If anyone has any comments about the performances about the following players so far I'd be grateful. Esspecially those who have been to games. Reece Brown Gabriele Angella Lewis McGugan Javier Acuna Faraoni Fabbrini Iriney Yes, it is early and they still have time to settle/improve etc..However, it'd be great to get a rough idea so far...
This is my take so far based on the two games I've been to (Bristol Rovers and Bournemouth) so I have in some part seen all of them in a competitive fixture at least. Reece Brown - ok but prone to a mistake, not as assured on the ball as the others. See him as purely backup; behind Angella, Cassetti, Ekstrand and Doyley for a centre back place. Gabriele Angella - Could be the best of the lot, I was worried about having a presence in the middle of the back three without Hall and Nosworthy injured. He not only replaces the imposing size but also brings real class. Looks immensely assured and often seems to play the role of an old fashioned sweeper. At Bristol I said I could see him getting us 10 goals from set pieces this season, now he's on three already. Lewis McGugan - Looked slightly disjointed in the first half against Bournemouth but when the team started playing better got more involved and looks a threat going forward. Also looks to be putting plenty of energy in and no signs of the dodgy temperament that we have heard about. Hopefully as the new midfield gels he will come to prominence. Javier Acuna - In the Bristol game he was more impressive than Fabbrini and chased every ball throughout the game doing well to set up our third goal. Shame he didn't bury a free header at the end which would have given him a first goal. Faraoni - Has an immense first touch, kills the ball perfectly when receiving long balls. Looks tidy and makes good runs but similar to Anya at the beginning of last season doesn't seem to want to run past defenders, watching Anya against Bournemouth leaving the defenders clueless every time hopefully Faraoni will soon start to do the same. Fabbrini - Clearly has a lot of talent, seems to drift in and out of the game but has an ability to just drift past players. Would like to see a bit more industry and the sulk he seemed to get when Deeney took the penalty off him may need to be addressed but long term I expect he will be starting ahead of Forestieri. Iriney - Looked to be pretty vocal and taking charge of the midfield on sat despite being once of the new boys, looked very adept at breaking up play and was particularly prominent in the 2nd half putting the opposition under pressure and forcing mistakes. Seems competent on the ball and should do a reasonable job replacing Chalobah. Only issue is an occasional desire to jump into tackles; one in particular led to a counter attack where we were outnumbered when staying on his feet would have allowed the team to reorganise. Of course those are purely my opinions and based on only two games but they are my initial thoughts.
Cheers Hockdude. Just what I needed to hear. The only problem with being so far away is missing seeing Watford in the flesh. Given I see my folks twice a year, so that can't compare.
Him or Hoban. Providing Hoban comes back from injury and is able to reproduce the form he was in when he got injured.
For goodness sake give Brown "a chance". It takes quite some time for defenders to bed into a side, especially what one could consider a "scratch" side put together for a League Cup game. For example, not many were impressed with Craig Cathcart when he was on loan here for half a season. But he's been pretty consistent with Blackpool recently. I'm not for a minute suggesting that Brown is better than either Thompson or Hoban, just that it will take some time to evaluate him fully. GFZ and the staff obviously see something in him that is not there (yet?) in Thompson.
If Thompson was half decent, hell even if he was/is a basic/average Championship player then he would not be on loan at LEAGUE 2 Southend United when he is almost 21.
Really, could we do with another out and out striker? (another Deeney?) I know it sounds greedy, but we do have a wealth of scouting options / connected clubs...
All of the players mentioned have looked good in games, certainly good enough to walk into most of the Championship sides we have played so far. But none of them has the range of passing ability that Chalobah had, nor the pace and finishing ability of Vydra. We have not really replaced these two in my opinion. So we now have a squad that has more quality in depth than last year, but still lacks the individual excellence that would allow us to dominate the division. A very competitive top six team, but not one that will breeze into the top two places. Acuna took a very good goal against Norwich, and showed a lot of energy--maybe a bit to much-- he was verging on the reckless at times. I like Pudil or Acuna better than Faraoni, for their attacking play. I think Fabbrini has yet to prove himself, but Angella and Iriney have nothing to prove--both excellent ,and first choices for me. And what about Bekelem? I feel confident when he plays--a no nonsense , commanding figure. We have a good choice of back line now.
