How did Hooiveld play on sunday ? did there seem to be more understanding with Fonte ?a lot of people on here seemed very sceptical on his signing as they were obviously better managers than Adkins,,
So calm, solid, strong in the air, good distribution. I was impressed by him today. He even did a bit of showboating with a trick in the last few minutes .... Not sure he knew, but he did one! A small, speedy striker may cause him problems, but he reads the game so well and positionally he is excellent - he'll do for me at the moment.
He is still learning his role but his covering was definately better this week than last. I think it must be difficult as there is two newbies on the left of defence. By the end of the Cardiff game they will be bedded in or very near. The other newbie Fox, for me is trying just a tad too hard, he will settle in time.
i could see this potentially being a cheap addition to our squad in January.. another great bit of business.. Tht is if Hooiveld.. progresses to get better game in game out!
Great timing, to get a week off after the Forest game. Nigel has obviously worked on the understanding in defence & it has paid dividends.
Impressed with him,thing that i noticed yesterday was his calmness with the ball.Although i agree with someone here who said he might struggle with a little pacy striker but i'll happily be proved wrong.
Settled in very well and already signs of a good partnership between him and Fonte. Dare I say it, but starting to remind me a little bit of when Claus and Killer were at their best. Hooiveld (Killer) attacks the ball well, Fonte (Claus) sweeps up and intercepts.
i thought he was very solid yesterday, the two matches he's played in, he's won everything in the air.
Impressed with Hooverbag so far, and Jose was once again excellent. Just like last week, the threat seemed to come from our right/their left. Last week I put that down to Jack Cork not being a defender, this week Frazer Richardson also seemed to struggle a bit in that right back position. Now we just need a bit of consistency at the back for a few games and we can hopefully start keeping a few clean sheets. In the meantime, we'll just have to keep scoring more goals than the opposition.
Strange that you saw the game that way. In the first half Birmingham didn't threaten at all and Frazer put in two great balls for the second and third goals and in the second half I saw Birmingham's main threat as Burke down their right wing and even when they hit the post it was through the right-back Carr (before Lallana decided to start making a mug of him of course!!).
I thought Hooiveld was fantastic yesterday, centre of defence is a position that doesnt get the praise it deserves. Him and Fonte looked solid as a rock and look like they been playing together way longer than 2 games. I was one of the critics that said it was a panic loan because we didnt sign one of our targets....still thik it was however I am so pleased we did! I heard Merrington on the way out the ground, I know he is a bit of Saints history but he is a bit of a turkey isnt he! He was asked whether he would be first choice when we have a full compliment of centre backs available and he said "not neccessarily" well Dave I dont know what you have bee watching of late but there isnt anyone at the club I would rather have partnering Fonte! It was terrible what happened to Danny S and I thought he had made a good start but the amount of headers Jos wins and the calmness on the ball he brings to the defence is priceless at the moment and if he continues as he has played he will only get better and be a snip come January. Keeping him and Fonte fit this season with a few of the obvious (Rickie, Lala, Cork) will be essential, I think maybe a wage increase for the physio. Great game yesterday, really enjoyed it, was a little nervy for the first 10 mins of second half but we didnt panic and just kept playing our game. Well done Nige keep it up. One small negative... please tell Kelvin he is not an outfield player and to stick to what he does best and that is saving shots. Thought we were going to have take 2 of forrest match! COYR
In a game where we scored so many good team goals it isn't surprising that Hooiveld's performance might have stayed under the radar a little. For me he pushed hard for MOM as did Connolly. I thought they were both superb but i would have given it to JH as he did everything simply and made King look like the useless lump he really is. It's only 2 games in for him but if he performs like he did yesterday until Jan then definatley extend the loan at least. Ps for a big lad he's not that slow either.
When he was signed I did a little research on him and saw he has always been rated as someone with potential,,think people may have not realized how difficult it is to integrate into Scottish football especially at Celtic and Rangers,,so in think he could end up as Adkins best bit of business ,,only 2 games in and no one has posted a negative thread,,which for a CH is only good and promising news
Scottish football is a law into itself. Celtic & Rangers do have some good players (I think Naismith and Hooper could easily play in the Prem) but they also have some players that I think would struggle in league 1. Fans of both clubs exert a lot of pressure on their team and possibly more than at other clubs, don't give some players a decent chance. Plus Hooiveld has come from a club that is often in turmoil to one that is settled, mega confident and with fewer off field pressures/distractions. Going back to the point about Gary Hooper, as Adkins had him at Scunthorpe, I still reckon he could be a striker on Saints radar in January.
Jos impressed me. Mobile and good in the air, likes to play out from the back too. It's early days but if he carries on playing like he did today I would sign him up, he and Fonte look solid.
