Wickham vs Martin debate

[yellowasanything 0]

Can these two players be legitimately compared at this stage? Where Martin has been on the scene for some time, consistently scoring at all levels, Connor Wickham has really yet to make his mark on the division. No doubt there will be much beating of chests by fans of their respective clubs, but one swallow does appear to have made a summer for many Town fans when it comes to the young man from Reading.

It will be interesting to see which club comesin for Wickham in January and whether Martin is attracting similar attention form the Premiership big boys. The only thing which does appear certain is that fans of both clubs will have to face up to losing these young stars if the Premiership dream of their own club isn''t realised this season.

[Mister Chops 7]

I''ve never seen Connor Wickham play.  I do however recall that Ryan Jarvis was going to be the next Robbie Fowler and Rossi Jarvis was supposed to be our Cesc Fabregas, so I''m holding my breath for Wickham''s chances of fulfilling his potential.  Of course, if he does, it''s my ardent hope that he does it elsewhere.

[Canary_on_the Trent 0]

21 year old who has scored goals at a lower level or a 17 year old who is making his mark at Championship level, was the best player of the tournament at the European U17 Championships and has every big club chasing him?I am a big Chris Martin fan but Wickham is 1 of the best England has had in a while.

[Lambert is King 0]

[quote user="Mr. Chops"]I''ve never seen Connor Wickham play.  I do however recall that Ryan Jarvis was going to be the next Robbie Fowler and Rossi Jarvis was supposed to be our Cesc Fabregas, so I''m holding my breath for Wickham''s chances of fulfilling his potential.  Of course, if he does, it''s my ardent hope that he does it elsewhere.

[/quote]

As much as it hurts to say it Connor Wickham certainly seems to be something special an opinion that seems to be shared amongst many managers and experts. Strangely though it could be the binners undoing as should he carry on doing well many teams will be after his signature in January - unsettling for both the player and club   

[Gingerpele 0]

Chris Martin has a better Championship striker rate than Wickham (well actually i think its roughly the same now...) .....In his first season (when he was 18? maybe 17) he scored 4 in 18 games...(and was upfront on his own i believe, he came in for Earnshaw didn''t he....?), i think he has probably played more from the bench, especially the next season, when he failed to score in 7 games..... He then got forced out, and did well in League 2, then did very well in League 1 last season, and i''m sure will start to hit the net more this season.......

So why is Wickham that good? going on stats hes no better at this point..... (and the England level i don''t really think it matters that much, how many of the under 21s in the last 5/10 years are in the England team now? Milner was brilliant for under 21s for 3/4 years and only recently got into the England squad....)

[Razzmatazz 0]

There is no real debate to have, its Wickham all day long.

[NCFC4LIFE 0]

[quote user="Canary_on_the Trent"]21 year old who has scored goals at a lower level or a 17 year old who is making his mark at Championship level, was the best player of the tournament at the European U17 Championships and has every big club chasing him?I am a big Chris Martin fan but Wickham is 1 of the best England has had in a while.[/quote]What proof do you have for this...... He has scored 4 goals in 28 apps for the scum..........I will rate him once he has proven his worth, not off the back of that T*AT Keane''s word!!!Martin is a rough diamond and has all the qualities of progressing to be a top class striker, not there yet but i have more confiedence he will over Wickham and the reason behind this is Lambert''s guidence!!!OTBC

[Bethnal Yellow and Green 1,557]

[quote user="NCFC4LIFE"][quote user="Canary_on_the Trent"]21 year old who has scored goals at a lower level or a 17 year old who is making his mark at Championship level, was the best player of the tournament at the European U17 Championships and has every big club chasing him?

I am a big Chris Martin fan but Wickham is 1 of the best England has had in a while.
[/quote]

What proof do you have for this...... He has scored 4 goals in 28 apps for the scum..........

I will rate him once he has proven his worth, not off the back of that T*AT Keane''s word!!!

Martin is a rough diamond and has all the qualities of progressing to be a top class striker, not there yet but i have more confiedence he will over Wickham and the reason behind this is Lambert''s guidence!!!

OTBC
[/quote]

Keane is talking him down, it is pretty much everyone else saying Wickham is the real deal.

Anyone who saw the Ipswich v Cardiff game will tell you that Wickham was the most exciting player on the pitch and for someone of only 17 looks the real deal. I know we all love Chris M (apart from the people who say he is lazy) but the hype around Wickham isn''t an accident, he could be an excellent player.

