Watching the game and seeing Tomlin on the bench got me thinking. My immediate thought was being he was knackered from playing two games in the space of 4 days... It was clearly evident to me, as soon as the yesterday's game got underway, Tomlin wouldn't have been effective. Too slow and well off the pace against Burton and Pompey. I'm not having a go at Tomlin as we bought him in the close season and pretty late on. Now onto my point. It is a squad game and Tomlin has two options, get fitter and leaner, which I hope he does or quickly become the £2.9 million forgotten man. I'm not sure we could keep that sort of pace up over the season and the squad will be called upon. Tomlin has some silky skills but I feel Loïc could cement his place in the starting line up. What do you guys think?
Hey Taff. Its an interesting one. He is quite different from many of our attacking midfielders / strikers. There will be games when we'll need to unlock the door and he seems to have the skills. Whether that is coming off the bench or starting I don't know. It might be that Tomlin gets more results when Ward is in the team, but where do you fit him in? Nice problems to have and while I'm sure Colin will get a few selection decisions wrong, he'll get the majority right. The balance is getting everyone enough game time to keep them keen and hungry. The only one who seems undroppable is Ken, though Loic and M-L are pushing for that status. We'll certainly keep the opposition guessing this season. With Heally, Harris and Paterson to come in as well, it's looking a bit tight getting into the 18 let alone the starting 11. A bit of a hint to Gounongbe, Noone, Pilks and John.
I think Tomlin is a guy for another day, another sort of game against a different side. Yesterday Warnock got it spot on. High energy midfield 3 with a fast breaking front 3 in front of them - Tomlin wouldn't have fit into that plan. Tomlin will have his day when a quicker defence than Villa needs to be unlocked. Very difficult to leave anyone out for the Sheff Utd game on Tuesday but Warnock will ignore that sentiment and pick a side he thinks will win the game. Looking at a bit of the Boro/Sheff game last night when I got back, I think we'll have far too many options for the Blades - let's hope Colin picks the right ones.
Warnock called it right. Horses for courses. There'll be games when City will need someone to unlock a packed defence? Maybe on Tuesday. Damour was sensational though
Genuinely think it's going to take some pretty bad howlers to drop LD & NML. Tomlin is going to have to impress off the bench for now and I'm actually liking this. Two absolute bargains who cost us sweet foxtrot alpha are playing out of their skins to cement their place while our flagship signing of the season is being blocked out. Great to see and agree with Remote, its a great dilema to have as we have struggled with options over the last couple of years.
Hi guys - Bristol City fan in peace. Interesting to read your thoughts - naturally, it's too early to judge Tomlin and how he'll fare with you, but already you seem to be in a similar quandary to us in that he has great talent and flair, but doesn't have great athleticism. City had great patience with him, and despite what Redprintt's comment suggests, he was, more often than not, played in a free-role behind the striker, which theoretically should have been ideal for him. When on loan with us he flourished, but last season, the same moments of magic didn't come along often enough to justify his inclusion ahead of others, and our best run coincided with him starting on the bench. I think some of you are right in saying it comes down to the game in question. If you're up against a team putting men behind the ball to try and keep you out, then he might well be the one to create something from nothing and turn a defeat into a draw, or a draw into a win. It's crunch time for him though - if he fails at another club, and under Warnock no less, he has no-one to blame but himself. I'd suggest putting your mortgage on him scoring against us mind! Cheers.
Hi mate. I genuinely think it;s too early to tell. He started against Burton and Wales-Online gave him a rating of 8, but listening to it on the radio, he didn't sound very active. He started against Pompey in the Carabao and in my honest opinion, he should have done a lot better and is probably the reason he was dropped to the bench for our victory against Villa in which he didn't play at all. I know he's struggling for match fitness at the moment so maybe Colin is easing him into his plans. Time will tell .
Jay, I watched the Burton game and he showed one or two flashes of class, other than that he was well off the pace and lost the ball on too many occasions. I wa ssurprised he got an 8 rating, however, the TV screen is a poor second to watching the game in the stadium. He has the brain and the skill set, get the lard off and an attitude adjustment and he could well shine and prove all the doubters (myself included) wrong.
Can't disagree with that Taff . My honest opinion is saying that match fitness is the number one factor, I think he will play tonight though and this is the game he needs to shine in to show Warnock that he has what it takes to be a valued member of the team. Fingers crossed.
thought the lad did a good job last night............Warnock has finally got a squad of players he can use as and when needed for different situations >>>>>>my respect is growing for Warnock by the day
