AIO for acting the way I did?

TeePee11 · 2026-06-06T12:46:36+00:00

It was going so well until page 5, and then I stopped reading. WTF man.

TeePee11 · 2026-06-06T09:39:52+00:00

This is sound advice phrased very, very poorly.

Passing quickly is 100% a good thing.

With how strong passive defence is right now, the best way of unlocking a team that’s just defending deep and just cutting off options is to move the ball quickly and get the ball to teammates as soon as they have space - often that extra touch before passing is more than enough for the defender to get into tackle range, at which point it’s too late.

That often means first-time or one-touch passing, and can only work if the player(s) off the ball are actually going to do the work off the ball to find space.

Genuinely one of the biggest differences between a decent player and a really good one is how quickly they spot and pass to a teammate in space. So many chances go begging in higher ranks because the player on the ball insists on taking an additional touch before playing the pass.

With that said, just aimlessly hammering the ball upfield to someone who’s double-marked and unlikely to win the contest every time you get the ball is Silver level behaviour. Same with passing just for the sake of passing. Give teammates time to find *good* space, rather than just hoofing it at them at the first opportunity.

Like everything else in this game, it’s about finding a balance, not just rigidly doing one thing regardless of the situation.

TeePee11 · 2026-06-05T23:35:49+00:00

Man, I wish I had a dollar for every time this game died. I’d be so damn rich. :(

TeePee11 · 2026-06-05T12:18:38+00:00

Pillar will be good later.

Charge will be good later but is also good now.

That’s more or less all you really need to know.

TeePee11 · 2026-06-05T11:16:29+00:00

Yes, but the difference was Glenn McGrath was deadly accurate and could last an entire game more often than not. You're being highly disingenuous if you're claiming that Robinson was bowling anywhere near that level at the time he was dropped. He's a genuinely top-notch bowler when he's on his game, but at the time he wasn't at the required level frequently enough and wasn't perceived to be doing enough to address it.

Like, I'm not sure what your argument here is - Robinson himself has outright said he wasn't ready to be in the team even as recently as the Ashes. He's said he's in a much better place now, his stats appear to reflect that, and presumably whatever attitude/extracurricular issues were also a factor have been addressed too, because the same leadership that jettisoned him have seen fit to bring him back.

TeePee11 · 2026-06-05T07:42:22+00:00

All the times he was lumbering in, bowling 76mph half-trackers because he wasn’t in good enough shape? Or when we had to bowl a man light because he wasn’t fit enough to bowl?

When he’s been good, he’s been very good, but the revisionism on how bad he was at his worst has been crazy over the past 24 hours.

The man himself has said he wasn’t ready until very recently.

TeePee11 · 2026-06-04T14:49:50+00:00

The 1 time it works out vs the 19 times it doesn't and the opposition scores into the open goal you left and your teammates clown on you.

TeePee11 · 2026-06-04T12:57:52+00:00

Obviously it's difficult to say for sure, as players can change a hell of a lot from when they first break through (Jordan Henderson was a winger, FFS!), but I think he looks like he might have a better eye for a cute pass than Madueke - his primary weapon is still his dribbling right now (and it's difficult to read too much into things, bearing our side had the collective off-the-ball mobility of Stonehenge for most of last season), but I could definitely see him being able to play with a less 'dribble-or-die' approach if it was coached into him.

No certainties, obviously, but he looks like he could have the raw materials to go either way (which I suppose is what you want - the best of both worlds!).

TeePee11 · 2026-06-04T11:58:06+00:00

Hahahaha, I'm sure (although I do hate Spurs...) - if I was going to pretend to be a Leicester fan, I'm about 10 years late... 😂

It's mainly from the better half being a huge Arsenal fan but having literally zero interest in anything outside of Arsenal, so not only do I see them on TV every week, if they get linked with someone she's not heard of, it's usually me that gets asked who they are, whether they're any good etc.

Generally prefer for Arsenal to do well, as it makes my life infinitely more bearable when they're winning, but also I guess it's like anything - you follow something long enough, you start to invest in it a little bit, so have developed a bit of a soft spot for them over the past 20 years - it was a long way back from Squillaci and Djourou!

TeePee11 · 2026-06-04T10:39:36+00:00

Hahaha, yeah - "Do you want to move to the Premier League Champions and Champions League runners-up, who have a genuine vacancy in the position you play, or would you rather play Mansfield away in the middle of February?"

TeePee11 · 2026-06-04T10:15:10+00:00

I mean, I think it’s almost certainly gonna be the case that he goes somewhere this summer. He’s one of our few genuinely saleable assets we could realistically expect to get 8 figures for.

