Callum

[tin]

15 minutes ago, JonDolman said:

Been good almost every game he's played this season imo. He created because he was further forward than what he had been in previous games where he was too far away from goal to assist. But he still was playing well in his ball winning and work rate and helping the team. Maybe further forward suits him more, but I also like what he does in a bit of a deeper role like we have seen for a while.

He was better than good tonight, hence the praise. Previously he’d been doing a job in a deeper role which didn’t suit him. He got a chance to play further forward tonight and took it with a MOTM performance, IMO. 

[ohhhshauntaylor]

Very impressive tonight- still some lose passes but he effected the game with direct running and an air of confidence we haven’t really seen for a few years- that is the type of performances that we need to see more of now, he’s set the benchmark. 

I think he benefited from not having Pato there, and with the energy of Nagy next to him we looked a constant threat breaking. 
slide in Bakinson for Brunt and we have a good looking mindfield for Saturday. 

[old_eastender]

2 minutes ago, JonDolman said:

Disagree on that. I think he's been one of our most consistent players since coming into the side. 

I don't think people appreciate the ball winning role he has had with us when Pato has been playing. The amount of balls he won and then often giving it simply to someone else in more advanced areas against Watford was ridiciculous. But people thinking he played badly in that game just shows they don't care about those parts of what a midfielder does.

2nd half was probably the first time he had a lot of attacking freedom this season and look what he did. But can't do it if he doesn't have the freedom.

Let's hope moving forward we can have Nagy & Bakinson in CM, allowing COD that bit more freedom to play like he did tonight. That means keeping Pato on the bench. 

[AppyDAZE]

Say what you like about COD, the guy never hides. Misplaced passes maybe, but his energy and work rate in recent weeks has been really impressive.

[RedRock]

6 minutes ago, AppyDAZE said:

:laugh:. If a popular player had done what he did for the winner, I don't think we'd be calling it "decent"

He backed his ability, spun round and I thought it was classy. I'm not saying everything he does is amazing, but credit where it's due please. Not meaning you @RedRock btw

I’m just balancing things out, the cross for the winner vs the cross that went into the upper tier! 

Still much to be improved on, but that was much, much better. 

[AppyDAZE]

Just now, RedRock said:

I’m just balancing things out, the cross for the winner vs the cross that went into the upper tier! 

Still much to be improved on, but that was much, much better. 

It was a bit of a loose one  :laugh:

[GrahamC]

1 minute ago, AppyDAZE said:

Say what you like about COD, the guy never hides. Misplaced passes maybe, but his energy and work rate in recent weeks has been really impressive.

Agree & having played the majority of all recent games he and Nagy’s fitness levels are incredible.

Callum had a really good game against Norwich a year or two back but he was even better tonight.

[AppyDAZE]

2 minutes ago, GrahamC said:

Agree & having played the majority of all recent games he and Nagy’s fitness levels are incredible.

Callum had a really good game against Norwich a year or two back but he was even better tonight.

He's winning me over for sure. I bet if the whistle hadn't blown, he'd be still out there running. Top game from the man.

[Garland-sweden]

Im criticied him a lot but today he was very good. At least he shows that he is a good player. One assist, I say two, brings him confidence. Well played COD!!!

[BS4 on Tour...]

1 hour ago, Globe Trotter said:

He must be the most fouled player in the league right now! In fine form, great energy and running at the opposition, lovely to see.

Yep - good post - interesting though that when Jack Grealish is consistently the most fouled player in any division lots on here ignorantly call him a ‘diver’ - skilful players who run with the ball will always be the most fouled - amazing how so many just can’t grasp that ...

[E.G.Red]

21 minutes ago, AppyDAZE said:

He's winning me over for sure. I bet if the whistle hadn't blown, he'd be still out there running. Top game from the man.

Interesting that COD has always got credit from ex players, but not always the fans (as commented on by Gary Owers in various recent commentaries) Glad he’s been doing so well recently, all we now need is for him to keep going and score one of his wonder goals.

