firstdivision

He was booked for kicking the ball away, I think. Everyone does it now. Not saying it’s right. Martin’s was more blatant though.

Spot on. Also, I notice that it only took one game for Klose to join the ranks and make a crass defensive error. What happened to the calmness we saw last week? His totally unnecessary hasty clearance for the first was embarrassing.

This defending…Klose to blame for the first, I’m afraid. We are just so soft. And then the regulation goal from a set piece.

It's odd, isn't it? The 5-3 win over Orient sticks in my mind as well.

Agree with all those. Portsmouth was 1-0 though. A horrible match in some ways: we scored early on; Portsmouth were already down and not much of a side; we were expected to beat them. But we couldn't find any rhythm to our play and those last few minutes were agony. I remember leaving the ground and saw a banner - clearly made up in advance of the match - at the back of a Portsmouth supporters' coach: 'You'll come straight back down.' Wrong. There were amazing Coventry and Liverpool and Manchester United matches to come but maybe, just maybe, it might have been better if we had because the years after Div 1 were depressing and set us back a lot.

Beating Leeds at Elland Road in 1974 was pretty special. My brother refused to believe the result until he read it in the paper.

I rarely start a thread but no one else has on the subject of Antoine Semenyo. I thought he deserved one. I can't think of many strikers in the Championship I would swap him for. He was superb again yesterday. Deserved to be the match winner. (Sadly wasn't.) He is a constant menace to defences and his all-round game is really coming on. The chance he created for And Weimann was a superb bit of football. I think he's the main reason for our 'revival' - if only we could defend. If we could find someone else like him, we'd be lethal. Defences wouldn't know who to keep an eye on. Dreaming a bit now... Scott, Massengo and Pring as well - we're actually becoming attractive to watch. I don't mind the inconsistency (too much). I did mind the dullness. Let there be light!

I agree. They are fantastic.

I don’t suppose you’ve even met him, have you?

Totally agree. Semenyo has been high class. Excellent again today. A total menace. Created an ‘unmissable’ chance for Weimann and scored what should have been the winner.

I thought it was. Couldn’t believe it when the ref played on. Took him down with a challenge from behind even if he did get the ball.

My immediate and instinctive reaction was that he was fouled from behind. Why did he go down if not? He had a simple pass on to Semenyo. Anyone clear it up?

Excellent display. Apart from the finishing. Very disappointed we’re not at least 2 up. That Weimann miss. OMG.

The main reason is that word ‘if’. He hasn’t done what you suggest yet. And my concern is that he won’t for the reasons I outlined. Anyway, let’s see what happens. I’ve come to despair of this type of signing in general, but throw enough mud against the old lags wall and perhaps some will stick. Fingers crossed.

I agree. That’s my rough benchmark for the deal being a pragmatic ‘success’, although the only thing that really matters is staying up. We should be ok but there is no room for complacency. My concern watching on Tuesday is that most teams will just keep beating us if they have enough set-piece savvy and ammunition. I see Klose as an ultra pragmatic, just-in-case signing.

I get why we're signing him, but I feel I've seen this somewhere before. He's 33, has not played all season and has had injuries. I mean, what could possibly go wrong? The limit of my expectation/hope is that he starts 6-8 games and helps us win 2, maybe 3 (if he starts 8). Perhaps he'll win a header or two somewhere that prevents the sort of defending fiasco we saw on Tuesday.

You only have to look at his injury record to know he's not been 'unlucky' with injuries this season. He's started 8 first-team games since 2018. The last time he started 20+ games in a season was 2014, more than seven years ago. Sometimes I despair with our recruitment.

Andy King - ten league starts, two of which he's not completed because of injury, one of which he was sent off in. Two sub apps. And a hamstring injury that'll probably keep him out for a while. Done okay? We have a pretty low bar if we think that.

I suppose it might depend on the transfer and how much the acquiring club wants the player. You’d think it was absolutely important for a player and a club that a player asks those questions. But this is football where the prospect of a lucrative three-year contract probably trumps most things. Smart recruiting clubs though must be taking a more holistic approach. And it should give them a competitive advantage over time.

Yes, really interesting. There’s so much to discuss in those last few paragraphs alone. Clubs are often trying to sell themselves to talent to attract them but the idea of a player selling himself to a club by dealing with an awkward and unattractive meeting place feels imaginative. How much is sport about attitude/mindset? How much is it just about innate talent? Etc etc

To me, that’s being soft as well. Not strong willed or forceful enough to take hold of a game. Retreat. Retreat. Oh, they scored a late equaliser. Now how did that happen etc etc. I think we’ve been too easy to score against all season. Thank god that, at least, we have Scott and Semenyo to enjoy…before we’re forced to sell them anyway. Feeling grumpy today after a freezing night at an awful ground and losing to a team that were very ordinary. To me, that’s being soft as well. Not strong willed or forceful enough to take hold of a game. Retreat. Retreat. Oh, they scored a late equaliser. Now how did that happen etc etc. I think we’ve been too easy to score against all season. Thank god that, at least, we have Scott and Semenyo to enjoy…before we’re forced to sell them anyway. Feeling grumpy today after a freezing night at an awful ground and losing to a team that were very ordinary. To me, that’s being soft as well. Not strong willed or forceful enough to take hold of a game. Retreat. Retreat. Oh, they scored a late equaliser. Now how did that happen etc etc. I think we’ve been too easy to score against all season. Thank god that, at least, we have Scott and Semenyo to enjoy…before we’re forced to sell them anyway. Feeling grumpy today after a freezing night at an awful ground and losing to a team that were very ordinary.

I lived through the Cold War. Don’t worry, City will still be flunking matches like last night’s well into the 21stC.

I disagree, Dave. We always look likely to concede, eg Coventry (truly embarrassing). That was months ago. West Brom (truly embarrassing). Sheffield United. Huddersfield. Numerous home games late on in the first part of the season (eg Forest).

The headline sums up the game perfectly. No need to read on really (although I did). Truly pathetic way to lose a match. Utterly galling to hear the Luton manager say they were well below par. And yet they still won. We are so soft. Embarrassing really. Cardiff barely put a glove on us and scored twice. Ditto Luton. I turned to those with me at 1-1 and said ‘we all know what’s going to happen.’ Just as well Peterborough are as hopeless as us at defending.

Hard to see many other options. We’ll struggle to contain them unless Antoine outscores or outruns them.