Aahhh that kind of ´bad-mouthing´ - I agree with everything you have written but the same can be said about the general ´premiership` quality of our squad. But Clint does his best which is more than can be said for some and thankfully some of those will be gone this summer.
Thanks for the kind words from some... I'm just saying what I thought should be said about Clint. I swear, Clint has one about 90% or more of the aerial balls he's gone up for. He's immense in the centre of defence. Yet, he simply doesn't have the qualities for left back. With that said, he's had some great games in that position, too, because he gives his all. And now, he's getting on. Almost 37. Yet, I still think he's the best defender we have at the club. I honestly think a lot of mistakes would have been avoided in midfield with his presence and his leadership on the field.
Yep. I think Green, Austin, Phillips on a good day, Fer, Vargas and Isla in a team set up for 3-5-2 or Arsenal, are about the only ones stable Prem clubs could be interested in. Newly promoted clubs may look at a couple of the others.
I listened to the game on the radio yesterday evening... it is a nightmare one minute Stuart Pearce is babbling on about something or other..next minute commentator jumps in and the ball is in the back of the net! As for the Villa subs; Joe Cole was the first one - no problem, he hasn't had a good game since he scored a great goal in the world cup light years ago, then it was loughton - who I cannot place and then ............ N'zogbia.......and to be honest my heart sunk because on his day he is a real player and can cause any defence problems. Clint is a reliable sort who will always give his best, but the change in formation last night was to protect our left hand side which was getting reamed from what I heard.
Saw a post from someone on faceache last night having a go, in I think an attempt at humour, at half time. To be honest I was ****ing appalled. Firstly Clint is not a left back any more, he has said so himself, secondly he wasn't playing badly as far as I saw and lastly to show someone who has given so much, so little respect is the sort of behaviour I expect from Chelsea or Liverpool fans. Was made up when he scored I had been waiting for that moment ever since the Bolton game, the result was not exactly what we wanted, but still wouldn't have expected 4 points from those 2 games. Oh great OP, thanks
Great thread with some good posts on here. I listened to the radio commentary in the first half and it seemed to me that Stuart Pearce was favouring Villa. That puzzled me as I met him last year and we shared stories of supporting QPR in that year we nearly won it (75/76) He told me we were his team.
Watching on a stream and had to suffer Martin Tyler with Kevin Kilbane as commentators......Tyler almost had kittens when Benteke missed that late chance........ BTW good post about Clint awjm.......
Yesterday was Pearce's debut as a summariser or whatever they are called, I reckon he wanted to give the impression of detachment/neutrality. He was talking us down from before the kick off, perhaps reverse psychology if he wanted us to win, I'm sure he was an R at some stage.
Great thread AWJM. Spot on about Hill, he's one of my favourites and I'm glad I wasn't the only one to spot Hill holding the badge after he scored. Says a lot about the fella that despite his years, he still plays with determination and passion - perfect role model for youngsters. Shame he had to wiat so long for his first Premiership Goal, but nothing short of what he deserved. I would like to see Hill partner Onuha in the centre whilst Dunne is out, I've seen too many mishaps from Caulker and being caught out of position to classify him any better than Hill.
We had the "easy" home games in the first half of the season, the hard ones this side of the year. Goes some way to explain why we're finding it harder to get wins at home. The same of course applies for the away games. Harry had a harder run away from home compared to Ramsey. That being said, I still believe the negativity under Redknapp away from home cost us. And we would be better off by now if we had changed manager earlier.
To stand any chance against the scum we need someone to put their mark on Hazard early in the game. CH would be robust but fair which probably won't get it done. Do we have anyone cynical enough?
I would have thought either Henry or Sandro would be sufficiently qualified for that job....if Barton wasn't on 9 yellows he could also be nominated but we need him to stay clear of trouble as all cards are wiped after this Sunday.....
I caught the tail end on the radio after a fire brigade enforced rail delay. Stuart Pearce is less psycho and more asthmatic poodle in a coma as a voice. Great post awjm - agree that Clint has always played to his maximum for us and is one of those rare beasts that outperforms his ability through sheer effort. Seems like a top man too. Biggest difference between CR and HR - one doesn't instill the belief that there are 19 better teams in this division.
Difference between CR and HR? HR thinks he deserves to be where he is/was. CR is trying to prove that he deserves to be where he is. Although there are more attrictive managers potentially out there, on current performances I would not be disappointed if CR took charge at the start of the championship if that's where we end up...... if HR's knees miraculously got better on the other hand CR is only going to become more tactically aware, last game was an example of his learning curve. HR...... you can't teach an old dog new tricks!
This criticism of Hill completely ignores the fact that Kranjcar offered zero help last night. Hill had two players at him, as their right back could move up at will, knowing that Kranjcar was drifting infield and basically doing nothing. Ramsey is also to blame for this initial set up. Many better players than Hill get the run around when completely exposed one on one against good players. Hill isn't Premier League standard, but neither are Caulker or Yun. His lack of pace means he shouldn't start at LB but I'd play him at centre back ahead of Caulker every time. I agree that our recruitment policy has been awful.
Not many............. Green, Isla, Onuoha (at a push), Phillips (if he continues his upward curve), Barton (sorry!), Hoilett (I know, I know!!), Austin, Vargas.
Clint is one of a dying breed, along with the likes of Shaun Derry and Ryan Nelsen who actually care about the team and not their bank balance. I sincerely hope we can keep him on in some capacity.
As HR had a decent home record & Ramsey ok away maybe we should be looking at different managers for home & away as their combined performance would have had us safely out of the relegation zone.