[JBFC II]

10 minutes ago, BS4 on Tour... said:

Yep - good post - interesting though that when Jack Grealish is consistently the most fouled player in any division lots on here ignorantly call him a ‘diver’ - skilful players who run with the ball will always be the most fouled - amazing how so many just can’t grasp that ...

Doesn’t help himself though, as shown below. Fantastic player but with dives like this you can see why ‘ignorant’ people call him a diver 
 

 

[BS4 on Tour...]

1 minute ago, JBFC II said:

Doesn’t help himself though, as shown below. Fantastic player but with dives like this you can see why ‘ignorant’ people call him a diver 
 

 

He’s consistently the most fouled player ...

[JBFC II]

Just now, BS4 on Tour... said:

He’s consistently the most fouled player ...

But also dives, as shown above. Don’t think you can label people ignorant when they’re just stating the truth

[Sheltons Army]

1 hour ago, Engvall’s Splinter said:

One swallow never made a summer. 
 

More of the same please. 

There’s a few choking , having to force out any hint of praise tonight , that’s for sure 

[And Its Smith]

Has otib finally woken up to Callum?!

[REDOXO]

Nice to see a thread about the fella using his Christian name..../The typical ODowda threads are always about the kid having and bringing nothing. He is excelling in the Weimann role. Good lad!

[Leveller]

1 hour ago, Bristolisredd said:

If grealish is worth £100m then odowda is worth £200

Harsh.

[Davefevs]

Earlier today I posted about midfield blend and talked about how different Pato had been alongside Weimann and Bakinson as he was with Nagy and O’Dowda.  I deliberately said that sometimes blends don’t work, and that it’s not Nagy and O’Dowda fault that Pato has not been effective in this combo.  There might not even be a correlation.  And as much as I think Pato is good, it’s about the team, and if it functions better without him so be it.  I don’t think that’s the case per se, just as a three it’s not worked.

But what we saw tonight after a ragged first half performance w/o the ball (it was horrible and the front 6 need to take collective responsibility - albeit hugely dragged down by Brunt’s awful performance) was for 45 minutes the best performance from O’Dowda this season and for a long time.  Whether the central position gave him a bit more space to have the option to go either way he got into dangerous positions and had large helping hands in both goals.  Importantly w/o the ball he was part of a functional defensive shape....aided by my man Rob Dickie (who I said was dodgy despite his goal) with his short pass.

It wasn’t perfect w/o the ball second half, QPR still got through us, but it was better.

But it was Callum’s stuff in the final third that was much better, and the spark.

He may have had decent games in the past, but it’s not been very often that he’s been the key player.  It’s fine playing decently when the team play decently.  The difference tonight was he lifted the team.

And credit for doing so.

I don’t expect that every game, but it’s building further on better contributions.

He was therefore my MOTM tonight.

It will be interesting to see if we see a more 4213 shape going forward, rather than the 4123 we saw first half.

[bexhill reds]

1 hour ago, Sheltons Army said:

There’s a few choking , having to force out any hint of praise tonight , that’s for sure 

Happy to be corrected by COD, can’t say I’ve been his biggest fan, but certainly in the last couple of games he’s been effective, tonight especially. Perhaps a slight change in role due to Pato not being fit, but our midfield certainly looked more dynamic

[Davefevs]

52 minutes ago, And Its Smith said:

Has otib finally woken up to Callum?!

No, he’s been crap(ish) for a while but since his return to the side 6-7 games back he’s been getting better.

Maybe Callum’s finally woken up, maybe Dean has woken him up.

To be honest if I’d been called out in the media by LJ about my injury like Callum was a while back I’d probably perform better under someone else.

It helps that the current manager has clear selection principles....if you’ve got the shirt, it’s yours to lose.  The old manager selected players of whims it seemed.  That’s got to help players confidence.

Ultimateky it’s about his performances....and they’ve improved.  It’s a shame he doesn’t get the assist for Wells goals, because he deserved it tonight.

