December 2023

December 2023
During the month of December, Yeovil Town F.C played 7 League matches, 1 Europa League match and 1 FA Cup match.

Premier League: MD15
"The perfect response. Signed, sealed and delivered!

Callum will rightfully take all of the plaudits for his 4-goals, but Antonee Robinson and Ward-Prowse were unstoppable down the flanks today! 2 assists each and that's the least they deserve.

Elliot Carter, who was promoted from our academy a couple of seasons back, has been in and around the team for a while now. I genuinely believe, out of all of the kids we have had come through, he will be the first to make it. His technical ability is nearly on par with James and although he lacks physical prowess, he is still only 20-years old and his body is developing. I am excited by his potential and playing AM today he really showed what he is capable of.

And he's going to feature even more now. Lasse Sorensen was substituted off in the first half and we think he'll miss a couple of months, and Callum injured himself as he scored his fourth. He'll probably miss most of the month. Meaning we are spread incredibly thin right now. We have some decisions to make. But otherwise, I am thrilled with that performance and we have something to build on for the rest of the month.

Congratulations to Isaac Hayden on winning EPL POTM!"

Europa League Group Stage: MD6
"In spite of the result, that actually wasn't that bad of a performance for us. Least we forget that we set-up with players who aren't first-team regulars. Perhaps sentimentality got the best of me tonight. Rogers, James, Sowunmi and Ojo all made their first European appearances for the season and I think they really put in a spirited performance! Tom, in particular, would have been upset with the own goal, but then immediately notched an assist and nearly had a second towards the end.

I can't say who will be here for much longer. It's there call as much as mine. I am happy to have them around though, but they just need to be content with fewer minutes. We're on the brink of achieving something special here and they deserve to be here once we get there.

I am not bothered about the result. Tonight was a fun match. Now we can focus on our league form for the rest of the month and soon we will reach the halfway point. That's a good opportunity to take stock and discover how this squad might evolve."

Premier League: MD16
"Let's take a moment to appreciate that we played on Thursday, after a trip to Portugal. Today is Sunday and on Tuesday, we play Liverpool. I had to play a rotated team and the reason I pulled off key players at half-time was to have them available for Anfield.

This is considered normal in England, but it's not fair. What astonishes me more is that it's 2023 and we're still behind all the other major leagues as the FA refuse to give us a winter break...

All we can do is just accept this loss and move on to the next game. Chelsea are 2-points behind us now so Tuesday is a huge game for us."

Premier League: MD17
"I suppose that the result was fair. It was in our hands for the majority of the game, but when Klopp brought on Mane, Salah and Robertson, it completely changed the game. They simply had better firepower than us from the bench and that was what turned this game.

Such was my lack of options that today I gave Marwin Reuvers his first league start of the season. I brought him to the club in July 2019 for a lowly £500,000 (well, low now. At the time it was a huge fee!). He's 24 now and he has struggled to adapt to this level. That's fine. It happens. But his service to the club can not be understated. It is likely he will leave us in January and I am glad he went out with a performance like today. Scoring at Anfield is no easy task!

We have a small period to rest and then it's Manchester United!"

Premier League: MD18
"I'm disappointed. We should have won this match because we were in control for the majority of the game. But once again, we let our lead slip. This is a problem for us and it's something that we urgently need to address. I feel like this has been the case for so long now. It gets to a point where we just need to actually act and stop talking.

The snow didn't help either team. Though I did remind them that I was known as the iceman for how prolific I was in snowy conditions back in Germany, so they didn't really have an excuse! But we just have to move on. Chelsea are equal on points now and we might live to regret this sloppiness."

Premier League: MD19
"I am tired. We had the clean sheet in the bag. It was there. I am pleased with the result, genuinely. But we get so close each time.

We now have a game every 3-days from today to take us up to Stevenage in the FA Cup. There's no time to sulk. We got the points."

