Boro v Chelsea (League Cup Semi Final 1st leg) 1-0 (Hackney)

[OldManGravz 2,460 6.4k]

3 hours ago, Rob said:

Thst was done in after the Huddersfield game.

I've just booked a hotel in 2025 near Estadio de San Mamés in Spain for the Europa league final

Wouldnt we go in the conference league though? Haha

[Old Codger 4,269 4.9k]

3 hours ago, Borodane said:

No, that's what keeps players from rolling around trying to get the play stopped when there is no need for it. Crooks went over his ankle when he went in for the ball. It was never the Chelsea players fault and there was no reason to stop play for it before the ball was back in chelseas half. You stop play for head injuries and I'll applaud refs for letting play on when a tired player is staying on the ground. Letting play on is not why Coburn and Crooks were battered all night. It was simply just the Boro players battling with everything they had. You can't stop play every time a player don't get up.

I agree with your last sentence but you can hardly accuse Josh and Matt as being prone to rolling around. On more than one occasion, they both got clattered and as lads who are clearly willing to play when not 100% fit, a little protection wouldn't go amiss. Like you, I want as few interruptions to the game as possible, but there are players who are relatively honest and when an individual of that sort stays down, it needs checking out, not just ignoring. As always, happy to agree to disagree, but thought he let a little too much go at times      

[Tractors Stopping By 105 88]

Just had to say well done on last night, seriously congratulations and all that.     Must have been some atmosphere up there, fans would have been real excited.    I know it's only a job half-done but maybe go to Stamford Bridge for the return and go for the win, just attack and go for it.    Not sure if away goals count double now, they change the rules every season it seems but if it still applies, go for goals there and try to put the tie beyond them.

Somewhere at home I still have a match (publisher) magazine from early 2004 where they featured both semi-finals games with ratings, expectations and individual strengths and weaknesses for both players and teams involved.     The final analysis from their 'experts' were that 'Arsenal would walk it over both legs' (in fact that were just about their actual words) but you beat them over two games to go on to beat Bolton in that Final back then.

Point being, if Boro can win over two games against an opposition team that remained unbeaten in the league for an entire season then they can get past Chelsea in a few weeks and do it once again.    Ok that was then and this is now but thing is (it) just goes to show it can be done.    If you can do it then, you can make it once again this time around.      I think you and most neutrals would want Fulham to make the Final if you make it through.     I don't want any Chelsea or Liverpool victory.      Go on and win it again, believe in yourselves and give me and a whole load of other fans something to root for.     Ok ?   Thanks. 

[Blanco 5,637 7.2k]

Thanks for that post @Tractors Stopping ByIts great to see that the neutrals are rooting for us 👍

[HolgateHero 791 2.2k]

4 hours ago, Denzel Zanzibar said:

This got a lol out of me

 

Let's hope him and the other double surname player of theirs reproduce their form for the 2nd leg!

[HolgateHero 791 2.2k]

2 hours ago, Erimus74 said:

Goal, celebrations with fans & playets, then Carrick with his celebration on the side, he was bouncing at the end

I actually think last night was his finest hour

Something about seeing this group celebrate together, it means everything to them. 

Lads assembled for pennies and putting their heart and souls on the line giving us moments like that, still getting goosebumps now.

So good for Izzy to get MOTM (on my stream at least) and the sheer joy from Carrick at our goal and in congratulating the players after. 

Something magical is happening at the Boro, more than any other time in my life I'm really excited for our future.  

The significance of competing against top sides on our budget is enormous, it means we'll actually be able to give the PL a good crack when we get there.

As others have said, young players around the world will be aware of Boro and how much they can develop here, like we got VDB ahead of better teams more will come and that is huge credit to recruitment and coaches.

Still early doors but we are progressing towards the kind of club that can imagine being sustainable at the highest level. Gibbo has tried just about everything, his steadfast committment to the Boro means when we get there it will be all the more sweet for everyone.

UTFB!

