Gary hooper

[Webbo118 0]

[quote user="paul moy"][quote user="Orford65"][quote user="paul moy"][quote user="Orford65"]They''re playing Hibs ffs!
[/quote]

Agreed and hence also my caution on RVW that I expressed earlier in the week.   
[/quote]

I also am a bit worried about the notion  that Rip Van will solve all our striking problems.

Not sure about the standard of the Portuguese league, but I watched him in last season''s Europa comp and I did''nt think he was all that.

Am confident though that Hoots knows what he''s doing and am sure that he will be bringing in other quality players for support.

[/quote]

In my view,  Portuguese and Scottish Prems are similar to Championship standard.  When we sign players from these leagues we should be insisting on clauses to ensure that transfer fees relate to success in the Prem, otherwise we are at risk of expensive flops. 
[/quote]

I really wish I had just a small percentage of your extensive knowledge. What are you talking about?

[Bert sneakers 0]

I say sign Hooper up NOW, jog on all other strikers on our books apart from holt and pull in a journey man for fourth choice and bench warmer then get on with concentrating on a midfield that will service them. Job done.

[BroadstairsR 2,138]

I''m more excited about the Chris Commons rumour, but both would be nice.

 

It would be the frontline taken care of to near perfecto IMO, although I would prefer to have Kamara in the squad than the unfortunate Becchio.

 

[Ivan Easter 0]

After reading what Lennon has said in the transfer news on Sky Sports page I think he will try and put a silly price on him IF he lets him leave to quote Lennon

He said:

"Of course, he''s a master. He''s been one of my best signings. He''s priceless. Hooper''s the master, an absolute master.

[Herman 9,713]

"BroadstairsR"I''m more excited about the Chris Commons rumour, but both would be nice.

It would be the frontline taken care of to near perfecto IMO, although I would prefer to have Kamara in the squad than the unfortunate Becchio.

I''ve always liked Commons but his age may be a hindrance. If we could get him cheaply then I would be happy.

[chicken 0]

[quote user="ReadingCanary"][quote user="AJ"]Great player. Not sure he''s prem class though[/quote]Only experience would confirm it.Players like Holt / Hoolahan / Snodgrass etc have all been able to make the step up form lower leagues.Barnett / Tierney / Jackson etc have not.It would certainly be a gamble. I''ve watched him in the SPL and he looked class, then in Europe it''s a mixed bag. Some games he seemed to be everywhere, other games not on the pitch.It would certainly be a gamble ![/quote]

Tad harsh I think.

Barnett was signed from West Brom - a premiership side at the time. He did very well for us in our promotion season, and to be fair to him was a part of the team that kept us up in our first season back in the premiership. To say he hasn''t been able to make the step up is not exactly true.

I''d say Tierney is in a similar boat. Him and Barnett are the sort of ''inbetween'' players. They will play in Championship teams challenging for promotion and give that extra bit of quality, they''ll also be reasonable enough in the lower reaches of the premiership.

In fact with Tierney I wonder how much his injury has held him back, he did start this season, but is not as accomplished as Garrido.

Jackson certainly isn''t premiership class, but again, as a squad player he has played his part in some memorable results such as Spurs last season, where he used his pace and hold up play to stretch them quickly.

And again, I''d say all three were signed to be played in the championship, rather than to have a premier league team built around them.

Hoolahan and Holt are exceptional players. Wes probably could have played in the premier league sooner.

Snodgrass clearly is good enough, but then Barcelona thought that when he was younger.

[CambridgeCanary 0]

[quote user="Webbo118"]

[quote user="paul moy"][quote user="Orford65"][quote user="paul moy"][quote user="Orford65"]They''re playing Hibs ffs!
[/quote]

Agreed and hence also my caution on RVW that I expressed earlier in the week.   
[/quote]

I also am a bit worried about the notion  that Rip Van will solve all our striking problems.

Not sure about the standard of the Portuguese league, but I watched him in last season''s Europa comp and I did''nt think he was all that.

Am confident though that Hoots knows what he''s doing and am sure that he will be bringing in other quality players for support.

[/quote]

In my view,  Portuguese and Scottish Prems are similar to Championship standard.  When we sign players from these leagues we should be insisting on clauses to ensure that transfer fees relate to success in the Prem, otherwise we are at risk of expensive flops. 
[/quote]

I really wish I had just a small percentage of your extensive knowledge. What are you talking about?

[/quote]

I suspect Arsene Wenger really wishes he had just a small percentage of Moy''s extensive knowledge.

[ricky knight 0]

I rate the guy has a good goal record, ok goals only against Hibs but still in the right place and two quality finishes. Has played CL and looked a handful, i think he would be a good signing for us. there are no guarantees but imo he would be ok in prem, might get him for right price now too.

