Match Day Thread Saints v Burnley, Saturday 23rd October, 3pm

Yes definitely. They were a handful at MC at the weekend & we’re very unlucky not to score one or two goals. It’ll be a toughie for sure. Plenty of height & muscle which we’re not blessed with. Fingers crossed for 1-0 win.

 

We'll need another storming game from Salisu against whatever battering ram he is up against. Think Armstrong will be key in breaking them down so good that he got the chance to get a few minutes under his belt on Saturday.

 

If we defend like we have for most of this season then I really don't think that Burnley will score and it's all about us creating and taking our chances. The Redmond corner to Broja near post is great option and I hope that we take a leaf out of Chelsea's book and have someone awake at the far post if it happens again.
A few more aerial crosses for Broja in open play would be good to mix it up a bit as he is clearly very proficient in the air and we haven't tried that tactic yet.

 

Defensively we have improved greatly, but I still worry about our ability to defend corners and free kicks, which is something Burnley usually get a lot of joy from, given their liking to field big bastards.

 

Agree. We are, on occasion, apt at allowing other teams to bully us; l can see their front men mixing it up with our centre backs and central midfielders. Going to be tougher than the Leeds game, being much harder to break down. An early goal will make our day a lot easier, as they will have to come at us.

 

Not a chance unfortunately. Their strongest unit is their defence and Pope had a MOTM performance against Citeh at the weekend. It will be like the Wolves game with 11 men behind the ball and they can try and hit us on the break. We know it's coming and we still struggle to deal with it. But they can just as easily be hit on the break themselves and our confidence is on the up...

 

I think the problem is KWP is good defensively and can also offer something going forward. Tino is good defensively and covers the forward right hand role seamlessly and effectively. It's like having 2 players on the pitch, so why give that advantage away by fielding two players to cover the right hand side? Just a thought.

 

Agreed that it probably won't be this game, but I do think it's on the way.

 

My Mum is a Burnley fan, and usually has a message primed and ready to send me 1 second after the final whistle if we lose to them. I'm just hoping for a win to avoid that, as nobody does piss taking emoji thick messages like my 83 year old mum

She's descended from one of the infamous Pendle witches who all came from near Burnley in the 17 century, and that shows they knew a wrongun even then as they strung her up

 

So, Saints vs the Powers of Darkness. More of an apocalypse than a football match.

 

Might not be much football played, it is Burnley after all's said and done.

 

I don’t know how we do it really. There were about 2 positions on the pitch that absolutely didn’t need an upgrade and we managed to sell the occupant of one and replace the occupant of another

 

This isn’t a game where I want to see Kwp on the left as burnley will lob aerials in there all day and undoubtedly score. Pace on the counter and a bit of height from broja will make us harder to deal with, I’d prefer to see adarma and broja up front. Stu looked like he hadn’t played for months so for me he doesn’t start. Redmond and elyonoussi out wide and diallo Romeu in the central pivot.

 

Stu still showed his vision and constant desire to move towards the goal in his cameo
We need him back ASAP and I’m happy that Ralph can decide if he’s fit enough to start or needs another later intro for this game
Burnley do work hard so might be better to bring him on later
We don’t want him getting injured again, he is vital to our transitions to attack
(I was going to say he should start but I’ve talked myself out of it a bit)

 

It drives me crazy that we play so many corners and free kicks and dont have a man at the back to get onto anything that goes all the way through, which happens a lot

 

They looked competitive against Man City too (like us). Priority is to avoid defeat.

 

if we want to keep ahead of points gained from last season's comparative fixtures then we need to try and win this one, we managed to beat them away and at SMS but both were close scorelines. I get that a draw to consolidate the Leeds win would be acceptable but the extra 2 points especially from a home game could be invaluable by the end of the season and I would put home games against the other teams that are currently in the bottom 7 in the same bracket.

 

I don’t normally do predictions but I see this game as being last on MOTD.

 

Chris Kavanagh the ref for this one. Decent ref, I was fearing someone like Hooper.

 

Newcastle are away at Palace and Norwich are away at Chelsea

A win this weekend could take us 7 points clear of the relegation zone.

Early days I know but that would be such a far cry from before the international break with games vs Watford and Norwich to come