I'm just talking about fans' opinions. If Fryatt misses one-one-ones in 3 consecutive games, it's the midfield's fault for not giving him service. But if Altidore fails to score when he doesn't get a chance he's crap, that obviously doesn't add up. Again, I'm not knocking Fryatt or NP, just saying fans will pick their heroes and villains, but it isn't always that simple. Yeah like I said PB hardly ever played Altidore and JVoH together that season, or 4-4-2 for that matter. But when he did we showed some promising signs. That Wolves game was one example, and Chelsea at home was another occasion.
Altidore wasn't crap, but he wasn't great either. Considering the size of the fella, he rarely out-muscled anyone and his biggest contribution was often the free kicks he was awarded when he decided to hit the deck. He certainly wasn't helped by the team selections, we saw a great performance from Altidore/Ghilas, then they were never paired together again and as has been mentioned, he was rarely played alongside JVoH either. Brownies stubborn refusal to switch from 4-5-1(often playing ***an or Garcia as lone striker), despite the poor results it was achieving, was baffling to say the least.
OLM, can I ask a genuine question? Well another one... Did you not rate PB at all? This what I gauge from your comments regarding him and his selections? Just wondered?
I rated him when he came in, he did a great to keep us up and get us promoted and I still like him as a bloke. I've wished him well on the Preston board and told them I expect him to take them back up, but he lost the plot in the last eighteen months with us. The success went to his head, his ego got the better of him and his signings, team selections and tactics in the second PL season(and the latter part of the first) were exceptionally poor.
I'd probably go with that, but he will always be a LEG-END in my book. Top bloke, great personality but I have to say I agree he went on a bit of a power trip towards the end and loved himself tiny bit too much.
Now that's more like the lambrettaman I remember....-agree with this and the comment on Jozy not being linked up with the right people- what a superb 20 minutes of a lesson he and Ghilas gave Bolton, and then they never played together again- shows that way too often it is wrong to look at individual's performances in isolation - an ordinary player in one team, outstanding in another simply for partner xyz being involved. This is why we love the game- we can discuss ifs and buts forever...
He will always be held in high esteem for the simple fact he achieved what no other manager in the history of Hull City had managed to do, and that was get us in the top flight. But despite egos and whatever else I think it was a mistake to sack him and bring in Iain Dowie, I still believe that Brown would have kept us in the top flight. The financial side of things might have been even more horrendous by then though.
[video=youtube;WHw5VNr5sjc]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WHw5VNr5sjc&feature=share[/video] For those who haven't seen it...
For me Altidore is clearly a winger and I dont understand why nobody else sees it. He was always, without exception, at his best and most dangerous when running with the ball at his feet. Defenders - and good ones mind - were terrified of him and didnt know what to do and he also has a terrific cross on him. It is only the fact that he simply isnt a natural goalscorer that means he'll never quite make it as a striker. I honestly dont get why nobody has tried him out on the wing or at least wide as part of a front three. Is it because he has the classic build of a centre forward that people assume he should play there?
