So what's up with Rupp becoming 1st choice?

[cambridgeshire canary 7,797]

Just a little confused how he went from being benched for the majority of our championship season to now Farke decided he's our go to number one midfielder. I still think he's semi decent, but its just confusing how he was hardly getting any play time for us last season and when he did play he did not really impress..

 

To now seemingly being a guaranteed 1st choice player for us in a far, far tougher league

[hogesar 10,762]

He was injured for a lot of last season, and we only had 2 midfield positions.

[FenwayFrank 2,717]

He was injured a fair bit last season and he must be doing well in training to get in the side. He’s not guaranteed a place at all.

[GJL Mid-Norfolk Canary 2,035]

Said before the season that playing a midfield of Rupp and/or McLean in rhe Premier League will see us relegated again....and here we are turning up at Arsenal yesterday with BOTH of them in the midfield.

Slightly understandable circumstances with internationals etc ..but if Normann and Gilmour arent in for these two vs Watford then Farke has to be questioned

[Jsim1986 188]

1 minute ago, GJL Mid-Norfolk Canary said:

Said before the season that playing a midfield of Rupp and/or McLean in rhe Premier League will see us relegated again....and here we are turning up at Arsenal yesterday with BOTH of them in the midfield.

Slightly understandable circumstances with internationals etc ..but if Normann and Gilmour arent in for these two vs Watford then Farke has to be questioned

McLean was very good yesterday.

[Wacky Waving Inflatable Arm Flailing Tube Man 4,615]

He's a good pro and I've got nothing against him, but if I had to rank our six central midfielders in order of who I'd like to see starting Premier League matches, I think Lukas would be propping up the list. He's a useful player, of course, and I don't doubt that he's good influence in the dressing room but I don't think he's anything more than a squad player at this level. 

[makham 82]

12 minutes ago, cambridgeshire canary said:

Just a little confused how he went from being benched for the majority of our championship season to now Farke decided he's our go to number one midfielder. I still think he's semi decent, but its just confusing how he was hardly getting any play time for us last season and when he did play he did not really impress..

 

To now seemingly being a guaranteed 1st choice player for us in a far, far tougher league

So far, much of the team selections have, to use DF's words, been pragmatic ones. 1. Skipp went back to Spurs, a serious loss in the defensive midfield area of the pitch  2. Df hasn't had a chance to work with the new signings, and there has been a series of challenges that has caused plenty of disruption to planning for the season. We, more than any other team, have had to make serious alterations to our squad amid the euros, covid, and losing players key to our championship winning team, and now all the international call-ups.. 

 3. DF said on Friday that the team selection for yesterday would have to be a pragmatic one, with a great sense of relief in his voice when he said he'll finally have a week to work with everyone leading up to Watford. 4. It's an area of the pitch where  we are all waiting to see how things unfold.  Rupp clearly has a role in the squad, but I guess we'll see a more permanent combination emerging in that area of the pitch in the weeks to come, as things start to settle down. Let's see what our midfield and performances  look like come the end of November.

[Dr Greenthumb 792]

28 minutes ago, cambridgeshire canary said:

Just a little confused how he went from being benched for the majority of our championship season to now Farke decided he's our go to number one midfielder. I still think he's semi decent, but its just confusing how he was hardly getting any play time for us last season and when he did play he did not really impress..

 

To now seemingly being a guaranteed 1st choice player for us in a far, far tougher league

If Leitner didn’t have a stinking attitude, we would have been better having him play. Rupp is a very safe option

[Ken Hairy 4,272]

If we carry on with Rupp we're getting relegated, simple as. The lad is simply nowhere near good enough for even the Championship let alone this level. 

I'd actually rather we'd have kept Trybull than Rupp. 

[BroadstairsR 2,273]

We seem to have a host of defensive/attacking/wide men midfielders (the lines are somewhat blurred) that you cannot put the thickness of  a piece of paper between in terms of performance thus far.

The most obvious and effective combination will evolve, sooner rather than later.

