Famara Diedhiou

[Slippin cider]

I’d drop him ....seems very lazy and disinterested to me ! 

[Dolman Block B]

Would start Wells at centre forward v Rotherham with Semenyo and O Dowda either side

Stick Palmer in behind

Famara to come on in the second half as an impact substitute

Times he has done that previously he’s been good 

[DT The Optimist]

Yep, he will be gone. Sadly no coffers coming into piggy bank is the  only thing I am disappointed about. I am sure SL has similar thoughts. 

I think it says a lot no bids surfaced last window. In my life time of watching City I have seen many strikers, good,bad, and indifferent.  Fam no where near the top. Please NP find us  the next ‘Goat’ ‘super Bob’ ‘Cheese’  

Can NW step up. Where is the next legend coming from.... Fam a thoroughly decent bloke, good luck to the guy but no tears in my corner when he goes. 

 

[The Bard]

I really don't like this thread.  To me he looks like he's playing the role that NP wants him to play.  He's not able to run around like Massengo.  Neither is Chris Martin but I didn't see any threads about him not working hard or being disinterested.   

 

[Cowshed]

8 hours ago, WolfOfWestStreet said:

 

We had johnson's busy bees for 4 seasons and to be honest I'm sick of it. Watkins has very little quality apart from the ability to run around a bit, CoD is the same, his delivery tonight was shocking on several occasions. 

Famara may have moved 2 meters in the whole game but he came the closest to scoring tonight, he's our most dangerous player. 

I'm of the opinion we are a very boring mid table championship team and these are the sort of players we need to be moving away from if we want to be successful. 

Bristol City did not commit to any approach for four seasons let alone a vague opaque description of an identity led by a player who is neither busy or mobile and needs an oxygen tent to recover after brief sprints. 

 

[TomThumb84]

29 minutes ago, The Bard said:

I really don't like this thread.  To me he looks like he's playing the role that NP wants him to play.  He's not able to run around like Massengo.  Neither is Chris Martin but I didn't see any threads about him not working hard or being disinterested.   

 

Thats because Martin is currently injured, and also I think the contract situation with Fam is the key factor.

[firstdivision]

I'm surprised people are saying that Fam wasn't trying. He always seems to me to be trying. It's one of his strongest suits, along with the ability to defend set-pieces.

His problem last night was that the poorer pitch the more his inability to control the ball under pressure is highlighted. It makes him look cumbersome. Eg from the Semenyo pass. He often needs two, three or four touches where the best players only need one.

[TomThumb84]

I think the key thing with this thread that I was trying to highlight and get opinion on is this:

It is not a “Fam ability/effort critique thread” - I think he has done well for us, I think he is a good centre-forward, and on his day he is a match-winner.

It is more for me about trying to understand why and how we have ended up with a player who wants to leave, and will leave, becoming undroppable (seemingly), when I feel we have other options in the club who will be here next year.

Allowing your record signing to run down his contract, not selling him when he had value, and then stating he will play anyway almost no matter what is the bit I am uncomfortable with.

It is also unfortunate on the player, as anything less than a 7.5/8 out of 10 and naturally the perception of “not committed to the club = not committed on the pitch” will surface and rightly so.

For me, the Fam situation is trumped only by the process and subsequent appointment of Dean Holden in the last 12 months as far as ludicrous strategy goes.

[bearded_red]

I would say I’ve now had enough of him, but I’d had enough of him years ago. A long time before any contract issues surfaced.

[Desso]

1 hour ago, The Bard said:

I really don't like this thread.  To me he looks like he's playing the role that NP wants him to play.  He's not able to run around like Massengo.  Neither is Chris Martin but I didn't see any threads about him not working hard or being disinterested.   

 

If this is the case, and I don't think it is, NP should come out and say so to get people off his back. 

[TomThumb84]

2 minutes ago, Desso said:

If this is the case, and I don't think it is, NP should come out and say so to get people off his back. 

Maybe one of the steers from the board when NP got the job from the board was that we had to play Fam, to either try and get a contract over the line, or to validate our “value on the pitch” hyperbole.

This is speculation, but NP looked like he did not want to make drastic change and came into the club in a very subtle and humble way.

I would hope that he is finding the situation tricky, especially if he is not getting what he wants from Fam on the pitch, and having to haul off other players instead.