If Chris Martin played for Ipswich and Wickham played here this wouldn''t even be a discussion.

[bluemike 0]

Why does it have to be one or the other, surely they can both be good players in their own right regardless of who they play for, good luck to both of them I say.

[portmanking 0]

Put it this way - I don''t see Wickham being forced to drop down to League Two to prove himself before gaining an opportunity at Championship level.Wickham was the star of the U19 European Championships and will go on to partner Rooney within 3-4 years.We are appreciating him fully while we''ve got him.

[Gingerpele 0]

Martin wasn''t forced to prove himself... Roeder decided he didn''t like him, never gave him a chance, and sent him out on loan... MARTIN HAS A BETTER CHAMPIONSHIP RECORD THAN WICKHAM

[Canary_on_the Trent 0]

[quote user="Gingerpele"]Martin wasn''t forced to prove himself... Roeder decided he didn''t like him, never gave him a chance, and sent him out on loan... MARTIN HAS A BETTER CHAMPIONSHIP RECORD THAN WICKHAM[/quote]Take your yellow tinted glasses off!

[Gingerpele 0]

Its a fact....

[Gingerpele 0]

Ot at least first season comparison is....now not as much because he hasn''t done as well at the start of this season...

[Canary_on_the Trent 0]

[quote user="Gingerpele"]Ot at least first season comparison is....now not as much because he hasn''t done as well at the start of this season...[/quote]So was Chris Martin a regular and producing first rate performances at the age of 16?Was he the star player in his year group, not only for England but the whole European Championships for the U17s?,Was Chris Martin being hyped as much as this lad is, not only the local media but the national and managers in the know?Was Chris Martin on the verge of an England U21 call up at 17?Is Chris Martin on the verge of an England U21 call up at 21?

Wickham certainly won''t be playing League 2 at the age of 20 having to prove himself again like Chris Martin, he''ll be in the Premier League.

[Gingerpele 0]

Nice to know you prefer Ipswich players...go support them if you love Wickham so much.....

There are many many many cases of media hype around players, such as Francis Jeffers, David Bently etc etc (freddy Adu as well, remember him? at 14/15 he was being hyped by everyone as a wonder player, was going to join Madrid/Manchester etc...where is he now? on loan to a greek team, and not even in the USA squad....)

Hype doesn''t make a good player, and i would much rather back Norwich player than Ipswich....

I kind of hope Wickham does turn out to be as good as he is mean''t to be, and perform for England in a World cup/Euros and maybe we can win one.....

But i seriously think, If Martin had sorted out his attitude/effort out in his first 1/2 seasons, he would have never been in League Two, maybe we wouldn''t have been in League One...his progress was seriously interfered with, mainly his own doing, but Roeder certainly didn''t help.....

I can''t actually believe the attitude of Norwich fans when it comes to Wickham....

[Mike 0]

[quote user="bluemike"]Why does it have to be one or the other, surely they can both be good players in their own right regardless of who they play for, good luck to both of them I say.
[/quote]

I agree Bluemike. Wickham does look a good prospect & Martin is having an excellent season. Both good players.

[canary of lincoln 0]

wickham matured into a man very quickly and is a decent player but is not as technically gifted or as good a finisher as Super Chris and wickham will find it harder to improve on what he has already done Reputation and his young age has a lot to do with the recognition he is receiving but this has happened on numerous occasions before and I think you could be looking at another John Stead

[Mike 0]

[quote user="portmanking"]Put it this way - I don''t see Wickham being forced to drop down to League Two to prove himself before gaining an opportunity at Championship level.

Wickham was the star of the U19 European Championships and will go on to partner Rooney within 3-4 years.

We are appreciating him fully while we''ve got him.
[/quote]

Oh dear what a baffoon you are.... Martin is an excellent young player as is Wickham. Take a leaf out of Bluemikes book and GROW UP!

 

Freelance jorno my ar*e!

[Gingerpele 0]

Thats a brilliant point canary of lincoln....

Players hyped up this much when they are so young, have far too much pressure on them, some, like Rooney and Messi do improve on their young age form...

