feck this, we could and should have won it. I applaud Ole choosing to give James a start today. And while he didn't have a good game, I'm still happy to see him start, yes, even with knowing the result. In the long run, throwing him into hell might just be the experiences he needs to grow, but should have subbed him by 70 mins. Within 5 mins of the PK should have been the timing to make big changes. We lost all momentum, our players are young and naturally frustrated and aren't going to make good decisions. We needed fresh blood. I guarantee our bench today was just as frustrated themselves watching and are all dying to get on the pitch with their own ideas. Instead Ole sub in Mata at 80mins! Should have subbed him in at 70 mins along with Greenwood. We had no fecking control of the match, Mata practically didn't get involved until 88 mins, so wtf was the point? Rashford clearly lost his cool, and without possession, nothing was happening, he should have been subbed. Perreira didn't get to play in the end. He's not some 17 years old you throw in to get cameo mins. We're drawing the game, a game we can win, we shouldn't be doing lip service subs.
Overall, a very disappointing game. I didn't think we played terribly, in fact, we were decent, but I can't help but feel Ole screwed this one up. The players did what they could. Sometimes when you aren't having the best of games, you'll need someone else to help you out, it's not a problem that can be solved by yourself. And that's Ole's job to identify and deal with it.