Premier League: MD20
"I'm feeling better about the team now. We have one fixture left for December and then a sense of normality can return. It looked like we would be in for a long afternoon once they scored early but we managed to get a grip on the game shortly after and I think we played well in breaking down their wall. Callum was a game-changer from the bench and doesn't look like the short layoff did his confidence any harm. 15-goals for the season now and we're only at the halfway mark. If he can stay fit, then he could potentially reach 30-goals and act as a direct replacement for Lovre Benkovic, which was always the aim. But to actually do it is incredibly difficult. We set the target of 20-goals for him so anything beyond that is good enough for us!

Marwin Reuvers since my previous comments has become a different player. 2-assists today and the MOTM award. Does this change anything? Not exactly. We have to plan for the future. We will see what January brings."

Premier League: MD21
"Last game of the year in the Premier League and I think it really summed up what we have been about this season. Plenty of goals, fluid football and yet still so prone to conceding through our own errors and often so quickly after scoring ourselves.

James took a beautiful freekick to round off the game, but I was seriously impressed with Callum and Elliot Carter who both bagged an assist in the game. Now we welcome Stevenage in the third round of the FA Cup which is a match I am very excited about! To help cover us, this week Christiaan Bakker and Jay Lewis have been training with the first team this week. Christiaan is 17-years old, Dutch and can play anywhere across the front three. He is very rough around the edges but he's a decent dribbler. Jay is an English centre-back and he is also 17. We already have a number of defensive players out on loan, and he will mostly join them next season. But like Callum Davis before him, we are interested in his potential. These next 6-months could be huge for his personal development so we will see where we are a little later down the line.

This was also encouraged by the news of Daley Blind announcing his plans to retire at the end of the season. Even though he is just 33-years old, he wants to go out on a high. This season, we've been using him from the bench to shut down matches and he has been filling in at CB, LB and DM. It's tough to make up for losing such a versatile player, but hopefully, he can work with Christiaan and Jay personally before he moves into a coaching role with us!"

FA Cup: Round 3
"Flashbacks to almost a year ago to the day... It's on me for not taking the competition that seriously. I do want a good run in the FA Cup, but for this season, our priorities are elsewhere.

With that said, we should not be letting them score this many against us. They were spirited and determined and for them, the victory meant more. That's what happened.

But on the bright side, Christiaan Bakker had a brilliant debut! 2 goals and an assist. He knows that he's not going to get a lot of opportunities this season and we may even look for a loan for him (Sigurdsson begins training with the first team again next week so we should be alright for cover now), so he had nothing to lose today. Certainly showed a lot of promise, as did Jay Lewis! Callum tried to make things happen at the end of the game, but for all of his trouble, he picked up a knock. We think it's mostly just a contact injury and he should be alright for Chelsea at the start of next month!

YeoLaTengo Monthly Review
Talk about mixed emotions! From emphatic victories against Burnley, a heavy defeat against Porto which was followed by 3 disappointing results, only to string together a series of wins that maintained our standing at the top of the table. Only to end the month by being outplayed by Stevenage!

When you think about it, all of which is reflective of this team as a whole. Plenty of drama, goals and sloppy defending. The defensive titans of a few seasons back is now a distant memory as we struggle to keep teams out.

There is an obvious winner for this month's stand-out player, but special credit needs to be paid to Elliot Carter. Stepping into the side to cover for the injured Sigurdsson, his qualities really brought the team together. An excellent passer and finisher of the ball, if he keeps performing well, he might be the next heir to the Attacking-Midfielder throne which is a position we have long struggled to find a permanent solution for.

Europa League Group L came to its natural conclusion this month. A disappointing defeat, but we managed to top the group and pick up a favourable fixture when the competition commences again in February! Here's how the table looked:

December was tough and dragged on but in the end, we maintain a 5-point gap at the top of the table and look set to have a good run in Europe. It's still too early to entertain the idea of winning the league. Especially after some questionable form on display this month. Perhaps come the end of February we can see where we are and establish a realistic expectation for the end of the season!

YeoLaTengo Player of the Month
Callum Hudson-Odoi. Despite starting slow and picking up an injury, he has shot up the top-scorers table and doesn't look to be slowing down anytime soon! His 4-goals against Burnley being a career highlight since joining the club, he looks set to hit the 30-goals tally for the season!

League Table Preview
A snapshot of Yeovil Town in the Premier League, with the teams in close proximity.