Written by canadiancherry
Given that there’s already a mammoth thread speculating on how the season might (or should) end, and
given that the official website just posted a bunch of photos of the players back at training, could it possibly be time to bring up some of the more usual arguments and quarrels about who should be playing? (if, in fact, the season does restart)
Some interesting things I noticed from the photos:
- players look skinnier! I wonder how many have weight gyms in their homes?
- It would be a nice touch if they all kept the COVID beards for at least the first game back.
- David Brooks is back! Less blonde, and very scrawny (but I guess he’s always been scrawny).
- Ryan Fraser the only one pictured wearing a mask. That thing looks so hot. Does this say something about his (a) trust of his teammates, or (b) commitment to the club, or (c) anything else?
- Danjuma also back (with a haircut, hopefully not from Jordon Ibe’s barber).
- Joshua King didn’t show up in the photos as I recall, nor did Harry Wilson.
No idea who should start the first game (if it happens), but here’s a stab from me (4-3-3):
Ramsdale
Stacey – Cook – Ake – Rico
Lerma – Gosling – Billing
Brooks – C Wilson – Danjuma
subs: Travers, A Smith, L Cook, Mepham, Daniels, Fraser(?), others
Your say…
kirsikka wrote…
Diego Rico or Jack Stacey starting ahead of Adam Smith just won’t happen. Adam Smith is the best right-back and left-back at the club so you can choose whoever else you want to play as fullback and then he plays the other one.
I think King was training in Norway and had expressed some concerns about the whole thing but could yet show up.
Steve Cook was on the beach with his family the day training started again and that he’d been unable to get the treatment his injury needed due to the restrictions in place. So he looks unlikely to be available.
I don’t think Charlie Daniels will be back in time. Even if he’s training it will be with a view to next season.
This is my guess as to what Eddie Howe will go for, not necessarily what I would choose:
Ramsdale
Stacey – S Francis – Ake – A Smith
H Wilson – Lerma – Billing – Brooks
King – C Wilson
Subs: Solanke, Fraser, Danjuma, Gosling/L Cook, Mepham, Rico, Boruc
I think we’ll be back in the classic 4-4-1-1 formation and go for the more attacking option of Stacey over Rico as we need the wins.
Either of Fraser or H Wilson could start, I guess a lot will depend on how training goes and trying to get inside Ryan’s head to see where he’s at. We need full throttle Fraser, not the third gear option. Any sign of that appearing and I would hope he wouldn’t even make the bench but it’s hard to completely exclude a proven Premier League match-winner. – Join the conversation, click here.