Could be that Fam is doing exactly what NP wants from him, but unless Fam’s brief is purely “make yourself a nuisance from throws down the line, and head away defensive set-pieces” then I doubt it.

[Desso]

15 minutes ago, JonDolman said:

He is probably unaware of anything criticising Fam. It looks like a small amount of fans on the internet

If that's the case, the coaches aren't doing their job.

[mossey]

12 hours ago, M.D said:

NP has always liked to play with one up top, a target man, we only have one and thats Fam unfortunately, you can see this in taking Wells off tonight and not giving him the chance in the central roll.

Fam a target man! Don’t make me laugh, his control, hold up play, heading ability, humm, he’s more affective in defence than attack, and with his attitude lately, he doesn’t deserve to be playing!

[Slippin cider]

2 hours ago, The Bard said:

I really don't like this thread.  To me he looks like he's playing the role that NP wants him to play.  He's not able to run around like Massengo.  Neither is Chris Martin but I didn't see any threads about him not working hard or being disinterested.   

 

Oh come on, he’s been like it for a while and whilst he’s had half decent games most of the time he is lazy and seems disinterested and looks like he’s running in cement most of the time , maybe I’ve been watching different games but that’s how I see him ....

[Numero Uno]

If there's one question I would like the journo's to ask NP it would be his opinion on Fam. He doesn't seem to duck questions unless they are contract related but he doesn't throw players under the bus either so would be interesting to get his opinion.

[Spike]

Any player holding the club to ransome is going to cause issues, even if everything seems fine you know the players are going to be looking at him running down his contract and thinking "well, I can do that if it comes to it". It's such a negative factor to have in a dressing room and I wonder if come the end of the season we may see a few go who think they're too big for us of Pearson is still here. I can't see him letting the players dictate what happens at the club. 

[BLRed]

He didn’t press. Our approach now is to press from the front as a team. If one person fails to do that, the whole thing breaks down.

palmer played well last night but because fam didn’t press with him and semenyo, it didn’t work like it did at Birmingham.

fam also didn’t win many headers from the countless balls pumped forward to nothing last night. Admittedly we were forced to play long due to Blackburn’s pressing game but the balls forward lacked intelligence and quality and rarely did we get on the end of them or create something from them.

we need to be better at countering the press through our ability to pass and move faster than the opposition.

coming back to Fam, imo he should be dropped. He’s leaving, not putting in much effort and there are others out there like Britton who would kill for a game to show what he can do, of which I would rather see

[2015]

Glad we didn't sign him a new deal and i'm glad he is leaving. Doesn't suit our style and never has. It's ok if you just want to knock it to the big man up front, but we're better without him. 
 

Might be worth playing a false 9 with either Palmer or Semenyo playing that role to see how it works. I think it would be quite interesting

[Numero Uno]

I get the impression Pearson likes a big lad up front. I just think that if he stays it won't be Fam. He just isn't showing much and seems to be at his next gig already.

[Fordy62]

Over the course of his career Fam has always had an undulating love/hate relationship with fans. He alternates between love and hate numerous times through the course of the season. 

He’s currently in his hate cycle, but I bet before the end of the season he’ll pop up with a Couple and be loved again. 

Like so many of our players consistency is key. I’d say Fam performs maybe once every two or three games. Which still makes him three times more consistent than Jamie ******* Paterson. 

[Selred]

4 hours ago, westonred said:

but he has let the club down by not signing a new contract

So on this note have the club let down Hunt if they release him?

[SecretSam]

1 minute ago, Selred said:

So on this note have the club let down Hunt if they release him?

Exactly. I sometimes wonder if people feel any loyalty to their employers, such that they wouldn't trot off to pastures new if an appropriate offer or opportunity came up. Fam owes us nothing - any more than any other player. If we didn't get the best out of him, that's on us, not him. Every game I've seen, he's put in a shift. Not the most gifted of players, but to say he's lazy (etc) is unfair.

[M.D]

1 hour ago, mossey said:

Fam a target man! Don’t make me laugh, his control, hold up play, heading ability, humm, he’s more affective in defence than attack, and with his attitude lately, he doesn’t deserve to be playing!

I never said he was a good one!

Personally, I wouldn't play him again until his contract expires.

