Matt

This is apparently our strategy but it's a ballsy game to play when we're an injury to Meslier away from catastrophe. Club must be confident that Bamford and Phillips are close to being fit especially given we were supposedly offered Winks and van de Beek on loan.

It's pretty fucking mental how we can have probably the worst injury crisis in premier league history, know that we're at least one CM/AM (realistically both) short and have been for 2.5 years and yet our transfer dealings consist of one U23 striker in and one U23 right back out. I get not buying for the sake of buying and "anyone coming in must improve us" but literally one injury to a player who isn't a central defender or Meslier and we play Tyler Roberts and that makes me want to punch kittens.

You can shove your VAR up your fucking arse 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣 Harrison for England

Meanwhile we have one senior player on the bench vs West Ham. Our first team isn't actually a million miles away, obviously we're missing Phillips and Bamford (who I'm beginning to believe has died) but other than that it's probably just Llorente missing from our first choice XI and Struijk/Koch is still a strong pairing. The bench have probably been doing their homework on the coach down though.

From the early 90s we've got Gary Mac and WGS, I guess Strachan had his moments but for the most part neither were great. Speedo looked like he was going to be decent. From the latter 90s Bowyer is doing well, Woodgate and Hasselbaink have been shit, Judas Scumcunt has been abysmal as far as I'm aware and I think that's about it unless Olivier Dacourt is out there managing in Ligue 2 or something.

I'm confused, for all I've heard about gegenpress... It just seems to be hoof it up and hope some quick lad chases it down before the defender. Could've got big Sam to do that

I'm now forever referring to Dan James as the Welsh Salah.

I don't get why the internet feels Arsenal were robbed. The first one is probably not a penalty and there's certainly no evidence to definitively say it is, referee doesn't give it, VAR can't definitely say there's an error. Second one is definitely a penalty, referee doesn't give it, VAR sees it's an obvious error and tells the referee to go look.

Turns out it was fairly quick

We've never said when any of our players have had Covid, we've been able to put 2 and 2 together at times when players have disappeared from training for 10-14 days with illness but we've never explicitly said anyone has had Covid up until announcing a number of unnamed players are positive but symptomatic. There were rumours before Arsenal that Llorente had tested positive and then he wasn't included in the squad so we can probably assume that's true. Other than that it's anyone's guess, Meslier and Phillips have been photographed and videoed in public and we're fairly sure Harrison had it fairly recently so would be less likely. Thorpe Arch remains closed with the exception of a couple of players coming in for injury rehab so we can't even work it out through training photos.

Finally Covid does something good 😏 Surely the Villa game will be off too, given that Bamford, Struijk and James were going to be touch and go for the Liverpool game, you'd hope they'd be back for Burnley and Llorente will be back from Covid so we might actually be able to field a team with players in their actual positions.

Maybe clubs should forfeit their places in European competitions if they don't want to play twice a week.

Yeah it's shit that millionaire footballers have to play an extra game or two at the time that most of their paying customers have the most time to go see them. Absolute twaddle.

I bet he's got no interest in calling off their match on boxing day though (and for what it's worth no, I don't think it should be either unless one of the teams pick up more Covid cases, just pointing out that he's only moaning when it suits)

Apparently both Forshaw and Ayling didn't have Covid, they're with the squad. Koch looks like he's going to play too... GK: Meslier LB: Dallas RB: Drameh CB: Ayling CB: Koch DM: Forshaw CM: Klich LW: Harrison RW: Raphinha AM: Roberts ST: Geldhart Would be my guess at a team, not ideal by any means but at least we can just about get away without playing any untested kids. Edit: exactly right, the bench is all youth though. I think only Summerville has any Premier League minutes to his name. 15 year old great nephew of Eddie Gray is on the bench.

3 are Covid (although seemingly Ayling was incorrect) and I don't think you can attribute any of Koch, Cresswell, Struijk or Rodrigo to the style of play. Bamford was probably caused by being rushed back from his previous injury which was an impact injury. I've no idea what even happened to Shack or Hjelde. Cooper probably has the least physically demanding role in the team outside of Meslier so you can't really blame the intensity there. I guess that leaves Phillips, James and potentially the two that I don't know what they're out with.

CB: Llorente, Koch, Struijk Cooper, Cresswell, Hjelde LB: Firpo (suspended) RB: Ayling CM: Phillips, Forshaw, Shackleton LW: James ST: Bamford, Rodrigo That's our unavailable list (a couple aren't confirmed and Koch might be able to play despite not having even played for the U23s after a 3 month absence). Only 3 down to Covid so despite having about 8 first team/fringe players we're going to be the only game going ahead today 😂 I genuinely don't know who's going to play in defence if the full list of injuries is correct, probably 2 under 18s, Drameh and either Harrison or Dallas at left back depending on whether he wants to go with Bate in midfield or he wants Dallas there. I dread to think who's going to be on the bench, probably some under 12s. Oh wait, I forgot our other U23 CB Hjelde is injured too. Literally 4 CBs injured, one with Covid, one yet to play after a long absence and the 2 makeshift CBs (Ayling and Phillips) are both out as well. You couldn't make it up.

Did Firminho not get picked for Brazil?

Literally no one apart from that one reporter heard any Hillsborough chanting; it was probably 2 pissed up cunts that happened to be stood near the reporter.

Looking forward to see what this young Henderson kid can offer.

It's a weird one because yes, Bielsa has wanted him for a long time and yes, he has the energy and drive needed to play in a Bielsa side but we clearly need a 10 and to a lesser extent an 8 far more than we need a winger. I can't imagine that we're paying 25m+ for him to be an impact player but I can't see Raphinha or Harrison not starting. I can only imagine the intention is for Raph to play 10 but if that doesn't work then we're stuck with 3 first team wingers and we've still got a massive gap in the centre of the pitch.

In news that really isn't news, Bielsa has signed his new contract.

He couldn't play for free if he wanted to. He's a free agent, they can't register anyone until they cut significantly more wages. Even if he hadn't let his contract expire before signing, the least he could've signed for would have been 50% under Spanish law. Not to mention there's absolutely no reason he should play for free, he owes them fuck all.

I'd be surprised if most teams haven't, there's no downside and there's a one in a billion chance he says yes.

That all sounds brilliant. Can't wait to see it be an absolute shit show.