Interesting article highlighting just what he used to bring to the team. Use of past tense quite deliberate. http://www.eplindex.com/epl-news/34141/importance-replacing-david-fox-11-12-stats.html?
i'm a massive david fox fan too. problem is, whenever he was given a chance last season he was absolutely rubbish! he obviously hasn't been doing enough in training or in the (admittedly) few games he's played in to warrant more games. injuries and illness (he had glandular fever for four weeks i think) haven't helped but if he was playing well or making himself noticed, hughton would have no choice but to play him. it all comes down to the player not doing enough and that's a shame cos he could still be a key player for us.
Odd that he wasn't among the 10 players who were released? I mean, if he's not going to feature (at this level) surely best to drop down a division and be wanted/appreciated?
He only signed a new contract in October! Maybe Hughton thought he could be an important player, but like Becchio he's not showing why he should be played? I'd like to see more of him too, I think in that defensive pair we should have Johnson, then pair him with Tettey against top teams, Fox against mid-table sides, and Howson against weaker sides. Obviously with some consideration for whether we're home or away.
I mainly agree with this, although I think with a run of games it might turn in to Johnson, then pair him with FOX against top teams, Fox against mid-table sides, and FOX against weaker sides. Obviously with some consideration for whether we're home or away. I think we are that much better with him, when he's playing well.
If he had glandular fever, the fatigue part can continue for some months, many folk complain of tiredness for 6 months or more. A fully fit DF could play an integral role in a premier league team.
in that case, i would suggest that may explain quite a lot about his continued omission. maybe a fresh season, a fresh start, will do him good.
Cheers for that, would certainly explain a lot if true! The club aren't always forthcoming about injuries that can be 'managed', so maybe this is an example of that
Much as I like Fox's passing skills, IMO he just doesn't have the all round skills of a 'complete' PL player.
I love Fox, but surely you play whoever is performing best at the time! Say you play Tettey against Arsenal, he plays a blinder and then Chrissy says to him: "sorry, you're dropped for next week as we're playing Palace". Surely that makes no sense.
I've seen a lot of people say Fox will probably leave this summer, but I don't see why. He is currently our only midfielder who can play that metronomic style passing game, so I think we should keep him and the stats show he helps us retain the ball. Yes, his form was poor last season, but I think the worst time to get injured for any player is right at the beginning because you lose your place and you never catch up, whereas if you get injured in the middle of the season, people notice what is missing. He made the bench enough times to suggest to me that Hughton sees him as a squad member at least. I also don't see anyone wanting to pay us the £1.5m odd that we would ask and I don't think we could get any better for that fee. If he is happy to be a squad member, I think he's good enough to be cover. I also think we may well see more of him next season.
Hucks, it was only ever going to be a rough guideline, I realise it's a little simplistic, but its more an outline of whose strengths I felt would help us more in each game. Clearly if someone is bang on form it'll need considering. But when everyone is playing equally well/badly, it makes sense to match the personnel to the opposition, and a bit of rotation was definitely missing this season.
i think the most telling part of that article was our goalies booting the ball downfield 91.4% of the time. i would guess that Bunns figures were 100% as i cannot recall him ever throwing the ball out. with the England goalie coach at the club, this is an appalling statistic.
Agree with this ^. Maybe if Ryan Bennett gets more game time, we'll see less long hopeful punts upfield from the keeper, as RB likes to play the ball out from the back more.
I do think Fox will be on the brink of a move this summer if he doesnt go. He's a handy squad player, but the acquisition of two quality players would push him out. Would fit well at Southampton or Fulham I think. Don't know why.
Try YEARS. I had it in 2003 spent 3 weeks in the N+N on steroid drips and I have permanent chronic fatigue syndrome (which is essentially ME) and fibromyalgia (constant 24/7 pain with no physical cause). I'd wager as he was much fitter when he got it he'd recover better but some ppl never do, hats off to the guy for pushing through it
I know a few people with this - very frustrating. And as you say, ME is no longer accepted by doctors as the correct term for the condition, whereas post-viral chronic fatigue syndrome is the proper name.
True it can be a precursor to CFS, but most frequently glandular fever resolves within 2 months. If he has CFS then he can hardly "pace" himself through a football match.
i had no idea glandular fever was so dangerous! i had it when i was about 14. i remember it was horrible and had to have about 2/3 weeks off school but can't say i've ever had any lasting effects.
