Liked or not Joey is going to lead us straight back in the Premier League. Maybe he didn't had his best match yesterday but he has been otherwise steady performer this season. Cant understand the lot who are waiting like hyenas for him to fail.
Do you think we would've been better or worse off with Joey Barton in our dressing room and playing games last season?
Good greif..do we still have posters posting this s**te ??!1 really! As for Barton, Im fimly in the "I hate the cnut" camp; but if he is doing a job then long may he continue. Personally would rather he was as far away from QPR as possible but if he helps us win i wont complain We all know its only temporary & now the transfer window has closed we'll soon enough get the opld Joey back Hope he hold his form for as long as possible prior to his spontaneous combustion..at least then we may get a decent price we we get rid of him.
Fair enough mate. I was actually trying to make the point that it was MY first game at the ground too and was agreeing with you.
This easy for those having difficulties Barton is playing well Why? ... Henry I see he didn't play Sat ... Bad mistake IMO ... This current team is all about Henry he holds it together From the highlights and comment it looked to me Brum were allowed to play .... Henry stops that
This I wrote earlier that Henry also runs the hard yards with the added bonus of NOT consistently giving the ball away. When Barton takes the ball off our back four he is a potential liability. Henry is more efficient with the ball and IMO ( only based on 3 games) has better defensive positional awareness.
I would accept that Henry is better defensively, but then so is Derry. To say he is more efficient with the ball is nuts, IMO.
I agree with this. We would have been better going 4-2-3-1 or even 4-3-3 with two wider players supporting Austin. I'm a believer that we will get better and that the new players will gel and improve. Back to the original post about Barton, do i like him as a human being - No, would i go for a drink with him - No, Would i shake his hand - probably not. Has he played well this season - yes , has he added some much needed experience - yes, have he contributed to us getting 16 points from 6 games - yes. As long as he continues to galvonise our midfield and put in a shift ( which he has so far ) i will cheer his name along with anyone else who puts in the effort to us trying to win this league. We've had a dream start without putting in a decent performance, that tells you that the league is there for the taking. We have points in the bank and after 6 games thats all that matters at present.
Yes, we would be better with a five-man midfield - as we were in the second half on Saturday. Henry should be used only for cover IMO.
We did actually shake hands Roller but I'm obviously so bland in the flesh that you don't recall. 6 feet tall, leather jacket, graying hair, turned up with my other half name of Shirley. I've been in and out of the C&S pre-match for years but have been giving it a miss since the Thai grub replaced the traditional stuff. Can't beat a pint of Pride however so I may reconsider. I will look out for you next time.
I do remember now. What I will say in my defence is that when you were introduced to me your username and real name were fused into one (at least in my head) and there was no emphasis on the 17 As in your handle, all be it you would have appeared to be a pirate if they had. Sorry, and please do come in again, I'd love a chat.
Birmingham was the first game of the new campaign I missed on Saturday and by the sound of things it was a good one to miss - but at least the 1-0 are keeping the winning mentality going. The limited highlights dont show much but what is obvious is that Barton would have been culpable for a couple of Brum goals if they had taken their chances, but at the same time, his dead ball delivery either from a corner or a free kick provides most of our attacking threat. My position on Barton is that he SHOULD be playing well this season as he is an experienced Premier League midfielder (you can argue all day of what standard he is or is not) who has dropped a league. So far this season he is currently undoing the negatives he provided during his first tenure in the team, but by the sound of it he is better off playing in front of Henry and leave Henry to do the clearing up and he concentrate on bringing the wide men and Austin into play further up the pitch. It is going to be a long season and Barton may still be looking to get back to the south of France in January, but until then it is a case of how long he can keep his head before he causes more problems on or off the field. Has he good games but I still think he is a ticking timebomb. However, if Harry is really intending to get Tom Carroll up to speed and use him as the main creative threat, then will there be enough room for Carroll, Barton and Henry in his first choice side if Harry still wants to play down the flanks as well? - because he has to choose between those three and then O'Neill, Phillips, Hoilett and SWP in a more potent (potentially) 4-5-1 set up if he thinks he will get more success using Austin like he did in the second half this weekend as a lone striker with BZ put out to pasture.
Totally agree about the creative but that small lad Tom Cruise ain't as good as Faurlin IMO. I hope Faurlin gets a chance to poke it up these Spuds if i am honest... Faurlin was very good against Wednesday when i watched him in the flesh ... slow start but by the end was pulling the strings and allowed Barton to play well and take the headlines ... what happened?
