{"id":21967,"date":"2018-03-17T13:30:24","date_gmt":"2018-03-17T13:30:24","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.thehighertempopress.com\/?p=21967"},"modified":"2018-03-17T12:55:36","modified_gmt":"2018-03-17T12:55:36","slug":"beating-nuno-chapter-six","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.thehighertempopress.com\/2018\/03\/beating-nuno-chapter-six\/","title":{"rendered":"Beating Nuno: Chapter Six: Twelve Unbeaten & Counting"},"content":{"rendered":"
Good day to one and all and welcome back to the latest chapter of \u2018Beating Nuno\u2019, by now you should all know what\u2019s going on and what this all about, however, if you are a new reader of this book (that\u2019s right, a book), let me refer you to the prologue<\/a> which will explain everything. Last time out<\/a>, it finished with Nuno and I locked on sixty-five points each, with my FM side edging it ever so slightly on goal difference. <\/span><\/p>\n Factually speaking, this game had more home games than away so it should be an easier month, albeit, football sometimes works in wonderful & weird ways, so let\u2019s dive straight into the action.<\/span><\/p>\n We begin at Molineux where the Blades of Sheffield United were in the opposing corner and going into the game, there was a feel-good factor as Nuno had just completed the signing of Wolves old boy Benik Afobe until the end of the season on a loan deal from Bournemouth. <\/span><\/p>\n It was a late kick-off under the lights in WV1 and Nuno didn\u2019t disappoint<\/a> as his side <\/span>won 3-0<\/b> which ensured that the ball was firmly back in my court. How could I compete against a 3-0 win in which Nuno\u2019s side played total football at times? <\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n That\u2019s how. As we were level on points, goal difference was going to be a key factor so when we blitzed Sheffield United with six first-half goals, as you can probably imagine, I was chuffed. Probably the craziest thing about the game was that despite scoring seven, their keeper still got a rating of six which tells you that it could have and perhaps should have been double figures. That bumped our goal difference up to +38 and more importantly, we were now six goals ahead of Nuno. <\/span><\/p>\n Revenge is a dish I enjoy. Well, providing it\u2019s me eating it. It was just that which was on the menu as QPR were next up in the Black Country; earlier in the season, October to be precise, the \u2018Hoops\u2019 got the better of me and Nuno as we both succumbed to defeat. <\/span>Nuno won 2-1 <\/b>and ensured that he got his own back<\/a>, it was now over to us. We needed a win for revenge, but also to keep pace with Nuno\u2019s side.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n We were getting into the habit of scoring in the first half and then relaxing a bit more in the second half. It\u2019s not ideal, albeit if we keep on winning, who am I to complain? I stuck with the same XI that swept away Sheffield United with the exception of the two wing-backs as keeping those fresh is imperative for the system that we play. What that also meant was Connor Ronan still couldn\u2019t get a look in as Saiss and Neves were controlling the games as well for me as they were for Nuno. It\u2019s a nice problem to have, I\u2019ll be honest. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Nuno had a slight advantage over me when it came to the next game. Due to our heroics at the Etihad last time out, we had an FA Cup on the 17th of February away at Reading whereas that\u2019s when Nuno\u2019s side faced Preston in the league. <\/span><\/p>\nStart As You Mean To Go On<\/strong><\/h2>\n
Thick & Fast<\/strong><\/h2>\n