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Vinny's Portsmouth Report
Vinny - Wed Jan 27 2010
Portsmouth 1 West Ham United 1
Despite the air of optimism which has been installed into the club since David Gold and David Sullivan took over the club last week, West Ham fans were given a reality check as a disappointing performance and equally disappointing result against the Premierships bottom side once again highlighted how much trouble we are in.
There was debate before this game to whether we would be happy with a point. I had pointed out that getting a draw would just feel like a defeat at this stage and I can’t say I have changed this opinion because as I left a very cold Fratton Park I felt as though we had been beaten.
Portsmouth were there for the taking especially in the first twenty minutes of the second half when we seemed to be in control of the game but our frailties in the final third were apparent once again as we struggled to make that killer pass to open them up.
Maybe I am being to harsh on the team and maybe picking up a point away from home regardless of the opposition is a decent result? I just can’t seem to come around to that way of thinking at the moment as we are still in deep relegation trouble and are only being kept out of the bottom three on goal difference.
We are just about at the end of January and little has changed since September . We have remained in the same sort of position for quite sometime with the same criticisms labelled at the team and the manager.
It was a chilly night on the South Coast at Fratton Park, a ground which for away fans has got to be the worst in the Premiership and maybe even the Championship. If we do manage to stay up this could well be the last time we visit Pompey for quite some time.
Gianfranco Zola made just one change to the side who claimed a good point at Villa Park in our last game. The change came in midfield with Scott Parker missing and replaced by Alessandro Diamanti who went to the right wing with Collison on the left and a midfield centre three of Noble, Behrami and Kovac.
Up front on his own was youngster Frank Nouble. On the bench saw the return of top scorer Carlton Cole.
Lining up for Portsmouth was ex Hammer Hayden Mullins who made over 200 appearance for the club between 2003 and 2009.
It was a poor start to the game with both sides finding very little fluency to their game with the first fifteen minutes passing by without much incident.
The first great chance of the game fell our way and we should have taken it. Frank Nouble burst through on goal with just the keeper to beat but Begovic in the Portsmouth goal made a fine stop to deny the striker although for me any striker at any level would have been disappointed not to have buried that chance.
But that wasn’t to be the end of the action because from the rebound it came out to Alessandro Diamanti who took a touch and curled a left foot effort at goal only for Begovic to make another good save and tip it away for a corner.
The hosts looked to hit back quickly and midfielder Mokoena saw his low shot tipped wide by Green. As we were behind the goal we could see just how late Green saw this shot as he anticipated it’ direction to make a very smart stop.
The best move of the game was produced by ourselves midway through the first half when Jack Collison showed a turn of pace to beat his man and play a wonderful one-two with Nouble only to see his shot magnificently saved by Begovic who at this point was the reason we were not leading the game.
Unfortunately this was not the start of our dominance as the remainder of the half was a very stop start affair with both teams looking exactly as their league position suggests they should look.
When playing a team who is bottom of the league and as poor as Pompey are you live in hope that despite struggling ourselves we will just have that little bit more to undo the opposition. You hope that we will have that bit of class which can see us over the finish line.
At half time getting to the toilet was like crossing Mordor and it took the entire length of the half time break for me to get there and back to my seat. In fact we had kicked off by the time I had got back.
Some people may have even missed our goal which was scored on 52 minutes. A corner was taken short by
Diamanti to Mark Noble but his attempted cross into the area was charged down but fortunately came back out to Diamanti who looked to take on his many and played an excellent right foot cross to the back post which saw Upson and Kaboul challenge for the ball with the Pompey defender crashing his header into the chest of Upson and the ball somehow found it’s way over the line.
Pompey should have been back on level terms when from a corner Marc Wilson saw his free header go over the bar from only a few yards out.
We should have done better also when Noble played a wonderful through ball to Frank Nouble who took to long to get his shot away and the angle in the end was difficult and his shot was saved.
It seemed as though many of our players were tiring as a few of them were starting to go missing from the game with Diamanti and Collison being guilty of this.
A golden chance for Portsmouth to equalise Utaka cross for the unmarked Prince-Boatang but the former Spurs player scuffed his shot wide to the dismay of the Portsmouth fans.
At the other end Valon Behrami should have done a lot better with a chance which fell to him in the area but the midfielder saw his shot go way over the bar when I would have expected him to at least hit the target.
