To get a gauge of just how bad that was, I don’t think we’ve seen a worse home performance since Benitez took over.
Scoring goals has always looked like it’d be an issue for us this season, but the early signs this season were that we’d make up for that in effort, enthusiasm, discipline and organisation at the back.
All those things were worryingly non existent today – we did absolutely nothing to resemble a Rafa Benitez team today. We had no shape, looked so open and lacked any ideas or coordination at both ends.
In fairness to Watford, they were brilliant today and outdid us in every single department. These stats don’t quite show it, but it could have been more than three:
There were so many lacklustre individual displays in the team today, with Jacob Murphy being the only NUFC man who can come away with any credit (see player ratings here) – however Rafa has to take some real responsibility for this one too.
There were some debatable selections (Diame, Joselu) and the 4-4-2 system was neither here nor there against a fluent Watford set-up, with the midfield partnership of Shelvey and Diame rarely getting close to the industrious and mobile Doucoure and Cleverly, yet failing to support the isolated Joselu and Gayle at the other end.
The biggest issue wasn’t through the middle however, it was how poorly we contained their left hand side, with Ritchie and Yedlin failing to contain Zeegelaar (wing-back) and Richarlison (winger) all afternoon. All three of their goals came down that side and there could’ve been more if it wasn’t for Andre Gray’s tame finishing.
This one falls firmly in the bracket of ‘one to forget’, but it’s one we and Rafa Benitez must learn from pretty quickly. Days like this will surely do nothing to help the takeover cause?
Unlike several of our resolute and competitive displays earlier this season, this did anything but suggest we’re a team who will be too strong to go down this season. After displays like this, no wonder Staveley and co. are pushing for a relegation clause.
I fully expect us to return to a 4-2-3-1 formation in next Tuesday’s trip to West Brom – a game we really do need a result from to steady the ship.
Here’s some post-match reactions from Twitter which sum things up pretty suitably..
Everything NUFC stood for in early weeks of season – discipline, work-rate, organisation & enthusiasm – has gone. It has unravelled at an alarming rate. No wonder a relegation clause is the biggest sticking point of this takeover.
— Craig Hope (@CraigHope_DM) November 25, 2017
Struggling to think of a worse performance by #nufc under Rafa. Certainly the worst at home. Just did not resemble a Benitez side. 4-4-2 has left them exposed. Expect a return to 4-2-3-1 on Tuesday
— Chris Waugh (@ChrisDHWaugh) November 25, 2017
All over. Worst performance under Rafa, who was culpable today. Selection wrong, system wrong. There will surely be changes for Tuesday.
— Mark Douglas (@MsiDouglas) November 25, 2017
NUFC have scored one goal in four games. That's the problem (as we always suspected it would be). The seven shipped in last two games suggests Lascelles is really missed.
— Mark Douglas (@MsiDouglas) November 25, 2017
Mitrovic has looked far better than Joselu . I can't find a reason to persist with Joselu now.
— Kristan Heneage (@KHeneage) November 25, 2017
I keep hearing we don’t have enough PL players in our squad – what is a PL player?. How many PL players do Brighton or Huddersfield have?.
We were fucking awful today and it was a flattering score line – for us!!. Could have been double that – they played us off the park today. Yedlin was the worse I’ve seen him play today. Diame is fucking hopeless and Joselu is a £5m CF that Stoke didn’t want!!.
Suggestion that Rafa will be done with 4-4-2, maybe – but I would argue Gayle has brought more to the team than Perez did.
But if he does, does anyone think he’ll play Gayle ahead of Joselu… and even if he does, Gayle is not a lone forward.
He put Mitro on for the last 15mins when the game was over. But the lad still done more in that 15mins than Joselu did in 75!!.
We miss Lascelles leadership at the back as well, but that was worrying today like!!!.
Sharpy17(Quote)
Just got home from the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix and find that we got hammered 3-1… ???? wow.. just as well i missed the match…
Well we are properly in the clarts now I think.
Dubai Toon(Quote)
To make it worse, the mackems finally won a game too…
I think Joselu has been taking shooting lessons from Rivière …
Dubai Toon(Quote)
3.0, we couldn’t hit a barn door mate 😳
kimtoon(Quote)
Well there is a lot of anger and rightfully so. There’s also a load of rubbish, like this..
http://www.hitc.com/en-gb/2017/11/25/has-mo-diame-played-his-last-game-for-newcastle-united/
Diame put a shift in today I thought, some people are trying to use him as a sacrificial lamb. Merino was no better when he came on, losing the ball two or three times. Ultimately we were outclassed, out-fought, mugged off, whatever you want to call it, by Watford City, United? Who are they again anyway? Like Rafa said in his pre-match interview, there are a group of teams on year 3 or 4 in the Premier League, who have the money and the new found experience (and a sought after manager in their case) that will give us a stern test. Watford did just that and embarrassed us at home today. My thoughts – Joselu surely his time is nearly up?, Perez no better when he came on, too weak again. Gayle, looks great in championship, looks like a one trick pony in PL. Shelvey – don’t make him captain again, it destroys his performance, or he gets a silly yellow/sent off.
