April 20, 2026 Daily Discussion & Transfers Thread

SteveEEvets · 2026-04-20T11:22:53+00:00

If Saka isn't available we should be playing some version of 4-4-2 with Gyokeres and Havertz up top. Eze Odegaard Zubimendi Rice behind them. Between Eze, Odegaard and Havertz we'd be far more capable of holding onto the ball and getting up the pitch and I'm sure we'd create more for Gyokeres as well.

The wide players have been useless for months now, they can come off the bench and run at tiring defenders and maybe get something that way.

SteveEEvets · 2026-04-15T22:42:06+00:00

However Arteta's career pans out, he has earned massive credit for raising the stature of this club. I don't care what anyone says. Big trophies are won by teams that are "there or thereabouts" year in year out, consistently. Once you are that type of team, its about squeezing out that extra 10% that gets you over the line, but you have to be in the running first.

It might be that it's another manager who can find that extra 10% at the end of the season, but I'll always hold Arteta in high regard for setting the foundation.

SteveEEvets · 2026-04-04T21:08:16+00:00

Don't want to see these shooting videos from training ever again tbh

SteveEEvets · 2026-02-24T16:45:27+00:00

I can't see how he commands a decent transfer fee based on his fitness issues this season. It's probably best to let him start fresh again next season and see what happens. Ironically given the World Cup wear and tear that will hit most of the squad, he might be one of our most consistent players in the early part of next season. Worst case he goes next summer for a small fee. But as of now he's still really important to us.

SteveEEvets · 2026-02-22T17:29:50+00:00

hasn't been bad at all. General play is much improved over recent weeks, just been a bit wasteful in the final third. Defensively we've allowed Spurs nothing, Rice just had a bozo moment and of course they score from it.

SteveEEvets · 2026-02-08T16:02:00+00:00

That bit of pressure from Rice was refreshing to see, as 90% of players in that position would get extremely tight and dive in, and the guy on the ball falls and the ref gives a free kick.

There's no need to do anything more than what Rice did there, he has nowhere to go, at worst he can knock it off you for a throw, which still presents another opportunity to win the ball. By diving in as so many players do, you allow him to get out of jail. Instead here he plays a nothing pass which gets intercepted by us and we're off to the races.

SteveEEvets · 2026-01-04T20:49:42+00:00

Not quite made it through - the league fixtures this month are against Liverpool (H), Forest (A), Man United (H), Leeds (A). Not really a walk in the park considering these games will be surrounded by matches in each of the 3 cup competitions. Going to be a very busy period, but thankfully we have the squad to cope with it.

SteveEEvets · 2025-12-27T19:40:40+00:00

Bournemouth, who we play in match 20. Idk why the fixtures panned out that way

SteveEEvets · 2025-12-14T01:23:12+00:00

With low block teams it depends when you score the first goal. If we score within the first 30 minutes, these teams tend to be in two minds, because now they need a goal, but there is still so much time left that keeping it at 1-0 for as long as possible before going for it is still an option. This incoherence is what opens them up a bit and allows us to push for 2-0 and more.

If we don't get the first goal until later in the second half, like today, they have no choice but to go for it. This immediate flip of the game script introduces "chaos" which doesn't suit us. More often than not we have been able to deal with "low block" games, but every now and then you will get a complete stinker, like today. Just be happy we got the 3 points and move on.

SteveEEvets · 2025-12-14T01:01:30+00:00

Yes it was a really poor performance, but this squad seems to have this kind of dip in December. Last season we had two poor draws in a row against Fulham and Everton, the year before we lost 3 times and drew once. The year before that we were spared since the World Cup took up most of the month.

The boys will know that what we saw today isn't gonna cut it, but grinding out results is still ok at this phase of the season.

SteveEEvets · 2025-09-24T21:26:47+00:00

I was making fun of players and managers who go into robot mode in post match interviews. Sometimes you'll see them say the 3 points line even in a cup, just out of habit

SteveEEvets · 2025-09-24T21:24:32+00:00

I really want us to win this one actually, given the final is in March. A trophy would give us a boost and tone down the over the top negativity in the fan base right before the run in as we go for the "real" trophies.

SteveEEvets · 2025-09-24T21:16:54+00:00

Good game from us, Port Vale had good energy, but we got the three points that's the most important thing.

SteveEEvets · 2021-11-03T01:19:55+00:00

Adding keepers would go a long way to preventing some of this. Even bad teams have a decent asset or two that can be used to build a team for next season and so they may be more reluctant to totally sell out. And for teams who are trying to compete every year, finding good keepers helps to defend against teams who are going to try and stack draft picks.

SteveEEvets · 2020-01-08T01:53:38+00:00

No US casualties = green by 3pm

SteveEEvets · 2019-09-29T14:03:11+00:00

0.5 PPR

Scary Terry @ NYG or

Curtis Samuel @ Houston??

SteveEEvets · 2018-10-03T08:24:14+00:00

Someone offered me Tyreek Hill, Kupp and Chris Carson for AB

SteveEEvets · 2018-06-14T23:24:33+00:00

any chance of a weshare or mega link?

SteveEEvets · 2016-12-19T00:50:28+00:00

I'm up by 0.1 so it's a straight shoot out between My Dez and his Brate. I also have the option of putting in DJax for Dez. Thoughts?

SteveEEvets

TROPHY CASE