Gianfranco Zola made his first change of the evening with Frank Nouble coming off and Carlton Cole returning. Cole had been out since picking up a knee injury on 28th November against Burnley at Upton Park.
But any pleasure at seeing Carlton Cole return was wiped out only three minutes later as Portsmouth out of nothing equalised.
Although they had seen a few good chances spurned I really couldn’t see them getting back into the game and to have conceded such a soft goal makes things even more frustrating.
A long ball forward saw Boatang and Tomkins challenge for the ball with the former appearing to catch Tomkins with a stray arm. The referee waved play on and the ball went through to Danny Webber (who had just come on for Pompey) and he slotted the ball through the legs of Robert Green to make it one apiece.
Just under fifteen minutes remaining and surely this would see us throw everything at Portsmouth? Unfortunately it did not work like that as we offered, well to be honest, nothing.
If anyone was going to grab the winner it was certainly not us who seemed to have given up the ghost and settled for an away point.
Portsmouth although looking more likely failed to create too many clear cut chances with John Utaka having the best of them as his powerful drive was saved by Green.
As the final whistle went there were no cheers from the travelling West Ham support and very few applause for the players either as like me they had felt this was like a defeat.
A point at this stage in the season is fine if you are playing Chelsea or Manchester United but this was a game we had all identified as a ‘must win’ (although they all seem to be at the moment), and to be leading and throw it away against a poor side like Portsmouth can only be considered disappointing.
Player Reviews
Robert Green
Has this problem where he keepings coming out for the ball when he really is not needed. He needs to let his defenders deal with some of them. His decision making at times is a real concern. Made some good saves (as you would expect him to) but his kicking was abysmal.
Jonathan Spector
His lack of a left foot saw him struggle at times and his passing never seemed to make its intended target. He certainly puts in the effort and will not go into any tackle half heartedly but it is clear without Ilunga we are very weak at left back.
James Tomkins
Another fine performance from Tomkins who looks to be regaining is excellent form he produced last season. Playing alongside Upson definitely seems to have helped and credit to Tomkins for coming through a tough spell where his performances levels had clearly dipped. He was strong in the air and his anticipation was excellent.
Matthew Upson
Scored his third goal of the season although a little fortuitously I may add. He again put in a solid performance and like Tomkins was strong in the challenge given the size and strength of the Pompey forward line.
Julian Faubert
Like most of his performances there are there same positive and negatives. When he is in a confident mood he looks very handy bursting forward but some of his decision making is very questionable and there are times when he doesn’t really know where to play the ball. David Sullivan has pointed out that a right back is a must and I can’t recall truer words being said.
Jack Collison
Very unlucky not to score in the first half after a great move involving him and Nouble. Trouble with Collison is that he goes missing for large chunks of the game to the point where you wonder if he is still on the pitch. Having watched him play for most of the season I feel that over the 90 minutes he does not do enough. I don’t know if this is because he is struggling on the left hand side (as he is clearly not a winger) or that he is just a little burnt out.
Mark Noble
It has been a while since I have seen Noble get to grips with a game as well as he did last night. I thought he was terrific for most of the game and if we were going to attack he would be the one pulling the strings in midfield. With Scott Parker out, Noble needed to step up and I thought he played very well.
Radoslav Kovac
A very easy target for the frustration of the fans but without Scott Parker I am unaware of the other defensive midfielder we have at the club. Kovac worked hard as he always does, was poor in possession on a number of occasions but kept closing the opposition down and breaking up play as best he could.
Valon Behrami
I thought this was another poor performance from Berhami. He offered us little defensively or going forward. His passing was at times awful and his shooting wayward. Does not seem to have much of an impact playing as one of a midfield three.
Alessandro Diamanti
I was really hoping for a big performance from Diamanti as I am still living in the hope that he is going to be our ‘bit of class’ which can open teams up when we are struggling to do so. Diamanti of course did make our goal but is not a right winger and it is nonsense in trying to play him there.
Frank Nouble
It is hard to criticise him given that he has been thrown in at the deep end and he is acquitting himself as well as you would expect. He should have scored in the first half but he kept going, put himself about and this is all great experience for him.
Subs Used
Carlton Cole (on for Nouble 73 minutes)
Looked a little rusty but it has been a while since he played a competitive game. Some of his play when the ball was at his feet was excellent and his ability to turn a defender is good to watch. I would expect him to be leading the line against Blackburn.
