Yesterday was the first proper chance I'd had to see all 3 in action. I was pleased with Lovren who was very solid and composed bringing the ball out of defence. Osvaldo I thought showed some neat touches and had a fair game. The goals will definitely come. The player I was disappointed with though was Victor. He continually gave the ball away in dangerous positions and passes went backwards far tooo often. I also thought he and Morgan didnt play that well together. Hopefully yesterday was an off day but I was expecting a lot more from him.
Agree with this...Lovren the best new signing, Osvaldo will score soon...Wanyama is the least impressive. Had a tendency to slow the game down and sometimes played the ball too short to another player. Could be a problem playing against a better side than yesterday. What he does show is how high our standards are...we are used to our players rarely making real mistakes though they can be outplayed. I find it interesting that the general feeling was that Lovren was the least exciting purchase of the bunch, whereas he was the one Nicola was excited about.
Lovren (the one that was most questioned) looks solid an very, very good. Yet to be tested against an RVP/Rooney/Giroud/Sturridge etc, but he has really impressed me so far. Osvaldo looks very capable, although despite all the nice little touches, I wonder why there is a love in with him by some people as he hasn't actually had a top performance yet (only 2 games though). Looks like goals and cards will come. I also think he and Rickie will click as he is possibly just what Rickie needed in terms of player on the same wave length. Wanyama - Looked like a mountain against West Brom at times; looked very good against Sunderland; against West Ham, he looked a little slow on the ball in the first half, but improved second half. I wonder if he sits where we want Morgan sat, so maybe let Morgan get the ball in that position. Finally, he must get a mention for that wonderful challenge on Noble (I think) half way through the second half - can't wait to see that on the television. So far, I'd say that they look like three good signings. Still, I'd say see where they are after 10 games.
Brave post, and glad you posted it! I was beginning to think it was just me. I found myself begging for Jack Cork to come back. Lovren is the real deal and I thought Fonte and he looked solid. Osvaldo may be about to flatter to deceive, and he should have scored. But, we'll all forget that one when he scores at Anfield. Wanyama was poor. It was my second sighting of him and for me he went from OK to poor. Not the trajectory we need! Just re-reading, and not wanting to join the whiners, I just need to add ... We've seen big signings take time to settle in the past and I trust MP's assessment of a player. I'm sure they'll all contribute.
Lovren seems very good thus far, albeit against not the most fearsome of Premiership forward lines. I like Wanyama, didn't play that well yesterday, but he wasn't alone in that. Think Poch needs to tell him or Morgan to sit and not expect them to try to decide between them who sits and who joins up with the attack. They looked very confused in the first half. Osvaldo hasn't done enough yet. Only a few glimpses of skill, but good to see him chase back at one point to win the ball back. So hopefully he's not a "sulker". He'll probably come good, but its no good buying players like him unless you play to their strengths (same goes for Gaston).
You know me, I'll always look to defend a player, so here goes: Do you really think Wanyama was poor in the second half and did not up his game quite a bit from his poor first half? I thought he was poor in the first half but much improved second half.
Agree. They certainly didnt look comfortable but it did improve in the second half. Maybe I was just expecting too much. Early days.
Read my edit, FLT. I admire your loyalty and I agree he was better in the second half. However, I was trying to pick up the spirit of the OP. Wanyama was poor in the first half. I made a muted comment about him only to be turned on by a neighbouring fan who assured me that the player was "****ing brilliant" and that, basically, I was an idiot. The fact is that Morgan and Jack Cork looked good last season, and if that is to be disrupted then the resulting partnership has to be an improvement. I have faith in the current set up, and believe that MP thinks this pairing will do the business. However, we should be allowed to ask questions of any player. But be clear, I am not in the "what a waste of money" camp on Wanyama. Of course, FLT, I realise that yours is a reasoned argument and not a rant. I'd rather hoped mine was too, but early mornings aren't my best time!
Something seems a miss with that. I understand the view that as a sub, he can't change a game in an attacking sense, but if he is fit, he is one of our best three CM (with Vic and Morgan) and if (as was happening first half) the CM wasn't quite right, then he can be an option to give us more energy and impetus. Was he injured?
I would guess that Maya was a travel issue. MP was unlikely to split Jose and Dejan after their start, so used Jos on the bench to give Maya more recovery time.
Agree. Nothing against Wanyama, but Cork is a better player, and £12M doesn`t represent good value. I`ve seen Wanyama several times for Celtic, and didn`t see anything special. Now go and prove me wrong, Vic !
In the first half, Wanyama showed a tendency to dwell on the ball, which is when he gave it away. That's just a matter of getting used to the Premiership, where you basically don't get a split second on the ball. By the second half, he had already woken up to this. Some of his passing and movement was superb. He'll only get better as the season goes on. Lovren was solid, and brings the best out in Fonte. That could be a top class pairing. Osvaldo could have had 2. Arguably, he really should have scored in the first half when he blasted straight at the keeper. Either way, he'll be scoring goals, plenty of em, and there were times when he and Rickie linked up in a way that suggests they could be deadly together.
Teams have found our Achilles heal at St Mary's that is for sure. They sit back and wait for us to make mistakes........I am sorry but this slow build up play is just not working. It is noticeable that throughout the league there is a distinct lack of goals or at least it seems to me. I have to say that I am disappointed with the way we are playing in the sense that we have a lot of possession but so little to show for it. Having said that we have not had a lot of telling balls in the final third. They say they had only 5 shots on target out of 15 shots made. Not sure that is good odds to score goals to be honest, Pochettino cannot keep saying we had enough to have won the game. Third time he has said that in 3 weeks!! I guess another day of disappointment I just hope we start to play again soon! JMO
I am disappointed Cork wasn't even on the bench. I'd rather he was starting than Wanyama OR Schneiderlin at the moment. Both have had wasteful starts to the season and Cork is exactly what we need right now - someone sturdy and secure in possession, a reliable yet unspectacular CM.