This seems to be a trendy opinion on the board at the moment but for me its without any basis in fact. It is just a statement hidden behind the improvable line â he allows others to playâ. Henry had to be dropped in my opinion and I would only use him really in away games and perhaps as a sub to sure things up if weâre leading at home. As at home the emphasis is on us to take the game to the opposition. We have struggled to create chances home and away in our opening games and Henry offers nothing going forward. We need to do more so for me it made sense to drop the one player who offers nothing going forward. While Redknapp had the right idea therefore in dropping Henry he got it wrong in selecting 4-4-2, which is not my favourite formation at all but with AJ it can work. With Zamora it cant. Also early days but Carroll and Barton in a 4-4-2 looks a big negative although Birminghamâs unorthodox line up makes this less clear. Our back 4 is solid and we have enough in the rest of the team to retain that defensive solidity whilst finding a way of creating more chances. Redknapp hasnât got the balance right yet but as the new signings get fit and bed in I think we can find a way to remain solid but also find a way to create things going forward. Certainly at home I think that Henry doesnât contribute enough in a side which has struggled to score goals.
Great quote this for showing what’s been bad about English football for some many years. To me this highlights the traditional English mentality of, ‘kick it away and go long’ at any hint of pressure. Luckily Carroll is part of a generation which is beginning/ being allowed to move away from this. Its all about being comfortable on the ball when under pressure. Carroll has been coached to pass and move. Best example in world football would be Xavi and best young English example is Wilshere. Personally I admire a player for being comfortable and confident enough in their ability to want the ball when under pressure.
Barton was close to or was MOM on Saturday because A everyone was crap first half and he was OK B 2nd half he was good and everyone played well So he was MOM by being least crap first half - MOM is a standard "relative" to your team matesm - see Clint several times over the years as an example It was also his worst game of the season. that is why he is popular to the regular match attenders. his standard has been high this year Arguably his best game was his first game when he was wide right - thoughts ? Is it fun in an ironic way singing "1 joey barton .." yes Is he going to blow up - probably He wants the ball all the time, his first touch is a class above most of the rest so he immediatley looks comfortable, keeps it simple and most passing goes OK but some is cr*p - but probably an acceptable level - he doesn't try the killer pass too often and it will not always come off but I thinkg his failure rate on passing is OK. I'd like Ali beside him. If I could meet harry in a pub I'd show him the QPR City game 2 years ago when the two of them held the best team I've seeen at our ground for years. The get him to try to replicate that performance every week For info - love Ali - great first game cr*p in carling cup. For me he holds like henry without seeming to (just hangs out his leg 5 ft behind himself and scoops it away )plus passes it on his first touch and plays some killer passes. I LIKE MY MIDFIELDERS TO KEEP THE BALL MOVING EARLY WHICH IS WHAT THEY BOTH DO
Nothing trendy about solidifying a football team. Henry is not a playmaker in any shape or form I totally agree ... just a platform that allows others to play and grow in confidence. I have no doubt in my mind that he was brought in to replace Derry who IMO is pass his best. With Henry in the team we have a solid back 5 and in him a player that so far for us does more by noticing what the other team are doing than his own. Even at my low level I found that position very hard as a lot of the game you are ball watching waiting to pounce .. Henry is good at this role IMO ... Harold's teams are built on not losing first and then expression and confidence follows. You let any team grow into a game you dance with the devil and a solid back four will look very leaky. A back four should work as a seemless unit but needs a conductor. from what i have seen that is Henry at the moment. It seems clear we got lucky Saturday. you grab something by the throat hold it tight to maintain control ... release don't complain if you get bitten
Agree Ali can do the role and played well first game against Wednesday with Henry ... did it need two doing the same job? ... maybe not and Henry was picked out as doing nothing which i thought was funny. Ali is both plus a playmaker however Henry is the better holding player
God DT, I'm starting to agree with you more and more. I must be nuts. Having played as a DCM for several years, I hear what you are saying. My job was simple, hold the centre, deny them space, read where the threat is coming from and give our back four a quick passing opinion rather than having to hoof the ball. Due to my own ball playing limitations my manager always said, "win it and give it" Personally, I think every team needs one. It should allow the rest of the team to get on with winning the match knowing that at least one player will be there to cover the team when the ball is lost and try and breakup a quick counter attack.