[Selred]

57 minutes ago, M.D said:

Personally, I wouldn't play him again until his contract expires.

We can't play him after his contract expires..... 

[CHIPLEY RED]

14 hours ago, TomThumb84 said:

Ok, so, I have always liked him, but in this strangest of seasons, I am beginning to be irked by this situation.

I appreciate that contract discussions are now not for public consumption as per NP’s crystal clear statement in Tuesdays press conference, however:-

Fam started the season as second choice to Chris Martin in that No.9 position, before playing himself back in to the side with some very good performances. Still no contract signed.

We then had the farcical and embarrassing situation of Gary Weaver of Sky Television revealing more than we had ever known before during the first half of the Norwich game after a “coffee chat” with Mark Ashton, when we learnt that we were happy to run his contract down, he would not be sold, and we would “get his value from him on the pitch”. Still no contract signed.

Since then he has been undroppable and has played virtually every minute, albeit with some good moments, but also some very indifferent ones. As we prepare for next season, I am concerned that we are persisting with someone who will not be here next season to the detriment of players who will be. I am also surprised that NP is not thinking about this too. Still no contract signed.

Am I reading too much into it? Or could it be that we are confident of him signing, or giving him enough game time to convince him to sign under NP? Or as stated in that bizarre Norwich episode, we will play him come what may until he disappears off into the sunset?

Thoughts welcomed as I am perplexed!!

I think IF he is the best option available to the manager we should play him regardless of the situation with his contract.

We are paying him so we should use him.

[Davefevs]

6 hours ago, JonDolman said:

Martin is 6 foot 1 isn't he?

Believe it or not he’s 5’10”.....he looks taller.  I would’ve sworn he was 6ft plus, until someone showed me a Scotland team photo.

3 hours ago, The Bard said:

I really don't like this thread.  To me he looks like he's playing the role that NP wants him to play.  He's not able to run around like Massengo.  Neither is Chris Martin but I didn't see any threads about him not working hard or being disinterested.   

 

Nobody is asking him to run around like Massengo, but interesting that Palmer has upped his pace and intensity of press in a few short weeks.  But I suspect NP expects more than an “amble”.  The Blackburn CBs were able to pass between themselves too easily, whilst progressing 20 yards up the pitch, which then allowed them to engage with their own midfield.

2 hours ago, firstdivision said:

I'm surprised people are saying that Fam wasn't trying. He always seems to me to be trying. It's one of his strongest suits, along with the ability to defend set-pieces.

His problem last night was that the poorer pitch the more his inability to control the ball under pressure is highlighted. It makes him look cumbersome. Eg from the Semenyo pass. He often needs two, three or four touches where the best players only need one.

What do you see as Fam “trying”?  Forget corners, that’s a job role from a static dead-ball situation.  In general play what are your examples of him trying?

2 hours ago, JonDolman said:

Agree on Martin comparison. When he's up top as the lone striker he has a gentle jog around or walking a fair bit. Like I'm sure Djuric did too. It's not easy, especially for big strikers.

He does jog and walk, but then when triggered he runs harder.  He also directs the press with Wells (when they played 352).  Fam is “switched off” out of possession, Martin is switched on....huge difference.  I don’t want Fam haring around willy-nilly, but when the press trigger happens, he has to commit to it.

Two examples last night.....when Palmer squeezed them into a corner and Fam let them wall-pass out, and when Rothwell just ran past him.  He did t just give up, he didn’t even react.

When the likes of Palmer can increase his workload and intensity significantly, it shows how Fam is taking the pi$$. Imho.

As fans we don’t have seem to set low standards for some of our players.

1 hour ago, BOSRed said:

He didn’t press. Our approach now is to press from the front as a team. If one person fails to do that, the whole thing breaks down.

palmer played well last night but because fam didn’t press with him and semenyo, it didn’t work like it did at Birmingham.

fam also didn’t win many headers from the countless balls pumped forward to nothing last night. Admittedly we were forced to play long due to Blackburn’s pressing game but the balls forward lacked intelligence and quality and rarely did we get on the end of them or create something from them.

we need to be better at countering the press through our ability to pass and move faster than the opposition.

coming back to Fam, imo he should be dropped. He’s leaving, not putting in much effort and there are others out there like Britton who would kill for a game to show what he can do, of which I would rather see

I don’t think we always press from the front, but we do try to press as the opposition play into midfield or when a stray pass or dodgy control or poor back pass to keeper.

