Dark Savante
09 Oct 2006, 05:20 PM
I don’t know how many of you remember the strengths and weaknesses of the each reserve player I made in one of the review threads? In the weaknesses section are the reasons why I believe players won’t make it here if they are destined to fail. I was meant to make a thread about pace but I don’t have the time. In it I had planned to go into great detail about the subject and also about why it is likely to be the athletes (who may not be technically complete) who will get the nod over technicians who lack size, strength or pace. The reason why an Agbanlahor goes straight into the league and make an impact where the superior Rossi cannot.
Anyway, here are my thoughts on what we as fans should be thinking if each of these players fail to make the grade. As a pre-cursor, it should be noted that by talent and ability I’d be comfortable for any of this lot to be given a stay with the team of at least equal measure to what Fletcher, Richardson and O’Shea got.
I’m probably not going to write a reserve review until next year now as I haven’t had the time to watch any games and certainly haven’t had the time to form a solid opinion of anyone in the few games I’ve seen. I would have added this section to that review, as it’s not likely for a while, I may as well write it now.
Giuseppe Rossi: Rooney. Biggest obstacle for Rossi. The pros of this are that Rooney is young and should not play full seasons until he is 24. It’s also beneficial for Rossi in that if he plays pseudo #9 he has someone who he should be able to build with. The negative is that it’s Wayne bloody Rooney. For Manchester United and the way we play, Rooney is a hurdle to far… for 95% of the foot-balling world. The blunt end of this is that Rossi’s career may end before it even starts in regards to us because Rooney will not be budged by anyone and unless the manager rotates between them, Rossi is the fall-guy, understandably.
Rossi isn’t going to become a #9 not in the sense where he starts over a true and premiership proven #9. So unless there was an injury crisis, it’s not likely Rossi would start many games or get on unless Rooney was taken off… The manager would most likely put someone else in to come on for Saha, I think. Could be the greatest of tragedies. The greatest reserve, blocked by the greatest player at the club. You couldn’t make it up.
Lee Martin Goals. Simple as that. He has sorted out his crossing and his final ball looks to be quality now, but to really make inroads on the United squad, Lee needs goals. Giggs, Ronaldo even Richardson to an extent, carried a goal threat at a very young age. Lee’s shooting was atrocious in the reserves, it really let him down because he could get himself into positions where all that was needed was an accurate and composed finish and he’d end up rolling a pitiful ball into the keepers hands or scuffing the shot. It’s the last piece of his jigsaw. A huge one, that’ll decide his fate. He needs to pick up on the scoring, bit time.
David Jones Pace/Strength/Stamina. The reluctance to play him comes from doubts about his ‘pace off the mark’ it’s a bloody shame because this lad has oodles of talent and pace really isn’t that important in the CM area if you are always one step ahead via reading of the game. He’s also not that slow. He’s often made out to be a slouch or not up to it. He’s no Zokora (who is a rocket for a CM) but he has a decent engine on him. The stamina issue could well be his biggest problem. I’m basing this on the last time I truly saw the lad every week and I’m not sure he could complete a PL 90 as a CM in a hard game against a Savage or Parker or anyone else who would aim to run him into the ground. Stamina can be worked on though and I’ve not seen the lad play for a while so he may well be fitter now than he was then.
Jonny Evans N/A. Shoe-in. I’ve yet to see a weakness in his game.
Gerard Pique Aggression. He may not be cut out for the rough and tumble of this league. It’s a clutch at straws because before he went off on loan he’d toughened up considerably and the Ishmael Miller’s etc of the reserves could no longer bully him. And those Citeh lads are as strong and fast as almost anything in the PL (Miller stands 6’3 and is an absolute tank, think Heskey pace and power)
Danny Simpson Size. He’s small, he needs to grow and fill out some or he could fall by the wayside. I see no technical aspect for him to not make it. He is a superb RB. His height and build could see him bullied by donkey’s who are bigger and stronger than he is though. I think this is his only obstacle. He’s my tip to take Gaz’s spot when the time comes.
Phil Bardsley Technique. You’ve all seen him for yourselves. He’s dependable defensively. His attacking game needs a ton of work.
Darron Gibson Pace. Again, he’s no Zokora, but he has a decent engine on him. I’m clutching at a straw here, he’s another shoe-in for me with his size, power and overall brilliance. He is PL ready (size wise) as it is, but needs experience.
Frazier Campbell Improvement. He’s got to keep on getting better. A striker’s shelf-life is totally reliant on goals as he goes up the levels. Campbell has done nothing wrong and is shining in Antwerp, but that’s demanded and he will have to keep doing the thing at higher and higher levels. Blake was cut because of an injury he never recovered from and then his time ran out. Such is the life of a striker that the same fate could befall Campbell at anytime. We just can’t know, the difference between a big injury for a midfielder or defender is that they aren’t judged under the scrutiny a striker gets. You can see within 5games whether a striker is damaged goods, a mid will get half a season under the same conditions to redeem himself. I hope he has a clear run of it with regard to outside factors and that he is judged by the sword of his own ability.
I’ll leave it there. No point mentioning Eckersley, Foster et al, they aren’t close to anything for us for a good 2yrs whereas this lot in varying degree, could come through anytime between 6months and 2yrs in some cases. Technically, Bardsley is the only one who has concern as his entire offensive game is poor. Martin just needs to fix his shooting. Outside of that he’s good to go. For me, the travesties will be Rossi and Jones not given chances. That’d be a huge shame.