But then players like Martin, he has obviously been improving the last 2/3 seasons, even over the summer, it seems like he has gotten stronger and fitter, he just needs to start getting those shots in the net rather than on the post :P

[yellowasanything 0]

I agree re early development and he looks heavy to me in the same way that Ashton was. Potential is very different to achievement too. If this boy can put a full shift in every week at Championship level I will begin to take these claims seriously, until then I''m happy with the meat and two veg players like Martin. You get exactly what it says on the tin with him.

[Canary_on_the Trent 0]

[quote user="Gingerpele"]Nice to know you prefer Ipswich players...go support them if you love Wickham so much.....

There are many many many cases of media hype around players, such as Francis Jeffers, David Bently etc etc (freddy Adu as well, remember him? at 14/15 he was being hyped by everyone as a wonder player, was going to join Madrid/Manchester etc...where is he now? on loan to a greek team, and not even in the USA squad....)

Hype doesn''t make a good player, and i would much rather back Norwich player than Ipswich....

I kind of hope Wickham does turn out to be as good as he is mean''t to be, and perform for England in a World cup/Euros and maybe we can win one.....

But i seriously think, If Martin had sorted out his attitude/effort out in his first 1/2 seasons, he would have never been in League Two, maybe we wouldn''t have been in League One...his progress was seriously interfered with, mainly his own doing, but Roeder certainly didn''t help.....

I can''t actually believe the attitude of Norwich fans when it comes to Wickham....[/quote]Does your simple, little brain not allow you to see what''s blatantly obvious just because of our rivalry with Ipswich and your Norwich City tinted perspective of things?The same Adu who wasn''t playing in a proper league at that age, Wickham is and was playing senior football in the Championship at the age of 16/17 and impressing week in week out.Glen Roeder sending out Chris Martin was the making of him and 1 of the best decisions of a City manager in recent years. Whether he would have then given him a chance at the end of the loan I''m not sure but there is no denying that season in League 2 made Chris Martin the top player he is now. Well done Glen Roeder!

[John 0]

[quote user="Gingerpele"]Nice to know you prefer Ipswich players...go support them if you love Wickham so much..... [/quote]And by the same token Ian Henderson is, and always has been 10 times the player of Darren Bent, and anyone who happens to argue any different is a certified Ipswich fan.I''m hoping my credentials as a Norwich fan now suffice?

[Gingerpele 0]

My argument wasn''t about who was better......I have not said Chris Martin is better than Wickham....I have said he has a better Championship record (which he has/did), i just find it amazing that people seem to be saying Wickham is amazing, and Martin is just some piece of crap we picked up from the side of the road....

Wickham has had barley any experience yet, has only started 10 or so games in the real leagues (Internationals at any level, especially youth, and not really accurate at all, look at Messi, for Barcelona is probably one if not the best player ever, yet can''t do it for Argentina, with even more freedom than he gets with Barca....)

In two seasons, if Wickham has kept his performances to the same level, then yes, come back and say how good he is, but their is very little evidence for how well he will do, comparing players isn''t fair either, even going on the goal scoring records, i''m fairly sure, Martins first season, he was up front on his own, and although he probably thought he was the best footballer ever, it must have been very very hard, playing that role at the age he was....

[John 0]

[quote user="Gingerpele"]... and Martin is just some piece of crap we picked up from the side of the road.... [/quote]I think i missed that bit?

[Canary_on_the Trent 0]

[quote user="Gingerpele"] Martins first season, he was up front on his own, and although he probably thought he was the best footballer ever, it must have been very very hard, playing that role at the age he was....[/quote]He played alongside Huckerby with Lappin coming in on the left.

[Syteanric 1]

[quote user="Mr. Chops"]I''ve never seen Connor Wickham play.  I do however recall that Ryan Jarvis was going to be the next Robbie Fowler and Rossi Jarvis was supposed to be our Cesc Fabregas, so I''m holding my breath for Wickham''s chances of fulfilling his potential.  Of course, if he does, it''s my ardent hope that he does it elsewhere.[/quote]ryan Jarvis is the next robbie Fowler, Playing in a tin pot league, putting on weight and wishing he was good!

[Gingerpele 0]

Yeah, but did Huckerbuy really play up-front?

[Gingerpele 0]

John....You seemed to add bits to what i said as well.....unless you can find a quote me saying Martin is better than Wickham....

[Canary_on_the Trent 0]

[quote user="Gingerpele"]Yeah, but did Huckerbuy really play up-front?[/quote]Yes but obviously had license to roam. Hence all of the goals he scored post x-mas in 2007.