YorkshireRam

9 hours ago, Crewton said:

1 goal and 2 assists in 954 minutes of playing time (all but one of those contributions coming in his 2nd last game at Blackpool), compared to Fozzy's 3 goals and 1 assist in 1941 minutes from LB/LWB or Jack Stretton's 1 goal in 291 minutes.....entertainment galore, masses of promise, but little end product - which many people noted at the time whilst also praising his performances.

Using G/A as a comprehensive statistical measure is pretty flawed since it relies on a winger functioning as an inside forward to score goals, or for the strikers to convert the chances they create, which isn't a guarantee- both of which are variables potentially outside the player's control, especially if he's instructed to hug the byline. 

For a player in his position, chance creation metrics are the ones you want to be looking at. 4.88 progressive runs with 4.69 successful dribbles a match show he's excellent progressive dribbler. In specific regards to end product, he averaged 1 chance created every 50 minutes which for a debut season shows he regularly created chances- which requires end product. Obviously wide players are expected to contribute defensively now also, and Malcolm did well in this regard, winning 54.3% of his defensive duels and averaging 2.44 interceptions per 90.

Even then, stats aren't everything and for a young lad thrust into a turbulent team in a weird season, I thought his end product was surprisingly impressive, even if that first goal took a while to come. 

14 minutes ago, Crewton said:

He looked pretty willing to get on the ball to me, and take the fullback on. Not an outrageous success, but we need players for the u21s and I thought he had plenty of pace and ability on the ball. 

Don't forget, for all the entertainment he provided us, Ebiowei still lacked much of an end product and this lad might just need time to settle. 45 minutes with relative strangers on a night where they all looked like they'd only met at kickoff is a tough ask. 

Ebosele lacked end product, Ebiowei didn't... 

16 hours ago, Ravabeerbelly said:

That “boss it at league 1 level” is going to really bite people in the bum….it’s not like the championship where teams sit off and defend tactically by letting you have the ball on the edge of your own box…..think how often he was caught in possession later in the season and that’s how it’ll be from game 1 in league 1. No one is going to let a 5’6” ball player pop it around dictating play. He’ll be swamped from minute 1 and it’ll take time to make the necessary adjustments. I think he’ll find it a lot tougher than the Championship.

I politely disagree with this. What always stood out about Thompson to me was his close control. He's very tidy with the ball and therefore has all the attributes to play around a press- which is the scenario you're saying he is going to struggle with. 

He's not a 'sit deep and ping passes' sort of midfielder. He's a: pick it up while being closed down, clever turn into space, and play the ball forward-type; if he can play this way as well as he did last season, there's every chance he can adapt to this level fairly quickly.

The only game i remember him struggling was when we asked him to play as a makeshift wingback... I'm excited to see what he can do in League 1. Not saying he's going to be our most critical player, but he's definitely shown enough to warrant more excitement than worry, going into this season.

29 minutes ago, Caerphilly Ram said:

As I understand it they liked the idea of appointing him after they interviewed him, which is why he was set to be named their new manager. Rosenior allegedly went back to them seeking assurances and asking for certain demands to be met, Blackpool couldn’t or wouldn’t do so, so they moved onto another candidate. 

This is what I've read too.

And let's face it, if he was deemed good enough to progress Blackpool, there's a good chance he could do the same for us. I'd imagine it's harder for a rookie manager to take an existing, underperforming squad and turn them round, than it is to assemble a group from scratch to play into a preferred playing style. Liam has the rare opportunity to practically sign an entire team, and he can select players based on how he wants to play- for a new manager, that's an ideal scenario.

Tactically he should be sound, being the youngest coach to obtain the UEFA Pro badge. He's had 3 years of man management experience now also, and knows the club very well. Given we're likely working on a limited budget, there's enough there to say he's worth a shot imo.

1 hour ago, Indy said:

Don’t know if anyone has shared this, but it looks like Nixon has read the room and sees the EFL and Boro positions as ridiculous. Hopefully that will see us getting some more sympathetic coverage in the nationals. 

Never thought I'd say this but Nixon is reporting on this very well at the minute, in my opinion.

Percy, on the other hand, I've lost all respect for- willfully pedaling EFL propaganda thanks to getting scoops directly from Trevor Birch's office...

17 minutes ago, Crewton said:

Does Rooney get any credit for tonight? 

Yes, a team selection that was criticised beforehand for being resigned to a defeat ended up putting in a valiant display and earning us a hard-fought point. We were never going to outplay West Brom so being resolute defensively was our best bet at getting something from the game... Rooney takes a fair amount of credit for that. 

1 hour ago, RoyMac5 said:

Why not, it's not like Cocu spent the money on a striker!

Do you not remember Dursan? I think he tried but Mel wouldn't pay the £1.5m asking price...

1 hour ago, RoyMac5 said:

I find it amusing when certain posters keep bringing up the supposed double standards I have between Rooney and Cocu, that they aren't willing to give Rooney the time and chances that they allowed Cocu. ?

Except I'm not 'Rooney Out', I'm giving Rooney a fresh slate to prove himself... 

Let's not pretend he's shown much promise so far though; Bielik is who kept us up. The 'double standards' comment is that despite remarkable similarities, you won't criticise Rooney for EXACTLY what you criticised Cocu for- constantly changing the team, overly-defensive/slow build up, poor substitutions. The only real difference is that Rooney had better players at his disposal.

