Forster 7 Clyne 7 Fonte 8 Alderweireld 7 Bertrand 7.5 Schneiderlin 7 Wanyama 8 Davis 7 Mane 7.5 Pelle 9 Tadic 7 Long 7 Cork 6 Targett 6
Forster 7 Clyne 7 Fonte 8 Alderweireld 7 Bertrand 7 (+1 for game-starting goal) Schneiderlin 7 Wanyama 6.5 Davis 7.5 Mane 7.5 Pelle 9 Tadic 8 Long 5 Cork 6 Targett 6
Saintrachel .... 6.5 for Victor?? The worst of our starters? Did you not wonder at all why QPR suddenly got on top after he went off; did it make you wonder what he might have been doing when he was on the pitch? Playing well isn't always about hitting the best pass, having shots or making saves.
I felt that QPR were a dogged team and difficult to break down. It seemed a repeat of the WBA game and the swash-buckling style seen of late wasn't able to materialise throughout the game. However, if he had scored in the first 10 minutes, I think the result would have been more of a push over. Wanyama was the best player in my opinion but the whole of the midfield worked well. I was also very impressed by Bertrand. As for QPR, they look set for a long season. They were dreadful in the first 45 and only seemed to pick up when Hoilett came on - I felt we really struggled to contain this player and Kranjar picked up his came once this substitution had been made. Hoilett looked the most dangerous player on the pitch once he was brought on by Redknapp and prior to his appearance, I felt Saints would always come out best. Pelle's goal was sensation. Shame that there have been so many great goals this weekend to make GoftM far from a formality.
Everyone played their part yesterday but I felt the best 3 players were Davis, Wanyama, and Pellè. Davis worked fantastically hard all afternoon, often being our most advanced player but also retrieving the ball from defence as well. Such a pity his shot near the end was saved by Green, that deserved to be a goal. Victor broke up everything through the middle, and rarely missed a pass. Unspectacular, but we really missed him when he went off. As for Pellè, he is stepping up a level every game it seems. Apart from his wonder goal, a genuine world-class finish, he was setting up other moves all afternoon with little flicks and knock downs and if Tadić hadn't been slightly below par we might have had 5 or 6 goals. MOTM for me, a great display from a great striker.
Tadic is too one-footed to play on the right, IMO. He valiantly tried two right-footed crosses yesterday and they were simply awful. That means cutting back every single time and it's just a tad [sic] predictable. He's a monster when he's on the left wing. One of RK's strenghts, though is that he's prepared to mix it up, so a bit of Tadic on the right has previously improved matters; I just thought there was a little too much of it yesterday leaving it until Mané left the pitch. Vin
Why is Long getting stick?! Won every header against Traore when he came on to move us up the pitch, but in 2 great crosses, one of which Pelle should really have touched home. Tracked back well, played a huge part on Pelle's goal...what else should he have done?!
Very true and you know I'm a massive fan of his, just his work on the ball wasn't as good yesterday as it has been recently. He was still a monstrous presence though.
Yeah I thought long was good yesterday when he came on. His defensive contribution is not to be sniffed at either. Vic was amazing yesterday, I have no idea how people are rating him so low?!
Tadic's right foot is OK. It is just put into the absolute darkest of shade by the wand that passes for his left foot. The precise cutback, from a cross, to Davis, just last Tuesday against Arsenal, when Steven probably should have made it 3-1, was all right foot. Like Puncheon before him, he's capable of right footed accuracy, and I'm happy for him to choose using it when the situation naturally occurs, rather than having to twist and turn his stance to use the wand. Yes, his game is different on the right attacking flank, compared to the left. One could argue that he actually becomes slightly less predictable to the opposition, because he won't automatically run to the goal-line before crossing. Obviously Vin, you are commenting about the extent of which Tadic is swapping over. I think it's a bedding in process. He's the old experienced guy in the Saints attack compared to Mane. Let's let them explore the possibilities for a while.
Big fan of Long. I know people will just judge him on goals as the season goes on but he draws two and sometimes three defenders in his direction on a regular basis. That and very good delivery make him dangerous. Also worth watching for the fact that he never, never, never, backs out of a challenge. He's alarmingly brave on that front. I'd hate to defend against him. Vin
Agreed Long is a menace to bring on against a tiring defence. Thought everyone deserved a 7/8 rating. Davis my motm. Wonder goal from pelle showed the difference in class in the end.
Agreed regarding Long - however I think the issue is clouded by spending £12m on a player who is "good to bring on towards the end". Mind you, it's very encouraging that clearly Ronald doesn't feel he needs to play him purely on the price tag. He's a good, positive squad member (who I think will get important goals this season).
I find Shane Long a bit of a mixed bag. There's no doubt that he's all heart in his play, and that Koeman is getting him to do something that he's not been noted for before, but he generally does it very well. Because he's a player who will bust a gut, he'll run and challenge past the point of hurt, and defend much better than the average striker. Inevitably, there will be times when he has to lead the line as well, and he can do that too. So where is the mixed bag element..? It's that when he came on as substitute yesterday, several periods of Saints possession ended after he lost the ball or passed it inaccurately [yes, he's up near the pointy end, I know]. He could also do with a goal, but that's actually less important to my mind, because he's playing a supplier's role at present. Once he can overcome those inaccuracies, my mixed bag feeling will almost entirely disappear.
The stand out players for me were Davis. Big Vic and Pelle. There's no doubt that Victor has improved from last year, his distribution was superb yesterday and as I watched him I remember thinking, would you really fancy coming up against him? As for Pelle, up to quite recently I really didn't rate him at all, I thought after the pre-season friendly and the WBA game what a very poor signing he was, but I the last 2 or 3 games have certainly proved me wrong. His movement, hold up play and distribution yesterday was superb. The goal wasn't bad either?
Was really surprised when Victor came off because I thought he was terrific. First half he was imperious and kept winning the ball in the midfield. Stevie Davis never lets you down - tremendous.
This is my take on it from my view in the Northam. Forster 7 Clyne 7 Fonte 7 Alderweireld 7 Bertrand 8 Schneiderlin 7 Wanyama 8 Davis 8 Mane 9 - MOTM - He was a constant threat to their defence and has bags of pace. Great signing. Pelle 8 Tadic 6
These scores look pretty good to me, love it now that we have genuine pace in the side. Mane's pace will terrify defenders.
I agree...Long stirred things up when he came on. There is a goal just round the corner. A good player to bring on when things have gone stale and I would have no fear if he started either.
Think he was tiring...Koeman had to make some changes. This turned out to be a tougher game to play in than the fans thought. p.s. Did you see in the prematch interviews that the QPR mascot thought the result would be a draw or a Saints win.