Manuel Da Costa (on for Tomkins 77 mins)
Sporting a strange haircut (which seems to have been the ‘buzz’ around Upton Park this season) Da Costa did what he needed to do with minimal fuss.
Junior Stanislas(on for Diamanti 87 mins)
Did not get into the game and was brought on far far too late when we were crying out for some pace on the wing.
Subs Not Used: Stech, Daprela, Sears, Jimenez
Bookings: Noble
Man Of The Match: Mark Noble
Attendance: 18,322
Overall
No doubt this was two points dropped and I can’t imagine anyone thinking otherwise. Our problems are obviously in attack and this is something that looks to be getting finally looked at with the imminent signings of a couple of strikers with one looking certainly to be South African Benni McCarthy from Blackburn Rovers.
With regards to the takeover I am delighted that we are simply under new ownership. Anyone who would have taken over would have had my support as you have to give people a chance and so far Gold and Sullivan have talked the talk and said many things we want to hear.
They promised to attempt to bolster the attack and this is what they look to have done.
On the pitch we are still in big trouble and whichever way you look at it, four wins from twenty two games is not good enough and we are going to need something special to make sure we do not find ourselves relegated come the end of the season.
It would seem on paper that the home games should be enough to keep us out of trouble but is there anyone who really thinks that games such as Blackburn, Wolves and Birmingham are foregone conclusions?
Next Game - Blackburn Rovers (h)
No matter if we are doing well or very badly or even if Blackburn themselves are flying high this always seems to be three points for us. Blackburn have an atrocious record at Upton Park and it must be the early nineties since they beat us.
After saying that I am concerned I have just put the kiss of death on the whole thing, so blame me if we crash to a soul destroying defeat with Zola saying “I am still proud of the players”.
Blackburn, Burnley and Birmingham. I don’t think I am being unreasonable by saying nine points is mandatory.
Zola's Views
"It's starting to get better but I didn't take it very well, to be honest, because I thought we had control of the game and I couldn't see them scoring. We were defending very well and creating chances going forward. Actually, I was expecting to score another goal at any time."
"It's OK. It's fair to say they fought hard until the end. Maybe on their goal, there was a foul on James Tomkins, but I have to see it to be more precise. Everybody said it was a foul, but it's OK. Nothing takes away from the fact we played a good game and we're getting better and better."
"We were playing against a team that was behind us so it was important not to lose, but honestly I believe we deserved something more from the game.
"I am pleased with the players. Maybe we could have got something more, but I can only praise these players, because their attitude and the way they play is unbelievable. They give everything for the team and that's important."
"Maybe we could have more quality in the future and it will benefit everybody, but whoever comes in must have the same attitude these boys have because that is the key to our success."
[On Cole] "It's very good to see him. I think it was important to give him a few minutes, but I must say it was difficult to take off Frank Nouble, because he played well again and I was delighted with his performance."
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Other articles by Vinny ...
> Player Of The Month - August
> Vinny's Manchester United Report
> Vinny's Oxford United Report
> Vinny's Bolton Report
> Vinny's Aston Villa Report
More...
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Admiral Lard
9:09 Thu Jan 28
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Vinny
“It was a chilly night on the South Coast at Fratton Park, a ground which for away fans has got to be the worst in the Premiership and maybe even the Championship. If we do manage to stay up this could well be the last time we visit Pompey for quite some time”. – “At half time getting to the toilet was like crossing Mordor”
Excellent stuff mate, my thoughts precisely.
Good report, pretty much as I saw it. Stood... you mentioned seats earlier... no one was sitting down anywhere our the away section... stood behind the post by which Upson scored. To be honest i was shocked at how we simply seemed to stop playing once Pompey scored.
Waas I niave to think we should have come back all guns blazing?
Was it me? I thought Carlton Cole looked comletely pissed off. His body language was very poor indeed and he hardly went for any 50/50 challenges when he came on.
It was good to see him on te pitch all the same but, unsurprisingly, he offeed less on the night than Nouble.
Oh how we need Scott parker, I felt of all people in our squad had he played he would have made a difference, perhaps to gettning us 3 pooints.
