Sweden's WC campaign

Opinions can change....I'm always prepared to give credit where it's due

Still waiting to change my views on Cooper, Alioski & Roofe....I could be waiting a long time

You will if you don't understand what they bring the team, Roofe' movement opened up space for Ayling and Forshaw to equalise for us. Alioski scares the s**t out of the opposition so they scheme for him. Cooper is just a very solid CB who would walk into most championship teams and that's good enough for me ...Not a captain though, we still need a cap imo. And not Ayling before anyone says that, needs to be middle of the park for me and he was poor last time out as captain IIRC

[rab_rant]

I was not impressed with the game. I did not see anything upfront that would terrorise opponents
I did not see a creative midfield, and the defence was a shambles, with midgets huffing and puffing
God help us if we don't get reinforcements in. If somebody served me up a plate of blood crusted scabs
and told me to eat it because it was good, I would refuse. Yet we are served up a team that is the epitome
of mediocrity and asked to believe that Bielsabub can conjure a tasty team that can compete.
I have more faith in the nutritional value of a plate of scabs.