Apologies for resurrecting an older thread, but the aftermath of the Sheffield game is really bothering me now.
In this unusual season we've gotten close to mounting a challenge, which didn't seem possible at the start of the campaign. We have, in my opinion, played some of our best football in a good while, and when we click we've been a joy to watch.
Was really hoping we'd be able to keep building and put some genuine pressure on City, and it's really frustrating that we've gotten close, but not close enough. When we look back will the home defeat to Sheffield be viewed as the turning point? It's possible. We had more than enough in us to win the game, and though we shouldn't be relying on refs, there's no denying that we were hard done by on the night; their goal clearly shouldn't have stood, and we had a perfectly valid goal ruled out. Decisions don't get much more lopsided than that, and what a defining moment it could turn out to be.
There's a lot of ifs and buts in sport, but Sheffield (loss), Everton (draw) and West Brom (draw) are three games in a short spell that we really could and should have won. We could have played better in all three, but that doesn't change the feeling that the referees cost us two victories (Sheffield and West Brom), and we shot ourselves in the foot against Everton after having been the better side for long periods.
Those three fixtures have now cost us seven points. To put that into perspective, we'd be level on points with City (having played a game more), seven points ahead of Leicester and a whopping 13 points clear of Liverpool. But it isn't just the points. This is a game of small margins and had we managed to get over the line in those fixtures, I can only imagine how high we'd now be riding in terms of morale, fitness and overall level of performance. We'd all be experiencing a buzz we've not felt in a long, long time.
Instead, it hasn't happened and those little things going against us has resulted in heads dropping. We've lost a yard in pace, the passing and moving has slowed, and performances throughout the team have waned.
Hadn't anticipated being up among the top teams at all this season, and having gotten so close, it's so annoying to see it fizzle out in the way it is doing. I hope we can pick ourselves up again and go on a run, but it's going to take some effort now.