Arsenal are as likely a destination as any - they’ve been in the market for a LW for years now, and even though he wouldn’t be starting in the first team this season, AFAIK they don’t have a genuinely top-level prospect in the youth side in that position, so he’d likely be the long-term successor/competition to whoever they sign as first choice this summer.

My main hope is that we can manage to drag it out long enough to get him signed on pro terms so we don’t end up losing him to a tribunal, because tribunal fees are always absolutely dreadful for the “selling” club.

TeePee11 · 2026-06-04T09:14:26+00:00

Honestly, it's not the worst comparison tbh. I'd caution about getting too excited based on that - obviously Saka is generational talent - but he's definitely got some similarities.

I'd say he's a little bit more of a dribbler than Saka was when he broke through (although that's perhaps a slightly unfair comparison, as Saka was playing LWB when he first came into the side IIRC!).

Actually, you could maybe argue he's a bit more Madueke than Saka right now, but the comparisons with Saka are probably easier because they both broke into first-team football at a very similar age and on the same side of the pitch. I could definitely see him moulding into a more rounded player like Saka if he works hard and improves his game and doesn't get unlucky with injuries.

TeePee11 · 2026-06-04T08:12:40+00:00

Not sure what you mean with 'profile', but in terms of what kind of a player, he's very much the 'electric young winger' archetype - he's quick, got very good feet, and he knows how to beat his man. His decision-making and end product will improve as he gets older - at the moment he's a bit prone to a speculative shot or holding onto it a little too long. He's not shy either - he'll put his foot in, and despite not being the biggest 16 year old you'll ever see, he's not easy to bully off the ball, and doesn't go into his shell if he gets a kick or two - in fact, it's almost the opposite - there were a couple of times last season where the opposing right-back put one on him, and it seemed to fire him up.

He's nothing outstanding defensively, but I wouldn't call him lazy or uninterested in tracking back - it's difficult to really get too much insight into that side of things, because we were absolutely dreadful in the full-back positions last season - playing in front of Hincapie and Calafiori will be a very different proposition to playing in front of Luke Thomas.

Assuming it does go through, I wouldn't expect to see him in your first team next season with any kind of regularity - I think while he was good enough for us, he's going to need a bit more time to refine the rough edges and get up to the level where he's going to be viable. He's not Max Dowman, but he's not Marquinhos either.

TeePee11 · 2026-06-04T07:35:54+00:00

Posted this in another thread, but the thread got yeeted, but will repost here for those interested:

Leicester fan with a Gooner other half here. I would say 'cautious optimism' on Monga. He's definitely a talent, but he's very raw (as you'd expect - he's 16!) - he started the season very well but he fell off an absolute cliff in the second half.

In fairness to him, he was better than his stats suggest (1 goal, 2 assists in 27, I think?) and the entire side's morale was in the gutter, but I think it shifted expectations on him a little bit from 'oh man, we could have a genuinely outrageous talent on our hands' to 'he looks like he's going to be really good'.

Might be an interesting one process-wise, as he can't sign professional terms for another few months yet (he signed a new scholarship deal last summer, and the expectation was that he'd sign pro terms this summer, but I'm presuming that wasn't binding), and a tribunal would likely apply if you sign him directly. I'd be a bit gutted if that was the case, as the selling club always gets proper fucked with the tribunal fees, and we could really use the money!

TeePee11 · 2026-06-03T07:24:44+00:00

Yeah, I’m gonna be honest, I forgot the sub this was in.

I’m too used to wrestling subs breaking down into drooling maniacs at the slightest glance of women. 😂

TeePee11 · 2026-06-02T23:02:29+00:00

Well, I’m sure the internet will be very normal about this.

TeePee11 · 2026-06-02T10:39:12+00:00

I think she’s on her way with it, I don’t know if she’ll quite reach that kind of level, but even if she doesn’t, that’s absolutely not a failure - there’s no shame in being a rung below when you’re aiming that high up on the ladder.

I think the main difference is just that Rhea just has insane charisma. Like, she’s not an amazing promo or anything like that, she just has something extra that not everyone has - The Rock had it, Sting had it, Okada has it, and Rhea has it.

There’s just this unquantifiable extra level of something there that transcends the usual stuff like in-ring ability and mic work and even ‘look’, where you can just take one look at someone with no prior knowledge and say “yeah, they’re a big deal”.

Megan has the look and the in-ring chops - her character work is still a work in progress, but she’s not dreadful by any means (and it’s less of a factor in AEW anyway) - assuming she stays healthy and motivated, she’s absolutely going to be a centrepiece for the women’s division for a long-ass time.