 

[Changing Times 16,078 23.1k]

12 hours ago, Mfcdanny said:

I actually thought he was one of our best players and the match ratings back that up. Seems like you just say the opposite of what everyone else says. 
Also don’t know how you can say Giles was better defensively aswell. Going forward Giles was superb yes but he was a very poor defender. Both Engel and Bangura head and shoulders above him defensively imo. 

Firstly, I didn't actually say he played poorly, I said he was the 'worst' of our defenders.  Maybe 'less good' would have been a better way of putting it.  As our defenders were really the only players who played genuinely well then he'd have been better than half the team, which is pretty good going.  I don't really care what everyone else says.  Two weeks ago our team was crap apparently, and half of them needed replacing.  Now in the euphoria of last night everyone is brilliant.  It's not me that constantly changes his opinions, its lots of other people who go from one extreme to another, often in the space of a few games.

Going to back to last night, I said that Engel jumped in for a few challenges he had no chance of getting, almost put them in with a poor pass, and gave the ball away too often and in some poor ways.  A quick look at the stats today show the following: His passing accuracy was 65.7%, which was lower than everyone on both teams with the exception of Glover and Coburn, who for obvious reasons you'd expect to be the worst.  The other defenders were mid 80%'s, and Jones on the other side was 81.8%, and Bangura before he went off was 80%..  So my comments about his passing were fair would you say?  He did almost put them in with a poor back pass, which he has done a few times now in different games so that was fair comment.  Finally, he made 6 attempted tackles last night but only won the ball twice.  So again, the jumping in for challenges comment seems about right as well.  That was all I said negatively about him.  I also said he worked manfully, made lots of clearances (8 only Fry made more with 12), and didn't let us down at all.  I don't think that's the worst thing that has ever been written on here about a player.

I can say Giles was better defensively than Engel so far by watching them play, and watching Engel struggle with some basic defensive stuff.  He's made numerous errors that have lead to goals we've conceded this season, and a bit like used to happen with Howson, other players end up getting the blame for things that Engel has really been responsible for.  I suspect a little of what is going on with Engel is that he played so poorly against Sheff Wed that almost any performance is better by comparison but that's a silly way of looking at it.  That was him at his absolute very worst, I'd be surprised if he'd played a poorer game in his life tbh.  To me it's really simple and that is that he's learning on the job, he's learning how to be a defender, probably the mental aspects rather than anything else.

[Erimus74 5,353 5.5k]

20 years ago we won the cup

Leap year

Beat fellow London Arsenal darlings & massive favourites home & away over both legs

Won the 1st leg at Arsenal 1-0

[Changing Times 16,078 23.1k]

8 hours ago, Mfcdanny said:

Match rating I’m talking about is Sofascore which is based on match stats. Engel 2nd to fry. I don’t like to look at stats a lot but this time I agree with it because o agree with the ratings. I just think it’s a bad way to put it saying he was the worst when everyone defended brilliantly imo. You’re right about giles pace but that’s all he had over Engel defensively. Engel is decent in the air and better in a tackle. I’m just glad we seem to have replaced giles between Engel and Bangura. Hopefully do the same at RB in the summer. 

Ok but if match ratings from these sites are what we're basing things then let's have a look at a few other things and tell me if you agree with those as well.  Boro's best player on Whoscored this season is......Isaiah Jones.  I find it difficult to believe that everyone would agree with that, even I don't, and I seem to be one of the few that like the lad.  How about this one, Fry has been better than VDB and Clarke this season. How many people would agree with that do you think?  Greenwood better than Rogers?  Barlaser better than Hackney?  Rating sites like that have inbuilt biases in them as far as I can tell, which is one reason I don't really pay any attention to them.

