Saka also has 10 and is even younger. Makes me like the idea of a facilitator/false 9 at center forward if these two continue to develop as goal scorers. Having each of your regular front three in the mid-teens for league goals can take you much of the way to where you need to challenge at the top of the table. If you can get 10 from someone like Martinelli as a spot starter and game-chasing sub, 5 or 6 from Ødegaard…and you’re in the 60s from just five players. I wasn’t the first to say it, but I definitely touted the Rosicky comp because of his ball carrying… But given the goal scoring development, I think the Pires comp is pretty apt.
I guess you're referring at least in part to the lack of HR's going to the sideline to review plays. I think that is one of the stupidest policy guidelines in the EPL's implementation of VAR. I believe that could be done quickly, perhaps even more quickly than the VAR reviews at Stockley Park, in that HR's are already ensconced in the in-game mentality of quick decisive calls. The first year they did their best to dissuade HR's from going to the pitchside screen. This year we see it a tad more, but still not enough IMHO.
I said the same thing. Their games are slightly different, but there are a lot of similarities as well. Neither is particularly fast, strong and big, but they both can play out-wide and can win you games. They also both have a knack for making hard goals look extremely simple and finding open pockets in the final third.
I actually think ESR has that good 10-15 yard burst of pace, but no, he's not an Henry or Walcott sprinter. And interestingly enough both he and Bobby are 6 feet tall, not huge, but not small either.
KdB's role w City requires him to create a ton more - ESR can't really do that, and it seems like he doesn't have the vision to do it.
Just rewatching CHE-ARS now, while saving it to dvd. Listening with headphones on to catch all the great singing by our supporters… Especially: “there’s nobody here, there’s nobody here, just like the old days, there’s nobody here”. And one other thing I noticed this time was on Eddie’s second goal, Laca was warming up and totally smothered him with a hug in the corner…. The old guy giving love to the young guy who’s in the process of taking his place? Laca may be maligned and deserve some criticism, but he’s really hard to hate.
oh, no doubt. it's not even just that play (which was great). he had a ton of good moments (including defensively). he's still work in progress (even if you ignore azpilicueta's goal) both offensively and defensively. essentially, he's just about right for a no 2 LB for us (though it would help if arteta learns to rotate more/better). there's a part of me that just wants to see him and partey in a shooting competition.
Kdb plays exclusively as an 8 in the right half space (obviously drifts at times) Esr is out wide left and coming onto his right foot I don’t see the comparison???
apparently, the 2nd and 3rd players of such age to have double-digit league goals for us. that's pretty impressive. spreading the goalscoring duty out is a good way to handle not having an henry or lewandowski at the 9. plus, we would be far more protected against slump/bad form or injuries. for my eyes, that's the one that resonates the most because of his ability to kind of pop into weird pockets of space and his contributions are more frequently those minor touches to move things along. man, i would not hate it if that's where he ends up. not at all.
IIRC De Bruyne often played as a wide attacking midfielder in his breakout season for Wolfsburg Pep converted him and Silva (who was also more of a winger) into proper 8s It's a common transition for younger guys to start in the wide midfield roles before being given the keys to central midfield. Schweini was also a winger when he started
Esr doesn’t have that same ability. Kdb and silva especially were tens originally and moved back. Esr does not look like an 8 at all to me, he’s a counter attacking threat that carries the ball wide left and cuts in he’s fine there