Jonson

[Tilt 12]

And so I find myself posting on what has been posted time and time again - and yet I still feel the need to comment on it. I have got to say that I really, really like Jonson. I agree with a lot of the posts on the board about how he''s not performed as well as he might have done, and we''ve yet to see the speed demon we were told so much about...however...

I have the upmost respect for the guy. He always seems to give it 100% whether that be attacking or defending and I''ve yet to seem him perform without pride or passion (although I know some of you will reel off a list to correct me). At this point of the season I wonder if the same could be said for other internationals who face(d) the prospect of relegation. And to cap it all off he''s publically said that although he''s found it hard adapting he wants to stay at the club even if we''re relegated. How many Vidukas etc etc have said that? Now I know we''re yet to see what actually happens but I think Jonson is exactly the sort of person this club is based around - a hard working player who does his best and shows a commitment to the club he signed for.

[ZLF 274]

Hurrah for someone who can appreciate the unloved Swede.  Like you I think he has not had the very worst of seasons but should have given us a better edge going forward than we have seen.  There are glimpses that he has ability and as posted previously think we can see more if his confidence is boosted - perhaps some pre season goals will help him, or even a fluky prem goal before the end of the season.   

But like Holt, Eddy, Flem and even Mackenzie (for the first 28 games) passion and effort have to be backed up with some ability otherwise you end up hindering rather than helping the team.

OTBC 

[Mello Yello 2,289]

Our Scandinavians- Jonson, Sven and Helveg, are unsung heroes. It really irritates me when some fans launch a tirade of negativity towards them. All players have "off games", and considering that Helveg and Jonson were played out of position (the latter still is!) they still are putting 100% effort in when selected. Sven has more than given enough to NCFC with his goals last season, and if he wasn''t crocked for 3 months, he would have at least 9 goals to his credit. If Leon had his control and vision, what a player he would be! 

Sam Allardyce of Bolton, is top notch when utilising his "foreign imports", and Worthy should take note how Sam allows them to gradually adapt to the Premiership - instead of being thrown into the deep-end with a punctured set of water wings! I would guarantee if those 3 played for Sam, they would be producing consistent quality as well as commitment for Bolton.

People will have their own opinions about Jonson, Helveg & Sven, and will ultimately disagree with my perception of what these players have to offer (Sven has already repayed his fee!) Helveg is an experienced player and also the Danish Captain and is playing well. Jonson has to be more relaxed and confident on the ball, so he can express himself (and be played in his preferred position). I sincerely hope they''re all here next season. OTBC ;~)  

[Ayrton Twigge 0]

A hard working player who does his best and shows a commitment to the club he signed for. Yes.

Sufficient quality for the premiership. No.

He''s had a whole season to demonstrate what quality he brings and for me, there''s not enough.

Decent squad player - useful if we are relegated - but key player - no way.

[silver fox 0]

If Huckerby fails to get through his fitness test then I would play Bentley on the left and let Jonson return to the right side where I believe he performs much better.

[ZLF 274]

Interesting that Worthy came out yesterday stating that Jonson needs to be more aggressive going forward and has confidence that he can have an impact and a goal will boost him.

Has worthy been reading this board again or pure coincidence again?  If he does its amazing that he also fails to see our criticisms of the club captain on here as much as his performances on the pitch!

OTBC 

[Yellow Rider 0]

Can''t believe that once again we are seriously considering playing this guy tomorrow - even Worthy (finally) is publicly querying his ability. He must be one of the worst players to pull on the yellow jersey when you bear in mind the hype when we signed him.

Last week he didn''t even look fit! He has never shown the pace we were all told he had, we have never seen this ''stream of crosses'' he would put in and he has yet to look like scoring. I would definitely play Brennan instead. He can tackle, has a great left foot and can really strike a ball - remember that screamer he scored at Coventry last season?

Tomorrow it will be no good just to say ''we worked hard'', we MUST have that spark, that inspiration from someone to turn the game. Bents can do that sort of thing, we need him to deliver. We also need a massive game from that other overrated player Damian Francis. The guy is a total enigma and very infuriating. He can be outstanding with those runs into the box and quality goals, other times he simply ambles about like Kenton used to and seems totally disinterested.    

Tomorrow I''m ''fortunate; enough to be a guest of Friends Provident (work connections) but a big warning notice on A4 paper with my ticket says things like ......''you must act in a restrained manner at all times'' etc. Blimey, I''ve never acted in a ''restrained'' manner at a Norwich match yet - could be interesting!!

