So what would be Hodgson’s preferred line up? He seems to favour 4-4-2 with holding midfielders and fast fullbacks. He seems to both favour seniority and give youth a chance. Some limited options next week to play his formation, so what will it be?
Unless Foster has recovered from Covid, it will be Flappman in goal. Defense? I can probably see Kabasele - hopefully not Cathcart. It depends on the AFCON returns and have we been able to use this time to get any minor knocks sorted out. I doubt we will see Sarr till at least March. Hopefully Dennis is back to his former self and Pedro remains hungry. It's not quite the nightmare game Claudio had with so little time to prepare - but it's certainly not an easy place to go. A point here wouldn't be a disaster - and Burnley do love a good draw.
A spirited first 5 minutes is followed by a Burnley goal from a corner after 6 minutes. Both teams then become embroiled in a hoofing contest for the rest of the half. The second half starts much like the first, a few Watford throw ins near the Burnley box to get the away fans excited, then the dreaded second goal from Burnley on 49 minutes, again from a corner. As the half progresses Roy makes some positive changes like Gosling on for Cleverley and Ngakia on for Kiko who asks for his customary substitution around the 70th minute. The game is sealed in the 88th minute when a Burnley player is played onside by Kabasele lying on the floor and rounds Bachmann with ease, slotting into an empty net. Burnley 3-0 Watford
3-0 Burnley. 3 headers from within the 6 yard box. Bachmann remonstrating with a random Watford player immediately after each.
He'll have had the bloody time by the date of this game, what will it be, the best part of two and a half weeks? Frankly, I'm not expecting this by any means or stretch of the imagination, but a point would be pretty bloody close to disastrous. It's the same as it was a week ago, but even more so thanks to the last attempt - if we can't beat them, one of three teams who have actually been worse than us to this point of the season, who are we literally ever expecting to beat? We won't, though, of course
Need Ivory Coast to beat Egypt tonight because if Ivory Coast make the semis Cornet will be unavailable for Burnley v Watford.
Cote d'Ivoire have the deepest team and a lot of good players, but Egypt have Salah... And no, not in the slightest.
Ah yes good point, I have erased our last match from my memory to the point his sending off totally bypassed me when I typed that.
Sums up nicely our numerous problems this season, in particular Brighton, Brentford and the home games against Newcastle, West Ham and Norwich.
It’s hard to see anything other than a lot of arguing after the match regardless of the score we have had a lot of delays in the last few games (floodlights / medical emergencies), my prediction is that Roy realises what he has done fakes a heart attack after 10 mins , the whole burnley team simultaneously contract a new covid variant in the 11th min , Gino looses the plot (further) and sacks everybody (include the ref) in the 12th min and then the game is postponed. if I was forced to predicate a score It will either be 0-4 to us (but we don’t do new manager bounces) or 3-0 to them
I don’t think Roy has got time for a project, and he’s a lazy overweight terd who is now third choice LB. We’ve got a pile of garbage to start shifting, so I don’t see how, or for that matter why he would be in the final squad. Plus of course more than anything, it was reported yesterday he’s already left.
Ivory Coast have just been knocked out of AFCON, meanwhile Sarr continues to be held hostage in a manner similar to James Caan's character in 'Misery' by the Senegalese FA, so the result of this game has just been decided - a Burnley smashing of our chugging losers.
So Burnley will have Cornet and maybe Orsic and Ramsey available for them. Fair play to them. They played a blinder with the earlier postponement.
Is this Cornet like Ronaldo levels of ability? Everyone seems to really big him up. I admit I've never really seen much of him but have heard of him.
It's much more the case that he is their only offensive threat this season at all, and the contrast of their results with him and without him is stark (as stark as it can be for a team who've mostly lost).
It's perfectly possible that he will, but I don't think there's any evidence to date to suggest that he's as good a player as Sarr, is there?
I love to hear managers use this phrase, which is simply an excuse for not winning. They’re bottom of the league with only one win all season. Where could be easier? Of course the alternative is the lazy “there are no easy games in the Premier League.”
Must be up there as one of the players that have been linked to us the most. In good company with Santon etc.