I left like you everyone else feeling disappointed with the performance and the result. At least all the players came down and applauded us for makeing the effort... would have swapped all that for 3 point though |
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Ozziehammer
3:35 Thu Jan 28
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Hammer I am, I agree wholeheartedly. Vinny, sorry you got that call well wrong. Behrami ran his arse off and won many unwinnable tackles. Was undoubtedly MOM. Otherwise pretty spot on as usual |
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oneteaminlondon
12:03 Thu Jan 28
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Vinny, as an away fixture against a team just below us this was a must-not-lose for west ham. It was a must-win for pompey for them to close the gap they have to bridge..
So out of the 2 sides, we will come away feeling less disappointed [we've taken 4 points out of 6 against this side].
So, please don't paint such a negative perspective about this one result.
Home ties against any of the bottom 6 or 7 are must wins for us. |
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Hammer I am
8:42 Wed Jan 27
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Behrami poor? thought he had a brilliant game. |
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EL06
8:18 Wed Jan 27
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Great points w4hammer.
We are into January and we still don't know our best side. That may be down to injuries, but also a lot to do with an in-experienced manager.
Few things I don't understand with Zola's formation:
- Spector tries hard, but is not a left back and gives the winger way too much space. Daprela, a natural left back, had a good game against Arsenal and then is dropped??
- Play DIamanti through the middle off the main striker. Why is he on the wing where he goes missing and doesn't have the pace or energy to go past players?
- 2 Holding midfielders means no creativity through the middle and when you have no natural width form the wide men - it means fewer chances will be created.
- Learn to keep it simple and pass to each other. The amount of bad passing across the team is terrible. |
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The Mutts Nutz
7:35 Wed Jan 27
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Thanks Vinny for a thankless task - feels like another Groundhog match |
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inconsistant fc
7:05 Wed Jan 27
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Cheers once again Vinny.
I agree with your assessment that 9 points is not unreasonable out of the next 3. We need at least 7 IMO. |
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Gazza_AZ
6:53 Wed Jan 27
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What has changed ? - I do not believe that any team can expect to get 3 points - starting an unproven 18 year-old striker on his own up front.
That was true at Villa - it was true last night.
It was the fact that having taken the lead - we couldn't close out the game - that gives the feeling of a loss - or 2 points dropped. But I wil never expect to get three points - until we have a proven Prem striker partnership.... and we are still some weeks/months away from having this. because while we have the players (reportedly) - they have never played together as a partnership - and in the Prem that is a key to expecting 3 points. |
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w4hammer
6:53 Wed Jan 27
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We are just about at the end of January and little has changed since September . We have remained in the same sort of position for quite sometime with the same criticisms labelled at the team and the manager.
________________________
true-est words youve written all season. nothing is changing. Players keep making the wrong choices or play like park players( green.. HELLO kicking the ball staright into the stands AGAIN!!!) ( spector wearing shoes on the wrong feet) etc
we've barely had a good patch, all season long- as they say, the table doesnt lie. the good sides have taken the piss, and many poor sides we've struggled against
fact is, we are a really poor side, and the players that should be playing well and leading , arent - the new players have done very little, and we still dont know what our best 11 is.
we are so narrow its untrue. we play ten men who barely get past our centre circle, and no-one, no-one ( bar parker) has the abitlity TO KEEP THE FUCKING BALLL!!!!
on that happy note, i'll go down the pub!
im getting really worried now if we dont win the agmes we need to win this month, there's nothing left in the tank.
I think the whole team tactics and set uop is |
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Texas Iron
6:24 Wed Jan 27
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Definitely 2 points lost due to Their GK and poor finishing...
Don't understand Zola saying we had control of the game...Portsmouth had twice as many attempts ON TARet and many more overall...
Probably a different result if we'd taken our chances early on of course...
Tomkins was fouled in the build up to their goal...Ref didn't see or didn't give it...
Comcerned we ran out od steam around 65mins...especially the midfield...Collison almost invisible second half...
Stanislas should have been on earlier...
Unfortunately west ham never win all their supposedly easy Home bankers...so I expect a tough run in from now on...
If we keep a low Goal Difference...it could save us... |
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gph
6:24 Wed Jan 27
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Nice report, but "Blackburn, Burnley and Birmingham. I don’t think I am being unreasonable by saying nine points is mandatory."
