Yesterday was a bit of a surprise but we shouldn't be shocked. Yes, the transfers coming in have been good and pretty much everything the manager says is something you can agree with, although there is something I'm starting to hear a little too much and I hope it will soon stop, but that is another post and possible meme.
But these things take time and more than just a pre-season and a few new players. Yesterday however should act as a wake up call because in the final third we were too slow to act and didn't have that bit of magic or at the very least, quick thinking, that at this level you have to have.
And I'm not blaming anyone. We've gone into the season on the back of a pre-season that many tell me was excellent. But it was just pre-season and it means very very little to how we perform in the season and because of that, I don't watch or getting carried away by the media messages. My expectations are based on hope and optimism and as such I don't expect us to win every game this season.
And when I look at the side yesterday, this will possibly go against popular opinion, I see little that I'd change. Before the match my only gripe was that Buendia wasn't starting and I would have swapped him for Coutinho. After the match, I'd have played a 4-2-3-1 with Luiz instead of Bailey and Beundia instead of Coutinho.
Liverpool dropped points at Fulham yesterday also and newly promoted sides have something to prove. If after ten games we've not picked up fifteen points, I'll be slightly concerned, but I expect us to get there. That written, if after ten games we've got less than ten points, I'll be a little worried, but the performances on the pitch, not the results will be the deciding factor for me.
I write this because there is a difference between pre-season and the season and the players need to believe in each other and learn what works and what doesn't. We lost yesterday and we'll lose again before too long, but it's nothing to be concerned or worried about yet.