The Odyssey continues: Erik Palmer-Brown at Panathinaikos

Where is he lacking that something extra? Is it physical, mental or a combination of both?

 

You've seen him play a lot more than I have, but I'd suggest that his decline this season has a lot to do with the current coach. The season before last, Tim Ream was utterly out of his depth in the Prem. This season, he's team captain, MOTM, and is on multiple Team of the Week selections. Meanwhile, his previous Prem coach (one Scott Parker) is out of work - having been sacked after just 4 months in charge of Club Brugge left them 20 points off top and with just 2 wins in 12 games.

 

It does coincide. I really didn‘t get to see him last year when L“Equipe was full of praise. When I have seen him this year he still looks like EPB to me.

 

Which may explain why he's always struggled to deliver on the youthful promise that saw him courted by, among others, Porto and Juventus. Players who reach elite level have that inner steel that enables them to rise above useless dumbasses their clubs impose on them.

He's 26 in a few weeks. I just hope that this season and a half in Ligue 1 isn't his high water mark.

 

I personally think it‘s mental. He always has a knack to play really well and then do something unnecessary/dangerous with the ball at his feet. When you are young that is confidence, when you are in your mid 20‘s and you still do it it‘s a problem. In Holland his coach worked with him on following his marks/looking over his shoulders/positioning. He could easily lose his mark in and around the box. It looks like these issues are still there. Physically, he is not out of place, but he doesn‘t look like he has that extra gear needed in a place like France.
He passes the ball nicely, is confident and looks to be a very good defender when the play is in front of him. It‘s when things go sideways or there is too much space where he can make gaffes. By no means is he a bad player from what I see, but kind of like Miazga, I am not sure there is enough there that a lot of people will bite when they go down. I really hope so but who knows? He got benched in Holland, was criticized heavily and got back in. He caught a lot of flack here recently, but fought back in.
Maybe it‘s just coach, circumstance, style of play, still needs more experience? I don‘t know but when they go down we will see if someone liked him enough to come for him.
I hope so of course, but who the heck knows at this point.

 

Yes, let's convince ourselves his total lack of evolution as a team player is on the coach.

 

I certainly don‘t think that.

I think he is a decent player with real flaws. There are a lot of decent players with real flaws. When you are one of those success/competence/failure usually comes down to timing/luck and circumstance. Most players fit this mold.

He isn‘t gonna turn into a top player. I doubt he shocks us. He is what he is.

 

There doesn't seem to be any doubt anymore that Troyes is going down.

 

Nantes is about to implode, so I say there's a slight chance yet.

 

how so?

 

The guy seriously believes he is faster than Adams. That's the problem.
https://www.reddit.com/r/ussoccer/comments/oarjdz/resurfacing_this_video_in_which_adams_sargent_epb/
He will never have a coach that's good enough for him.

 

Lots of internal issues are coming to the fore, among them that their coach allowed players to go away for Ramadan, which means they've been playing a weakened squad and will be in the relegation zone before the 20th (when Ramadan ends):

https://rmcsport.bfmtv.com/football...kombouare-sur-le-ramadan_AV-202304030784.html

 

Gonna take a Herculean effort for Troyes not to be relegated especially with Ligue 1 relegating 4 teams this year. Having the 3rd worst defense in the league doesn't help matters

 

People are going to hate me but today EPB was their worst defender. They play a 3-man back line with unbalanced sides: the guy on the left (Larouci) goes forward much more than the guy on the right, Balde --EPB's side.

The problem is that EPB tends to fall on his side instead of staying further back. It's as if they're playing with two RBs and no one covering the RCB hole. Alexis Sánchez had total control of that area.

 

I felt EPB was very good for Troyes... the 2nd half of last season. He was a big part of why they were able to get out of relegation. This year he's been fairly poor and in terms of the Euro based CBs he is currently playing the worst

 

Perhaps, but Kisnorbo was a disastrous appointment and it's far too late to replace him now.

The club is in freefall he's going to go down with them. Just when it looked as if he was going to consolidate himself in Ligue 1. Let's hope he gets rescued in the summer.

 

Ends 1-0 and Palmer-Brown rated lowest on the pitch on Fotmob.

 

What's happened to him this season?

 

His team is terrible and he's not an above-average Ligue 1 CB.

 

An inadequate coach. Really inadequate.

Bruno Irles was hired a few days before last season's January restart quickly and settled on a 5-4-1 formation with Erik playing as RCB or CCB. They became very hard to beat, averaging 1.0 PPG for the rückrunde, and finished 15th, 3 places clear of relegation and with a double-digit GD advantage on everyone below them.

They replaced Irles with another coach 5 weeks before the WC restart when they were, as expected, in another relegation battle, still playing the same 5-4-1, still hard to beat and averaging 1.0 PPG. They were also two places higher up in 13th and (almost) in touch with 10th spot.

The new guy immediately switched to 4-2-3-1, then 3-4-2-1, then 5-3-2, then . . . You get the point.

The defence has collapsed and the goals have dried up - 2 of every 3 goals scored this season were scored under Irles but only 3 out of every 7 were conceded under him - and they're 10 points adrift, averaging 0.44 PPG, with a horrible GD. With a 5-week break before the post-WC restart the coach clearly had plenty of time to get his ideas across. It's just that those ideas are awful.

 

He's not an above-average Troyes CB at this point,

In fact, he's part of the problem.