[ricky knight 0]

[quote user="Eggy"]After reading what Lennon has said in the transfer news on Sky Sports page I think he will try and put a silly price on him IF he lets him leave to quote Lennon

He said:

"Of course, he''s a master. He''s been one of my best signings. He''s priceless. Hooper''s the master, an absolute master.[/quote]

he can say what he like if the board want some money in before his contract runs out, thats what will happen.

[BOO 0]

I rate Chris Commons very highly, would be very happy to see him here. Stood out in the Champions League campaigne unlike Hopper who really didn''t impress.

[Morisons Prozac 0]

Can''t believe people are comparing the Portuguese League to the SPL and Championship. I would say it''s about the same level as the French, Dutch and Belgian League

[smooth 114]

Rvw is absolute class and raises our striking options to a totally different level, we have had players like oil Johnson, Wiley, the tyre fitter who work hard for goals. This guy is headlines, he is that moment of genius that we have not had for years. What a signing.

We need a second striker who can also hit the world running with prem quality... Holty and becchio can be on the fringes....we need strikers worthy of pushing us to the next level... Holty is not for the future he was for this season and struggled, he got goals but we need better... Is hooper better, well he will score in this league.

But there is the rest of Europe, I just wish we could have had hux frozen and brought back now. But we need goals and we need them next season, if rvw gets injured and we are left with holty and becchio we will be flirting with relegation. We need strikers who can grow as premiership stars and headline writers over the next few years rvw with the right team around him can be one of those, lets compliment him rather than make do. We are not in that position.

[Foghorn 0]

In the Celtic v Hibs game, the stand-out player for me was not Chris Commons, but Stokes. He provided the crosses for both of Hooper''s goals, and looked good all through.

[BOO 0]

You watched it? Not much else on I suppose!

[Redders Right Foot 22]

if lennon will hold out for silly money for hooper than it probably won''t be worth it. anything over 3-4m is way too much for a risk player with a 12 month contract.

[Mister Chops 7]

[quote user="Javiers Deaf Translator"]if lennon will hold out for silly money for hooper than it probably won''t be worth it. [/quote]Tomorrow never knows, but it won''t be long.

[Yelloow Since 72 54]

I agree that we should keep bids for Hooper reasonable after Celtic''s truculence in January. Ther are other good strikers out there!

[Baracouda 47]

The Portugese and French leagues are miles above the other divisions.

When you look at the Uefa Team Rankings..

Porto 8th, Benfica 9th, Lyon 12th, Marseille 16th, Paris 19th,Sporting 23rd.

Note on a 4 or 5 year basis so Paris stock very low.

No Dutch. Belgian or Scottish appear.

and Offically Uefa rank the leagues.

Portugal 5th, France 6th.

Belgium 13th, Scotland 19th, Netherlands 20th.

To put it in perspective, Switzerland 11th, Romania 12th, Sweden 14th and Norway 15th.

[Hooleyfan 0]

I am not so sure Hooper could be attracted here. There is only probably one managerial job vacant that would attract Neil Lennon and with the Everton job likely to be taken by Martinez, Lennon will stay for another year for Champion''s League competition and so I suspect that Hooper will do likewise. Celtic is a bigger global brand than half of the EPL and I suspect he will be happy to ply his trade there in the guarantee that he will score goals and he will be loved by the ''Hoops'' fans for a bit longer. Why risk an uncertain future down south? ....in short as long as Lennon keeps that team together, the likelihood of Hooper coming to CR seems a long shot ...in my humble opinion

[Militant Canary 0]

Hooleyfan: Fair enough, but I heartily disagree. In fact, I''m willing to stake my reputation that we go back in and get him.

I think it best to start off by saying that it takes guts to make the move north of the border, especially when you are moving from Scunthorpe to Celtic - the difference in size and scrutiny is marked. But Hooper did it and respect to him. He''s grown as a player and is capable of shouldering a lot of responsibility and pressure now.

Why risk an uncertain future down south? Well, because he has ambitions for something else. Naturally, Celtic are a giant, but the SPL (rightly or wrongly) holds little respect from us down here. He wants an England call up and he can best do that by moving to the EPL.

But who can he move to? If he were to move to a Man Utd or a Liverpool, he would be an automatic choice for England. However, it goes without saying that teams like that aren''t going to take a risk on someone like him.

It leaves clubs like us as the logical option. We can take a risk on this sort of player (ie a work in progress/not the finished article) because of our relative limitation in budget. And, unlike at a ''bigger'' club, who would more likely demand an immediate impact from a player his age, he would have time to adjust to the league.

