Wes Hoolahan

[Tony Cottee Woz Ere . . . 0]

Time to stop shoehorning him into the side. Absolutely woeful today, lost the ball all game. Playing with 10 men until he was rightfully taken off.

[Tony Cottee Woz Ere . . . 0]

Wes off, Norwich improve. No coincidence.

[Indy 3,499]

Sorry to say the manager and fans favourite is the reason we are finding it tough in the first 45 minutes.

Time to drop Wes and play pace on the wing not copress the midfield trying to cater for a very average player.

[iron_stan 0]

hes only really effective when played in the hole, weve known this since we were in league oneim really happy weve gone back to two strikers but it means hoolahans pretty much surplus to requirements, hes no use out on the left and drifts around too muchnice option to have but id prefer to see murphy startpace and width are a beautiful thing

[Six Pack 105]

Were you at the game ? - or just listening to radio commentary.

Hoolahan did improve in the 2nd half with the rest of the team. I was surprise he got subbed.

Murphy did well when he came on and score a real good goal. But I felt we would still have won.

Agree with Iron Stan - should be playing in the "hole" not on the wing.

[Making Plans 957]

Hoolahan - always the scapegoat even when we win.

[Indy 3,499]

It''s not just todays game though, he''s been questionable over the past few games.

He''s definately got a huge part to play but not every game....there is a big squad of quality players.

Today shows the pace & width opens up the space in the middle so we can control the game.

I watched the game and no he didn''t improve enough and Murphy change made the difference IMO.

[Indy 3,499]

Not a scapegoat but not done enough to be picked in my view for next week.

I for one would like to see Wes on the bench next week.

[city4eva 261]

He was also poor against Birmingham last week, gave the ball away far too much

[BroadstairsR 2,273]

Wes was ok today, but little more. (The mid-field in general were only dominant in patches.)

 

A useful player to have in the match-day squad, I shouldn''t imagine that many of us wouldn''t prefer Jonny H. in midfield now that he''s fit.

[grefstad 0]

In a 4-4-2 , and placed on the left, he lost the ball a lot, and was easy to read. When he roamed into central positions, he was better.

Its the classic old Norwich dilemma: how to play 2 strikers AND Wes.

A 3-4-1-2 formation may do, but we lack pace in defence and therefore have to play 4-4-2 when Wes is playing, and we need two strikers.

For me, Wes should be dropped when playing 4-4-2.

4-2-3-1 suits Wes better, but we may be thin upfront due to little running power and penetration in midfield. Tettey and BJ together is too often too stale and flat.

[lake district canary 4,878]

Looked poor today. Misplaced passes, failing to pass to others in a better position than him, just out of sorts. He has always been prone to poor spells, but can still be a match winner. But he didn''t look like that today. Olsson had very little help on the left until Murphy came on.

[Phillip J Fry 0]

Wes is a number. 10. Play him in the hole or don''t play him. Simple as.

[ricardo 8,109]

He was poor last week but didn''t do too much wrong today. The entire team were a bit slow to get going again.I wouldn''t play Murphy from the start, he is much more effective coming on against a tiring defence.

[Tony Cottee Woz Ere . . . 0]

Six pack you are talking rubbish i''m afraid. Wes didn''t improve in the second half, he got worse. In the first half he was ineffective, in the second half he was a total liability, lost the ball continually. I agree he was played out of position, hence the fact i accused Adams of shoehorning him into the side. Oh and yes I did watch the game. And anyone who uses the word scapegoat is a vacuous, brainless, cliché obsessed moron, who doesn''t really understand what they are saying.

[lincoln canary (& Golden Coppel) 0]

Typically harsh criticism of Wes. Personally thought BJ was worse today, but he does run a lot so criticism there would be unfair.

[Dubai Mark 0]

We certainly can often see games differently....for me, sure Wes did improve second half by keeping things simple, playing an earlier ball and not hanging on to it. Unlike in the first half, where more than once he held on to the ball so long he actually slowed the game down and was the main reason why we looked so pedestrian. I am not a huge fan, BUT was surprised he was then taken off when he was playing his part......not complaining though because Murphy did very well and we looked better balanced thereafter.

[grefstad 0]

Wes was probably taken off as Neil wanted more pace and penetration, and got that in Murphy.

The strange thing, though, was that neither Tetter nor Johnson was subbed (and Wes moved into the middle). Both quite poor, and both on a yellow, and Blackpool countered on us through the middle, giving us a risk of conceding a red card.

Still, as it turned out, who am I to argue?

Can''t help feeling that Johnson must be Neil''s fave player. Getting yellow cards, slowing things down, poor positional sense, poor passing, still never subbed, not even when we are chasing the game.

[Six Pack 105]

Tony Cottee .... I''m not talking rubbish at all !

He did improve. The first half he was quite offen "knocked" off the ball or team mates not on the same wave length from his passes but in terms of creativity he did lay off our best chance to Grabbon - who could have scored & put us ahead - that''s his job - to create chances - even if it''s one & it wins us the game.

In the second half he was slowly getting into it before he was taken off. In truth when Murphy came on, he was also knocked off the ball just as easily. We had the momentum and he (Murphy) sealed the points with a very good evasive run & finish. So I''m happy Murphy came on but not necessarily for Hoolahan. Other''s were also having average games - however they were all also improving.

Your comments may have been spurred because you''re not happy with Hoolahan''s contribution in the last 2 games. Don''t expect a "killer" pass every time he touches the ball. You''re expecting too much - be realistic.

Not having a go - most at the game would have seen the improvement in the second half.

