Morning all, the dust has begun to settle a bit after Sunday's game against Swansea. We now have a week to take stock, regroup and prepare ourselves for the game against United on Sunday.

A lot has been said about the litany of injuries we've suffered, meaning players are being played out of position which affects our normal game and so on.

Having last week ruminated in full on the state of our rearguard this season; this week's column will meditate on the performance further up the pitch. Taking in the oily machinery of the midfield engine room, through to the leather upholstery and walnut gear knobs up top. (Or in some cases, those big seats on the bench that look like they've been half inched from the McLaren showroom).

Last week I touched upon our feeling as supporters around the squad; how the bonhomie appears to have improved. This both between the players and according to the respect that radiates out from fans compared with six months ago. I met little opposition to the supposition that the supporters were more tolerant with this more experienced roster than last year's.