Eventually, if he starts banging them in, he will get his call up to England (we already have an established England squad player in John Ruddy, so that''s well within the realms of possibility). From there, if he''s considered good enough in a few seasons time, perhaps he''ll make a big money move to a ''bigger'' club in order to cement his place in the England set-up. We command a good fee for his sale, he gets his move and a regular England place and Celtic (probably) get a sell-on clause. Everybody''s happy.

That''s the best case scenario, of course.

[The Great Wall Of Tettey 0]

We have work rate in the forward players, the problem is we don''t have a direct goalscorer. Hooper knows exactly where the goal is and would be a great signing IMO. The likes of rvp/berbatov were never exceptional work rate players but sit on the shoulder of the last defender and scored goals.

[Citizen Journalist Foghorn 0]

Not sure Hooper is up to this level... He looks like a very ordinary player to me. It can be very difficult to judge a player from Scottish games. When a player has no pace, average technique and scores easy goals for the only good side in the Scottish Premiership alarm bells can start to ring.

He could be the next Nikica Jelavić but far more likely will a Kris Boyd.

[CambridgeCanary 0]

Jelavic hasn''t had a great second season. A great half a season and an impact player for the following season.

[priceyrice 123]

[quote user="Citizen Journalist Foghorn"]Not sure Hooper is up to this level... He looks like a very ordinary player to me. It can be very difficult to judge a player from Scottish games. When a player has no pace, average technique and scores easy goals for the only good side in the Scottish Premiership alarm bells can start to ring.

He could be the next Nikica Jelavić but far more likely will a Kris Boyd.[/quote]

I am still unsure about Hooper, but I don''t think you can say the guy lacks technique, check this goal out:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FqSHWZ-41PQ

I imagine we will go back for him if we can bring him in for under 5M. I honestly think Celtic are going to struggle to get 5M for him though, think they made a big financial mistake not letting him go in January (perhaps similar to us with Holt last summer). 

[mrs miggins 0]

[quote user="Citizen Journalist Foghorn"]Not sure Hooper is up to this level... He looks like a very ordinary player to me. It can be very difficult to judge a player from Scottish games. When a player has no pace, average technique and scores easy goals for the only good side in the Scottish Premiership alarm bells can start to ring.

He could be the next Nikica Jelavić but far more likely will a Kris Boyd.[/quote]

 

Celtic fans (before hoops got his head turned in January) said they put him just behind Larson and well ahead of Jelavic.

If we can get him for around £5m, I think that would be a great signing, at a very good age as well. Imagine him and RVW upfront would do the biz 

[Baracouda 47]

Certainly is better than Kris Boyd, he has already achieved what he couldn''t in the championship. Along with the fact one was with Middlesboro and the other much less fancied Scunthorpe.

Boyd 39 games, 12 goals. about 27 in his prime

Hooper 95 games, 50 goals. about 22 still to progress

[Michael Starr 519]

The main concern that I have with Hooper (and RVW to a degree) is that, generally (not always), Premiership defenders are better with pre-challenges. It''s actually 90% off the ball positioning that counts for a defender. That little nudge at the beginning to give you an extra 2 yards over the striker. The clever discreet shirt tug at the very beginning of a challenge. These things are taught in training extensively.

Nobody is better at it than Rio Ferdinand. Next time you see Rio Ferdinand play, watch what he does off the ball. He always has his eye on the defender he''s marking. He blocks them off early, intercepts runs early and generally rarely needs to make last ditch tackles. He''s very underrated.

A clear example of defenders applying this is on set pieces, particularly corners. This is always happening, it''s just more notable during set plays when players are stationary.

Lately, strikers have turned this on its head by doing the same with goalkeepers (standing in front of them on corners and that kinda thing)

I''ve seen my fair share of Scottish games this season and I don''t think the defenders there do this nearly as well. I genuinely believe that Hooper will struggle in the EPL.

[Yelloow Since 72 54]

I think that''s a fair point and why PL have to be something special. I do think that RvW does have expereince against top-level defenders though and can use his own positioning to counter defender''s tricks in the way that another Dutch striker, RVP, can do. I''m not saying RvW is as good as RvP, but his style of play is similar and given decent service, he will score goals. Like MS, though, I''m not sure that Hooper has this subtlety in his game.

[GJP 79]

[quote user="mrs miggins"]

Celtic fans (before hoops got his head turned in January) said they put him just behind Larson and well ahead of Jelavic.

 

[/quote]

Celtic fans rate Gary Hooper higher than former Rangers striker Nikica Jelavic.

 

Shocker.

[star_manic 0]

in January City tried to buy Hooper. why? because CH must have rated him pretty highly. and i think nearly all Canary fans realise that identifying transfer targets is an extremely high quality of CH. if we go in for Hooper this Summer i have every faith that he will do well for us.