Stats

I don't read into when people believe Lukaku would be like Ba in getting bit-part matches. They are different players. Ba is a good striker but ultimately not good enough for a club like us. He is too slow and with the way Mourinho likes to play he does not suit the team and that is evident in most matches he has played for us. Torres and Eto'o are preferred because they have more pace and better work rate. If Lukaku was part of the squad this season I definitely reckon he would have got a lot of starts contrary to what others think. He is a better striker than Ba. Lukaku can do pretty much everything Ba can do but offers more and because of the inconsistencies of our strikers this season it is obvious to me that Lukaku would of end up having some run in the team and proving himself. As much as Everton are a good team, they are not Chelsea and I also don't read into the stats of him having 2 in 12 goals or so. I personally reckon he would get goals at us because ultimately we are a better team and eventually playing alongside great/greater players will show in the amount of goals he scores. Hazard is up there right with the most created chances in the PL and our strikers have fluffed many chances this season. Lukaku, no doubt to me would have taken some chances that our strikers have not managed to score in games this season. His goalscoring might have taken a bit of a dip recently when he has been playing but I don't think that gives any inclination to prove that he is not good enough to lead the line for us. Give him the chance then we can talk.

He was very impressive out on loan last season but there is a big difference in making a mark at a Championship club and being part of a squad that is expected to challenge for all major trophies. Right now he would be no way near the first 11 and would of been the same at the beginning of the season and at his age the most important thing for a footballer is to be playing first team competitive football rather than playing reserve matches so the loan deal helps club and player imo.

He is talking about the win at the Etihad couple weeks ago I think mate.

That is your opinion but isn't that an unfair judgement when he has just joined and it would be understandable if he takes time to adapt. He has got years ahead of him and settling into a new club like us is always going to be difficult. He is only 21 you know, 21! Loads of time to improve. He just needs time and hopefully the opportunity to improve.

Talk about overreaction.

While I agree, you can't expect the strikers to score if there is absolutely zero creativity coming from the midfield.

They wasn't knackered. They might not of been as fresh as the City players but they had 4 days to recover and Jose started them both so claiming tiredness for the two aforementioned players is not really an excuse.

I see your name and think 'complete asshole'. The whole team was bad. You just pick on him. Your last 5-7 posts are all about Mikel and some of them are just completely sarcasm. We get the message you don't like him but use your brain if you have one and stop making him the scapegoat. He was poor today yes, but so was the rest of the team but what is the point of coming on here to post about Mikel 24/7?

There is no difference in squad depth. We have players worth millions on the bench just like City and some players cannot even get on our bench due to our squad depth. We should be aiming for top 2 really. Got kinder fixtures than the rest, a good squad and a perfect manager. They just were the better team today. Simply that.

Did we even have a shot at goal? Quite, literally a horrible performance. Not even going to bother nominating a MOTM as no one deserves it. We were second best to City at everything and the team looked literally frightened to put in a tackle on Toure. Hazard had a chance to intercept from both Toure and Kompany but you could see that he was so half hearted. Same goes for the rest of the team. The way we made Toure just dominate the game is disappointing. No real effort today and never seen such a dull performance. Don't ever remember us not having a single shot on target and not to mention that they were missing Fernandinho and Aguero and you would think Lescott was a world class CB watching today's game.

Sorry but that is rubbish. You are judging him on a few games when the way Moyes set up yesterday was difficult for most United players to get involved. Rooney played in his natural position and was worse than Mata and was also very average against Fulham. Does that now mean he is a crap player who has lost it all? No it does not. Can't belive you are actually judging that he will be a complete flop at United after a few games. Ozil has been a better signing? How can you make a statement like that if Ozil has been at Arsenal from the start and he, himself has been poor recently. Mata has just joined so don't know where you make those conclusions from. Also no offence mate but your comment that "when he gave assists it was pathetic" sounds completely pathetic itself. He made assists and it was pathetic? LOL. Quite an absurd comment to make. His assist against Stoke was a very good assist while the others may have brought some luck with it, it is still an assist. But the comment you made about him being poor technically shows you know little about Mata. You have not seen him play much as tbh with you that is one of the most absurd comments I have seen on this forum.