It's just astonishing to see you so willfully defend Rooney in a way that you directly criticised anyone that did the same for Cocu. For what it's worth, I really hope Rooney succeeds, despite being fairly critical of him so far.

14 hours ago, Jimbo Ram said:

I think you need to get a bit of perspective and context on this Angie Ram. Revisit Roy Mac’s posts in the Cocu Out thread and the baiting that went on there. There was no respect for those that wanted to give him more time, no respect at all for other view points. We were actually ridiculed at times. Challenging hypocrisy and double standards isn’t trolling and is not baiting. It’s looking for an explanation to the views on Rooney that he keeps making that he can’t justify when challenged. Roy Mac could put an end to it in 2 minutes but he chooses not to ?

The true irony being that the mitigating factors he lambasted people for using to defend Cocu, he's now using for Rooney...

Lets face facts: Rooney chopped and changed the team more than Cocu, his managerial record is weaker despite having better players at his disposal (Bielik, CKR, Lawrence), and tactically he's more concerned with the opposition than even Cocu was...

Calling him out on the laughable double standards is more than warranted

15 hours ago, RoyMac5 said:

That's the point. I know nothing.

FTFY

1 minute ago, DazaDunn said:

Any idea why he screams “Woooooo!” as a way of asking for the ball? ?

Easily audible? I didn't realise that was him but it's made me love him even more, he's the ultimate sh!thouse player ?

Just now, Curtains said:

You seem to be getting very defensive. 

Ok Sibley is the next superstar at Derby. 

Mad I said in my first post it’s difficult to have a view on Sibley as people get so upset. 

I find your comments most insulting and I don’t think you would say them to my face 

Offence is taken, not given. You choose to voice your opinions, expect rebuttals

2 minutes ago, Curtains said:

Maybe you have a vested interest right. 

Is that supposed to be a question? ?

Just irks me to see uninformed negativity. You compared Sibley to Mahrez and Mbappe, 2 players with a combined value of over £200m! Using that to try and substantiate your point about not rating Sibley I just find very crass

You should be referring to more relevant comparisons like Adam Idah at Norwich (scored a hattrick in the FA Cup)

8 minutes ago, Curtains said:

Well it wasn’t my comparison.  

Did you miss that.  

Now who hasn’t got a clue 

Still you ? imagine trying to wriggle out like that

You endorsed the comparison, i never explicitly stated you were the first to voice it... ? You're like a dog with a bone most of the time, it's fine to not rate Sibley but i swear you have to post 50+ times every time you have a negative opinion on something

2 hours ago, Curtains said:

THe had one good game against Millwall 

That propelled him to a super player status with some fans 

He scored a hattrick at a younger age than Messi or Ronaldo... Show me any set of fans that wouldn't treat their youngsters as such?

1 hour ago, Curtains said:

Sibley or Mbappe

 

I think this shows you've not really got a clue. 1 is a local lad playing for the team he supports and has recently broke through with only a handful of starts. The other is regarded as one of the biggest phenomenons in world football along with Erling Braut Haaland... Of course Sibley's not at Mbappe's level yet; he's played 100+ games less and is 3 years younger to start with. Sibley will likely never reach Mbappe's level, but anyone who tries to use such an irrelevant comparison doesn't know much about football. It's that simple. 

If I could have my way, our realistic transfers, come the end of the window, would look something like this:

Sam Byram- West Ham (loan w/ view to permanent)
Ben Chillwell- Leicester (loan)
Henri Lansbury- Forest
Bakary Sako- Crystal Palace
Chris Martin- returning home 

3 hours ago, Jimbo Ram said:

He cost West Spam nearly 4 mill with his contract just about up....not sure he would drop a division or that we have the 7-8 mill he would cost?

Hence the loan and then, most likely based on promotion, buy him if we decide he is worth it?

As a different option to Baird and Christie when he returns, Sam Byram on loan with a view to a permanent from West Ham? 

37 minutes ago, QuitYourJibbaJivin said:

I think Christie has cemented his place partly because we don't have anybody to replace him. Like others have said his contract is up at the end of the season, Keoghs was also up at the end of the season but they got that sorted out fairly quickly. Can't he sign for somebody for free in January? 

You're right, Prem clubs have shown interest simply because we have no replacement. He's picked consistently for the Ireland squad because they've got no replacements. Christie won Young Player of the Year 2015/16 because there's no-one else to challenge him for it...

Oh wait!

Christie has been brilliant for us, barring a dodgy spell at the end of the 2014/15 season where the entire squad effectively capitulated.

Adding to that he's still only 23 so has potential to improve further, he's easily one of our most talented youngsters hence his consistent place in the first team.

If Cyrus wanted to move to a prem club, I wouldn't blame him but I definitely wouldn't be actively looking to sell him...

​Pacqiuao was the victor in that fight, not doubt about it.

If Mayweather is indeed as good he's hyped to be, he'll accept a rematch then when Manny is fully fit, yet I don't see that happening...

​Pacqiuao won that fight, Ridiculous decision!

He was the agressor every single round and Mayweather fought like a coward retreating at every available opportunity. The fact that Pacqiuao was fighting with one arm appartently as well after being denied a shoulder injection makes Mayweather seem all the more weak.

Did you not hear the boos when the decision was announced as unanimous in Mayweather's favour?

In regards to the best ever, you're really saying Mayweather is better than Ali?

​Greatest ever? Get a grip, Mayweather doesn't even make my top 5!