The bottom half of the Superliga is more tactical and defensive minded than the Italian Serie A ... meaning that in lack of the ability and money to attract NT players (except youth or fringe NT players from tiny nations) they work very hard and rely much on individual and special training regarding the defensive aspects, set pieces and other tiny advantages they may have, also depending on their next opponent. But unlike in most other leagues, you won't see a tiny team like Hobro get run over by a top side like FC København that is able to field 20 players who would all be designated players if they were to join a team in MLS. So the Superliga is a bit complicated, because you got all sorts of teams with a highly different approach and style of play. Some rely on NT quality with no weak links and brute force, some mainly rely on youth internationals (for export), some on foreign import and no two teams have exactly the same approach to the game. Hobro are especially scouting the US. I think that as a defensive minded midfielder, Cappis is still able to learn much at Hobro, while Sabbi as an attacking minded player, need to move on, just like Babayan.
If he isn't then the coach is an idiot... he even took their lead goal scorer (Sabbi) out early in the 2nd half in a tie game. Cappis looked pretty good in the first half... his corner resulted in a goal and he had a fantastic long thru ball that their striker couldn't put past the keeper one-on-one. At any rate, the game was on ESPN+ so I was able to watch it and it was the first complete game I have seen from them and I came away with one thought... that is one terrible team. The lack of precision on their passes is stark. Even when they intercept passes they tend to send it out of bounds or to an opponent. Kudos for getting a point on the road but that was hard to watch. Why the coach decided to sub out two of their better players early is beyond me.
and Probably, the coach knew in advance that Esbjerg (just below them in the table) had just lost at home to AGF, just as Sønderjyske (just above) had also lost their away game, and the next Hobro game is at home against Horsens, which is one of the bottom-half teams they should be able to beat, so I suspect that the coach was giving them a rest in the 2nd half due to some minor injuries ... perhaps also because an away match in Aalborg was going to be an ugly physical tough fight with some tough duels, not least in the last 45 minutes. So no reason for the coach to take any risks with Sabbi and Cappis ... better that they are fully fit for fight at home against Horsens, because Hobro really have terrible little depth. Rask is a good keeper, they also have 2 very good CB's = their captain Rasmus Minor and the Swedish U-21 NT CB Anel Ahmedhodzic, and Cappis in central midfield, their 2 wingers/strikers Sabbi and Babayan ..and then also the former Superliga topscorer Pål Kirkevold when he is fit for fight. But this is only 7 good players, while the rest of their team and squad do not really belong in the Superliga. But they are still a team that is difficult to beat. In fact, AaB have not managed to beat Hobro at home in an important match since 2015.
AaB Aalborg v Hobro 1-1 Highlights (just about all from the first 25 minutes), with Cappis also being close to making a 2nd assist :
Starts: Opstillingen mod AC Horsens: Jesper Bøge er tilbage i startopstillingen i stedet for Frans Putros. Derudover spiller Pål Kirkevold og Julian Kristoffersen fra start, mens Emmanuel Sabbi er på bænken, og en ukampdygtig Imed Louati er gledet helt ud af truppen#HobroIK #sldk pic.twitter.com/cRIHhCVGLB— Hobro IK (@hikfodbold) December 6, 2019
Starts: Så kan vi præsentere opstillingen til dagens kamp mod Brøndby IF.Mathias Haarup er ukampdygtig, og han er derfor ikke med. I stedet spiller Frans Putros på venstre back, og derudover er der genvalg til de spillere, som startede i vores seneste kamp.#HobroIK #sldk #BIFHOB pic.twitter.com/TvO3Br2nJf— Hobro IK (@hikfodbold) December 15, 2019
I really hope Cappis gets a transfer to a better club. Sabbi is getting the lion's share of the interest but I like what I have seen... albeit in limited stream and highlight videos.
Well, to be fair, Cappis is still only 20 and has only played a total of 26 Superliga games so far, of which he has gone all 90 minutes only 11 times, played 45 minutes or less 8 times, of which it was less than 5 minutes in 5 of them. So he still need more experience and has much to learn before he go looking for another club. If nothing else, Hobro should be praised for being excellent at developing young defensive talent, like the 20-yo Swedish CB Anel Ahmedhodzic who went from being a fringe Swedish U-21 international to being a regular starter in the U-21 Euro qualifiers and now perhaps getting his debut for Sweden in a friendly tomorrow, after only playing Superliga for Hobro half a season, that is a quick development, much like with young Cappis
Good response. Again, I don't get to watch them all that much... My limited exposure has not been positive with respect to the team as a whole... but the key point here is that it is indeed limited. I bow to those that have had the chance to see them more often.... but I still think the development of a young player can be hindered when the quality of the players around them are found wanting.
With Hobro off until February 16, Cappis is on the travel roster for USA - Costa Rica on February 1. https://www.ussoccer.com/stories/2020/01/mnt-travel-roster
League campaign resumes with a 3-1 loss. Cappis went 90. Så kan vi præsentere opstillingen til dagens kamp mod SønnderjyskE#HobroIK #sldk pic.twitter.com/r3NmPHvhuN— Hobro IK (@hikfodbold) February 16, 2020
Due to the Danish baroque way of doing things, even if they finish dead last it doesn't mean they get relegated.
Three teams are going down this year though, because they're shrinking the Superliga to 12 teams. Not sure how they're determining the three down, but it's a straight promotion for the second division champion.
The team that finish last in each of the two relegation groups both get relegated, so it will be a disaster for Hobro if the do not manage to stay in 12th place, because if not, they then are going to start out as dead last in one of the two groups.
As last season, there will be two relegation groups of 4 teams each. The team that then finish last in each of the two groups are both relegated, while the two 3rd placed teams will face each other in a play-off for the last relegation spot.
Thank you. I was trying to find confirmation of that somewhere but, not speaking Danish, it was a real pain.
Yes, unlucky this time three go down. And it seems the last two will be a direct relegation, no playoff.
Man, I wish our YA would stop playing in Belgium so I don't have to keep trying to figure out the Belgium pro/rel situation.