ellis206

Brady has been immense this season but has struggled the last couple of games, failing to deal with balls to the far post and leaving players unmarked, it''s also a bit of a concern the amount of crosses coming in from our left compared to our right and thankfully Martin has been positioned correctly to deal with the crosses, something Brady hasn''t. Flip side of that though, Olsson is an awful defender so we have to persevere. I''d go with                                   RuddMartin             Bennett       Klose (unlikely)      Brady                                  TetteyRedmond         Howson            Jarvis                                 Naismith                                   Jerome

What are some of you lot on? Drop Bennett and keep Bassong? Bennett has been pretty steady since he has come back in the team, Bassong is costing us goals virtually every game, especially away from home!!!

Martin has captained the club for one season, arguably our best season ever. We don''t need a new captain after a couple of bad team performances, yes Martin hasn''t played great the last couple of games but he hasn''t been half as bad as Bassong and Brady who have just decided to not mark people in the box. Get a grip.

[quote user="CANARYKING"]Russell Martin yet again, why isn''t Wisdom playing ?[/quote] Huh????? Clearly Bassong and Brady AGAIN

Spot on Kenneth, it''s embarrasing people are blaming Martin for that goal, crosses will come in to the box all day long at both ends the pitch. In fact, more crosses have come from our left today but Martin has been in position in the box to deal with the far post crosses, Brady needs to learn from him and Bassong needs dropping.

Charlie Wyett now hinting that Naismith has seen sense and will be joining. He''s normally pretty reliable.

Bennett has been decent since he''s come back in the team, although he''s been fortunate that it has coincided with a change of tactics Neil has deployed, ie not being so gung ho. If we sign another CB, Bassong would easily be my choice for the drop, been very very poor this year. Felt sorry for Russell Martin playing alongside him because Bassong was constantly out of position so at times Martin was having to mark 2 players (see the Newcastle goals), naturally Martin then got the blame and not a word said against Bassong, despite Bassong not even being in our penalty box!! He isn''t reading the game well any more either or tracking runners, look at the West Brom goal at Carrow Road, he made it too easy for Rondon, although once again, I believe Martin got blamed for that goal for allowing a cross to come in from the right.....

[quote user="jaemae2"]What an absolute shocker tonight. He was pathetic all around. Repeatedly beaten for headers at midfield and in the box. Skinned repeatedly at midfield absolutely stranding both Bassong and Martin to desperately and succesfully defend attacks. Then the stunning defending on the Joselu goal. Not much to do on the OG, but that was poor too (granted the ball in was superb). Need a new CB desperately though. This wasn''t the first horror show in the last 10.[/quote]You mean the one where Bassong headed it about 8 yards directly on to Walters feet who then tee''d up Joselu?

Not overly impressed with our lineup in an attacking sense, hardly any pace whatsoever. Thinking maybe we are going to try and keep it tight then bring on Jarvis and Redmond later in the game and go for it?

[quote user="mrs miggins"]AN is quoted saying that he wants his business done early and that he has plans in place behind the scenes. Unless these quotes are fabricated it looks as if things aren''t going to plan 12 days in. On the other hand, perhaps it is going to plan; perhaps we need to sell (e.g Grabban, Bennett etc) in order to spend a $hitload on the players we have in mind? Wait and see I guess, but we can''t have a window like the last one.[/quote]Why on earth not? We are after all 5 points clear of the relegation zone with a game in hand..... so clearly it was a brilliant summer for us.

