I agree it does seem odd, but I have only seen one game where he has been outstanding (Villa home). I think steven davis gets a bum deal- he is not flashy and doesn't have a trendy name/hairdo but he always puts in a shif when he plays, scores or has a crack frequently. I think if we didn't have such a rich selection of central mids he would be starting regularly.
Newcastle home. Arsenal Home, Sunderland home last season (sorry Impsaint if that bores you, but he wasn't great, but our most creative player that day) straight off the top of my head.
As I said, no disrespect to Davis, who is a player I like, but he's not going to come on with 20 minutes left, run at defenders and make things happen.
I'm not questioning Gaston's ability nor whether Rodriguez or Lallana are better than him. I was as excited as anyone when we were originally linked with him and much like Lawro thought it was pie in the sky. I am just questioning how people continually suggest that we needed his input to do a certain thing or he would've added x to the performance. Similar in my eyes to last season when people kept saying Mayuka would've made a difference. For whatever reason (and forget the price tag) he hasn't shown anything more than tiny moments in any game to warrant people suggesting he would've added X or that we missed Y. To suggest he would improve on any of our front 4 on what we have seen over the past 13 months is grasping at straws to my eyes. Whether you think Lallana or Rodriguez have played badly so far they put the effort and they do make things happen, provide sparks. Maybe not the quality that Gaston is suggested to be able to supply but still I think they are the better option unless Gaston does UP his game. He wasn't bought as a squad player and I'm pretty sure he won't be accepting being part of an 'improving squad program'. The fact we were after Damiao and Banega tends to suggest to me that they were being looked at as replacements for Gaston. None of these 3 are being looked at as 'squad players'. All 3 are seen as improvements to the first 11. If we had bought either Damiao or Banega I think it's safe to say that Gaston would've gone and Lallana or Rodriguez would've become squad players. The interest from Inter would suggest to me that they thought they could get him cheap as he was only getting subs appearances. They wouldn't have been offering what we paid. Not slating Gaston but just think it's one purchase that just isn't working. These things happen. Just as of our 3 signings this season I think the most doubts were over Lovren yet he has slotted in as if he had always been here. Sometimes things work and sometimes they don't.
Maybe I didn't explain my point very well I'm not saying that Gaston doesn't ever show anything nor that he doesn't put effort in. When I say Lallana and Rodriguez are playing badly I don't mean they are as anonymous as Jarvis for Hammers. I think they play OK at the moment with some good moments. The problem is that Gaston is playing even worse than they. The idea of bringing him on for the last 20-30 minutes in games is surely to see if he can improve or add something however it isn't happening for him. Just what I see and of course everbody has differing opinions but I just think it's strange for people to still be stating that he is the solution to something he hasn't shown he is the solution for. We have a stuttering Adam and an inconsistent JayRod but if they are playing at 70% the level of where we need to be then to replace them with a 50% player seems silly <-------------Just my own opinion though. And I support Saints not Lallana. Much as I admit I am a big Adam fan I would not be moaning if Gaston started to play at the level he can (or is suggested he can) and kept Adam on the bench for the rest of his career!!! I would cheer Saints on, be very happy and clap Adam every time he warmed up and sat back down
But Gaston isn't playing, so I don't get the point. He's only had a 20 minute cameo this season. Again, I'm not calling for him to play, just pointing out that it doesn't add up to 'critique' him when he's not playing.
Osvaldo yesterday was producing little pieces of magic. a bit like Gaston. It was a shame nobody else in the team was on par with him. I think Osvaldo and Gaston have a similar footballing brain.
I always give players the benefit of the doubt, but it is time for Gaston to step up. Forget all the excuses from last season, he has to force his way into the side this season. Mauricio has played and managed in Spain...if he can't see enough in training to start with Gaston then I suggest we have to trust the manager on this. In theory, good players should be able to play in any side, but not always true. This season is the deciding one for Ramirez.
To be honest in some cases we needed to use Boruc more.....as he was the key and spare man. While two players are trying chase the ball down you have to wait for one of their midfielders to move into the fray.......that should actually create a gap. Either in midfield or if everyone has moved towards the halfway line a space in behind, I guess you would put the ball into the space where ever it is /was created. Ok it would be no good for Ricky perhaps as he is not quick enough but rodders and ossie would have done ok.
Gaston should be playing baffling why not esp when the others produce so little (looking at goals column in last x amount of games)
I think that is fair. In my mind, Ramirez has not shown enough to say that he WOULD have added X to a performance. I agree that he will have to step up his game to play the role suggested in the original post. But at the same time Ramirez has shown enough for me to say he COULD have added something. Rodriguez can't do it. He's not a link-up guy. Perhaps he can play forward and we can move Lambert back or something. If Rodriguez could find the net consistently that would be something to consider. But Jay Rodriguez is definitely not the answer to this particular problem. And Lallana has been a supposed answer to this problem for a full season in the Premier League now and it hasn't worked out. Aside from Lambert and the early returns from Osvaldo, no one has yet to distinguish themselves which is why we have a problem in the first place. As Ramirez has not been given a chance to work with Osvaldo yet and seems to have a complementary game, why not give him a run? We need to see what he brings to the table, and if it isn't enough then get rid. I also feel like I'm the opposite to a lot of posters here. In open games, I would play Rodriguez (for now) because the space lets him take advantage of his speed. In games where the defense sits back and needs to be prised open, that's when I would use Ramirez for his better technique and vision. So despite criticizing Rodriguez to some degree, I would use him against Liverpool. The other slot (and which exact slot we decide to leave open) could go to Lallana, Davis, Ramirez, or JWP depending on what Pochettino wants. I would also use Maya and Cork against Liverpool as I think they could use the playing time and I believe their speed better suits that game. DM to me is Wanyama against physical teams and ball-lumpers (so playing him against West Ham was correct). Cork against fast teams. In neutral-ish games, Wanyama. Fonte and Lovren should start pretty much all the time (as the defense has been very good), absent a few games that are suited for Maya's style where a little rotation is good for everyone.
