Today's game, teams are in

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Correct, his inexperience isn't the problem, the fact he's 4 inches or more shorter and about 2 or 3 stone lighter than his opponents is what causes problems at set pieces, he can't do the slyly nudging them off the ball when they go for a header that other players can (see one of West Ham's goals at the back end of last season). Chester is also pretty crap when opponents put their big lump of a striker up against him and just use them as a head on a stick. Watford last season being the prime example got both their goals at the KC that way, and then at Vicarage Road dominated us with 10 men once they decided to reverse the bizarre decision to leave Iwelumo on the bench. Chester will play, and in the absence of height/weight elsewhere in the team that means playing Cooper is almost impossible without giving us a massive weakness to be targetted.

Our best defender is Chester and he's shorter than Cooper and we're playing Chester and McShane together and there's no significant height difference between Cooper and McShane. In our recent games we've played Chester, Bruce and McShane, so height is self evidently a complete irrelevance with regard to our current team selections.

If Chester, Bruce and McShane can play, then so can Cooper.
 
Thats fair enough really! I didn't realise Cooper was that small. Either way I'd much rather have a Chester, Cooper combo than anything where McShambles gets involved.

I can't decide on it, I keep forgetting to watch what McShane is doing at set pieces. I just know, and was saying all last season that I'd be fine with Cooper covering for Chester, but not playing alongside him. He's at a stage where he needs regular games, which with Chester here I wouldn't give him, so if having Bruce/McShane playing alongside Chester and Faye lets Cooper go and get games elsewhere it's a good thing long term, even if we're not as strong as we could be here and now. I'm not impressed with them lining up Bruce, McShane, Chester from left to right though. I'd be looking to put the two bigger men on the sides marking the strikers and having Chester effectively playing as a sweeper. He's the one that reads the game best, and is most comfortable coming forward with the ball, so he should be the one with the 'free role' rather than McShane.
 
According to Soccer Saturday we're playing much better now... plus Leeds a goal and a man down :biggrin:

I'd easily take a draw from this.
 
Mannone is getting a good run in minding net right now. Fulham scored two headers to tie up Arsenal in the first half - he should have got to the second one ....... still wish had signed Vito.
 
I can't decide on it, I keep forgetting to watch what McShane is doing at set pieces. I just know, and was saying all last season that I'd be fine with Cooper covering for Chester, but not playing alongside him. He's at a stage where he needs regular games, which with Chester here I wouldn't give him, so if having Bruce/McShane playing alongside Chester and Faye lets Cooper go and get games elsewhere it's a good thing long term, even if we're not as strong as we could be here and now. I'm not impressed with them lining up Bruce, McShane, Chester from left to right though. I'd be looking to put the two bigger men on the sides marking the strikers and having Chester effectively playing as a sweeper. He's the one that reads the game best, and is most comfortable coming forward with the ball, so he should be the one with the 'free role' rather than McShane.

It's not good at all, Cooper's gone, he's history, we'll never see him again, his position has been given to Bruce Jnr.
 
Our best defender is Chester and he's shorter than Cooper and we're playing Chester and McShane together and there's no significant height difference between Cooper and McShane. In our recent games we've played Chester, Bruce and McShane, so height is self evidently a complete irrelevance with regard to our current team selections.

If Chester, Bruce and McShane can play, then so can Cooper.

Chester is our best defender and McShane and Faye are both 6'+.

We've only been playing Bruce, Chester and McShane together because Faye has been injured and then coming back from that injury. The fact when Alex got injured against Barnsley Steve chose to completely change the formation rather than putting Faye on for 20 minutes suggests he's been getting named on the bench before he was really ready to play.

Cooper and Bruce are about the same size. Cooper needs to gain experience from regular first team football for his own sake, Bruce already has it. If someone is under normal circumstances going to be sat on the bench it may as well be Bruce if it means Cooper can go and start regularly elsewhere.
 
Chester is our best defender and McShane and Faye are both 6'+.

We've only been playing Bruce, Chester and McShane together because Faye has been injured and then coming back from that injury. The fact when Alex got injured against Barnsley Steve chose to completely change the formation rather than putting Faye on for 20 minutes suggests he's been getting named on the bench before he was really ready to play.

Cooper and Bruce are about the same size. Cooper needs to gain experience from regular first team football for his own sake, Bruce already has it. If someone is under normal circumstances going to be sat on the bench it may as well be Bruce if it means Cooper can go and start regularly elsewhere.

You said Cooper couldn't be played with Chester as he's only 5'11, but Bruce seems to be first choice and he's also 5'11, so that's obviously not the case.

I think McShane is a liability and the suggestion that he's tall enough because he's 1" taller than Cooper is weak. I accept that he's less experienced, but having been at every game he's played for us, i'd say he was more competent than McShane and if we buy him slightly longer studs he'd be the same height too....
 
A year on & I still say we should have had a look at Chris Wondolowski - San Jose Earthquakes in the MLS. In the last 3 years he has played 88 games & scored 66 times. He led the MLS scoring for two of the last three, with 27 this season. At 29, he may not have much time left, but he sure knows how to find the net for his team - which by all accounts were not one of the higher rated teams for the last three years.
 
A year on & I still say we should have had a look at Chris Wondolowski - San Jose Earthquakes in the MLS. In the last 3 years he has played 88 games & scored 66 times. He led the MLS scoring for two of the last three, with 27 this season. At 29, he may not have much time left, but he sure knows how to find the net for his team - which by all accounts were not one of the higher rated teams for the last three years.

people take that league LESS seriously than the SPL