Which mistakes has Boruc made? Out of the three goalies played, he looked to me like he made the fewest mistakes: SKD continually kicked the ball to the opposition, and got beaten at his near post each game. He might deserve another crack, but there is little evidence to choose him over Boruc at the moment. Gazza has tried kicking the ball to the opposition, and has directly cost us 4 points so far (Dyer, Snodgrass). Add to that the fact that he let QPR back in the game for Hoiletts header and it doesnt look too dab for Gazza (albeit he has pulled off some very good saves at other times). What strikes me is that lack of confidence in the back four - Jose gave away a free kick yesterday because he didnt want to play it back to Gazza - that sort of thing is a worry. Dont get me wrong, I think he is going to be great judging by some of his saves, but he isnt the finished article yet and we cant afford a learning passenger. Boruc on the other hand: OK he could have come for the free kick against WHU, but it wasnt really the height for a GK and shouldnt have been allowed to bounce for by the defenders, so I dont think thats a GK error. The other one was the midfield and then yoshida messing up, then a penalty, then a worldy finish by the west ham player. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vUnaWjpfcNw Then take the spurs game, clyne slipped for the Bale header then ok for the second goal Boruc should do better with closing the ball down, but again Fonte (or Yoshi) should clear off the line http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eToC-xY9_CY
I'd probably stick with Gazza for Liverpool, but if he concedes any more goals that he really shouldn't then I think that we should give Boruc a chance. I watched the 2011/12 season review DVD last night and I lost count of the amount of times Davis made a decent save just to push it back out to the danger zone and then we'd concede. Whether our play has dictated that we should have won against Swansea and Norwich or not the fact is that we gifted the opposition equalising goals. Without those two mistakes we would have 4 more points and be sitting 13th with 16pts. Boruc can't be far away now and one more mistake from Gazza and I think he will be in.
Why are people worried about dropping him and dashing his confidence i'd imagine his confidence is pretty low any way and if dropping him means we stop letting in soft goals then who gives 2 hoots about his confidence, ship him out on loan let him learn his trade at another club, we are not in a position to have a gk who is still learning, you can get away with young inexperienced outfield players but that type of player as your gk in the premier league is asking for trouble.
Fact is we don't have a better keeper, Adkins obviously doesn't rate Boruc and Davis age has caught up with him. So it looks like Gazza will have to do until Jan at the least.
Im not sure he "doesnt rate Boruc" He put Boruc in, then was forced to remove him after the bottle incident. Since then, Gazza has been in, and Nigel always seems to only change positions if players deserve dropping (eg Shaw in for Fox). Its rare that he will let someone just walk back into the team. I think what he has been grappling with is does he A) just let Boruc walk back in, and cast Gazza aside OR B) wait until Gazza cocks up, then put Boruc back in. I think he chose option B, but has now got to decide how long "cocks up" means and balance it with just dropping a young player which could be construed as publicly stating you arent happy with him, damaging his confidence etc. I would suggest it has got to the point where he its change time...
There is that, and its strange. I guess the explanation could be that its about him being captain, presence in the dressing room etc. Or it could be that Boruc still isnt deemed fit...as you say, we shall see!
All right, own up, who voted for Cropper? Davis was preferred to Gazzaniga on the bench when Boruc started games. He's clearly the designated substitute keeper for whatever reason, but he's the least likely of the three to start a match.
Agree with Kitch 100%....i really think Gazza is one for the future,however in the present we need to eliminate these very basic errors....Boruc maybe a nutjob but he is the only keeper in on our roster that has played at the top level for any length of time.Our CBs seem to be settling in and doing a better job,having an experienced #1 behind them can only make their job easier.If boruc had been given the run in the team that gazza has had we may well have picked up 3 points against swansea and norwich.That is in the past,we forgave punch and that has worked out brilliantly,hopefully Nigel can forget the spurs incident and give Boruc a chance.The next month could really make or break our season.I have always been a "glass half full" person and seriously believe that we can win at least 3 of our next 4 games.
I voted for Copper all our 3 keepers aren't good enough be it coming to the end of their career, still learning or being slightly mental.
Have to disagree a little Fonte seems better were as Yoshida is still struggling. Fonte is covering for Yoshida imo.
Don't know if anyone's highlighted it but we have now conceded just three goals conceded in the last four games and all 3 have been direct goalkeeping errors. The back four deserve much credit for this. Yesterday's performance by Gazza has to be the straw that broke the camel's back. As little as four points in a Premier League season are absolutely crucial. The difference between 17th and 18th by the end of the season is almost always 3 or less. Gazza has now directly cost us four points from just four games, more than any other goalkeeper in this league would be expected to cost their side over the course of a season. Already, these four points dropped will see us finish in a lower league position come the end of the season. In terms of making these points back up, I have seen very little to suggest he has the ability. I started a thread after the Swansea game voicing my concern over blooding a 20 year-old goalkeeper, who (through no fault of his own) is nowhere near mentally nor (to a lesser extent) technically ready for this league. I wasn't even angry when the goal went in last night. If it'd been Kelvin I'd have been shouting at the screen. Instead I just felt really, really sorry for him. Again, I go back to my point about the varying needs for mental strength in a goalkeeper and an outfield player. A young outfield player can, and will make mistakes in a game, but they more often than not aren't punished, and a teammate will cover for them or bail them out. Thus, they can learn from these errors, and in time, cut them out of their game. A young goalkeeper will of course make mistakes too, but the difference is it will almost always be punished by a goal. This is why goalkeeping is about consistency. This is why men over 40 years old (Friedel, Schwarzer), are still amongst the best goalkeepers in the Premiership. This is why Gazzaniga needs to learn his trade on loan at a lower level for a while, and come back in a season or two, a much more rounded and mentally strong player.
Boruc has to play! Gazza has been bad at best, dirctly at fault for 3 goals in 4 games, lost us 4 points and 3 clean sheets! I am aware there are 11 players on the pitch, but he is one of them, and its a nightmare to watch. He is being slated across the medias, and rightly so, he just isnt good enough yet for us. In those four games i can only recall him making 2 really good saves. Boruc was unfit when he played and i dont think he made any errors even half as bad as Gazza's recent ones. I am all for continuity, but being consistently **** between the sticks wont exactly make us better will it.
Sorry everyone-I've made it 21-21 between Boruc and Gazza! Boruc to be given a chance against Liverpool, the plastics don't go to away games so he should get little, if not no abuse.
