Players probably know they won’t actually receive any FA Cup related bonuses they’ve been ‘promised’ anyway.
Saturday is a given and fully expecting a loss and a meltdown. After that we have a run of games where I expect us to pick up some points. Getting Kayembe, Dennis and Sema fit and firing will make a big difference.
On the one hand, I hope players have professional pride and want to win every game. On the other hand, you know as a player (at Watford) Liverpool are going to tonk you next round. They got the balance wrong yesterday, and should have lost, but with a less convincingly thrown game scoreline. Players, can't even throw a game properly ATM.
There will be a meltdown for sure (and sorry in advance for that), but I don’t see there are grounds for too much optimism after the Leicester game. I know traditionally we do well at Norwich and have something of an Indian sign over them, but I think they’ll be too strong for us under lights. Same goes for Rotherham. They’ll be wanting to put that 5-0 defeat right. Fighting for their lives on their own patch. It will be a very difficult match. Could easily see us losing both of those. We’ll then play Huddersfield at home, which will become a bit of a 6-pointer if we’re on that much of a bad run……..so even though I’m hoping Dennis and Kayembe play and reach the form they can get to, I think it’s going to be a very fine line between success and failure for the rest of this season.
Given your usual levels of optimism this view is a surprise... We are in a duff run of form. We have had good runs and bad runs all season. Last seasons squad screamed of mid table, this seasons squad is the same. We will finish mid table. Talk of relegation is as wide of the mark as talk of the play offs.
Last season mid-table was an underachievement. This season mid-table is an overachievement. Squads from the last two seasons were/are not mid-table, even if we finish 12th. This season’s squad is bottom 8 in quality. Last season’s squad was probably top 3 in quality. There is a massive gulf between the two teams in terms of technical ability.
But it isn't all about technical ability, that is just a part of it. That is why I felt last seasons squad would finish mid table - they lacked effort and application. They proved me right and finished mid table without giving a toss. This seasons squad will finish midtable as well but will have to work harder, and are working harder, to achieve that.
His flaws were pretty obvious to me fairly early on after he joined last season and I pointed them out, but exactly as what happened with Kamara the season before lots of people were taken in because he ran around a bit and threw himself in to tackles.
Exactly - a few worrying about the lack of heart and motivation based on this game, but there wasn't really anything for them to be motivated for. And Saints seemed very disinterested in the first leg as well until their subs. We weren't particularly bothered vs Chesterfield either. If we play with the same lack of attitude in the league as these cup games it'd be a worry, but we've not been quite that bad (yet).
Totally agree-the guy in front of us was slagging him off from the first minute and almost went into self combustion a few times until Raj went off
