Well Well

Gillespie good stopper but just can’t release the ball quickly when we can break

Gallagher header over bar from resultant corner

Cole turns peepee in the centre as we push on almost putting long in. Better pressure . Two good chances missed there

Another great save by Gillespie as we manage to lose about three powder puff tackles in a row in front of our own goal

Is Gillespie under order not to play the ball out quickly but wait 10 minutes then roll to Dunne to hoof it up the park? Every single time. Fans getting a bit frustrated

Tame shot by long straight to keeper. Cole now on for hylton

Looks like Cole is coming on, nope told to sit back down

I love dunne but if we are relying on him to play out from the back every single time we are going nowhere every ball is up in the air. Livi defenders lapping it up. Although Tait through there but tame shot straight at keeper

Great wing play from seedorf wins another corner

We win a corner because we used our wingers for once

Scott was getting deeper and deeper just to collect the ball . Not his fault as we have been very disjointed. Gillespie has done well but we need someone to dictate play as too many are watching the game bypass. Livi players certainly and literally making their mark on the Motherwell players

Seediorf on for illic. Scott just been subbed for Long

I would be happy to dig that shit pitch up for them but they seem to pass the ball ok on the deck it’s us refusing to do so or can’t

The best part of this is our support once again brilliant. Great tribute to McGrillen as well

Need to get ball on deck and use our wingers. They are getting nothing to work with. James Scott is coming almost to centre circle to get the ball

Half time 0-0 god knows how. Need a much more composed 2nd half with some actual tactics

Ffs backs to the walls here. Another great save from Gillespie when livi through one on one but then chases livi player around the box. Mental

Sadly livi are streetwise and getting much better chances

Overhead kick there putout for a corner by Gillespie. Again saves us again for another corner

As soon as we start passing on the deck we look good and apply pressure.so stop reverting back to this crap

Can’t believe I am sitting through here and watching hoofball again. WTF. Never done it through league cup group but we are doing this pish again. First 15 minutes carbon copy of keeper to Dunne. Long ball up park. About 5 times in a row.

Reece McAlear has left Motherwell to join Norwich City on a permanent basis, subject to international clearance. The 17-year-old will join the East Anglian side after 13 months as a professional at Fir Park. Motherwell tried to secure the player on a longer contract during the summer, but it was clear that any extended stay beyond May 2020 was extremely unlikely. Despite that, several approaches from Norwich were rejected, before terms were finally agreed on a deal which gives the club a short-term cash injection, coupled with the ability to claim future money should the player develop further. “It is very much our hope that the player development pathway we provide at Motherwell results in our academy graduates progressing to professional level, then eventually into the first team,” chief executive Alan Burrows explained. “We had high hopes for Reece. He was getting closer and closer and indeed, played several first-team friendly matches during pre-season. We had positive conversations with the player, his family and his representatives about extending his stay. “However, it was clear this was an opportunity Reece wanted to explore and probably would’ve explored, when his contract expired at the end of the season, had we not managed to agree a deal with Norwich now. “This will see the club secure cash in advance, as well as maintaining some economic rights should his career continue to develop. “It also demonstrates clearly the excellent work of our scouting and coaching staff, and further emphasises Motherwell as the club for young footballers to progress.” Everyone at Motherwell FC would like to thank Reece for his time at Fir Park and wish him every success in his future career.

I am fascinated (I know very sad) how clubs spend millions of pounds literally on players to fit a particular formation favoured by a manager, which got me thinking about how formations can win or lose clubs famous trophies, championships and make or break managers. How did formations evolve over time? I began reading some stuff online which just made my head spin as I couldn't understand a lot of it. I remember as a young lad many years ago that every team always had two strikers and was rare to see this change until the modern area. We discuss how x and y players don't fit into a certain formation preferred by Robinson or that he has completely changed the formation that resulted in a negative run of form (like pre christmas last season) and how not getting the formation right, with the right players can cause huge financial implications for clubs. It could literally mean the club being relegated or worse go out of business. For me it seems that this is a huge factor in football when we talk about how we can finance the club moving forward never mind attracting a quality manager and players. However finance also reflects which way a manager chooses a particular formation as they may not have the money to play his preferred formation. I think maybe this is something that causes issues for Robinson. Not being a coach or manager I would guess the evolution of formations would be a massive subject for guys studying to be coaches and managers and how they approach their chosen profession.

The video of the goal is on the official twitter feed. Peach of a goal

I thought he was away to some Belgian club?