[quote user="CanaryOne"][quote user="Branston Pickle"]Sorry Canaryone, how do you know how quickly Bournemouth wrapped up Afobe? There''s been whispers for ages. Ultimately, no new signings anywhere have yet been available to play a PL game for their new side so we''ve missed out very little time-wise. I''d much prefer we get who we want rather than who happens to be available early. If SN does sign in the next 48 hours we''d have signed 4 before the middle of the month.[/quote]Do you really believe we know who we want Branston  ? i didnt hear the managers interview yesterday but most on wotb last night were saying he sounded a bit down at missing out on Afobe . All the center back links now seem to have gone dead yet Alex himself said he wanted the targets in early as to not miss the January games . To be honest i think this window is going exactly the same way as the summer one .As for Bournemouth whether they have been after him all along who knows but a couple of days after it broke in the media and he is their player , we could do a lot worse than take a leaf out of their book .[/quote]How''s that? Surely we are more successful in the transfer market than Bournemouth considering we''ve had 4 out of 5 seasons in the PL and are currently above them in the table? So perhaps they should take a leaf out of our book?

[quote user="......and Smith must score."][quote user="kick it off"][quote user="lake district canary"]When on form, Grabban was first choice under AdamsWhen on form, Grabban was first choice under AN.On form he is a handful for any opposition.And if he is so poor, why would Bournemouth want him back?And his goal against Arsenal was not a "tap in".[/quote]When first choice for Adams, Grabban was so poor with his 2 in 22 special run, he was a large part of the reason we were doing badly enough for Adams to "resign".Yep, and how long did that last? His ridiculous red cost him his place and he''s never won it back for more than 2 or 3 games. What does that tell you?I disagree with that. Name one game where you walked away (or turned off the laptop) where you thought "Wow, Grabban was excellent, really changed the course of that game" or similar? He''s good at running around not doing much, but I don''t think that constitutes being a handful.Bournemouth obviously think they can return him to the form he showed when he was there in the Champs. Plus the fact that they are struggling to attract anyone of any note I would imagine. Iturbe is a name but that is mainly based on flashes of potential a good few years ago, not because he is a good player. If Grabban is such a good striker then why is it only Bournemouth and a handful of Championship teams after him? Surely if he is so great then we would be beating offers away from all quarters. If he is not "poor", if he is even mediocre at Prem standard, surely someone like Sunderland would be interested?  So why such a dearth of interest in a player that is obviously available? Once he turned the defender, which was relatively simple given the fact he was between defender and ball and the ball was on a plate for him from Brady, he was essentially unmarked 8 yards out. If a striker misses a chance like that he shouldn''t be anywhere near a football league squad. It was hardly a wonderstrike was it?[/quote]Great reply KIO.LDC does make good points in posts but sometimes the straw clutching is painful to see. It''s all very well picking on very isolated incidents - remember all the RVW drum banging " got in a great header against... ", " turned his man in the 1st half at...", etc, etc - to try to justify his view but looking at Grabban''s overall contribution and it''s plain to see he comes up short.Grabban reminds me of Robert Earnshaw. A good Championship player but lacking at a higher level. Bournemouth must see something in him of course,  and maybe it''s the '' return of the prodigal son '' and all that, but I think they''ll be seriously overpaying if they part with £8m. If Mr McNally & Co can tickle any more out of this deal they seriously ought to consider joining the magicians Magic Circle. [/quote] Strange comment, were you aware (this info is about 4 seasons old) that minutes to goals in the Premier League is headed by Henry, Yakubu then Earnshaw, this is based on players who have played a certain amount of games. Earnshaw was a clinical finisher who should have had longer in the Premier League. Grabban is a tireless worker who has the potential to be a top player and has been a very good player for us, but I agree, we should sell for 8m.

Ah....... apologies Nutty, I wasn''t actually calling you a moron although I can see it looks like that.

