Total Football FC (Nix) vs Roarcelona, 10:30 pm 1 Jan

It was 10 v 9 at the end. Lol

Based on doing not much since scoring v Adelaide away. Useless was probably overly harsh, was annoyed at the game when typing! Not as effective as I'd hoped might be more apt.

A goal saved is asgood as a goal scored. Speaking of which paston was excellent tonight. Looked like he had 10 red bulls down him. Very mobile in his box

Well that says it all.

Agree. Was gutsy as we just don't have enough quality in midfield. Got away with Lia for a season or too, but if we don't find some-one real soon, we're going to get done. Probably against Melbourne Victory. Got more than enough quality up front - defensively OK - but no quality, except Sanchez, in midfield. 

Swap lia for smith and the midfield would take a big leap forward.  More passes completed ( going forward too) less possession lost and nothing lost defensively

Top 3 would be

Totori

Lochhead

Waffles

100 per cent agree.

It will be Smith for Manny next week, cause he will get suspended for being a cunt. And Totori for Boyd. 

Totori was shit. Gave away the ball too often. Only beat his man once i think. Credit for the tracking back at the end though. Leo and Brockie for the top nix boys. Leo looks like the only player on the pitch who gives a damn at the moment

Read somewhere Herbert saying Totori will almost definitely start against victory anyway 

A bit harsh.... He did a great dummy/shake of the legs/nothing to get past a man later on. Unlucky I thought....

Completely agree, but I don't think we can play anyone else. Maybe Lindsay ? Doubt it.

People calling for Totori to start? Please. Did absolutely nothing today, barring that backtracking at the end.
Stupidity from Tyler would probably get him a start in Melbourne but I wouldn't say he deserves it.

Mr. Herbert said Totori more than likely to start v MV in the paper yesterday.

Manny is a fair way off last season's form. Was great in the first game of the season against Del Piero but since then he's been a bit of an inigma.

This shows we cannot rely upon Brockie to score to Brace every week! 

Where are the rest of the goals going to come from? Our wide players in the front three need to bring the goals also and have not done so thus far. Would be nice if Smith could nick the odd one or two

Nice saves from Paston. 

Not playing to badly, needs more results.

3 points = brockie (wonder goal... almost 2)

2 points = paston (worked hard, made couple outstanding saves) 

1point. = Sanchez (is pretty much a 1 man midfield doing everything the other two pokers arent

Muscat has Lia constantly putting him under pressure by giving the ball away too often. Doesn't look happy at all about the setup.  

So what happened to our "total football arf arf"? Wer'nt we going to take them on at their own game? We hoofed it so much in the first half I started to count aerial balls in the second....total 39. Of those 22 were before Boyd got sent off. Paston hoofed it long 95% of the time. We only retained possession  twice from Pastons long balls. So basically you are saying to the Roar...we will give you the ball back on half way...please attack us some more.

All we offered was our normal scrappy battling game. We had been showing some progress in the last few games. Ricki reverted to type tactically in this game. 

I wouldn't be surprised if Muscat gets suspended for the elbows....idiot! what was he thinking? Hard to see Leo playing in 5 days...that head clash looked nasty and he looked groggy. So it could be Lia to RB and Smith and Lyndsay in midfield vs Victory.

Top marks to Paston....he kept us in the game. The Victory game could get very messy for us!

Was Muscats dithering that caused the first goal though. Very poor stuff.

 Lindsay onto the bench for the next game, hope he gets a decent run!

Should also give a quiet mention to dura.. Thought he was quite solid cleaning up loose balls tonight

All these people calling for Lindsay to get a run have you actually seen him play before?
Twice I've seen him play a full 90 and both times he was really quite bad.
2 years now he's been at the club and he's never seen a minute, surely there's a reason for that.

We just don't have the midfield players, Sanchez excepted, to play a short passing game on the ground thru the middle. On any other night, that would've been messy. We struggled, as Herbert side's always have, to play the ball out of our back third in Oz.   

Herbert will drop Lia for Smith, though will put Lia at right back if Bertos is out. Totori starting for Boyd if that's what Herbert's been saying - though Stein should start.   

Club needs to pull a quality midfielder in during the window. Big ask but this could get messy. Pity because lots of good things going on elsewhere on field, but Lia's now out of his depth in terms of starting eleven. Losses against Victory this weekend and Wanderers coming up (and they were very good again today) will probably see us bottom in a fortnight.