It's going to be hard work to get three points off Brum. |
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riksdodgydeals
6:07 Wed Jan 27
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always a good read, these games i have to watch on a crappy computer screen never gives you a good idea, i thought we had moments when we played ok, i agree that Cole didnt need to play, we should have held on to the lead and i thought it was risky bringing him on on a cold night when he didnt need to play, when they equalised Zola seemed to give up on it, we had Sears Stanislas and Jimenez on the bench and didnt go for a win |
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west end hammer
5:05 Wed Jan 27
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Vinny
I think your criticism of Behrami is really harsh. Sure there were a few stray passes but his workrate was phenomenal and he is a lot more comfortable with the ball at his feet than any of the other players last night. |
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Cony Tottee
3:32 Wed Jan 27
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mattyb
2:13 Wed Jan 27
Money is no object to you matty. |
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Steve the Hammer
3:02 Wed Jan 27
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Was Green's kicking really that bad last night? I haven't seen it.
A lot of people seem to moan about his kicking, I've never really seen it as that much of a problem.
Remember when Bywater played regularly? His kicking was REALLY bad. |
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Vinny
2:47 Wed Jan 27
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I had intially thought that Diamanti was what you would call the 'second striker' in that he would play just off the centre forward (Franco, Cole, Nouble) but all we have see is a right or left wing role.
He drifts in and out of the game and we have far too many players who do the same thing.
The thing with Diamanti is that I feel he is a good player and can be a sucess at the club but the tactics that have been set out prevents him from doing what he is good at which seems to be creating chances and having shots at goal. |
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Aberdeen Iron
2:44 Wed Jan 27
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Vinny
2:38 Wed Jan 27
Why stifle him in midfield?
If the gaffer aint going to play with wide players then a bank of three central midfielders and Diamanti with a license to roam around in front of them to feed the strikers could be the answer to get the best out of him. We'd just need to establish who then closes down the oppositions fullbacks when they have the ball though. |
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13 Brentford Rd
2:41 Wed Jan 27
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I was relieved we got a point after the game, but today it looks like another 2 pts dropped.
Whatever position Dia plays in, I'm begining to get the impression he's too eratic & lightweight for the Prem, much as I like him & want him to do well. |
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Spirit
2:40 Wed Jan 27
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AI- Behrami is the better player and was our better player last night. |
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Vinny
2:38 Wed Jan 27
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Diamanti shows at times some excellent vision and his passing can open teams up.
But playing on the right wing seems to hinder his effectiveness and until I see him play in a more central role (which I thought was his position) he is a difficult one to judge. |
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Aberdeen Iron
2:35 Wed Jan 27
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Spirit
2:05 Wed Jan 27
A lot of people on here think hes a good link up player (thinking back to his time internationally) yet for me Diamanti is BY FAR our player at the club with the best vision (for a through ball). |
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Spirit
2:32 Wed Jan 27
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Behrami was indeed miles better than Diamanti. |
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13 Brentford Rd
2:25 Wed Jan 27
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Behrami was much better than Diamant!
Behrami's work rate is fantastic though not the most technicaly gifted player,
Diamanti though technicaly gifted is becoming very frustrating, I had/have big hopes for him too as you do Vinny, but he just seems too lightweight & eratic for the English Leagues, imho. |
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mattyb
2:13 Wed Jan 27
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and to top it off £2.00 for a cup of tea and £2.70 for a COLD pie |
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Mex Martillo
2:10 Wed Jan 27
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Loved the comment on and Zola saying, "I am still proud of the players" good to laugh when things are bad.
It was dispointing, but no need to think the worst we are still on line for mid-table at the end of the season.
Thanks Vinny |
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Fivetide
2:06 Wed Jan 27
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Thanks Vinny. A good report and I agree with most of what you said, but from my warmer viewpoint in front of the PC, I thought Behrami played well, closed down the opposition relentlessly, and with one lucky finish to cap the night would have won rave reviews. |
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Spirit
2:05 Wed Jan 27
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'I can't see another defensive midfielder at the club'
Vinny how about Noble?
That's pretty much the position he occupied last night- and as towards the end of the 06/07 season, he played very well there.