While others may say our midfield stars like Hazard are making up for our striker's inconsistencies in front of goals our strikers like Eto'o who while not scoring all the time actually contributes a lot in his overall play. He played a key part in two of Hazard's goals today and works hard and we even saw it in the City game which was a factor in why we won and even though I have heavily criticized Torres in the past and he still frustrates me now I have a more calmer approach when I see him in the team now as I believe his overall contribution benefits the teams and like Eto'o his ability to link up with the rest of the team is brilliant and it gets us results and I look forward to the return of Torres as he will be eager to make up for the last time and having him and Eto'o being able to rotate will make our firepower more stronger. Like I said I don't want to get cocky but I just get a feeling that despite Mourinho playing down our title chances this season, we might just be on the verge of something special this season. Looking at our away games against teams in the top 8, we have played all of them bar Liverpool at Anfield while City still have to go to the Emirates, Anfield, Old Trafford and Goodison Park. Arsenal have got us at the Bridge, Everton at Goodison and Spurs at WHL and have a massive game in the week against United and I hope to think Liverpool will not last in the title race. Looking at that our fixtures look good on paper but it takes one game like the West Ham one to bring things to a halt but nevertheless another convincing win and a magical performance from Hazard and most importantly something that I have not been able to say for a long while but we are top of the league

Whatever the rumours say, we will not sign Cavani. People get too easily influenced by what they hear. PSG bought him for a huge sum and while he is often put out on the wing, he is like 6 years younger than Ibra and eventually will probably get the striker regular role on a regular basis. PSG have no reason to sell and people are forgetting that while he is being played out of position he has still got 20 goals for club this season. Quite amazing to show how prolific he is but that is why PSG will not sell him. First they don't need to and he is far too valuable to get rid off. People are living in a fantasy world if they think Cavani can realistically be here next season.

Grow up... We win the game and you resort to these childish jokes. I know you hate the player but if you can't post anything that is constructive why bother posting...

He was not saying "stupid unneccessary" stuff. He is speaking his mind and there is no clause to say 'don't talk to the media' but we will agree to disagree and I would rather not keep going on about this and more celebrate on tonight's win OK

Another solid game at LB. Every game he has played there, especially against the big teams he has been very solid. Such a reliable player and it is easy to see why despite not being a natural LB, keeps the position ahead of Cole. Much stronger, faster and more energy to burn.

Mourinho record against top 4 teams... Played 23. Won 13. Drawn 8. Lost 2. Scored 30. Conceded 13. Simply a tactical genius. There is no one better than him at affecting the big matches

He was asking for it. I think he logged out and is hoping by next time he signs in he has numerous likes

No offence but fuck you

Well not on the City issue but hypocritial on slating Lukaku for speaking his mind and the West Ham issue

I know we have sold players etc but my point is even for the last 2 seasons have we not spent around the same as them if not more and tbh I am not sure if their income is accpeted by FFP but at the same times I have heard we are sticking to the FFP rules but can it be 100% to say we have complied to the rules much more than City have? That is my biggest concern because while I don't know the ins and outs of it but City reitirated that they are fully confident they will pass the FFP rules and they have got rid of all their debt as well.

We went with a defensive minded attitude and his comments about West Ham were hypocritical. They parked the bus but obviously with a much inferior squad they would find it harder to have more shots at goal so his comments were not necessary. Against Arsenal we had chances to win the game but to say Mourinho did not look for the draw is untrue. We were defensive minded and that was obvious by the changes he made in the last 15 mins of the game. We have made many losses over the last 2 seasons and have spent almost the same as them if not more than City so it seems weird that he has made those comments. I am not criticizing Mourinho's style of play btw but his comments about West Ham was completely hypocritical and I will reiterate that we and City have not done much different regarding the financial regulations.

He has been successful due to being a hypocrite? LOL I don't think so.

I know he likes to entertain but maybe Mourinho should just keep his mouth shut sometimes. He and fellow fans criticized Lukaku for speaking too much to the media but Mourinho is doing the exact same thing and is sounding bitter and hypocritical imo. For instance regarding West Ham's defensive style and cannot see why he is pointing out City's spending. We are the ones who started the lavish spending and Man City just followed after. Sounds really hypocritical and some of his statements just sound stupid. Just get on with the job please Jose and stop entertaining the media.

Highly doubt it. Not for next season anyway. I don't think Piazon is near the quality of our AMs. If anything Moses would be a back up and Piazon will go out on loan. No point in wasting young talent at the club by letting them play reserve games and odd sub games. He will probably have another loan at Vitesse if they get UCL footy. If not maybe a loan to another team in England or in a a team in a more competitive league.