[curious yellow 184]

Has Rupp ever started a Prem game that we haven't lost? 

[daisy 145]

He was just keeping the place warm for Normann, he won`t play Saturday.

[Monty13 2,736]

Who says he’s guaranteed? He didn’t start against Leicester.

He played well yesterday, what’s your problem with him? 

[hurricane 21]

I think we rested a few of our players with Watford in mind, hence why we had a strong bench and the midfield we put out. How effective this will be we shall find out on Saturday. Gone are the days of if your fit you play a lot more is now around sports science, workload etc. 

[keelansgrandad 6,680]

He isn't really good enough or combative enough to be in that crucial position. 

Sorenson must wonder what it takes to get a start.

[By Hook or Ian crook 943]

I don’t think he is first choice or go to. Normann is just through the door, Gilmour played a lot of mins for Scotland in the break so there was a concern about burn out for him. I think realistically he’s 6th choice and Farke just wanted to play someone with less minutes in their legs who he could of worked with through most of the week in training. 

[Ken Hairy 4,272]

37 minutes ago, Monty13 said:

 

He played well yesterday

He did??? 

[Monty13 2,736]

2 hours ago, Ken Hairy said:

He did??? 

Happy for you to give examples of where he was poor. I don’t remember him doing much wrong personally other than one stray pass.

[Ken Hairy 4,272]

1 hour ago, Monty13 said:

Happy for you to give examples of where he was poor. I don’t remember him doing much wrong personally other than one stray pass.

Did I say he was poor? If you could give examples of anything he did well to justify your assessment of "he played well" then I'm all ears. 🤷‍♂️However there was 3 stray passes in the 1st half alone, as was mentioned at HT in the match thread when we were suggesting changes. 

Edited September 12, 2021 by Ken Hairy

[Capt. Pants 5,008]

We may as well sell Sorensen. Other than cup games I cannot see where his involvement will be; we have cover at RB, LB and numerous CHs. With Gilmour rested, Normann not ready, still he cannot get in and now seems 4th choice in the DM midfield position.

I'm baffled with the persistence with Rupp though. He's a solid player but not the quality we need for the Premier League.

[Beefy is a legend 224]

I think the point is that Rupp isn't going to be starting many games for us this season. He started yesterday for various reasons already mentioned. I think we all know in a couple of weeks Normann will be in the side along with, most likely for me, McLean and PLM/Gilmour.

It wouldn't surprise me to see Rashica and Tzolis starting regularly behind Sargent although there may be games where we can play 4-2-3-1 and use Dowell in the 10 behind Pukki.

But to answer the OP's question, Rupp is getting in the side more because at this level we are playing against much better opponents, hence moving from the more expansive 4-2-3-1 to a more defensively oriented 4-3-3. 

Edited September 12, 2021 by Beefy is a legend

[Midlands Yellow 4,682]

4 hours ago, Capt. Pants said:

We may as well sell Sorensen. Other than cup games I cannot see where his involvement will be; we have cover at RB, LB and numerous CHs. With Gilmour rested, Normann not ready, still he cannot get in and now seems 4th choice in the DM midfield position.

I'm baffled with the persistence with Rupp though. He's a solid player but not the quality we need for the Premier League.

Feel sorry for that lad. Hasn’t done much wrong whenever asked to play in any position. 

[nutty nigel 7,902]

6 hours ago, Ken Hairy said:

Did I say he was poor? If you could give examples of anything he did well to justify your assessment of "he played well" then I'm all ears. 🤷‍♂️However there was 3 stray passes in the 1st half alone, as was mentioned at HT in the match thread when we were suggesting changes. 

I think a lot of the time we all just see what we want to see...

[BobLoz3 609]

Personally I think Rupp is a neat and tidy player, while not doing anything too spectacular, he keeps things ticking over. 

But look. We've signed some new midfielders and when they have settled and had more time with the team we may not see Rupp starting so often. 

Farke likes to keep a settled side as much as he can. You could argue that, much like the last time in the Prem, because we never string wins together like we do in the championship it's a bit more difficult for him to choose the same side week in, week out. 

