I have been confident we will win the league since November. The run that cost us the 7 point gap to City didn’t change this. The draw at Brentford didn’t change this. But yesterday’s performance and result did.
I still think we are the favourites and we can do it, but we will need luck with City’s form and injuries to go our way if we are to do so. Cracks are showing in our recent performances that weren’t there before. It also feels like it is all psychological.
I was half-hoping we would get a tough away draw in the FA Cup and be eliminated. Rice has spoken about the mental fatigue, and it clearly impacts the players. Their midweeks off are non-existent, and they can’t switch off for a couple of days to recover mentally. Even when we rotate properly against the likes of Wigan, the first team trains before the game, sits on the bench, and has cameos.
The upcoming international break is welcome for a change. I hope, for once, we act like a big club and pull the likes of Rice, Timber, and Zubi out, but I can’t see us doing it.
Wins against Spurs and Chelsea have now become an absolute must. We will be favourites in both games, but it’s tough to have confidence in us handling the pressure.
