[Slick_Footwork]

From watching Celtic in the Champions League over the last couple of seasons, games like this are what Samaras excelled at.

The guy understands having to get behind the ball and defend but is actually an outlet on the counter attack. He has the strength to hold the ball, so you're not constantly under the cosh, and has a physical presence from set plays, which is probably the best opportunity to score.

Considering how ineffective Brunt and Dorrans were in the Newcastle game and the fact that we'd probably get beat at Chelsea regardless of the XI, seemed like an ideal situation to give Samaras a chance. Still, Irvine rather persists with the most defensive players.

Irvine's interview was a joke too - "The game plan went out of the window after the offside goal". Well, if John Terry hadn't missed an absolute sitter from 3 yards, it would've gone out of the window inside 5 minutes. But for an array of saves from Foster, this could've easily been 6 or 7.

I've not got a problem with a defensive set up to hit on the counter, but it has to be executed a lot better than this.