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Alessandro

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Everything posted by Alessandro

  1. I admit this is where my argument falls down - communication. It’s so poor. And as you say Red Exile, pretty disrespectful at times. But reading between the lines, as I said in my original post, quotes like those along the lines of these that he’s made: ”if we want premier league football we need a cash investment from outside” ”building a nest egg” ”letting this squad develop” So the official line is always going to be “we’re going for the play offs” isn’t it, because the club need to sell season tickets and create some hope in the fan base, business wise. Annoying as that is. But reading between the lines, the private policy could be one of building up to the point where we can have a go, rather than buying our way, which failed under LJ. Again, I admit it’s hopeful speculation, but it kind of makes sense when you look at the squad - but as you say Dave, when NP comes out and says some of the things he says it does contradict what I’ve outlined. I do agree we’re a few more injuries away from danger, but that’s the downside of NP wanting a smaller squad than before I suppose. I thought we’d get more in though, obviously we got TGH in, I suspect we tried and failed for another - but I still think we have decent cover in most areas and a lot of versatile players. With 2 weeks now, hopefully a chance to see some others getting a chance to get closer to fitness too. Do we know how far off Tommy, Andi and Rob are for example, because they’d make a huge difference to the depth?
  2. I agree the referee was awful today. Felt we should have had a pen when Sykes was smashed from behind - but for balance, he missed/didn’t give what I believe was a clear penalty (100% given by VAR) against Naismith.
  3. I’ll sneak this post in on the back of a win….? But is SL potentially playing a blinder here? (Takeovers aside for now…) Hear me out. He’s spoken about a ‘nest egg’ and given the squad time to ‘develop’ Interestingly since City started down the path of developing way to success, I was thinking this is the first time in 5 plus years we actually have the potential that a core of our young squad hit their peak performance windows simultaneously: Pring, Vyner, Dickie, McCrorie, Roberts, Tanner, Atkinson, Knight, Sykes, Bell, Conway, Mehmeti all on good long contracts, all heading to that window at the same time. It feels like this season is at least one season too early for several of them (especially with injuries) - so what I’m getting at is, perhaps the club have recognised we’re still working our way up the development ladder and additional spending this season may have been wasted. We have enough quality to stay up, give the current squad chance to get games and don’t block minutes for the next group coming through for now. Save spending till next summer or summer after with more of the above players hitting their prime peak, any new academy products making their mark and 3 or 4 real quality additions in the spaces left by the older members of the squad and go for it then. Patience doesn’t tend to go hand and hand in football, but keep this squad together and developing, losing only one or two to big money prem moves (notice we don’t lose our best players to Championship rivals anymore) and we’re in one hell of a position in the coming years IMO. For the first time, you can see shoots of the plan working - reasons to be positive. Or perhaps I’m just a deluded disciple - answers on a postcard.
  4. No doubt a fantastic game and great to see - as a lot of us have been saying for a while, play to his strengths and he is clearly a threat. A superb finish today. However - one swallow does not a summer bring...he seems to rely on the team as a whole being on top the game and controlling the ball in high positions to be most effective. When we're not, he struggles and can't influence the game. I think Swansea, as an opponent, perhaps suit his game, hence why he's done well vs. them. The issue that will for me continue is when he meets a more physical back 4, he will just ushered out of the game again. But go prove me more, be more consistent and find a way to effect games when it's not going your way.
  5. For me he's already surpassing anything O'Dowda did here and COD was the higher rated one according to them...
  6. Jamie looked up for it and seemed nasty and a little rattled at times - appeared to gesture to one player that they 'had a small manhood' and got right into Pring for going down under his challenge and was mouthing off at him for that. No love lost there today seemingly. Hope one of our boys wished him good luck in league one after the game....
