The Massengo Conundrum

[Ivorguy]

Not strange really.  NP is a proper football man.  A person we have needed for a long time

[Simon79]

19 minutes ago, Phileas Fogg said:

I’ve heard from a decent source that Holden didn’t rate him and was happy to sell him 

That somehow doesn’t surprise me. COYR 

[Phileas Fogg]

18 minutes ago, M.D said:

Shocking really, NP is turning him into a top championship player that will go and play premiership football IMHO

I don’t hear much at all really, but I heard this from a very good source and have no reason to think he was making it up. Apparently they were actively looking at opinions to sell/loan HNM.

[italian dave]

22 minutes ago, Phileas Fogg said:

I’ve heard from a decent source that Holden didn’t rate him and was happy to sell him 

Mmmm....certainly gave that impression, didn't he?. It says more about Holden than it does Massengo IMHO.

[Redtucks]

49 minutes ago, Phileas Fogg said:

Yet again one of these stupid threads backfires and a premature judgement on a player is shown to be wrong.

The Semenyo one will be next. Just like the Matt Smith one all those years ago.

Premature snap judgements - especially about young players - are mean spirited and often wrong.

Just let young players develop in their own time.

Yes, but you've got to remember that many of these expert opinions are from people who have no more knowledge and experience of football than managing a team on Football Manager!!!

 

[Phileas Fogg]

11 minutes ago, IAmNick said:

It's just weird to me that some people struggle to comment fairly - like "Semenyo needs to improve on his final third decision making" or something, without sticking a "he's a league 2 player at best" / "he'll never make it" on the end.

Massengo has been poor at times, Semenyo has big areas of his game to improve... and it's fair to critique and discuss that. Just really annoying when it then ends up being so black and white as you've said.

Other side is though that I don't like it when people do jump on the fair comments as writing them off or being negative. Have to admit I've written and decided not to post about some of the youngsters when I think they've had a poor game as a result...

Agreed. Constructive criticism is fine and expected. It’s the vapid threads that seem to write players off that are the issue.

[RedNachos]

1 hour ago, Phileas Fogg said:

I’ve heard from a decent source that Holden didn’t rate him and was happy to sell him 

It seems everyone has a mate who is a source, I beleive you but where is this bloke getting his news from?

[Port Said Red]

2 hours ago, Steve Watts said:

I think it's not unfair to say that if we don't manage to secure Nige then we stand an outstanding chance of losing Han Noah to whoever he takes over next.  I don't think there was a blade of grass he didn't cover today.  One of the most complete performances we've seen in a long time from any player for us.  He was that good.

I would certainly like to see a @Davefevs heatmap or whatever they are called. I know there have been others that have said that he is a loose cannon at times, but I feel his activity seems far more focussed in the last few games, he has gone forward with purpose or remained in place at the right times.

[mozo]

I think we'll soon start seeing Massengo linked to other clubs on random rumour websites as his agent pushes for a better deal. HNM's pay probably doesnt reflect his status atm

[1960maaan]

26 minutes ago, RedNachos said:

It seems everyone has a mate who is a source, I beleive you but where is this bloke getting his news from?

TBF we heard he was touted for a loan, so not a big stretch to see him given a move?

[Phileas Fogg]

32 minutes ago, RedNachos said:

It seems everyone has a mate who is a source, I beleive you but where is this bloke getting his news from?

I'm not going to tell you that, but it's a good source. Someone who knows HNM that I've come into contact with by chance. 

If I was going to lie about a rumour, I'd make something up far more ridiculous than 'Dean Holden would've been happy for Massengo to leave'!

[Red Billy]

The lad was class today. If anyone wants to disagree then you are sticking your hand in the air and saying “I know **** all about football”. His work rate and effort were on a different level today. His passing was so advanced that his team mates were behind him by a country mile.  If he plays for us next season I’d be surprised!

[grifty]

He's stopped taking an extra touch in tight spaces and is getting the ball released sooner so he's not getting caught on it anymore. He's also bulked up a bit since last year so is able to challenge a lot more effectively.

[Red Shadow]

3 hours ago, Lanterne Rouge said:

One thing that used to irritate me about him was his tendency to go down easily to try and buy a foul. When it works, fine, but when it doesn`t the opposition are normally in. He seems to have stopped doing that now - I wonder if that`s something that NP has spoken to him about?

Anyway, onwards and upwards young man. You have been a rare diamond lately in the sea of shit that has been this season.

Made me smile, that.

[Davefevs]

1 hour ago, Port Said Red said:

I would certainly like to see a @Davefevs heatmap or whatever they are called. I know there have been others that have said that he is a loose cannon at times, but I feel his activity seems far more focussed in the last few games, he has gone forward with purpose or remained in place at the right times.

The problem with the heatmaps the stats companies provide is that they are based on where he plays his passes from.  When Wyscout updates tomorrow I’ll pop some pics up.

[ralphindevon]

I wonder if the posters who were writing him off will learn from their comments and next time a player is having a iffy patch, say so of course but don’t just write them off. Or will they be back here when he next has a bad game doing it again?

It’s especially annoying when it’s a teenager living in a foreign country away from most of his family and friends in the middle of a pandemic which means they can’t come here and he can’t go there during international breaks and you’re in a run of games where you can’t even get off the bench. 
 

