Leon Dropped!

[The Great Cornholio]

There were a LOT of times during the game where out forwards, CKR especially, did not put the effort in. The crowd did not bat an eyelid.

Had it been Leon then half of Withdean would have been calling him a lazy little tosser.

The guy is our most creative and talented player. We would be mugs to let him go.

I am sure the other teams down the bottom will be far more optimistic about staying up if they saw a fellow struggler sell arguably their most talented player.

Yeah - let's pick a player who will undermine the manager - that'll be good for team spirit.

GOON

 

[dougdeep]

There were a LOT of times during the game where our forwards, CKR especially, did not put the effort in.

What game were you at?

 

[Kinky Gerbil]

There were a LOT of times during the game where out forwards, CKR especially, did not put the effort in. The crowd did not bat an eyelid.

Had it been Leon then half of Withdean would have been calling him a lazy little tosser.

The guy is our most creative and talented player. We would be mugs to let him go.

I am sure the other teams down the bottom will be far more optimistic about staying up if they saw a fellow struggler sell arguably their most talented player.

Agree, Its the same with Jake.

He jumps for a header and doesnt win it its unlucky jake well done,
if leon doesnt win it he is just lazy, or even worse if he does win it its, WHOS THAT TO LEON.

 

[Yorkie]

If a part of the clubs first team rules is that all members of the first team squad, if not selected, are to watch the game from the stands, and Leon decided to f*** it all off and go home, then he can expect to be disciplined for it. I don't think it's uncommon for non playing first team squad members to be expected to be at the game watching. I know I've certainly seen some of our lot at Withdean before.

Whether or not anything more from him leaving the ground comes out remains to be seen. A lot of people are speculating on what happened, and no one here can be 100% sure of the truth. For all anyone knows he may have had words with MM about not being in the team/squad but may have been allowed to go.

If MM isn't happy with Leon's training or attitude and feels that he isn't what he needs in the squad then that's up to him. He was vindicated last night as we won. I'm sure the people that want shot of him would have been having a field day this morning if we'd lost.

Personally I hope that Leon and McGhee sort their differences out quickly as we are going to need Leon at his best for the rest of the season to make things easier for us.

Best post on this thread.

 

[Brighton Breezy]

What game were you at?

CKR had a good second half and did put more effort in. Was certainly one of our better players.

But it did seem like it took one of their players kicking him to get his arse in gear and the first half he was not putting as much work in as he should.

Still had a good game though and I am not someone who sees the point in our forwards chasing lost balls. I was just making the point that if it were Leon he would have been abused for it.

 

[Schrödinger's Toad]

I was just making the point that if it were Leon he would have been abused for it.

Exactly. As the boy Goebels/Goehring/Whichever Nazi he is today said earlier, there are considerable double standards among many fans. They'll climax at the slightest thing Robinson does, but give Knight all sorts of abuse if he stops running for a second.

 

[The Great Cornholio]

Exactly. As the boy Goebels/Goehring/Whichever Nazi he is today said earlier, there are considerable double standards among many fans. They'll climax at the slightest thing Robinson does, but give Knight all sorts of abuse if he stops running for a second.

Robinson does not sulk if he doesn't get service. Knight does. Simple as that. Nobody expects constant running for 90 minutes. But acting like a 7 year old because your teammates can't/won't pass to you is not being a team member and is a luxury you can't afford in a relegation dogfight.

 

[Brighton Breezy]

Thats funny because I seem to remember Knight being made captain for one game earlier in the season because he had been putting in so much work with little reward.

Or did I dream that?

 

[The Great Cornholio]

Thats funny because I seem to remember Knight being made captain for one game earlier in the season because he had been putting in so much work with little reward.

Or did I dream that?

