Premier League Week 2

Chester sent off for Hull. Spurs leading 1-0

Lloris is some keeper. I daresay he would have dealt with those crosses that caused us so many problems yesterday.

I think that is an area that Roberto has to work on, Michael; we need a vocal dominant keeper. For all his positive attributes and likeable personality, Howard needs to be properly challenged for his position — and reading his reasons for suspending his international career and his intent on finishing with football in a few years time doesn't fill me with confidence that the necessary hunger is there.

I know times have changed but I imagine that Big Nev never put a time-scale on when his career would be over and just knew it instinctively, whereas Howard, by putting a definite end-date on his career, could find himself becoming de-mob happy a lot earlier than he should. I don't know where Everton would find a keeper with the right attitude and one who hates conceding a goal – any goal in any game – but it is about time we started to look for one.

Jelavic opens the scoring against Stoke. We should never have sold him. :)

The Mail on Sunday reports Pete Cech to leave Chelsea due to losing his place in the team. He could be worth a bid, as I said yesterday, and was somewhat put down by one or two for suggesting it.

As I also said, there is no place for loyalty in football, and if Howard is not performing then he must be replaced. Don’t get me wrong, I think he is an excellent goalkeeper, but for me the one point of his game that lets him down is his dominance of his penalty area. You very rarely see him coming to the edge of his penalty area to collect a cross, and he should certainly be in complete control of his 6-yard box. These are two areas where I think Cech excels.

Another important aspect for a goalkeeper is being vocal. Although it is very difficult to hear a goalkeeper during a game, there are, I’m sure, instances when Howard is not loud enough on his shouts. I remember one game in particular, at Newcastle when I think Heitinga scored an own goal, when quite clearly the ball was Howard’s to collect, but there cannot have been a shout, or a loud enough shout, from Howard.

All 3 of spurs goals came from crosses. Spurs offering Dawson plus cash for Remy.

Spurs up 3-0 at the half, should be 4 and could be 5. They certainly look a different team under Pochettino. QPR are trying to play a back 3 and it isn't working but still you can add the Spurs into the top 4 fight as we'll. Lamela is one heck of a player.

Sorry to be negative but that's 4 points Spurs have on us already after 2 games... I'm still pissed off about yesterday!

But I suppose they have played inferior teams... I think I have answered my own statement in some way!

Poor Hull: 10 men just about the entire game and Stoke equalize in the 82nd minute on a bad call by the ref. Stoke given a thrown in that should have gone to Hull, leading to the equalizer.

Early days but Spurs look a different team this season. Pace and intensity plus (are you listening Roberto) well conditioned players.

Battle for top 4 is gonna be very tight this season and I just hope we are still in the running come March/April like last season. If we beat Chelsea, then we can call it a good start to the season, I think. Anything else and we will already be playing catch up.

Be interesting to see how Rodwell does for Sunderland today. Did we miss a trick or not?

Excellent header by Rodwell for the equalizer.

Happy for Rodwell. Good luck to him.

Nice to see Jack smiling again. He deserves to have a good career.

And the Shite have just gone 2-0 down.

I was gutted when City signed Jovetic as I was always a big fan of his when he was at Fiorentina.

Happy for him to destroy Liverpool as long as he doesn't do the same to us! Great player.

2-0 to City
Suck on that Brenda.

3-0.. Aguero, been on the field 10 seconds

3-0.. Aguero, been on the field 10 seconds

This is too easy!!

He He He!!!!

Man City. Now thats attacking options Dzeko, Silva, Aguero, Jovetic, Nasri, Navas, Negrado, Toure.

Rob Halligan...after our start...why are you crowing?

That Lovren looks a bargain. Moreno as well.

Just wish we could set our own agenda through our own achievements...that's progression...when you (genuinely) don't care about the Kopites.

Anyone else think Gerrard is looking finished? He throws shapes, but the real substance has gone.

Great to see the shite getting battered. Brendas done a great job of spunking Sewerats funds.

Haven’t seen us ripped apart James, and also believe we are still unbeaten.

Don’t know where you live but I work with the horrible shits and believe me it’s great when they get tonked because they can’t take it.

If man city at 3-0 can bring on a defensive midfielder for a striker with 10 minutes to go.. Why couldn't we!

From Liverpool Rob..come from a mixed family too...I know their bad ways just like you...but hey, we're everton - we have class......don't we?

That Aguero is some player, one of the best I've ever seen!

God, theres some miserable sods on here, talk about Victor Meldrew.
James 22, yeah we've made a disastrous start, drew away at Leicester which will seem a good result over the next few months + a draw with a top 4 side in Arsenal, far from bad results in my view.

The Citeh defence is doing a pretty good job of undoing their previous good work.

No doubt their fansites will shortly be full of reactionaries claiming Kompany and Zabaleta are just not good enough and they should be after Vlaar, Shawcross and Dawson to put things right.

Guess I got more reason to hate them more than you then James. Most of my family, including uncles etc, are mostly blues.

If we CAN get our act together then 4th is very possibly. This liverpool side is like Spurs last season, new players thrown in. Will be interesting to see how they cope if they pick a long term injury to Stirling or Sturridge.

Not sure how we can get our act together Kunai, especially with this fitness problem. The back four, McCarthy and Naismith seem ok for 90 minutes but I'm not sure about the rest. We can only bring on three sets of fresh legs and sometimes tactics dictate that one or two of the worst strugglers are left on. It happened the other day. 10 minutes into the second half Osman's legs visibly wilted followed shortly by Barry who began running on empty. I'm not going into all the subsequent events. They've been well covered. All I'm saying is getting our act together is easier said than done and a high level of fitness would certainly help. Looking at Zabaleta, Silva, Nasri, Kompany, Ya Ya Toure & co, buzzing here there and everywhere, makes one wonder what on earth is going on at Finch Farm.

Bloody hell Harold! You are talking as if they all have some sort of terminal fitness problem!

The answer is simple: get them trained, but whereas Moyes had them super-fit by the opening day, they often wilted later in the season, whereas the Martinez way is a more gradual build up that lasts better over the course of a season.

Patience is needed. The season is only 9 days old, 9 months still to go.

Karl. Sorry mate. I watched the full match again and got a bit depressed. The Premier League is always my main focus and points dropped now are seldom regained.

All the same, I do appreciate your point about body conditioning and getting players to peak at certain times of the year. Unfortunately, the necessary rest periods are only possible with strong replacements in every position and we may need a few more bodies before the window closes.