Just seen that he has been omitted from the England squad. Not really surprising considering he's back on the bench now, but where in general do we think we stand as a club with keepers now? Personally he wasn't quite as good as I remember in the games he's played in lately, so do we feel another loan move will benefit him? I still think he has potential to be very good but much depends on how patient he is with schwarzer in front of him.
I know what you mean about him not seeming as good as his previous runs in the side, but he's still a very good keeper who will improve with age. At the start of the season I would have been happy to let Schwarzer move on and put Stockdale as first choice. Jol emphatically said Schwarzer was first choice, and I think events have proved him right and me (along with many of us, as I recall) wrong. That said, what Stockdale needs is time and (first-team, high level) experience. I'm not sure another loan to the Championship will make a lot of difference. I also can't see us loaning him to another Premier League club, as we wouldn't be allowed to include a clause to bring him back if Schwarzer got injured. It's a tough call. If we got offers for him in the summer, say from a newly-promoted Premier league side, I could see him wanting to make the move. I hope he stays.
Tricky one this. Stockdale didn't do badly during his recent run in the side, but seeing Schwarzer against Stoke was a reminder that he's still no. 1. Schwarzer has said he wants to play on until 2014, so he potentially has two seasons left in him at Fulham. Stockdale will be nearly 29 by then, and even though goalkeepers tend to mature later and play for longer, does he really want to be sat on the bench or playing Championship football for two more seasons? If we want to keep him then I think we have to bite the bullet and loan him to another PL club next year. There might be some short term disadvantage if we lose Schwarzer for a period, but in the long term we'll end up with a better goalkeeper when Schwarzer does retire. Incidentally, on the England squad, no room for Bobby Z I noticed. I wonder if Capello's departure could spell the end of his Euro 2012 dreams.
re: Stockdale, you might be right, Fulhamish. re: Bobby, it all depends who takes over. Redknapp has sung Bobby's praises in the past, and was rumoured to be interested in him earlier in the season, so if he's the new boss it isn't necessarily the end of the road for Bobby. I get the impression that Pearce has decided to put an emphasis on youth for this match, which is another explanation for Bobby's absence rather than simply being passed over. Time will tell.
I think Stockdale needs to stay at Fulham and learn from Schwarzer. Loaning him will not improve him unless the team he is joining has a good goalkeeping coach to point out his weaknesses for improvement. He needs to command his area and learn to guide his defenders. His reflexes are excellent but I saw that the defence were a bit wary of his ability to control the game.
For me Swartzer is our no1,but of course age is against him. As i have said several times in the past,Stockdale is both athletic and agile, but for me he does not command his area at all well,and this is one of the most important points in goalkeeping. And at 26 this part of his craft, he should now be well on the way to mastering.
I agree FFC_M. However, I was disappointed that at the same time as the England team was announced Jol was reported as saying that there hadn't been any approaches by other clubs to take him on loan. Just as I was unhappy at Jol's timing in announcing that Schwartz was his No.1. Surely this is the time to be getting behind the lad, keeping him in the fold and re-inforcing how much he's wanted at the club.
Like most others I was a tad disappointed by some of his keeping during his recent run. He did look a bit shaky at times. Mind you I'd rather him in goal than Denzil - I will never forget his howler against Middlesboro a few seasons back. Anyway, i work with an Ipswich fan and they would have Stockers back in a heartbeat. I hope he will stay content with a back up roll for at least the next year. Can you loan to another Premier League club? Thought that was verboten and loans could only be to lower divisions (if you are a Premier League club, that is).
I think this is about choosing between the two; and honestly, I'd rather see Schwarzer go and Stocky stay. We're emphasising youth now, and I'd like to see Stocky grow with the team.
They changed the rules a few years back - now you can loan to other Premier league clubs, but the player isn't allowed to play in the matches against his 'parent club'. Joe Hart's excellent season with Birmingham was on loan from Manchester City, and Ben Foster was loaned out to Watford (and I think someone else, but I can't remember) while he was at Manchester United. Lots of outfield players have had inter-premier league loans too. Swansea wanted to loan Stockdale this season (before they signed Vorm, which seems to have worked out well for them). The reason we sent him to Ipswich rather than to Swansea was the fact that we could include the 24 hour return clause with a Championship side but not with a Premier one. Leeds wanted him as well, but they were apparently unwilling to accept the return clause.
I think the most annoying thing for Stockdale is that Carson and Green have been brought in by Pearce ahead of him. Whilst no one doubts that Hart is No 1 I would question that those two should be 2 and 3 ahead of Stockdale. Having said that, if its because they're both playing every week and he isn't then we're back to the should he stay or go debate....
I gather that Carson is doing well in Turkey, in which case I think it's fair enough for him to be ahead of Stockdale on current form. I don't know how Green is playing - he was sent off the other night - but with West Ham top of their division, there may well be a case to be made for him ahead of Stockdale on current form too. I was disappointed to see him left out, but I don't think it's a major injustice. If Stockdale had made the same impression in this spell for us that he did in previous ones, I'd see it differently. Maybe being left out will spur him on again.
Don't you think it says something about the paucity of English goalkeepers that the numbers 2 & 3 don't actually play in the top division in their own country?
Indeed - and assuming Stockdale's number 4 he can't get a game in the top division either. I know what people mean about Stockdale not commanding his area, but we are comparing him to Schwarzer who is one of the best two or three keepers in the country at the moment in my view. I'd have Stockdale over de Gea or Szczesny any day of the week right now. Still, I think the answer has to be to loan him out again. He needs games and it's clear he's not going to get them while Schwarzer's around: first Hughes and now Jol have been pretty clear about that.
I don't think Carson should be in there. Hargreaves was constantly overlooked because he played abroad, despite the Bundesliga and Bayern being of the highest quality. I seriously doubt the Turkish league is anywhere near the standard of the PL or even the Championship.
