[aries22]

I didn't catch any of the match today, and I'm pretty glad judging by the comments.

How was Baird at LB? Wouldn't have been my choice but obviously being British, defensive and very average meant he was a shoe-in for AI's selection.

I'm not sure AI has the organisation to set us up to park the bus against the big teams, and he sure as hell doesn't have the guts/will to play attacking line-ups against the smaller teams. In all honesty what does he actually offer us that Clarke/Downing couldn't?

He set the team up quite well against Burnley and he didn't park the bus against Spurs either.

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Interestingly (and perhaps worryingly), Steve Madeley on Twitter is pointing the finger at the summer recruitment: "Irvine isn't a fool.  He knows his side need an attacking spark.  If he thought Blanco, Samaras, Ideye etc could provide it, they'd play."  He's suggesting that the summer signings (with the exception of Lescott and Gardner, and Varela who's been injured) just haven't been doing enough in training and in the cup games to warrant inclusion.

If that's the case, then hello relegation battle.

After the League Cup defeat at Bournemouth, he couldn't have been clearer when he said the Second XI had missed a great chance to stake their claim for a place in the First XI. He was clearly not impressed.

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Interestingly (and perhaps worryingly), Steve Madeley on Twitter is pointing the finger at the summer recruitment: "Irvine isn't a fool.  He knows his side need an attacking spark.  If he thought Blanco, Samaras, Ideye etc could provide it, they'd play."  He's suggesting that the summer signings (with the exception of Lescott and Gardner, and Varela who's been injured) just haven't been doing enough in training and in the cup games to warrant inclusion.

If that's the case, then hello relegation battle.

This is why Dingle Downing and Kiely shouldn't be at the club, its time to let the new boss thing in his own people to freshen things up everything at the Albion has been stale for far to long it needs a fresh approach so the usual suspects aren't nailed on to start week in week out

I didn't hear many people - anyone, in fact - moaning about Downing and Kiely when Hodgson was in charge, nor when Steve Clarke was in charge, nor when SC was sacked. The team's performances were down to the head coach. If anyone wants to criticise the recruitment, criticise technical director Terry Burton and head of recruitment Mervyn Day, although Day arrived at the club after most of the summer signings had been made.