[quote user="nutty nigel"]I think it''s obvious that John Ruddy isn''t publicly showing the right attitude or is in the wrong frame of mind. During the half-time interval on Saturday he remained a loan figure in the dugout whilst the other subs were on the pitch. However when the teams came back out he went with Declan Rudd to give him a few sighters at the River End.   Through observation I have come to the conclusion that JR doesn''t react well to pressure. He reacted badly towards fans last time we were in the Premier League and he seems to have reacted badly when his position came under the microscope this time. But in his favour he is obviously very supportive of DR. I would love to see Big John put his troubles behind him and get back to being the keeper who got into the England squad. But I fear if that happens it will be with another club.   ** DR is Declan Rudd not some random doctor who may or may not post...     [/quote]Yeah it''s pretty obvious to a moron. Declan Rudd never ever warmed up until Ruddy used to come out, then they''d come over and warm up together, this has been the same for about 5 seasons, or have you conveniently not noticed this until the last couple of weeks? When Ruddy came over to warm up with Rudd, he was laughing and joking and was enjoying himself, did you not observe that either?And yes he did react badly to the fans, and so he should have done, those "fans" were an embarrassment and rude obnoxious individuals. Don''t dish it out if you then cry about it when a player challenges you, we are all human.

[quote user="Bradwell canary"]With a net spend of around £3-4m in the summer, can''t see the board having enough guts to spend enough to bring in the talent needed to save us. 4 out of 5 years in the PL, and the money involved our bank manager must be a happy guy. I don''t wish for us to go deep into the red, as so many have chasing the PL dream, but it would give the supporters some hope if more effort in made in Jan than in the summer. If not it will be very clear that they are not willing to back AN, and will show a total lack of ambition their part. Perhaps no one has told them about the huge increase in Sky money next year!! Lets face it, the squad we have is simply not good enough. Most are Championship players at best.[/quote]This is awkward

[quote user="can u sit down please"][quote user="ellis206"]I do actually have to agree with the OP on this point, I''ve never rated Olsson as a defender, he''s good at getting forward and has a decent cross on him but he is horrendous at actually defending and was definitely the weak link in our defence, Newcastle away for example, 5 of the 6 goals came from our left hand side. Disagree about Martin though, he was fantastic today and was made a scapegoat earlier on in the season, at times he was left marking two players because Bassong had gone walkabouts. For me i''d have Brady at LB, Bennett, new CB and Martin at RB. [/quote] Defend first,but he also had a huge part in the two goals we scored that day. Poor example given the manager held his hands up tactically that day.[/quote]Yeah he set up 2 goals from crosses but that''s no good if you are then responsible for 5 going in the other end.

I do actually have to agree with the OP on this point, I''ve never rated Olsson as a defender, he''s good at getting forward and has a decent cross on him but he is horrendous at actually defending and was definitely the weak link in our defence, Newcastle away for example, 5 of the 6 goals came from our left hand side. Disagree about Martin though, he was fantastic today and was made a scapegoat earlier on in the season, at times he was left marking two players because Bassong had gone walkabouts. For me i''d have Brady at LB, Bennett, new CB and Martin at RB.

[quote user="Essjayess"]Already posted this once  but this transfer wimdow is going to be almost identical to the summer one. Its clear once again that our two main needs, signing a dedicated striker and a dedicated CB will not happen. Not even into the window yet, and the two foreign CBs so talked about the last week or two are already spoken for, Kone off to Sunderland and Ranocchia off to Bologna. Who else was rumoured, Lees? lingering hamstring injury so likely to fail a medical, in anycase Sheff. Wed. will almost surely want him for their promotion drive. Caulker?..cant see it happening.What of strikers..my personal favourite, Haller?..its gone deathly quiet about him..Bamford?...he would likely choose Bournemouth, in anycase would be a loan like Mbokani. What are we likely to get? Matt Jarvis yes...2 n half mill...maybe Pinto..a RB who can play CB...just like Wisdom and Russ Martin then...Godfrey?...a young midfielder for the future 80k ...Naismith?...who knows, depends onhim and Martinez, a midfielder.So, looks like Matt Jarvis, 2 more midfielders (if Naismith signs) and a RB who can fill in CB (oh joy another one of those type),  and in the striker / CB department  loans at most. So maybe 5 or 6 mill in the window if we get Pinto and Godfrey, or 13 mill if we add Naismith. Not zero spending, but  of DMs speech...yes we will spend, but will not be reckless. Of course im sticking my neck out here with a simple personal opinion, but based on NCFC transfer windows of the past. City, prove me wrong!...lol[/quote]You mean one single transfer window this summer which was actually a pretty succesful one apart from signing a defender?