[And Its Smith]

6 hours ago, Davefevs said:

No, he’s been crap(ish) for a while but since his return to the side 6-7 games back he’s been getting better.

Maybe Callum’s finally woken up, maybe Dean has woken him up.

To be honest if I’d been called out in the media by LJ about my injury like Callum was a while back I’d probably perform better under someone else.

It helps that the current manager has clear selection principles....if you’ve got the shirt, it’s yours to lose.  The old manager selected players of whims it seemed.  That’s got to help players confidence.

Ultimateky it’s about his performances....and they’ve improved.  It’s a shame he doesn’t get the assist for Wells goals, because he deserved it tonight.

Callum has been good for a while now but only today is there universal agreement. Lots of comments of ‘now he needs to do it again’.  He has just done it again.  Guess he has put in an obvious quality performance rather than a more subtle one.

Unconscious bias has a lot to do with it as well. He doesn’t seem very well liked by many fans.  A lot of fans also have a problem with Taylor Moore who would have got pelters if he’d been beaten like Kalas was on their goal last night. But not a single criticism of Kalas was on the match day thread.  (I think it was Kalas anyway, still not seen a replay!)

I do think we are all guilty of unconscious bias in football though, myself included. 

[Major Isewater]

7 hours ago, And Its Smith said:

Has otib finally woken up to Callum?!

Has Callum finally woken up to Callum ? 
 

[Lew-T]

Good interview from him after the game too.

[Shuffle]

7 hours ago, Davefevs said:

Earlier today I posted about midfield blend and talked about how different Pato had been alongside Weimann and Bakinson as he was with Nagy and O’Dowda.  I deliberately said that sometimes blends don’t work, and that it’s not Nagy and O’Dowda fault that Pato has not been effective in this combo.  There might not even be a correlation.  And as much as I think Pato is good, it’s about the team, and if it functions better without him so be it.  I don’t think that’s the case per se, just as a three it’s not worked.

But what we saw tonight after a ragged first half performance w/o the ball (it was horrible and the front 6 need to take collective responsibility - albeit hugely dragged down by Brunt’s awful performance) was for 45 minutes the best performance from O’Dowda this season and for a long time.  Whether the central position gave him a bit more space to have the option to go either way he got into dangerous positions and had large helping hands in both goals.  Importantly w/o the ball he was part of a functional defensive shape....aided by my man Rob Dickie (who I said was dodgy despite his goal) with his short pass.

It wasn’t perfect w/o the ball second half, QPR still got through us, but it was better.

But it was Callum’s stuff in the final third that was much better, and the spark.

He may have had decent games in the past, but it’s not been very often that he’s been the key player.  It’s fine playing decently when the team play decently.  The difference tonight was he lifted the team.

And credit for doing so.

I don’t expect that every game, but it’s building further on better contributions.

He was therefore my MOTM tonight.

It will be interesting to see if we see a more 4213 shape going forward, rather than the 4123 we saw first half.

That must have been hard to write Fevs.  One day we might get GrahamC praising Palmer 

[robin_unreliant]

I thought it was interesting to see how Nagy played last night in terms of the midfield blend. He was much more progressive and could have scored a HT with better finishing. 

It seemed he was given more freedom as Brunt was supposed to be the holding midfielder. In reality Brunt was **** and it left us wide open. However if Bakinson plays instead of Brunt and Nagy is encouraged to push forward maybe there are signs that could make us a bit more effective in attack. 

[1960maaan]

I am a bit of a fan, and totally agree with this 

10 hours ago, Silvio Dante said:

That to me reminded me of his run of form before he got injured in the Hull game away (3-2). He was an integral part of the side, got a bad injury, and hasn’t got to those levels consistently since.

It has taken his time (and circumstances ) to get a run in the side and he has show flashes of what he can bring/offer but he still drifts when we are out of possession . I think that's down to not being a genuine CMF player, he's learning though. 
What I would say, in our current set up, in a team that gives up possession and allows the opposition to play , he is vital to the team. He is one of the few who will keep the ball and press forward. Last night he was ok first half in a poor performance, the support of 2 genuine MF's helps. Playing slightly further forward 2nd half gave him opportunity to be more dangerous. The interception, playing the ball inside the defender and running around the other side was brilliant, very bright. Him being just a little further up the pitch means that when he gets the ball he's breaking onto their back 4, IMO when he's at his most dangerous. 

