[Albion] Could the Forest debacle turn out to be a positive for our season?

[US Seagull]

That cancellation felt shady as shit.

Opening pre orders in November only to delay it weeks later and then cancel it. Icky behaviour.

Not to derail the thread, but my understanding was that all pre-orders were refunded.

Think what you want, but I absolutely don't think SI wanted this situation.

 

[Birdie Boy]

Quite possibly. Go back in time to the Chelsea Cup game where Bart spills that cross into his own net. After the 7-0, that was the moment the team could've folded, they had the perfect excuse. The fact they didn't, the work rate was phenomenal and we've scored 5 unanswered goals against Chelsea speaks volumes for the spirit that looked totally absent against Forest. Be honest. Who predicted 5 unanswered goals when that one went in? I'm certainly not making my way to the payout counter.

For a long time under RDZ we had the longest run for a team that didn't lose 2 in a row until the wheels came off at the back end of last season. We continued that by and large under FH (excluding Liverpool twice in a week which was more than forgivable) until Everton and Forest where something looked seriously up in both games. The turnaround in work rate, tactical shape, big managerial decisions (no João Pedro) and team ethic is a credit to the players and management. Burning those Forest tactics seems to have worked.

Uh, Brighton 2 Chelsea 1

 

[Stato]

We've looked good, but it's hard to say how much that is to do with how weak Chelsea currently are. It's certainly happened before though. Hughton singled out the Rotherham defeat in 2016. De Zerbi spoke of the 3-1 defeat at Man City as being key to the mentality change. We'll see over the next few games, but prioritising a solid defence seems a good platform. We don't need to over-commit. We need to frustrate and burst quickly, like Notts Forest did to us.

 

[aolstudios]

Prob best wait til after the Southampton match before judging tho eh. Just to be on the safe side...

Yeah, was the Saints match (& a Veltman injury) that kick off our last dire run of form!

 

[trueblue]

A watershed moment I think.

If you get smashed 7-0 and there's no serious talk within the club that the manager's under threat, there's no choice for players but to knuckle down and embrace the methods until the summer at least.

 

[NorthstandRacoon]

It's how you react to adversity. In effect there had been a bit of a malaise with poor games against Everton, West ham, palace, Brentford Fulham, southampton punctuated with strong performances against arsenal, Ipswich and utd. Forest forced a reckoning and tbf to FH and the players they've reacted positively; changed the formation, plan and attitude

I like the lack of capital p for palace,

 

[Thunder Bolt]

Yeah, was the Saints match (& a Veltman injury) that kick off our last dire run of form!

It’s a strange thing with Southampton. They tend to get their best results away to us, and we tend to play better away to them.

 

[The Optimist]

Uh, Brighton 2 Chelsea 1

Followed by Brighton 3 Chelsea 0 in the league. Which means after Chelsea’s opener in the FA Cup we scored 5 goals without reply.

 

[sydney]

If you can’t beat them:

View attachment 196821

Join them:

View attachment 196820

so what was the difference ..??

 

[sydney]

obviously we collectively had a wet one against forest ......always good to beat Chelsea , lets hope we don't do a 7 0 for a long time.

 

[Weststander]

Yes. I'd already thought that.

With players returning from injury part of it too.

 

[A1X]

Followed by Brighton 3 Chelsea 0 in the league. Which means after Chelsea’s opener in the FA Cup we scored 5 goals without reply.

And even that was a goal we basically gave them

 

[US Seagull]

I assume you mean Preston North End

But your point is spot on.

In 2025, so far we have played 8, won 5, drawn 1 lost 2.

Included in that are wins again Manchester United, Chelsea, Chelsea and Manchester United and a draw against Arsenal.
But some people are fixating on the outlier, rather than the norm.

Indeed. And by complete coincidence, or maybe Google really is literally looking at everything I look at on the web, this came up on my Google suggestions. Note: I did not search for PNE or undefeated football teams, or anything of the like.

 

[SeagullsoverLondon]

Pretty sure Arsenal did it in 2003/04

My pedantic point was that two teams have actually been undefeated over a whole league season (if you still believe football existed before August 1992).
And actually PNE are the only team to be undefeated over a whole season in 1888-89, having completed the original League and Cup Double, with the League Cup and European Champions League not yet in existence.

Arsenal lost to Man U, Middlesbrough and Chelsea that season in different Cup Competitions.

 

[Eeyore]

My pedantic point was that two teams have actually been undefeated over a whole league season (if you still believe football existed before August 1992).
And actually PNE are the only team to be undefeated over a whole season in 1888-89, having completed the original League and Cup Double, with the League Cup and European Champions League not yet in existence.

Arsenal lost to Man U, Middlesbrough and Chelsea that season in different Cup Competitions.

Although, to be further pedantic, I might counsel that Preston only played 22 matches in the league that season and that Southern teams still only had a fledgling status, despite advancing in the FA Cup

 

[ChickenDipper]

It actually could. It was that dismal it may have been the huge kick up the arse we needed. And hopefully Fab won’t be that stupid again.

 

[ChickenDipper]

We've looked good, but it's hard to say how much that is to do with how weak Chelsea currently are. It's certainly happened before though. Hughton singled out the Rotherham defeat in 2016. De Zerbi spoke of the 3-1 defeat at Man City as being key to the mentality change. We'll see over the next few games, but prioritising a solid defence seems a good platform. We don't need to over-commit. We need to frustrate and burst quickly, like Notts Forest did to us.

The thing is Chelsea were title contenders and flying until a few weeks back / turn of the year. But yes, they look poor at the moment. Next week is massive and we need to win.

 

[The Optimist]

I’m going to make a bold prediction. I think we’ll finish above Nottingham Forest.

 

[GoldstoneVintage]

I’m going to make a bold prediction. I think we’ll finish above Nottingham Forest.

Optimist by name, optimist by nature.

I so hope you're right!

 

[Harry Wilson's tackle]

Listening to what players like Joel Veltman and Jan Paul van Hecke have said since, it does sound like that horrible experience has served for the players to raise their standards (and, intensity, obvs) and really kick on.

Sure. Why not?
The right reaction from 'teams like Brighton?'
It is possible.

I seem to recall Liverpool shipping 7 to Villa not so long ago.
I wonder what happened to them