[Mason 47 2,024]

Wes ''having an off day'' is something that absolutely none of us should be surprised of after 6 years and 200+ appearances.

Thing is, at the moment he is the man in possession of the shirt in a team that hasn''t lost in the league for 9 games. Pretty hard for Adams to justify dropping any of them right now.

[Cent 0]

Wes is 32 and shouldn''t be played twice a week. He''s a great player but at that age you can''t expect a player to be able to play every game.

[barclay_boy111 0]

I was at the game and wes was apauling I day the least once again.

3 games on the spin he has looked compleatly out of his depth time to realise he has past his best, as some one rightly pointed out he comes off and it''s no coincidence we score goals. He slows down the play and then gives the ball away cheaply.

I sincerely hope murphy or Howson starts in his place on Tuesday night.

[Yellow Wal 316]

Quite simply Wes has not looked as good in the last few games because we have changed the way we play.

As has, rightfully, been said, Wes is a No 10. He can play in a diamond or in a 4 2 3 1 but not in a 4 4 2 or any slight variation of that.

He is still an important member of the squad, however, as he allows variations to our set up that will undoubtedly be needed this season.

But he should not be played if the system being played does not suit him.

[Grant Holts Moustache 113]

Some of the criticism of Wes on here is far too much. Yes he hasn''t been at his very best In the last two games but he has been played out of position in both. Yesterday I would say he is better than many have suggested. Ball for Grabban chance in first half was quality and there were another two opportunities he created before being taken off. He is put in the team to be creative and yesterday he was, even without being at his best. Those calling for him to be dropped be very careful. We are where we are at the moment because we are playing creative attacking football. There is nobody at this club who can create like Wes.

[FCC 94]

I felt Wes was trying to show a former club what they were missing, and tried to do to much on his own. I thought he played wide left without the ball, but moved inside when in possession. Thought the team played well enough against organised opposition - second half Nathan was awesome and put in a good shift with and without the ball. Tettey and Johnson looked ok to me, but good to see Howson get on.

[Salopian 1]

Hux and Wes have perhaps only one similarity - they were not good at defending but good at creating. Hux was a match winner on his own, but Wes needs colleagues who can pick up his passes. In the Hux days we often said that with him in the side the remaining team positions around his selection.The same applies to Wes.

The problem with Wes is that he is often passing in an area full of players, and he is at risk of being caught in possession or having a pass intercepted. In both these we lose possession and ultimately put a not very mobile defence in trouble. (I might add that Bradley''s misplaced passes have also cost goals this season.)

I am not sure whether Wes has suffered a kind of permanent loss of ability, or whether he is carrying a knock, as he clearly was against Birmingham. Whatever the reason he has not been at the top of his game, except in brief periods.

If we are going to deploy two strikers, the the presence of Wes weakens the defensive power of the midfield, especially if he is one of four which contains one or two wingers.

Perhaps NA should consider resting Wes until he is quite fit, and instead go for pace, using either Howson and/or Vadis, when fit.

[grefstad 0]

Wes will "never" play well when deployed in a 4-4-2 and on the left.

He has not the defensive attributes suited for that formation, and not the pace to play wide.

In a 4-2-3-1 or a diamond he will do well for us more times than not.

All in all, a very useful player, and a player that can make us tick, when we play a system suited for him.

Adams seems to find excuses for playing Wes when he insists on playing 4-4-2 with Wes in the team.

He wants 2 strikers, and Wes´creativity at the same time.

That is only possible in a 3-4-1-2 formation, but since we have one of the slower defenses in this league, a 3-man defense would not be good for us (unless we are chasing games and need to go hung-ho).

Therefore, there is more than enough evidence for dropping Wes if we are going to play 4-4-2, and more than enough evidence for playing Wes in a diamond or 4-2-3-1.

[star_manic 0]

With the return to fitness of Howson I hope Wes is given a break. His play at the moment is not good enough to warrant a starting spot. It looks as if Wes''s peak was about three years ago, our first in the EPL. Since then he has not lived up to his reputation enough to be an automatic selection.

[nutty nigel 7,963]

[quote user="ricardo"]He was poor last week but didn''t do too much wrong today. The entire team were a bit slow to get going again.I wouldn''t play Murphy from the start, he is much more effective coming on against a tiring defence.[/quote]

 

But so would Wes be really effective coming on against tired players. Having got through 70 mins against us the last thing the opposition would want to see would be Wes on the touchline raring to go.

 

I think our strength in depth is more of a reason for second half victories than the idea we start slowly or play poorly in the first half. During the first half we are playing decent Championship teams who are as physically fit as we are. We rely more on our better defenders and the best goalkeeper in the league until as the game goes on the opposition tire physically and more importantly mentally. Our players are genuinely better so theirs expend more energy keeping us at bay. This is when our attacking players really come into their own and we continually bring on more better players from the bench it''s too much for a tiring opposition.

 

I reckon our biggest test will be the winter months and the heavier pitches. They will level things out and we will have to win many more physical battles to stay around the top of the league. Let''s hope we have enough in the locker to cope with that too.

 

 

[Bill 1,788]

I''m sure there is also a ''change in strategy'' at half time after the relative merits of each team have been evaluated.What has come across from player interviews after the game is a confidence and belief that they will score enough to win, and that going one or two behind just means they have yto score than many more.i think the winter months will see a difference in that many clubs will see where we are and will be more inclined to play out for a draw.. seeing it as a point gained. It will be up to us to burst a gut to break them down.However with the strength in depth that we have I think that the advantage will be with us. I suspect that we will suffer more from player suspensions (yellow cards) than we will injuries.