[hogesar 10,762]

15 hours ago, keelansgrandad said:

He isn't really good enough or combative enough to be in that crucial position. 

Sorenson must wonder what it takes to get a start.

There is certainly very little to suggest Sorensen is better than Rupp.

[hogesar 10,762]

16 hours ago, Monty13 said:

Who says he’s guaranteed? He didn’t start against Leicester.

He played well yesterday, what’s your problem with him? 

He won't be a regular starter when all our new signings are integrated,  but yes he didn't do much wrong and he is a reliable option in the midfield. 

I imagine his role will be, moving forwards, coming off the bench, using his pressing intensity and good reading of the game, alongside his decent interception stats, to hold onto (hopefully) leads in games.

[canarydan23 4,761]

4 minutes ago, hogesar said:

There is certainly very little to suggest Sorensen is better than Rupp.

Well, apart from the consistently good to excellent performances from one playing out of position compared to the consistently mediocre performances from one playing in their favoured position. Apart from that, you're right, very little to suggest Sorensen is better than Rupp.

[hogesar 10,762]

2 minutes ago, canarydan23 said:

Well, apart from the consistently good to excellent performances from one playing out of position compared to the consistently mediocre performances from one playing in their favoured position. Apart from that, you're right, very little to suggest Sorensen is better than Rupp.

Yeah, Sorensen had some decent games at left back in the championship. The fact he's not been able to get into our midfield, including last season where we won the league, suggests that Farke sees things the game way I do. I like Sorensen, but people seem to think because he's not been tried in defensive midfield for us he must clearly be fantastic in that position.

Saying that, every season where we are struggling its the players not playing who are suddenly the answer. For some, anyway.

[canarydan23 4,761]

1 minute ago, hogesar said:

Yeah, Sorensen had some decent games at left back in the championship. The fact he's not been able to get into our midfield, including last season where we won the league, suggests that Farke sees things the game way I do. I like Sorensen, but people seem to think because he's not been tried in defensive midfield for us he must clearly be fantastic in that position.

Saying that, every season where we are struggling its the players not playing who are suddenly the answer. For some, anyway.

I hope you're not suggesting that Farke bought someone in as a defensive midfielder who isn't a very good defensive midfielder, hogesar. Because we're just idiots on a football forum, how dare you question Farke, Webber or our transfer policy, I think they know a bit more than you.

I'm being flippant. But it is hugely frustrating to see us get totally overrun in midfield four games on the bounce now, admittedly against highly impressive opposition in three quarters of those, plus a fourth who have been utterly whack but were able to field their strongest lineup of the season so far, and not give our only defensively-adept midfielder on the books prior to Normann, a go in his favoured position. Particularly when he was so dependable out of position last season and in his one proper run out this season in the League Cup in the centre of the park didn't put a foot wrong.

If he can't offer more than our midfield has done so far this season then he should have been shipped out in August, either temporarily or permanently.

[Capt. Pants 5,008]

25 minutes ago, canarydan23 said:

I hope you're not suggesting that Farke bought someone in as a defensive midfielder who isn't a very good defensive midfielder, hogesar. Because we're just idiots on a football forum, how dare you question Farke, Webber or our transfer policy, I think they know a bit more than you.

I'm being flippant. But it is hugely frustrating to see us get totally overrun in midfield four games on the bounce now, admittedly against highly impressive opposition in three quarters of those, plus a fourth who have been utterly whack but were able to field their strongest lineup of the season so far, and not give our only defensively-adept midfielder on the books prior to Normann, a go in his favoured position. Particularly when he was so dependable out of position last season and in his one proper run out this season in the League Cup in the centre of the park didn't put a foot wrong.

If he can't offer more than our midfield has done so far this season then he should have been shipped out in August, either temporarily or permanently.

I would have rather we had sold Placheta and Sorensen and gone for a significant upgrade on Lees-Melou personally. We haven't replaced the creativity of Buendia and the service to Pukki is suffering.