I already did earlier on, that stats take very little into consideration and are part ofthe reason we have bought badly. so, for example, stats say joe allen has high pass completion let's say, this does not include: - the direction of pass - the pressure the player was under at the time of the pass (was the opponent pressing him, unlikely as its swansea and they were given space) - touches taken before the pass was made - the distance the receiving player was from Allen when pass was completed, ie length of pass - the actually utility of the pass, was it a waste of time/lack of vision to make that pass when better options were open I agree I would rather a pass go backward than to the opposition but I don't think saying "Allen has good passing stats" or "X has good crossing stats" mean much when assessing whether they are worth the money. I just think stats really do mean very little in footy compared to cricket
But nor can you just dismiss it as if it doesn't matter! I actually agree that a passing stat on its own isn't worth much and that a 'money ball' approach clearly didn't work out for us under Comolli, but if you put two, three or four stats together you do get a better picture. I think the ultimate judgement should land with a pair of eyes rather than paperwork but if we are looking to maintain possession then someone with such high pass rates is obviously going to be of interest. Personally, i couldn't give a **** if a 100% of his passes went backwards so long as he retained possession for at least 85% of the time. you can't have a team full of player looking for the killer ball all the time, you have to have the working components to compliment the flair/creativity PS - and no, I'm not a big fan of Allen, nor am I against him, just commenting in a general sense
Allem will also be useful if Lucas is ever injured or needing a rest. Though maybe not to Lucas's level, he can also play the holding role. In fact he did during the Olympics. Even though he didnt have the freedom to show his full potential going forward, he was very safe and sound and seemed to allow Ramsey, Cleverly and Giggs the freedom to get forward. It was actually a very attacking midfield team GB played. To me this would count as improving squad depth. He is younger than Lucas to. Add him to Gerrard, Lucas, Henderson, Shelvey and Spearing (sorry Charlie) and we have a nice looking, well balanced, almost all British midfield.
11.23 BST: West Ham are reported to have agreed a deal with Marseille to sign France international and former Liverpool midfielder Alou Diarra. If ever there was a player that we had who we gave such a raw deal to it was this man. He has turned out to be brilliant and exactly a player we could use. Thanks for ruining that with us Houllier.
15.53 BST: Reports in Spain say Malaga have rejected a €3m bid from Valencia for Ignacio Monreal and that Enzo Maresca could leave the same club for Olympiacos, but the reports have not been confirmed For 2.5 mil pounds, that would be a steal. He would give good competition for Johnson and ENrique. Cover is vital for these positions I feel.
Would be tasty, could probably offer more PT as well with Ibra there. Would also like Nene from that bunch as well and Sakho. I mean on FIFA last night I brought in Loic Remy, Matias Fernandez, Pablo Aimar, and Sami Khedira, why can't we do the same in real life.......
Don't think it's urgent. Enrique can play there (granted he needs to pick the ball up again), Robinson has shown he can cover the odd game. Johnson is more than capable on the left - perhaps better because he can cut inside. If Johnson has to cover, we still have Kelly, Flanagan and Carra for right back - although Kelly is by far the best option.
Don't really trust in Carra or Flano. Kelly yes but would prefer to have Kelly cover for Johnson and Monreal and Enrique on the other. Robinson I think needs more time. Kelly seems to get injured a lot ( as did Johnson last year) so another cause for concern. Not the most pressing but if it is that cheap.
Even if Monreal cost £3M, that'd be money we could be using to improve our attacking options, that's my view.
I agree but if it's a steal, might be best to nip in. Sometimes best to wait a bit ( possibly with Allen, cost could go down a lot next year).