11 minutes ago, CHIPLEY RED said:

I think IF he is the best option available to the manager we should play him regardless of the situation with his contract.

We are paying him so we should use him.

Some of us are saying we don’t think he is the best option....and that’s regardless of contract too.

[bcfcredandwhite]

17 hours ago, TomThumb84 said:

Ok, so, I have always liked him, but in this strangest of seasons, I am beginning to be irked by this situation.

I appreciate that contract discussions are now not for public consumption as per NP’s crystal clear statement in Tuesdays press conference, however:-

Fam started the season as second choice to Chris Martin in that No.9 position, before playing himself back in to the side with some very good performances. Still no contract signed.

We then had the farcical and embarrassing situation of Gary Weaver of Sky Television revealing more than we had ever known before during the first half of the Norwich game after a “coffee chat” with Mark Ashton, when we learnt that we were happy to run his contract down, he would not be sold, and we would “get his value from him on the pitch”. Still no contract signed.

Since then he has been undroppable and has played virtually every minute, albeit with some good moments, but also some very indifferent ones. As we prepare for next season, I am concerned that we are persisting with someone who will not be here next season to the detriment of players who will be. I am also surprised that NP is not thinking about this too. Still no contract signed.

Am I reading too much into it? Or could it be that we are confident of him signing, or giving him enough game time to convince him to sign under NP? Or as stated in that bizarre Norwich episode, we will play him come what may until he disappears off into the sunset?

Thoughts welcomed as I am perplexed!!

This has an unpleasant aroma of the Maynard debacle. 
I personally think that NP will continue to play him until Martin is fit. It's in Fam's interest to play well in order to attract a new club and in our own interest for obvious reasons. 

In a strange way I would be disappointed if he turned it on big time now - because that would make his inevitable departure on a free harder to take. 

[KegCity]

Famara is a much more useful player than Martin for us, neither are consistent in front of goal. It'll all depend on how NP wants us to play, but if we're going to play high press (yes please) then Wells needs to be up front.

[Top Robin]

11 minutes ago, KegCity said:

Famara is a much more useful player than Martin for us, neither are consistent in front of goal. It'll all depend on how NP wants us to play, but if we're going to play high press (yes please) then Wells needs to be up front.

I'd rather give Bell a chance.

[spudski]

24 minutes ago, JonDolman said:

I don't think Martin was that good at pressing earlier in the season. And even worse when he had played 3 games a week for a while and looked shattered.

I do agree Diedhiou is worse at pressing though, and has worse stamina than Martin. Though I think Fam has more pace. If only Martin had a little bit more pace, he'd be so much more of a threat.

I always used to think Fam's overall game, not just his pressing but his touch and his general game in and out of possession suffered with playing weekend then midweek games, especially if not being brought off. Or even beyond 70 minutes even with one game a week, he would not look the same player. 

I think he's never been particularly good at pressing. At the moment he looks like he needs a rest imo. He looks shattered in everything he is doing. His touch can be quite good when on form, but at the moment we can see what is going to happen like when Semenyo laid it off to him after winning it back high in their half. It really did look like we should have taken advantage of the times we won it high. At least test the goalie. It was a very tired looking heavy first touch by Fam.

If Pearson does not drop Fam then he must be happy enough. There is still the odd thing he does that Wells would not be able to do with his body, but not enough of it at the moment. Obviously Wells can do a lot of things Fam can't in that role too, and it's interesting to see if Pearson wants that from his number 9. So far he hasn't wanted the on the shoulder Wells type for whatever reason.

My overall point on effort is that I do believe he is giving his all. I just don't think he has it in him to sprint like people want.

EDIT. probably being a bit unfair on Martin saying his pressing wasn't that good. I think the more games he played the worse it got though, which is the same for Fam too. 

Wells probably can just keep going in his pressing intensity. But he's that type of player.

And the low percentage of team possession probably only makes it harder for anyone who is not great at pressing and has stamina issues like Fam.

I think you're being generous to Famara. He has some genuine qualities at this level...but his first touch is absolutely atrocious for a Professional footballer. Not just at this level...it's dire. There are amateur players with better control than him. It really is awful.