Leif

this is hard to sink in. man united have been horrible. yet they're ahead of man city. what. firm believer in us being title holders now, it took me long enough

omg i didn't know how far Man City were behind us, i had no fucking clue Man United had crept so far up the table either, when the fuck did they overtake City? Honestly? This season is mad

B words should be nowhere near a football kit. ew. get away, trying to tighten my neck and shit, rude invention

wow Ancelotti is terrible i can't believe he let them concede #out

I'd squirt myself if he ended up at Monaco

I want to sign Rabiot. He'd be a good fill in for Fabregas. It'd rob Tottenham of a target. My thought is over.

I hope i wasn't the only cynic with their heart in mouth thinking he'd been injured after seeing his name trending on Twitter

unless he's actually sold in the summer, in which case i'm sure this'll be quoted by weirdos who actually use the search function on here i can't wait for him to shit on the world and be an outstanding player for us next season. i have the faith. i also saw a pig fly this morning.

I just want to make Tottenham cry

Makelele was deployed in a 4-3-3 system with 2 players essentially protecting him at a time where his role was entirely unique to the league. Having a smaller player, Makelele, one with the best brain when it comes to his position, in that role is no biggie. Mak is the greatest to grace the league in his position unless you visit an Arsenal forum, his mind was just so far ahead of everyone elses. It's hard to compare a genius of their role with an up and comer like Ake who hasn't even played the same role at all. It would be like holding Izzy Brown to Zidane's light because he played in the hole that 1 time, and then assuming he'll make it because he's taller lol. There was no writing off at midfield by anyone. Only in a 2 man midfield. 3 man midfields with Ake in them ahead of Matic i'm all for.

Regardless of the broken hearts via Jose's lies, I think he's too frail to play in the 2 man midfield we typically deploy. His frailness seems to lend him agility though so i'd happily have him in a 3 man midfield with more running and passing responsibilities compared to the more disciplined physical role taken up by Matic. If anything he would have been an interesting alternative to Fabregas in games where we're pressing for the entire 90mins, because he'd press better than half our midfielders do currently and also pass better than them too (Ramires, Mikel, possibly Matic?) There's no gaping hole in our squad to be filled by him, not with our current system; it's a case of trying to fit a talented triangle player into a square hole. He would do well at Arsenal, or perhaps a team in Germany that's on the ball lots, but not many sides are crying for a player like Ake, because you need a particular playstyle to get the best out of him. Someone like Loftus-Cheek can fit into multiple systems and is thus obviously the safer choice for a manager, and in this day and age it makes no sense to keep 2 youngsters both competing just for a minute on the field, especially when 1 is more versatile than the other, so loaning the less adaptable player is the right choice though it should have been done earlier. (I think Ake would be really good at Atletico Madrid, for various factors including a less physically demanding league, but that's just a fantasy for me to try out on Fifa later.) I'm probably wrong, but was he deployed in a 3 man midfield when Benitez was here? Or was he used in a 2 man midfield? If he was and he bossed in that position i'll eat my words.

jesus christ where was this steroid-filled milk when i was in my growth stage?

An opinion repeated 10+ times isn't an opinion, it's a view you're trying to force on people. @ Cho

he deserves a run of a few games - but he won't be great during them, i'm sure. he's a player much like Javier Hernandez in that they're best kept in a cage until frustrated and then unleashed when they must prove a point in a clutch situation. try and actually use him as a first choice option and we'll back to Diego in no time. psychology. or something. fun.

no i hate heart celebrations

how on earth can't we have the best of both worlds??? Azpi on the right and Luis on the left??? You know, the positions they're supposed to be in? Fuck Ivanovic

ok positivity police

the amateurish mistake of not starting Zouma or the amateurish mistake of dropping Azpilicueta?

ok barbara

i hate my life. i just want to see RLC play competitively for us before i die, please

i wish we could play a pint of milk instead of Cahill

that must be the first graph ever to show Shot Accuracy but not Shot Conversion. I'd be interested to see a comparison of that.

well there's lots of numbers and comparisons so it has to be true

well. that felt really awkward to read. i think i chose to call someone a Troll on here once who obviously wasn't in the end and i felt like a pleb. Supporter is cute in a Lil B type of way