How important is West Brom now? If we don’t get a result there, we are down with the strugglers for Christmas… I can’t understand how the players have put in such a poor performance at home today, WATFORD aren’t that good, they’re no Manchester United, and I don’t care what their fans think. The players need to take today as a big wake up call. West Brom are an old foe of ours, they’re struggling, our players need to be brave and get a result. Four defeats is not good. Come on, wake up lads. Rafa hasn’t got a magic wand.
DJG(Quote)
This was always going to be a difficult season but todays result has me worried.
1. It could ruin any take over deal.
2. We need some money to be spent in January.
Stem(Quote)
Well, MOTD was a sobering sight wasn’t it.
Also, re West Brom,
The baggies looked up for the fight, already looking better defensively and more organised. This was my big concern that Pullis would be despatched by the time we got to play them. I said 2 weeks ago that if he went an easy ish game would vanish and it has, we will struggle against them if we play like yesterday.
Yedlin was poor defensively but they all were. I read yesterday that Rafa was on at Murphy constantly, that’s got me scratching my head as I thought he was the only one to come away with any credit ! So many weak performances and defensively all over the place, horror show up top too. Mitro looked more effective in 20 minutes than joselu and Gayle all game, I am certain had he started that we’d have gotten a better foothold in the game. He unselfishly tried to put Gayle through but Gayle couldn’t quite reach it quick enough . He has to start Tuesday, given the misfiring front line at present Rafa has nothing to lose in starting him.
kimtoon(Quote)
Too many things wrong yesterday to put it into context but Rafa must take some blame surely. There’s a lot of pub teams who wouldn’t pick Joselu. Diame would struggle to get in too.
What do Mbemba and Mitro have to do to get into that team? Learn Spanish maybe? Drink Sangria? Is Lejuene as good as we expected? Even the ball looked embarrassed at some of Joselus attempts.
Speechless 😥
georgio(Quote)
Think there will be some changes for Tuesday simply because of a second game in three days. Of course, given the performance of some players on Saturday there are other good reasons for changes but the closeness of the WBA game gives Rafa a face saving way of making some of the changes many fans want.
Groucho(Quote)
Everton getting well beat here 😳
kimtoon(Quote)
That’s a good thing isn’t it mate?
shamrock(Quote)
Sham, indeed. The red face is their performance mate.
kimtoon(Quote)
?? 😳
shamrock(Quote)
Our form is actually following many newly promoted teams’. Good start and then get worse.
Big decision for Ashley in January.
Stuart79(Quote)
I can see a good few teams who are, or will be, worse off than us. I don’t think Palace or Swansea will survive and then it’s Huddersfield, Brighton, West Brom and us. We’ll just get by.
georgio(Quote)
And West Ham.
georgio(Quote)
Lot of storeys going round that takeover has fell through and will not happen,God I hope they are wrong
Icedog(Quote)
Half a million others too Ice!
Rafa says Joselus doing a lot of things right and makes the rest of the team feel comfortable. Well that’s Ok then. He probably does feel nice to pat.
georgio(Quote)
but if Amanda Stavely’s takeover collapses – and there are growing fears that it will – he has a problem if he does allow reinforcements to arrive in the New Year.
This is all I could find Ice and it’s from Luke Edwards. Nothing of substance there at all.
georgio(Quote)
Thought some of the criticism of Lejeune on Saturday was perhaps over the top. As I saw it he was having to cover a lot for Yedlin who was AWOL. At least he tries to play gather ball out from the back whereas Clark was just lumping the ball forward like Shelvey
Groucho(Quote)
wouldn’t surprise me, he has little real intention of selling and imo will only ever agree a huge price, he’s that greedy, not to mention stupid.
Stupid because he’s gonna have to invest shed loads to keep us up come jan and if we drop the club value will plummet .
Were and are PCP really interested in us anyway, they will of known there first offer would be knocked back, seems odd no second bid gone in. Could Jabba be stuffing it up like last time.
kimtoon(Quote)
Just read this in a rag in USA it’s not a joke,confirmed by Hospital,it’s unbelievable a couple were rushed to A&E because a man had his head stuck in his wife’s vigina she had bad internal bleeding after being released he had bad cuts to the head it’s the first ever case in the USA,God he must have had a very small head or ——,bloody unreal
Icedog(Quote)
Why the fk would you want to put your entire head in a ******?!
Surely that is ridiculously painful for a woman!
shamrock(Quote)
Sham – Ashley has his entire head shoved up his own **** and has done for years mate – he’s also managed to find room for Pardew and a few others to join the party too ?
Sharpy17(Quote)
😆 😆 😆 🙄
icedog(Quote)
NEW THREAD!
https://www.nufcblog.co.uk/2017/11/28/west-brom-a-pre-match-thoughts-team-news-predicted-line-ups/
preview for West Brom tonight – big big improvements needed.
Olly Hawkins(Quote)
beat me to it mate.
kimtoon(Quote)
😆
shamrock(Quote)