This thread obviously omits the external factors (Fergie's job on the line, etc) to focus on the individuals and why they won't get chances and for what reasons. You can bet if Jones had Zokora pace he'd have been playing long before now :(
Anyway, here are my thoughts on what we as fans should be thinking if each of these players fail to make the grade. As a pre-cursor, it should be noted that by talent and ability I’d be comfortable for any of this lot to be given a stay with the team of at least equal measure to what Fletcher, Richardson and O’Shea got.
I’m probably not going to write a reserve review until next year now as I haven’t had the time to watch any games and certainly haven’t had the time to form a solid opinion of anyone in the few games I’ve seen. I would have added this section to that review, as it’s not likely for a while, I may as well write it now.
Giuseppe Rossi: Rooney. Biggest obstacle for Rossi. The pros of this are that Rooney is young and should not play full seasons until he is 24. It’s also beneficial for Rossi in that if he plays pseudo #9 he has someone who he should be able to build with. The negative is that it’s Wayne bloody Rooney. For Manchester United and the way we play, Rooney is a hurdle to far… for 95% of the foot-balling world. The blunt end of this is that Rossi’s career may end before it even starts in regards to us because Rooney will not be budged by anyone and unless the manager rotates between them, Rossi is the fall-guy, understandably.
Rossi isn’t going to become a #9 not in the sense where he starts over a true and premiership proven #9. So unless there was an injury crisis, it’s not likely Rossi would start many games or get on unless Rooney was taken off… The manager would most likely put someone else in to come on for Saha, I think. Could be the greatest of tragedies. The greatest reserve, blocked by the greatest player at the club. You couldn’t make it up.
Lee Martin Goals. Simple as that. He has sorted out his crossing and his final ball looks to be quality now, but to really make inroads on the United squad, Lee needs goals. Giggs, Ronaldo even Richardson to an extent, carried a goal threat at a very young age. Lee’s shooting was atrocious in the reserves, it really let him down because he could get himself into positions where all that was needed was an accurate and composed finish and he’d end up rolling a pitiful ball into the keepers hands or scuffing the shot. It’s the last piece of his jigsaw. A huge one, that’ll decide his fate. He needs to pick up on the scoring, bit time.
David Jones Pace/Strength/Stamina. The reluctance to play him comes from doubts about his ‘pace off the mark’ it’s a bloody shame because this lad has oodles of talent and pace really isn’t that important in the CM area if you are always one step ahead via reading of the game. He’s also not that slow. He’s often made out to be a slouch or not up to it. He’s no Zokora (who is a rocket for a CM) but he has a decent engine on him. The stamina issue could well be his biggest problem. I’m basing this on the last time I truly saw the lad every week and I’m not sure he could complete a PL 90 as a CM in a hard game against a Savage or Parker or anyone else who would aim to run him into the ground. Stamina can be worked on though and I’ve not seen the lad play for a while so he may well be fitter now than he was then.
Jonny Evans N/A. Shoe-in. I’ve yet to see a weakness in his game.
Gerard Pique Aggression. He may not be cut out for the rough and tumble of this league. It’s a clutch at straws because before he went off on loan he’d toughened up considerably and the Ishmael Miller’s etc of the reserves could no longer bully him. And those Citeh lads are as strong and fast as almost anything in the PL (Miller stands 6’3 and is an absolute tank, think Heskey pace and power)
Danny Simpson Size. He’s small, he needs to grow and fill out some or he could fall by the wayside. I see no technical aspect for him to not make it. He is a superb RB. His height and build could see him bullied by donkey’s who are bigger and stronger than he is though. I think this is his only obstacle. He’s my tip to take Gaz’s spot when the time comes.
Phil Bardsley Technique. You’ve all seen him for yourselves. He’s dependable defensively. His attacking game needs a ton of work.
Darron Gibson Pace. Again, he’s no Zokora, but he has a decent engine on him. I’m clutching at a straw here, he’s another shoe-in for me with his size, power and overall brilliance. He is PL ready (size wise) as it is, but needs experience.
Frazier Campbell Improvement. He’s got to keep on getting better. A striker’s shelf-life is totally reliant on goals as he goes up the levels. Campbell has done nothing wrong and is shining in Antwerp, but that’s demanded and he will have to keep doing the thing at higher and higher levels. Blake was cut because of an injury he never recovered from and then his time ran out. Such is the life of a striker that the same fate could befall Campbell at anytime. We just can’t know, the difference between a big injury for a midfielder or defender is that they aren’t judged under the scrutiny a striker gets. You can see within 5games whether a striker is damaged goods, a mid will get half a season under the same conditions to redeem himself. I hope he has a clear run of it with regard to outside factors and that he is judged by the sword of his own ability.
I’ll leave it there. No point mentioning Eckersley, Foster et al, they aren’t close to anything for us for a good 2yrs whereas this lot in varying degree, could come through anytime between 6months and 2yrs in some cases. Technically, Bardsley is the only one who has concern as his entire offensive game is poor. Martin just needs to fix his shooting. Outside of that he’s good to go. For me, the travesties will be Rossi and Jones not given chances. That’d be a huge shame.
This thread obviously omits the external factors (Fergie's job on the line, etc) to focus on the individuals and why they won't get chances and for what reasons. You can bet if Jones had Zokora pace he'd have been playing long before now :(