Four Four Two have released their annual top 50 players in the Football League this weekend, with our only representative George Boyd at number 17, meaning no place for James Chester! Loans from outside the Football League don't count, so that rules out the likes of Stockdale, Elmohammady and Gedo who would all have had a shot otherwise. In order the top 10 is: Zaha and Ince (joint top) Austin Rhodes Madden Wood Murray Kockaert Maguire Pope Hard to argue with the top 4, but after that there are some strange names in the top 10!
load of ****, we're the second best team of the 72 and have one player? load of crap. At least Quinn, Aluko, McShane, Meyler and Chester should in the top 50.
Thing is they always put a load of lower league players high up just because. It makes no sense but they always do it. I don't even know who Madden is. Boyd should obviously be in there, but I'd also say Chester, Hobbs, Brady, Elmo and Quinn should be high up too. They're all in the top 3 or 4 players in the division in their respective positions.
I wouldn't worry about it. Four Four Two is an awful magazine anyways and the writers/experts are incredibly poor. I remember the season we were promoting and they had Steve McManaman give his view of the twenty teams in the PL and he said we were "a typical championship team who hit form at the right time". It was sweet that he was a pundit for ESPN for our away game to Arsenal and had to eat every word. There's very little content in the magazine and we would do a better job between us with our complete lack of contacts in the footballing world. There 'top x' articles are never researched very well and probably just go by what they see on TV, rather than a wider assessment of the Football League as a whole.
And that one player has only started 5 games for us, so the article was probably put together whilst he was still at P'boro.
Can't argue with the top 4, hard to understand how Chester, Meyler, Aluko, Koren, Quinn and Hobbs aren't in there.
Aluko would be in there if it wasn't for the fact he hasn't played for more than half of it. The whole thing is based on a season, not just half of it.
I think that just goes to prove we are a very good team, not just an average one with a few outstanding players!
He plays for Yeovil Town, he's a tidy player, but he's nowhere near the fourth best player in the FL. He isn't even in the top ten. Elmo can't be in it because he's on loan from Sunderland. Would've thought Quinn, Aluko and Brady would've made the list, but then it was probably compiled last year before the January transfer window opened. Hence why our form players haven't made it.
Wood is far from crap. If loan players aren't allowed then Zaha shouldn't be in there. As for City players, I guess Aluko misses out because of his injury but it seems a shame. Chester should definitely be in, and Brady has earned a place too. Quinn has a strong shout; Hobbs, Koren and Meyler slightly less so. Personally I think Faye is superb every time he plays, but I guess his fleeting appearances are not enough for a list like this (and Four Four Two has always favoured younger, 'flavour of the month' players),
Madden is alright, nothing more nothing less, he failed at Carlisle and has had one good season so how is he in the top ten? It always favours attacking players but James Chester would be in my defence ahead of anyone in this division so no idea how he misses out, Aluko and Quinn would be in mine to.
I love City fans. We're talking about the top 50 players from 72 clubs yet half our squad should be in there. I think our success this season is down to a good team spirit and good management. Just like it was last time we were promoted. We don't really have many stand out players apart from Aluko, and he's been out half a season.
Some city fans are becoming too whiny. They're constantly whinging if the journos don't kiss our arses & demand recognition for everything nowadays. Being 2nd with 7 games isn't an achievement, but styaing put in 2nd and going up is. I agree with you about Aluko, it's about the season as a whole. If that happens we'll get the plaudits. Wait till then, if it happens.
