10 Sep 2026 14:03:22
Think iraola has seen through gravy. He knows he can't play him over macca and szobo.
10 Sep 2026 14:36:44
I still think we need a player with better defensive discipline than Szobozlai in midfield, especially if Wirtz is always first on the team sheet. Getting in each others way at times it feels.
10 Sep 2026 14:43:20
He will make Grav change. If he doesn't change, he won't play her.
10 Sep 2026 15:31:50
If he didn't rate him then he probably wouldn't be here.
10 Sep 2026 16:09:09
Him* :/.
10 Sep 2026 16:52:27
Could always add more granules, OP.
10 Sep 2026 18:29:08
Was he terrible last night? I was at the game and he looked Orite to me, can't understand the hate for Gravy today.
I thought it was a decent sub at the right time, tired legs in there and he took some pressure off ??♂️.
10 Sep 2026 18:32:18
Very good FPF ?.
10 Sep 2026 19:20:10
Guess we always need a player to beat on. Gakpo is doing ok, so Grav it is. Sad really!
10 Sep 2026 19:30:10
I thought he looked like he was trying a bit too hard, trying things that weren't on to try and show he could make a difference. There are worse responses to being dropped. Just needs to do the simple stuff well and he'll be fine, not everyone needs to be a superstar.
10 Sep 2026 19:37:51
Seems like another example of a player not starting so he becomes crap to some. Then when he starts getting some games we remember he's actually a good player and the crap player mantle becomes the player he replaced.
10 Sep 2026 18:29:24
Damn you FPF! I'm too slow!
I was going to mention something about x-ray vision, but it doesn't matter now. Humph!
10 Sep 2026 19:46:55
I am a fan of gravy, and maybe it was the coverage but it looked like everything he did was bad, and if it was good, it was a lucky foul. I genuinely believe he is a good footballer, but I have no understanding of last night's terrible performance. Only positive is I can say he looked like he was trying. Maybe too hard?
10 Sep 2026 20:43:39
We need a full squad. Grav is talented. He'll hopefully figure it out. Its mostly in the head with him.
It doesn't have to be Szoboslai vs Macca vs Grav vs Nyoni with the fans. We have all of them and will need them all.
It might be taking Grav a bit longer to figure out the tactics, but that's not to say he won't and then start delivering. He is a good athlete. He ll figure out what he needs to start doing to get in the team. Might even become a better player because of this period. Sometimes being subbed is a good time to reflect on why you are sub and fix it.
Its early days.
10 Sep 2026 21:33:52
Grav needs to keep it simple, yday he lost the ball twice trying fancy flicks the kind that cost us a goal against Newcastle.
10 Sep 2026 21:41:53
The main thing is Iraola doesn't have any favourites and is picking players on form. He comes across like a nice guy but also one willing to take decisions needed. Everyone will get a chance to impress with the amount of games coming up. We are starting to look like a proper effective team again.
11 Sep 2026 02:27:32
Agree @WarMachine, whatever it is there has been a mental shift. We look far more solid and a lot more like an actual football team than the past 18 months. Nowhere near the finished article (if there is such a thing) but the ship is, at least, sailing in the right direction.
{Ed666's Note - could it do with the fact where training harder, are fitter than we’ve been in a long time, have some tactical nous and well I’m gonna stop there before I have the pro slot brigade banging my ears
11 Sep 2026 07:10:13
Szob is the worry he just hasn't a clue on positioning and tracking back. Not suited to the system. Hope the manager can improve him defensively and encourage him to move the ball faster.
Plus can he try to miss the first man at corners.
11 Sep 2026 07:57:34
LFC8 - if Grav was supposed to take the pressure off he didn't accomplish that, quite the opposite. He gave the ball away carelessly on enough occasions for Stevie G to voice his disapproval on TNT and he had barely been on 5 minutes. Gave away a needless foul too.
I tell you who did relieve the pressure, young Lewis Koumas. Great cameo and the lunging header to win a free kick effectively killed the game.
Markp - totally agree. He lacks some of the skills that I consider to be core to a midfielder, which is a worry. And his corners are awful for someone so clinical with a deadball. More practice on the training ground required.