[And Its Smith]

The go-to opinion with players is they aren’t good enough. Rather than looking deeper than that.  Many players have been written off when they could well have a reason rather than just pure ability

Semenyo - young, no academy background, raw.  Will progress if given chances. 

Nagy - played through injuries which hampered him

COD - new position, learning. Contract issues

Vyner - young for a centre back. Has done his learning and now we are reaping rewards

Moore - will continue to improve

All of the above have been written off by a fair few people before. The latest one seems to be Massengo. Expect him to prove people wrong as well. 

[Davefevs]

4 hours ago, And Its Smith said:

Callum has been good for a while now but only today is there universal agreement. Lots of comments of ‘now he needs to do it again’.  He has just done it again.  Guess he has put in an obvious quality performance rather than a more subtle one.

Unconscious bias has a lot to do with it as well. He doesn’t seem very well liked by many fans.  A lot of fans also have a problem with Taylor Moore who would have got pelters if he’d been beaten like Kalas was on their goal last night. But not a single criticism of Kalas was on the match day thread.  (I think it was Kalas anyway, still not seen a replay!)

I do think we are all guilty of unconscious bias in football though, myself included. 

Yep, we all have unconscious bias, hence why last week I wrote that sometimes we need to ignore individual performances because they might be the sacrifice for the team to work...although hard to ignore Callum’s second half performance last night!

His post-match interview was good too.  Quite humble, whilst recognising they pressed poorly as a team first half.  Worth a watch / listen.  You sense he’s enjoying getting a run in the team.  Holden’s “possession of the shirt” selection policy working both ways.

3 hours ago, Shuffle said:

That must have been hard to write Fevs.  One day we might get GrahamC praising Palmer 

Yeah, I almost choked typing it .

Seriously though, he’s been steadily improving since he got his chance in the team, last night topped it off.  I know it means nothing in reality but in the numbers he deserves at least a “1” in the assists column last night, because we can all be critical of end product, last night that’s exactly what we got.

1 hour ago, And Its Smith said:

The go-to opinion with players is they aren’t good enough. Rather than looking deeper than that.  Many players have been written off when they could well have a reason rather than just pure ability

Semenyo - young, no academy background, raw.  Will progress if given chances. 

Nagy - played through injuries which hampered him

COD - new position, learning. Contract issues

Vyner - young for a centre back. Has done his learning and now we are reaping rewards

Moore - will continue to improve

All of the above have been written off by a fair few people before. The latest one seems to be Massengo. Expect him to prove people wrong as well. 

Personally I don’t think there’s one player in our squad that’s “league one at best” or “downs league”.  There are some that Holden thinks are better than others, and rightly so, but in the main, virtually every player who’s had reasonable minutes this season has looked good enough at some point.  Players will have peaks and troughs.  Taylor Moore probably the most deviation so far, but he’s still capable and done good jobs in several games.

As I always say we are too keen as a fan base to take one poor performance and define them by it.

I do like Reading OTIB post-win.  There are obviously extreme posters on here, but post-win I think you get a more balanced discussion and probably read people’s real thoughts.

[Sheltons Army]

Turn back to Semenyo’s recent comments about the coaches having faith in him

COD doesn’t raise this but there is no doubt DH has faith in him , and has showed so , and that COD is benefitting

 

Have always that there is a very decent Championship player there, constructive criticism fine but the

‘Hes s***’. , ‘offers nothing’ , ‘rip up his contract’  type comments are laughable

There are posters who you can guarantee , very first post shortly after kick off , will be critical of one of a small band of players , usually COD , waiting for any hint of an error or poor touch to vent their spleen 

 

* And he’s not the only one benefitting in the coaches faith