[StevenageFan 0]

I raved about Jonson at the start of the season and you might have noticed me go a bit quiet since. There is no doubt he has the commitment and passion and he also has experience in top flight football, but he has failed to deliver anything inspirational to NCFC. It has got to be a nerves things now. He played nearly every game in the first half of the season and there were massive expectation of him, put that with the added pace of the premiership and I think this has caused him to struggle. With a season under his belt if he does stick around he will be quality for us. He hasn''t played any worse than the likes of Holt, Flem, Drury, Eddy, Bentley etc., so doesn''t deserve any criticism, its just we know he has more in his locker.

[ZLF 274]

[quote]Can''t believe that once again we are seriously considering playing this guy tomorrow - even Worthy (finally) is publicly querying his ability. He must be one of the worst players to pull on the yellow...[/quote]

What are the real alternatives to Hux on the left?

Brennan - best at left back, is a defender, not prem class; IMO not offer as much as  Jonson

Dury - put charlie at left back and push drury forward; his passing is not good enough.

McVeigh - not consistent enough to be risked in a big game; out of favour.

Henderson - moving Bents to the left; like Jonson but cant defend and worse going forward.

Sven - a striker out of position; needs more mobility to make it work

Leon - and Sven up front; why change the front two now? Puts him out of position.

Playing people out of position has cost us points all season - we can not go back to that now..

I support Jonson as a midfielder on the basis that he is the best of a poor bunch with no real alternative - and that is something that needs addressing in the summer whichever league we are in.    Jonson has under-delivered and the main reason is worthy, but his is our best alternative to Hux. 

Getting on Jonsons back will not help him get forward, as worthy now thinks, he can having ruined his confidence all year.  If he does start we have to get behind him and every yellow shirt for 95 mins tomorrow.

OTBC

[Stephen Frys Evil Twin 0]

I have a feeling that it will be one of the unsung heroes who will keep us up.

I can just see Jonson scoring the winner against Fulham securing our Premiership place.

He scored a key goal for Sweden in Euro 2004, I just have an incling that he''ll do that for us too.

[nolegs 0]

St Mary''s...what a good place to get your first goal!!

[AJ 1,218]

why doesnt he give brennan a go?????

[Northern Canary 0]

He never seems to do anything. This isnt exactly bad but for 1 million i would expect him to have scored

[Chip20 69]

I think Worthy''s "criticism" of Jonson this week is designed to fire him up to prove a point tomorrow. In my opinion his criticism was actually ''encouragement''. The rest of the things he said about the guy were complimentary and he is just challenging him to produce the goods when it really, really matters. I sincerely hope he responds in appropriate fashion if selected. We need to see controlled guts and determination from every single player in a yellow shirt tomorrow.

[Pyro Pete 1,893]

I just want Jonson to play like he cares. Simple as that.Cares about the team winning I mean, not winning the petty arguments he gets involved in during matches. I want him to care that his job as a left winger is to work hard to provide goal scoring opportunities for the strikers, not taking the easy option by cutting back on his right foot all the time and hitting hopeful crosses. I want him to care about stopping the opposition scoring by busting a gut to help Drury out, not just standing in no man''s land marking nobody.Helveg has shown where commitment added to a bit of quality can lead. It''s time for Jonson to show he''s here for the team, not the money.

[Old Boy 0]

[quote]I just want Jonson to play like he cares. Simple as that.Cares about the team winning I mean, not winning the petty arguments he gets involved in during matches. I want him to care that his job as a l...[/quote]

I agree with most of that Pyro, though it doesn''t look like lack of commitment to me, but lack of confidence. I must admit that I hadn''t noticed him arguing with his team mates, but I''ll look out for that next time.

Regarding the Helveg comparison, I sit in the lower Barclay on the right, so I get a good view of Helveg for half the game. And I''ve seen him get caught off-guard too many times. Fortunately for him, he arrived back in the team when everyone upped their games, including the rest of the back line. IMO Jonson has the commitment without the confidence, whereas Helveg has the confidence without the commitment. We''ll see in the next 3 games.

[Campbell 0]

[quote]I just want Jonson to play like he cares. Simple as that.Cares about the team winning I mean, not winning the petty arguments he gets involved in during matches. I want him to care that his job as a l...[/quote]

Couldn''t disagree more with what you said about Mattias Jonson.

You''ve clearly never seen his reaction when we concede/score...as if you had, you would be unable to say that he doesn''t care about the team. His workrate is unquestionable, as is his desire to compete for the ball.

You do not play over 40 games for a country such as Sweden by being a poor professional or having little quality and desire to win. As has already been stated, confidence appears to be a big part of Jonson''s game, and missing out on a Norwich City pre-season is a big disadvantage, especially when coming from a foreign country.

Now Worthington has publically said that Jonson needs to be more positive with the ball at his feet, we will hopefully see that today, and once Jonson gets going at full pace, there are few that will catch him. He just needs the belief to do it...

Come on Jono!