[quote user="Branston Pickle"]Bamford was the Champs player of the season and was injured in the run up to the play off final so judging him on how he played then is rather daft. He''s probably one if those ''nearly'' players - if he finds the right side I think he''d do ok in the PL, but probably not with us.[/quote]Him being chosen as the Championship player of the season was a joke though, wasn''t even in the top 10 imo, Jerome, Johnson, Ritchie, Wilson, Murphy (I know I know) etc were all far more deserving than Bamford. Probably because he came from Chelsea.

[quote user="Viva Marc Libbra"]Why is he not an AN type player? He''s young, very quick, can play as a lone striker well and scores goals. He would offer something completely different to Jerome and Mbokani because he is very direct and will run in behind centre backs. If he''d come here then personally I''d prefer him to Gayle or Afobe.[/quote]Bamford, quick? Really?

[quote user="Jim Moriarty"]A number around me commented on Ruddy''s attitude at half time. He spent most of it sat on the bench with his hands in his pocket, while the outfield players warmed up. It was only a minute before the 2nd half started that we trotted over with Rudd to do the usual practice feeding. Was also disappointed with him at Spurs. When the two keepers and Kiely came out to warm up, Rudd and Kiely came over and applauded the fans while Ruddy looked as miserable as sin, staring at the floor throughout. A shame as I have always viewed Ruddy as the consummate professional until now. The form Dec is in he has to keep the shirt, but I would also be looking to ship Ruddy out and get someone else in to genuinely compete for the top job.[/quote]The people around you must have somehow chose to ignore the fact that this happens every single halftime regardless of who is in goal......

[quote user="Bradwell canary"]Did anyone else notice that during the half time warm up for the subs Ruddy simply was not taking part. Merely walked about with his hands in his pockets. If body language means anything then it means he is in a bit of a sulk. He''s watched Rudd playing every game, and must understand his first team chances are over. I for one never thought he was of PL quality, and only got a brief spot in the England squad due to lack of English keeper in the PL. Frankly nice to see one of our own in the team[/quote] It''s comments like this that start rumours. Ruddy was fully involved in the warm up and was doing the usual kicking to Rudd at point blank distance, like Rudd had been doing for Ruddy for the last couple of seasons. He was not walking around in a sulk and not taking part, he came out and walked towards the Barclay goal with his hand in his pockets then did the warm up with Rudd.

[quote user="morty"]I doubt Ruddy would go in this transfer window. Whilst Rudd has started well, he has very little Premiership experience. He hasn''t been on the wrong end of a sound beating, or made a glaring error. So how he would cope with either of those things is unknown.We definitely still need John Ruddy.[/quote]Rudd has made plenty of errors that Ruddy has been getting castrated for on here, dropping crosses, given away a penalty, some suspect kicking. People won''t see that though because he''s not Ruddy.

[quote user="Hairy Canary"]Why on earth would we want to rotate the keepers? Ruddy cost us points against Man City, West Ham and Arsenal. Rudd gained us a point against Everton. It''s Rudd''s shirt for as long as he can keep his performances at this level.[/quote]Harsh to say he cost us at West Ham, Andy Carroll was pretty much on top of him, and quite frankly it''s absurd to say he costs us points against Arsenal.You can also say he won us points against Liverpool with some incredible stops and also some good stops against Bournemouth when the game was in the balance.

[quote user="hogesar"]No problem with Rudd in goal as he has generally done well. But had it been Ruddy concede the pen and flap at a couple of crosses he''d have been verbally assaulted on here.[/quote]Nail on the head. If Ruddy had the exact same game as Rudd yesterday there would have been calls for him to be dropped etc, Rudd will always get special treatment as he is one of our own. But to be fair to Rudd, he''s very good on a one vs one situation, needs to work on his kicking though.