He’s obviously still not the finished article but let’s not swing from “I think he’ll go to Chelsea in the next window” to “let’s offload him to a league 1 club” in the space of a few weeks. 
I don’t think either are at all likely, he loves living in Bristol and will enjoy it more once Covid restrictions are over. As far as I’m aware his dad is his agent and also loves life in Bristol and wants what’s best for his son not what’s best for his wallet. And the best thing for his son right now is playing regular football, which he’s getting here. 
 

Keep up the good work young man.

[E.G.Red]

13 minutes ago, ralphindevon said:

I wonder if the posters who were writing him off will learn from their comments and next time a player is having a iffy patch, say so of course but don’t just write them off. Or will they be back here when he next has a bad game doing it again?

It’s especially annoying when it’s a teenager living in a foreign country away from most of his family and friends in the middle of a pandemic which means they can’t come here and he can’t go there during international breaks and you’re in a run of games where you can’t even get off the bench. 
 

He’s obviously still not the finished article but let’s not swing from “I think he’ll go to Chelsea in the next window” to “let’s offload him to a league 1 club” in the space of a few weeks. 
I don’t think either are at all likely, he loves living in Bristol and will enjoy it more once Covid restrictions are over. As far as I’m aware his dad is his agent and also loves life in Bristol and wants what’s best for his son not what’s best for his wallet. And the best thing for his son right now is playing regular football, which he’s getting here. 
 

Keep up the good work young man.

I met his father in the car park at Ashton gate last season. All he said was how much he and HNM were loving Bristol, but that VHNM would like to be playing a bit more. Seems he might get his wish under NP.

[Victory Park Reds]

IMHO he’s a bit like like Josh Brownhill in that he had to drop down a level play games /learn the game ,and go again.

Hes playing like he did when he arrived when he was stupidly young,

.Hes now more muscular and has such energy and a great work rate.We now need a partner alongside him to we can dominate games in the middle of the park for a change.(when did we last run the midfield consistenty in a run of games)

Hopefully nige will take us to the promised land but hnm will definitely play there or at the top level somewhere.

[Chicken George]

I never saw him up close before until the interview after the game. It struck me that his peripheral vision must be impacted by his hair. He does sometimes make a mistake where he seems to have not seen something. I think a hair cut would improve his game 

[Wrongagain]

Holden and LJ made him look bad by playing him wide - too lightweight! But he is looking stronger and his pace makes him much more versatile in a central role - love him to bits - good things coming

[Waffleflap]

9 minutes ago, Enter Sandman said:

I never saw him up close before until the interview after the game. It struck me that his peripheral vision must be impacted by his hair. He does sometimes make a mistake where he seems to have not seen something. I think a hair cut would improve his game 

Carlos Valderrama never had a problem. Same hair

[RobintheRed Red]

3 hours ago, Phileas Fogg said:

I don’t hear much at all really, but I heard this from a very good source and have no reason to think he was making it up. Apparently they were actively looking at opinions to sell/loan HNM.

Wouldnt be surprised talk of us willing to let Hans go to Brum in an exchange for pederson when Holden was here .

[Chicken George]

18 minutes ago, Waffleflap said:

Carlos Valderrama never had a problem. Same hair

Han-Noah’s is slightly fuller and thicker than Carlos. Reckon it impedes him more. 
Ok, 2 things could improve his game. Either a hair cut or become Valderama 

[Chicken George]

2 hours ago, Phileas Fogg said:

I'm not going to tell you that, but it's a good source. Someone who knows HNM that I've come into contact with by chance. 

If I was going to lie about a rumour, I'd make something up far more ridiculous than 'Dean Holden would've been happy for Massengo to leave'!

Something like Holden wanted Massengo to leave because he was shagging his wife? I heard it on Twitch 

[Davefevs]

 

[SecretSam]

Where did we get him? And who spotted him? We seem to have a good scout in France

[mozo]

6 minutes ago, SecretSam said:

Where did we get him? And who spotted him? We seem to have a good scout in France

We spotted him when Monaco U19s played City's kids, I believe.

Next question, doesn't the Massengo success (not to mention Kodjia/Diedhiou) help us persuade further French talent to City? 

Particularly with Cisse to help them assimilate. 

I'd like to know more about how we approach this opportunity. 

[Davefevs]

1 minute ago, mozo said:

We spotted him when Monaco U19s played City's kids, I believe.

Next question, doesn't the Massengo success (nit to mention Kodjia/Diedhiou) help us persuade further French talent to City? 

Particularly with Cisse to help them assimilate. 

I'd like to know more about how we approach this opportunity. 

Not sure, but believe the links with former Chelsea Technical Director Michael Emenalo, who was about to get sacked at Monaco played a part too.

[mozo]

2 minutes ago, Davefevs said:

Not sure, but believe the links with former Chelsea Technical Director Michael Emenalo, who was about to get sacked at Monaco played a part too.

Back to that watchword 'succession planning' Dave. You get good value for money in France. We have a good set up for French players. Have we set about maximising this? Probably not.

[italian dave]

9 minutes ago, mozo said:

Back to that watchword 'succession planning' Dave. You get good value for money in France. We have a good set up for French players. Have we set about maximising this? Probably not.

I think those opportunities are going to be much more limited and much more difficult now, thanks to Brexit.

As with everything related to it, seems to now be incredibly complicated (now that we are free from Brussels bureaucracy, ha ha) but I believe that there is now a complete bar on signing under 18s from an academy elsewhere in Europe. And it’s debatable whether Kodjia or Diedhiou would have had sufficient status to get the necessary permits.