  7. Very, very good today. Watched first half no sound and on/off but we looked desperately unlucky to go in at HT at 1-0 down. We really dominated that half. Some fantastic football too at times. Very poor goal to concede though and still the worry going forwards, despite the midfield 3 playing well, teams can get through the middle too easily at times... Second half, came out strong and what an early period, making it count with the 2 winning goals. After that was a professional, gritty, nasty at times, performance to see the game out. Won't get carried away as Swansea have had a poor start to season and are an opponent that probably suits our game and some of our players style of game. But still an excellent win. MOL - 7 - Solid TGH - 6 - In and out the game, almost cost us over playing at one point. Vyner - 7 - Solid game to mark new contract Naismith - 5 - Dropped off today, beaten for their goal, very scrappy, rushed and panicky at times. Potentially lucky not to concede a pen for handball. Pring - 8 - Growing into season, brilliant today. James - 7 - James doing what James does - Solid. Williams - 7 - Best game this season. Great vision to set up Sykes for first goal. Knight - 8 - Doesn't stop running, working and linking. Excellent again. Bell - 8 - Brilliant today, got in behind first half well and unlucky not to have an assist to his name. Brilliant run and finish for his goal. Sykes - 8 - Also brilliant today, constant threat. Composed finish for the first goal. Wells - 7 - Another menace, worked tirelessly. Linked well and unlucky not to score, but will probably be disappointed with some chances.
  8. FWIW (and that I don't agree with all this but..) I think we are now only seeing the reality of a new financial strategy that has been coming for 2 and a half years, but has been hidden behind the cost cutting we've been doing. I suspect for many they felt we've been in a FFP blip and that we'd go back to something similar to what we did before, spending what we earn freely and sugar Daddy Steve stumping up a little extra from time to time, FFP permitting (something we got used to for several years). But those days seem done now for SL. You can tell in the way he speaks of the club more as a business now. Budgets have been set and should be stuck too. Something we didn't do before, perhaps SL is learning his MA lessons? Let's not forget SL also said we'd spent some of Scott's money already in anticipation of him leaving, so no doubt budgeted before in advance. He also talked about "biding time while we develop players" - i.e longer term strategies, rather than cash burning holes in pockets. Yes football spends what it earns - but that could easily mean the budget is re-assessed at the next window, or following year, to reflect revenue = sustainable and give squad time to develop (see above). Sustainable a word they use a lot. 'What all sensible businesses do' - I believe SL said himself. He also said in interview IIRC, despite talking about top 6 aims, something about needing serious investment, something he couldn't/wouldn't do anymore, if you have premier league aspirations.... I think this is our new reality, as frustrating as it may be. So what's the point then of just treading water Steve? All this behaviour leads me to conclude one thing, not that he wants to shaft the club for residential £m's, be fine to see us relegated or to do over NP - but that he wants to spend as little as possible 'propping up' the club going forward and it doesn't take a genius to work out why. I also don't think we've gone from a team that could have a look at the top 6 a few weeks ago, to relegation candidates, with a few injuries. I think you're getting a little carried away there. Maybe we've tried to get someone in today and got turned down, Campbell for e.g - but players will return and some youngsters will use the chance to step up...see Yeboah. Again as I've said before - communication communication communication. Always been a problem and continues to be, that would help things hugely.
  9. Maybe - but it’s amazing how quickly after a few whispers and gossip within a week or so we’ve gone from “good business this summer in the window” to “SL is trying to deliberately sabotage NP” - a statement now treated as possibly probable or actually factual by some prominent posters….
  10. There are many other, different, more logical explanations actually IMO. Equally logical is that the board want to maintain more financial balance - so we could see the Scott money spread over multiple windows. Also equally logical is SL has decided to invest less in the club as he looks to sell. Also equally logical, as I’ve been saying for weeks, it’s easier to sell the club with a cleaner financial slate.
  11. Sorry, are you suggesting SL is going to sell off the club, all he’s built, for land?! **** me OTIB - great place, but last few days has been taken over by the conspiracy theorists and I’m surprised by how many seemingly regular intelligent posters have been dragged along with some of it….
  12. I have been saying exactly this for weeks - not conspiracy theory, just logical.
  13. I think it's somewhere in the middle. There have no doubt been mistakes made. But I don't believe that they would be sat there, planning to deliberately sabotage NP. I believe the fan side of SL wants him to succeed as much as we do. But I also believe that the businessman side of SL wouldn't for a second hesitate to a) say things politically that shift blame away from him b) quickly dispense of employees services or c) to rein in the spending, if it was in his best interests.
  14. Just for balance - NP doing something some previous managers got berated for - not seen it mentioned yet: throwing players under the bus in interviews…
  15. Alessandro

    XG?

