Can't back it with any stats but my impression is that Meyler is fairly attack minded and his in your face style does pressure opponents. He also comes across as more passionate about playing for City. If you have to drop someone then I'd go with Hudds - technically he's the best midfielder but he slows us down too much.
People keep saying this but I've yet to see any evidence of him slowing down our play in a bad way. He constantly hits successful passes to our players without even looking up. This thing about him never moving is rubbish, he's pretty mobile and he was in the right place to score yesterday. He just looks like he shouldn't run but he does, it's just easier for people to slag him off because we're from Hull and we prefer players who actually aren't very good but try really hard to players with genuine ability who don't run 20km a game.
arf - if anyone slows the play down it's Meyler - he constantly stops and passes backward - forward passes tend to go to the opposition - prove me wrong - tell me a goal that Meyler actually made with a forward pass
Thats where we've fallen down all season, usually because Diame and Huddlestone are on the pitch leading certain other players to run out of stamina especially Meyler but also Clucas and Livermore. I actually think Diame is more culpable than Huddlestone unless there are stats to prove otherwise
He does run but the oppo can figure out how to exploit pockets of space around him, one of these tactical geniuses actually came out and said that was their gameplan
We've carried too many luxury players this season. We've needed a grafter and a gob in midfield and a striker up front. Our transfer record and strategy has been beyond ****. Ironically it has taken to the last 4 games of the season for Akpom to begin to look like a footballer!!
I think Meyler has always looked more effective further forward. He just doesn't have the quality to be a central midfielder, but he can finish really well and he has enough energy to get forward when needed so if he played in front of two central midfielders I think he'd be much more effective. As it stands, he just gifts possession far too much and doesn't seem to have much confidence dribbling the ball forwards.
I'd prefer to see Meyler always playing but I think it's Huddlestone who deserved a chance at playing a very advanced role. He's supposed to be the great passing stylist. Well instead of trying to affect play a long way from the lead striker why has Huddlestone never been put for an extended trial period just behind the striker(s)? We're never going to know whether he'd have been able to do that role. Perhaps he'd have accumulated a mountain of assists. He's had precious few assists from where he does play.
Pretty sure we tried this in the FA Cup Semi final and it worked a treat. It's been tried a few times and has mostly been successful. He's also played in front of a back four and been equally as effective. He's an intelligent player and totally different to Meyler, but there are certainly times when one should have been played over the other this season and we don't seem to have made that decision correctly enough. We've over played both at times and the effect on our midfield has been clear. Meyler was flogged for weeks on end and it culminated in a daft mistake. We then did the same to Tom and his performances were less than great. Overall, bad man management from the gaffer.
The line-ups in our 2 defeats to Derby this season were: HOME - lost 0-2. -----------------McGregor----------------- Elmo----Maguire----Davies--Odubajo Clucas--Livermore--Huddlestone--Maloney -------------------Diame------------------------- -----------------Hernandez-------------------- AWAY - lost 4-0. -----------------McGregor----------------- Odubajo----Dawson----Davies--Robertson Snodgrass--Livermore--Huddlestone--Clucas --------------------Diame------------------------- --------------------Aluko-------------------- 7 who played in the first loss, played in the second. 4 of those 7 played in the same positions in the second game. Meyler played in neither.
I don't have any stats to prove it, but think our goal problem is down to a lack of fancy coloured boots.
Football was a better game when colour choice was restricted to just black, and boot material was just leather.
