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Yes. Could see it was well-drilled. if Buananotte had to press someone other than Douglas Luiz, Pedro shifted across and Welbeck ran back to get McGinn. I imagine the lower turnover of games helps a lot with those specific preparations. Not reinventing the wheel but it was interesting to watch...

We had almost as many fans going to our Championship games at the Amex though, so that’s not a Premier League issue.

A bit harsh. I’d say it was a disciplined performance. Buonanotte and Pedro had clearly been instructed to stifle Douglas Luiz and McGinn up to that point as they were man-marking them. Very effective. Then we became a bit more adventurous when Enciso came on with Villa tiring and frustrated...

Slightly mixed feelings about the Newcastle and Man United games as priority number one is making sure Chelsea don’t finish in the top 6! Enjoyed that today though.

It was good. As for the rest, we’ll see.

I think we focussed first and foremost on stopping the opposition for a change, and it worked well.

Certainly seemed to get the tactics spot on today. Pedro and Buonanotte man-marking the central midfielders when out of possession worked a treat, with Welbeck joining in when FB had to get across to Digne. Then, once Villa were getting edgy, Enciso’s arrival put a bit more emphasis on attack...

Something fairly significant happened between the 2 articles…

He’s spent 3 months fuelling the stories rather than pouring cold water on them, so it’s not surprising there are a lot about.

“If there are worse fates” means Sussex is a good place to be…

It would seem strange to build a team influenced by any manager that doesn’t want to commit, so that’s Catch 22. Existing and incoming players would surely like to know who they’re likely to be working for too. Ordinarily, a manager still having a couple of years to run wouldn’t be much of an...

If people read the latest extensive quotes from the man himself in The Athletic, there might not be so much confidence. Bottom line, RDZ is talking about the future with Bloom over the next few days and weeks. The usual encouraging noises to keep his options open but clearly nothing is decided...

According to Jacob Steinberg in the Guardian, we want McKenna from Ipswich. RDZ, according to ‘sources in Italy’ wants a move but hasn’t had any offers.

That method of manipulation (if memory serves) is rooted in humans overestimating the likelihood of things that have happened recently reoccurring. A politician, say, will focus on that, then link other speculative events to suit their purposes. If A has happened, then B is the next thing and...

Dan Gardner's book "Risk: The Science and Politics of Fear" is getting a bit old now (2009) but provided a fascinating sense of perspective. If I remember rightly, also useful for revealing how our inability to assess risk properly is used very effectively by people in positions of influence...

Might be wrong but I think football clubs can and do use blood tests to, among other things, detect the fatigue that can increase the likelihood of muscle strains and other injuries. But the theory is still a load of old balls 😉

I’m thinking way back beyond Pep.

Ok. ‘Not the slightest difference’ might be overstated. But it’s a fraction of the impact of the manager’s public statements. There’s a reason all the best managers keep most things in-house and carefully choose their moments to criticise. All voices are not equal.

What we say makes not the slightest difference to morale or the harmonious atmosphere at the club. Everything a manager makes public has an effect - positive or negative - even if they’re saying the same thing.

So we’ve not played our best player for months, scuppering our European prospects, because he’s being sold in the summer? The new club will be delighted to get someone who’s not played a competitive match for half a year as that’s a great way to stay on top form. That must also be why we didn’t...