    Wasn’t so much that they were missed by them, but I’m interested to see what the stats say about the chances of them not being missed, if you know what I mean! All fascinating stuff.
  16. Alessandro

    XG?

    Really surprised by those stats (an open goal at 12 yards and a free header at 5 yards) but there we go, who am I to argue with the computers!!
  17. Alessandro

    XG?

    What I don’t understand about the XG here is how many factors taken into consideration: Is no.4 the chance Joe missed? Let’s take that for example - it was 0.20 - so XG is saying only 2/10 times a player will hit the target from 12 yards out?! That’s surely wrong - so can only presume 0.20 is the 2/10 chance of scoring if the goalkeeper is in the right place - in this case it’s clearly not taken into consideration that the keeper is flat on the floor out of the place and the goal is gaping?! Also out of interest - if you have time, don’t worry if not - what was the XG on Knights header in the second half from the corner? Thank you!
  18. I think you’ve summed up exactly what I feel - I’m doing what I hate people doing with young players and making judgements too early mind you….but: For me I worry, based on his attributes, he’s at his ceiling already. He’s got pace (there’s some pacy RB’s out there too as standard though) but is not either beating his man 1 v 1 or getting in behind anywhere near enough (once last night?) - compare to Sykes last night, it’s leagues apart. This can improved though and coached better to get him in behind. Don’t doubt his finishing and when hanging around the back post he’s made some intelligent runs to get some good goals. I think he will end up being best utilised as one of 2 up top. The way Pearson uses him is not ideal and I wrote that last season too. I said it in the match thread it’s like playing with 10 men at times, the ball just bouncing off, over or by him, or him getting owned physically by defenders…and that will hold him back because he doesn’t make up for his lack of physicality and stature with anywhere near enough technical ability on the ball. I’m really sorry, I know it’s not a popular opinion, I’d love to be wrong, I love the player, the story and history - but just saying what I see.
  19. Agree with all this - to be honest, my first post (continuation of transfer chat the other day on other thread TBH) was about what I ‘hope’ we do transfer wise and ‘hypothetically’ where I’d look to upgrade if we could. As you say, I can’t see it happening - but if the Scott sale has given us some wiggle room on budget - my hope is that SL can see the foundations that are in place and the potential in this squad with one or even 2 upgrades/additions. All ideal world speculation. But I stand by earlier statement that could well find ourselves short of quality in midfield this season and having runs of games where we’re getting overrun in the middle.
  20. Yep all options - I’m talking about top 6 quality though. I look at that list you’ve got there and fit, not suspended and on form that’s fine - but I’ll have a little £1 wager with you now, that list won’t stay like that and I believe we could well feel very short and lacking quality there for chunks of this season. If McCrorie is out for season, TGH will be covering RB more. James, King and Naismith all similar but don’t have the athleticism and pace we’re missing in the middle. On paper it’s covered and in general I’m against padding the squad, but for me there are key attributes missing from our midfield options that if found could make a huge difference.
  21. 1) Main area I'd being looking is in centre-mid for another player that is strong and comfortable on the ball as a Williams upgrade. James (absolutely pivotal for us at the moment, so we need to keep him fit) needs more support in there getting a foot on the ball sometimes and allowing Knight to flourish. Still feel too often we can only control possession at the back and looking direct or by winning high and 'camping'. 2) Also IMO Bell and Mehmeti are off the top half levels at the moment. Cornick did well tonight, but it's battling more than quality. Don't know when Conway is back so i'd also be looking for another (admittedly hen's tooth) forward with power and goals. 3) You could say CB as the third, but how far off is Atkinson and Naismith did well tonight, so maybe not the priority IMO, look again at situation in Jan.
  22. My main thoughts after tonight (if I was SL) are we are 2 or 3 real quality signings from being a very decent team indeed and i'd be getting the calculator and cheque book out. Also Naismith, Knight, Sykes and Pring excellent.
  23. Well done lads - much improved and a good draw away from home from a game we really could, should have won.
  24. Being facetious - Astonished Bell hasn't been subbed. To say he's been anonymous is being polite tonight.
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