Couldn't agree more Uber, personally I'd go as far as giving Taraabt the captain's armband too. That would inflate his ego and add purpose to his play. May not be the most natural leader, but is definitely one of the few trying this season.
Very good post as always Uber and I totally agree with what you have said. There is how-ever one flaw in your post. That is that Man Utd have always had the luxury of being in the top 5 in the prem division, and a lazy. luxury player can always be accomodated with the safe knowledge that they were never going to flirt with relegation or even drop out of the top 10. Also they knew that if they did, they would just replace with another top world class player to regain points QPR dont have that safety net this season or last and as such "luxury players" are more of a hinderance if things go wrong- as any mistakes/ confrontation they may cause have more serious repurcussions on the teams position and status in the prem league. Now, if we were in the top 5 every season, I'd say make Tarbs the captain, Pay him millions and even name the satdium after him if you want..but we aint nor have we ever been anything but, fighting off relegation. I'm not questioning Tabs skill or ability what-soever, what I am saying that whilst he may be a gamble that Man utd could afford to take given thier current position, is/was he one that we can afford to take? bearing in mund our troubles. The fact is regardless of his dire performances last season, we had no-one to replace him with. that is one of the only reasons he survived. What he achieved in the Championship really doesnt mean a thing up in the Prem. Before some of his worshippers jump on my case..he has been very good this season and I really hope he keeps it going. definately one of our best players so far. Does that make sense?
Thanks for your comments, Queenslander. I don't see, however, that there is a flaw in the reasoning behind the article. That Taarabt isn't Ronaldo, Warnock isn't (wasn't) Ferguson and QPR isn't United was recognised; all of which alludes to the fact that I'm not really comparing apples with apples on this one. This, I think, is what you're responding with. I suspect Ferguson would take issue with any suggestion that being a Top Five PL side affords you too much luxury to pander to individuals to any great extent. In fact, he has quite a good record of spotting and fairly quickly dispensing with those he feels aren't going to make the grade. But he saw something more in Ronaldo and we should see some of that in Taarabt. A team fighting off relegation such as the Rs arguably should pander more to the Taarabts of this world. Of course, it's horses for courses, so you might not put your 'prima donna' into a match that promises to be a slugfest, but you may well put him into games where you anticipate there to be more space for him to work his magic. If I were managing a team in a relegation fight then I like to think that I'd try everything and throw everything at it in order to survive. What is abundantly clear is that Hughes doesn't seem to be sending out teams with any clear game plan whatsoever, such that there are many aimless, de-motivated headless chickens out there. At least with the "don't pass to Taarabt if he's inside your half" and "if he loses the ball, you win it back for him" strategy worked wonderfully for Warnock, albeit in the Championship. Yes, this is now the PL, but Warnock abandoned this approach from Day One in the upper tier - quite possibly, in part, because Taarabt was unhappy and on the verge of leaving - and we know the rest. When you're stuck with the squad you're stuck with, and everything you've tried to date has not resulted in wins and points, despite persisting with it for a dozen fixtures, then you've got to try something else, right? P.S. This is but one issue in a myriad that require attention; I accept that. It isn't all about how you play Taarabt. There's a lot more wrong.
Once again mate, i find myself agreeing with everything you've said and maybe it was my post that was a bit mixed up. the point i was trying (badly) to put across was that in Man Utd's position, if SAF chooses to play a "flair" and they get a draw instead of an expected win, then although he wouldn't be happy, it wouldnt be the end of the world for him. In our position, where we are clearly and desperately playing for a draw., If we get a loss instead of a draw it has a much bigger impact on our chances of staying in the league. Man Utd can absorb dropping a point now and again, we cannot under any circumstances. this is obviously clear by the reaction of the crowd at West Ham, reading, Southampton etc. How many fans do you think were calling for SAF's head when they lost to Norwich? So put in MH's position, do you go with solid, regular, reliable players who do the expected things every time to get you out of this mess, or do you gamble on a skillfull maverick who may or may not make the right decision? SAF can afford to take that gamble and lose every now and again. Where we are and given our current position I'm not so sure that Hughes can? Now at the risk of totally contradicting myself, given what Mh has tried and the results he has (not) got, then yes, maybe he should pander to Adel a lot more in the hope that something changes, because everything else he's tried hasnt made any diffrence so why not give this a go? Of course his other issue is he really has no credible replacement for Tarbs and thats all his own doing due to his transfer policy. Personally, I thought when Tarbs was given the No10 shirt in the summer, that we were gonna see him much higher up the field supporting or being the 2nd striker. That would have dispensed with all his defensive duties and allowed him to go "create"! Seems i was obviously wrong and MH does not really have a clue! As much as give give Tarbs stick, I'd love to see him play the same role as Rooney does at Man U, I think that is where Harry would play him.
The one positive to come from the predicament that Hughes has put us in is that it has brought a greater balance and less polarised views about certain foreign players. Queens, your recognition of the sheer crapness of Granero's last performance are as welcome as your repeated, dare I say it, growing appreciation of Taarabt's. The two of them have the ability to turn our season round and hopefully now,they will have a manager who gets the best out of them.
I don't think our respective viewpoints are that different, Queens. You're right, of course, about the crowd reaction to the results against the likes of Reading, Southampton and West Ham; games in which you'd ordinarily expect to get something. Clearly you'd be less inclined to set up with a luxury player in games such as these, where perhaps a more workmanlike, professional performance is required. But maybe in fixtures where you'd not usually expect much anyway there's an opportunity to try? Some may throw their hands up in horror at the thought, but you're back to remembering that nothing has worked to date, so why not? A good point about Taarabt being given the No.10 shirt. I would certainly like to see him playing further upfield; and maybe this is what Cisse needs, as he's struggling to time his runs onto the longer balls without straying offside time and again.
Ronaldo a luxury player??? More like match winner, which is what we expect from Adel (perhaps a little less frequently). And I don't think he has ever been lazy - petulant and selfish yes - and Adel has grown out of idleness and some of his petulance recently. These players are only luxuries when they don't deliver. For me it's always worth the risk of having them on the pitch and setting the team up to allow them to play.
SB, never disagreed with you before but i dont understand this post..you drinking? Ronaldo WAS a luxury player at first then developed! Only in the last 3 yrs has he been a match winner ! Adel is not even in his class. Who were you refering to about being lazy? Adel? if so then yes he has been. If not then im sorry Petulant and selfish..who? "These players are only luxuries when they dont deliver" very true mate...have any of them delivered yet? i think i may have misunderstood your post..?
Apologies mate, I am speed reading poorly today - not booze related, multitasking - on a long conference call, trying to do work e-mails at the same time, and this open on the iPad to keep up with manager gossip.........user error.
Fair comment, Stan. "Luxury" may have been a poor term to have used. But I would argue that players such as these, when they're still quite young and their footballing brains are not fully formed, may still be considered a luxury when contemplating the squad as a whole. That Ronaldo grew into a match winner is beyond argument.