[Borodane 7,956 27.6k]

1 hour ago, Old Codger said:

I agree with your last sentence but you can hardly accuse Josh and Matt as being prone to rolling around. On more than one occasion, they both got clattered and as lads who are clearly willing to play when not 100% fit, a little protection wouldn't go amiss. Like you, I want as few interruptions to the game as possible, but there are players who are relatively honest and when an individual of that sort stays down, it needs checking out, not just ignoring. As always, happy to agree to disagree, but thought he let a little too much go at times      

But you can’t expect the refs to keep check on every player who’s relatively honest and who’s not. Who gets special treatment and the game is stopped immediately in what is a fair challenge. The players were checked out but it just took 20 extra seconds before the ball was in a neutral area. Very often a team under so much pressure like boro were will have players that stay down a bit longer especially when they are very tired. If it’s a head injury you stop but if it’s something innocuous you let the game play on and see if he comes up again. But I suppose we disagree 😀

[Mfcdanny 1,101 1.1k]

18 minutes ago, Changing Times said:

Firstly, I didn't actually say he played poorly, I said he was the 'worst' of our defenders.  Maybe 'less good' would have been a better way of putting it.  As our defenders were really the only players who played genuinely well then he'd have been better than half the team, which is pretty good going.  I don't really care what everyone else says.  Two weeks ago our team was crap apparently, and half of them needed replacing.  Now in the euphoria of last night everyone is brilliant.  It's not me that constantly changes his opinions, its lots of other people who go from one extreme to another, often in the space of a few games.

Going to back to last night, I said that Engel jumped in for a few challenges he had no chance of getting, almost put them in with a poor pass, and gave the ball away too often and in some poor ways.  A quick look at the stats today show the following: His passing accuracy was 65.7%, which was lower than everyone on both teams with the exception of Glover and Coburn, who for obvious reasons you'd expect to be the worst.  The other defenders were mid 80%'s, and Jones on the other side was 81.8%, and Bangura before he went off was 80%..  So my comments about his passing were fair would you say?  He did almost put them in with a poor back pass, which he has done a few times now in different games so that was fair comment.  Finally, he made 6 attempted tackles last night but only won the ball twice.  So again, the jumping in for challenges comment seems about right as well.  That was all I said negatively about him.  I also said he worked manfully, made lots of clearances (8 only Fry made more with 12), and didn't let us down at all.  I don't think that's the worst thing that has ever been written on here about a player.

I can say Giles was better defensively than Engel so far by watching them play, and watching Engel struggle with some basic defensive stuff.  He's made numerous errors that have lead to goals we've conceded this season, and a bit like used to happen with Howson, other players end up getting the blame for things that Engel has really been responsible for.  I suspect a little of what is going on with Engel is that he played so poorly against Sheff Wed that almost any performance is better by comparison but that's a silly way of looking at it.  That was him at his absolute very worst, I'd be surprised if he'd played a poorer game in his life tbh.  To me it's really simple and that is that he's learning on the job, he's learning how to be a defender, probably the mental aspects rather than anything else.

Maybe just try and lighten up abit mate and enjoy that we won against PL opposition in a semi final instead of looking through numerous stats to prove a point. 

[Changing Times 16,078 23.1k]

Just now, Mfcdanny said:

Maybe just try and lighten up abit mate and enjoy that we won against PL opposition in a semi final instead of looking through numerous stats to prove a point. 

You brought stats up you daft bugger, not me 🤷‍♂️

[Mfcdanny 1,101 1.1k]

Yeh and you dismissed the stat site I use them reeled out loads of your own 😂

[timlloyd 18 56]

9 hours ago, JCWamma said:

For avoidance of doubt, if we're runners up and Liverpool win and get a spot in Europe, the place will go to the highest-placed Premier League team not in Europe, not to us.

So I guess we'd better win!

So if we get to the final against Liverpool and if we get beat the Geordies could get to Europe.  A chilling thought 

[Changing Times 16,078 23.1k]

Just now, Mfcdanny said:

Yeh and you dismissed the stat site I use them reeled out loads of your own 😂

I didn't dismiss the stat site you used.  The stats on there are the same I put on here.  I dismissed the idea of using their ratings though cos they are nonsense.  I only used the stats to show that my actual comments last night about his performance were accurate that's all, which seems fair enough if I'm being told that I'm wrong.