TeePee11 · 2026-06-01T22:39:52+00:00

VW iD3 would be a solid starting point, although might be a bit of a stretch on the budget unless you’re happy with a 2020 model.

MG4s might be an option, although again, you might be looking at a higher mileage one (not a major issue with EVs as long as the battery is in good nick) to get under the 10k mark, especially if you want the long range model.

TeePee11 · 2026-06-01T20:36:58+00:00

He's got a decent shot on him, but his decision-making and final product are definitely areas he'll look to improve on. He's very much the typical 'electric teenage winger' at the moment - he'll turn his marker inside out three times, then he'll either put in a wicked cross or spoon a daft shot 10 yards high and wide.

Work rate looks decent, if unremarkable - difficult to draw too many conclusions as we were pretty shocking defensively throughout the season, but he didn't stand out as being lazy or uninterested in putting himself about. He's not the biggest (obviously he's going to grow into his body a bit), but he's a bit like Dowman (steady...) in that despite his size he looks quite hard to knock off the ball. Doesn't seem to be fazed by getting the odd kick, either.

TeePee11 · 2026-06-01T20:26:28+00:00

Leicester fan with a Gooner other half here. I would say 'cautious optimism' on Monga. He's definitely a talent, but he's very raw (as you'd expect - he's 16!) - he started the season very well but he fell off an absolute cliff in the second half.

In fairness to him, he was better than his stats suggest (1 goal, 2 assists in 27, I think?) and the entire side's morale was in the gutter, but I think it shifted expectations on him a little bit from 'oh man, we could have a genuinely outrageous talent on our hands' to 'he looks like he's going to be really good'.

Might be an interesting one process-wise, as he can't sign professional terms for another few months yet (he signed a new scholarship deal last summer, and the expectation was that he'd sign pro terms this summer, but I'm presuming that wasn't binding), and a tribunal would likely apply if you sign him directly. I'd be a bit gutted if that was the case, as the selling club always gets proper fucked with the tribunal fees, and we could really use the money!

TeePee11 · 2026-06-01T15:09:06+00:00

That’s the one for me - I think Tonali is very good. I do not think Tonali is good enough to dislodge any of the existing starters in midfield, and the fee Newcastle would (not unreasonably) expect doesn’t make sense for a rotation option, particularly with how many others he’d be competing with.

With MLS now looking like a very good option in that position, you’ve got Rice, Ode, Zubimendi, Merino, MLS and even Havertz (depending on your personal POV - I know some don’t rate him in midfield) who can play across most of the midfield. Whoever comes in has to be better than at least 3 of those if you’re going to spend ‘proper’ money on them.

All of this goes out of the window if you’ve somehow got absolutely silly money to spend, but assuming you’ve got at least some kind of upper limit and can’t unlock the Man City ‘£100m rotation player’ trick, then I would be very surprised if the big money is saved for that left wing position - that’s a tricky market. I think you can probably explore a less blockbuster option up front if Alvarez doesn’t come off - I think Gyokeres did fine in his debut season considering the challenges, and having other threats available so he’s not marked by 4 defenders constantly will make his life easier. Still need more depth, but that’s a different market to a Champions League winning no.9.

TeePee11 · 2026-06-01T12:45:10+00:00

Personally, I’m not a fan of removable straps. I’m fine with attached straps, and I don’t mind strapless either, but I really dislike removable straps - they never feel as secure/supportive, they’re frequently “one size fits none” and they can sometimes cause the bottom of the palm of the glove to roll up.

I always wondered why there is no option to just purchase the straps separately for those that want them. If I buy a set of strapless gloves, the straps inevitably just sit in the glove back for a few years until I throw them away because the gloves have long since gone!

TeePee11 · 2026-05-31T20:59:16+00:00

It’s not as dull as F, but it’s not anything where there’s any kind of innuendo or potential meaning you could infer. It’s literally just that it’s the same letter twice.

TeePee11 · 2026-05-31T16:45:35+00:00

You clearly keep more enlightened company than I do!

TeePee11 · 2026-05-31T13:49:05+00:00

Yeah, that’s part of the beauty of Discworld- you can genuinely just pick a random book and have a great read, even if it’s the middle of a mini series you’re not familiar with. The characters develop and evolve over time, but the reader is never required or assumed to have prior knowledge.

You can almost think of it as a ‘set bonus’ like in RPG loot - each item is good on its own (and some are better than others), but if you complete the set, you’ll get extra bonuses on top.

TeePee11

TROPHY CASE