In fact, it's clearly his best position. |
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action
1:57 Wed Jan 27
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completely agree with One Flew, it made no sense to change things (and also risk bringing Cole back too quickly)
also agree re:Behrami, thought we was our 2nd best player on the night (after Noble)
this was the first time I've seen us over 90 minutes for donkey's years (admitedly on tv)
I couldn't believe:
i) how crap Pompey are (they're already a div 1 team by the looks of it)
ii) how good we made them look in the first 10 minutes and the last 15 minutes |
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Rivs
1:55 Wed Jan 27
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Cheers Vinny - id play Behrami at RM as he did for most of last season when he was at his best |
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Balliol Iron
1:51 Wed Jan 27
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I would have agreed with most of this when I left the ground, but, having watched the game on Football First when I got home, I would have to say that it was a decent enough attacking performance from us. Nouble had two excellent chances that a more experienced striker would have scored, and the keeper's save from Collison was unreal.
Also, you got a much better sense of how much Berhami worked his socks off, although he clearly lacked composure at times. Diamanti was poor, Spector and Kovac did what they could and Faubert, although appeared to have a good game, was frequently out of position. I agree Collison struggled to get in the game.
Once again, Rob Green's kicking was awful. Can you remember a game this season where he has been more impressive than the opposition keeper?
Their main chances other than the goal were from set-pieces (why were we sleeping for the short corner?). |
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13 Brentford Rd
1:50 Wed Jan 27
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Agree it is the worst ground in the Prem, not only for the away fans, hate that shit hole & have never forgiven them for not having a poxy roof for the away fans for years whilst spending Millions on players etc... & shit turnstiles that delay you getting in, hope they go into Admin!
Thought Behrami did well. Our problem seems to be our work rate (& finishing) which is great if you can keep it up for 90 mins, but as we've seen almost every game this season, we can't, & we've thrown away countless points because of this & the chances we squander! |
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Northern Sold
1:50 Wed Jan 27
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Very harsh on Behrami... in my eyes anyway |
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Jack_El_Biscuit
1:42 Wed Jan 27
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Good stuff Vinny but I think you got the Behrami and Diamanti comments mixed up |
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Mace66
1:37 Wed Jan 27
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* first |
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Baron von Evilswine
1:37 Wed Jan 27
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Good report Vinny. I thought we played OK, certainly better than last week but perhaps that was more to do with how toothless Pompey are. Which is lucky because they had some good chances. But we are pretty toothless too and the game had 0-0 written all over it until our comedy goal. Perhaps it was to be expected that their goal would then also come out of the blue and just be a result of a few moment's inattention by our defence.
I thought Collison, Faubert and Behrami played reasonably well and Green made some good saves (agree with your comments on his decision making, he needs to trust his defence more). All 3 CBs looked solid for 99% of the game and no one really played badly. Nouble should be more generous when he is not in a position to score, and learn how to make the killer pass that scores the goals. If we are intending to rely on CB chest bump lob goals to win matches its going to be a long season. |
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Mace66
1:37 Wed Jan 27
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Danny Webber's forst prem goal for over 3 years.
I know he hasn't been in the prem for much of that but we really do seem to have a habit of being on the receiving end of these sort of stats. |
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Diamond
1:37 Wed Jan 27
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Nice one mate |
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RdUeSpSrEeLsLsed
1:32 Wed Jan 27
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Good read Vinny,
In regards to this comment
No matter if we are doing well or very badly or even if Blackburn themselves are flying high this always seems to be three points for us. Blackburn have an atrocious record at Upton Park and it must be the early nineties since they beat us.
After saying that I am concerned I have just put the kiss of death on the whole thing, so blame me if we crash to a soul destroying defeat with Zola saying “I am still proud of the players”.
Never a truer comment, this year we have lost to Wigan and Birmingham, teams we had a good record against. We also struggle against Big Sam teams when they play that donkey football. Here's hoping. |
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Mr Kenzo
1:29 Wed Jan 27
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Re: Vinny's Portsmouth Report |
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I can't imagine any West Ham fans were happy with a point or the performance we got last night. Thanks for the report |
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DANNY66
1:28 Wed Jan 27
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Re: Vinny's Portsmouth Report |
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Vinny-you forgot to say how bloody cold it was. |
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One Flew
1:26 Wed Jan 27
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Re: Vinny's Portsmouth Report |
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I didn't think we needed to bring on Cole when we did, we were 1-0 up and need to close down the game. To my mind that disrupted the teams concentration and we ended up throwing it away.
Two points wasted IMO |
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bell
1:25 Wed Jan 27
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Re: Vinny's Portsmouth Report |
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Cheers Vincent. |
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