We all know this team performs better against the top sides as opposed to the teams around them. Sadly last week was the most stark example of that dichotomy. Hopefully 7th placed Manchester United are still a big enough of a fish for the lads to be up for it this weekend.
It’s easy to question the desire of the players or their toughness. Over the past year and a half, this team has, in fact, won difficult games in difficult circumstances. Notably, last year the club ground out a series of results when all looked lost. How can you marry the team’s ability to pull the fat out of the fire and their knack of playing their best against the best?
The common thread is that this team only performs when expectations are at their lowest. Against Chelsea nobody expected anything, and the team put in the best performance of the Lambert era. Before the Norwich City game, the club had suitably lowered expectations after a month or so of uninspired play. Then, after those two wins, expectations crept up again and we saw what happened there.
In the past it appeared the team buckled under the weight of expectations. Last week felt more like a case of the players starting to believe their own hype. After a beautifully worked goal from open play – a relative rarity – the team’s celebration was rather subdued. Five minutes into the game, I wouldn’t expect guys to rip off their shirts, but they looked like they expected to score and to win.
That in and of itself would’ve been fine, but as soon as Stoke counterpunched, the weight of expectations crushed them. Down at home they couldn’t muster a shot on target for over 70 minutes.
Do we look like a club with the ability to win the league? Nobody expects that, but going into year three of the Lambert Project, the expectations will be, and should be, higher. For the club to kick on from their current state of mediocre to average, they have to learn to deal with expectations.
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