Speaking his mind as ever, Jol has made the following statement - "It`s not the first time, especially in away games, he`s dropped out the night before and even on the morning before the games." "Luckily enough he did not have the same problems in home games but you can manage that." Bit of a concern. If there is a real or even a perceived problem with Bobby, personallt I'd prefer he sorted it in house.
Agreed, Cottager. I had seen these quotes reported and been a bit worried about what they said about Jol's relationship with Bobby. I'm hoping that the quotes are somehow taken out of context and not the beginnings of a falling out between the two of them. Unless it's all part of some subtle form of man-management to provoke a good performance out of Bobby, it does seem a bit ill-advised on Jol's part.
What the Captain said. That said, if this is true and Bobby doesn't want to play for the club on away days he should go.
You can put that spin on it - or you can put it down to Jol not expressing himself in the way a native english speaker might. We might say, "yeah, he's had a problem or two crop up right before the away games, sometimes on the day itself, which has been unfortunate for us, fortunately it's never been anything too serious and he's always been back for the home matches." Although I have to admit when I first read it an alarm bell did go off at the back of my mind.
Always hard to interpret a quote when it's written down and possibly taken out of context. Jol also said "The medical staff thought it was a good idea to load him with some extra sessions instead of playing here." I think he's just stating fact - Bobby's missed all three away games in the league and the last couple of European games. It's a problem because we need him fit for every game, particularly when our away form is so poor. Funnily enough, I do remember Roy mentioning once that Bobby had been complaining that he was tired because of the number of games he was playing. Roy just shrugged it off by telling him 'that's what's meant to happen'.
As it proved by the result Bobby's presence was not required. We are building a team that will have the possibility to play without Bobby and sufficient depth on the bench. I think Bobby will be required to be fully fit on Sunday.
May be he is just scared of Flying ? Wasn't there one away game in Europe when there was a problem during take-off on the way back from a game ? Just have to do a Baracus (Mr T) on him
You can, but Jol is experienced enough to know what the press are like. Also, it's not the first time he's been picked up recently. I took a hit posting a thread that he would let AJ go. Fair game, but it was on the back of Jol going public. Then there was the flippant remark about MAF leaving at half time during the Man City game. And, making Ruiz look a bit silly because, allegedly, he (Ruiz) wasn't aware that he couldn't play in Europe. There's more than one way to make the headlines. Starting with a stonking win on Sunday!
True C58, he's no stranger to English football, or dropping press-related clangers either apparently! Roll on Sunday!
could be Jol trying to give him a slight kick up the arse- in a sort of you can't choose when to play and when not to, type thing. however, I wouldn't be suprised if it has been slightly taken out of context and is to do with illness and injury.
Sky has reported that there was a falling out between Jol and Bobby at the training ground this week. Possibly more press spin or possibly Bobby being miffed at publicly being accused of lacking commitment? Whatever Jol has struggled to win over the 'old' squad since arriving in June - the body language is there for all to see. Murphy grumpy (well more than usual); Hangeland out of sorts. Jol has his own style of management but it has left (some) players unsure of their pattern of play and roles within the team. Still I hope Bobby plays today - he's at his best when peeved about his treatment.
This is certainly all a bit worrying. I don't like to think about unhappiness in the camp, especially when we've had a settled and cohesive squad for some years now. And I especially don't like the idea of the unhappiness being centred around Bobby. Yes, we have a bigger squad now and AJ looks like he might (finally) be coming into some seriously good form but I'm not convinced we can manage without Bobby game after game. It will certainly be interesting to see if he plays today. I agree with Cottager that he's the type that plays better when he's p***ed off so it might be that we're in for some fireworks. Anyway, I'm looking forward to my trip to the sunny Cottage this afternoon.
I read the article about Bobby in the Sunday People, and found this choice quote; Craven Cottage hell? Sensationalist nonsense.
Fortinately, this is the Sunday People, so I'll agree with Bidley about it being sensationalist nonsense. Bobby will play... with heart! COYW