And then he went back to his old ways and went missing for long periods because he was sulking. It seems to me that MM has tried everything he knows to sort out Leon's attitude problem and has had success in many ways. He has stopped him sulking when he is played out of position. He made him chase back and get involved. For a short period, he got him to play like a 100% committed team player. And then he lapsed and started throwing toys out of the pram. You can't keep giving into him like a spoiled child. If he won't change, he needs to find a club that is willing to tolerate his ego.

 

[Yorkie]

Thats funny because I seem to remember Knight being made captain for one game earlier in the season because he had been putting in so much work with little reward.

Or did I dream that?

No but it shows what MM is prepared to do to get him to put the work in.
It has to be consistent though.
For those of you who stand up for Leon then put yourself into a manager's shoes for a moment.
You have a player who is very skilfull but doesn't want to work hard because he thinks his talent is enough. What do you do with him? You also have to consider the other players who do work really hard and their 'feelings' too.
It is a team sport after all.

 

[Brighton Breezy]

Agreed about team morale coming above an individual Yorkie but the comments about Knight lacking fitness and not being willing to put in the extra work at training to get it shocked me because he looks in probably the best shape of all the squad.

I think with Leon sometimes he is an easy target for the fans. They see Robinson, and last season Virgo, running around like a headless chicken and think Knight should be doing the same.

The fact is Knight is not that sort of player. I would rather our forwards were selective about the work they put in and then be sharp when they get the ball rather then run themselves into the ground and have to go off or not be in a state to make a telling run off the ball.

I think McGhee and Knight BOTH need to compromise for the good of the club. Unfortunately they both seem as stubborn as each other.

 

[Yorkie]

Sorry but where does it say that Leon lacks fitness?

I have seen Leon ignore McGhee when on the pitch. He turned his back which is why he was substituted and then threw a strop.
The manager is in charge (stating the obvious, I know) and a player has to do as he's told.

 

[The Great Cornholio]

The manager is in charge (stating the obvious, I know) and a player has to do as he's told.

At the end of the day, that is what it comes down to. The first thing players learn is that you won't win an argument with the manager. Even if you are right. But in his case, most people seem to think he is not.

Doesn't matter how good the player is - if he undermines the manager, he has to go. Case in point - Roy Keane, Nicolas Anelka, Pierre Van Hooidojnk etc.

 

[Brighton Breezy]

In the Argus McGhee had a pop at Leon as well as Colin for their training.

To be honest we all know Leon is a stroppy bugger but you have to learn how to deal with people.

The game he got taken off and shrugged off McGhee, McGhee should have just left him to cool down and spoke to him the next day when they had calmed down.

No player should ever want to come off and perhaps the more expressive players show this differently.

Nobody has a pop at the likes of Di Canion when they do similar.

 

[Yorkie]

In the Argus article McGhee did say that CKR needed to last for the full 90 mins.

This was the article about Leon. It doesn't mention his fitness. I get the impression reading between the lines that Leon isn't listening to the training techniques rather than his fitness.

Knight's future is put in doubt

by Andy Naylor

Albion manager Mark McGhee warned Leon Knight today he has got to change his attitude if he wants to rescue his career with the club.

McGhee axed his top scorer from the squad again for last night's crucial 2-1 win at Withdean against Hull.

Knight was dropped for last month's trip to Stoke after reacting badly to being substituted in the home game against Wolves a few days earlier.

He was left on the bench for the visit to Watford a fortnight ago and his exclusion last night raises doubts about his future at Albion.

McGhee said: "I've just been disappointed with Leon in training and generally and decided I was going to put people out there that I knew at worst were going to work hard for us. I picked a team that I knew were going to graft.

"Leon's got to look after his own future, I am responsible for the future of this football club.

"If he's left out he needs to do something about it. He's got to change his attitude towards his training and towards his career."

Superb first-half strikes by Seb Carole and Charlie Oatway after Stuart Elliott had given Hull an early lead ended Albion's nine-match run without a win and lifted them two places to fifth bottom.

McGhee said: "It's the start of a happy Christmas. If ever there was a must-win game this was it. If we had lost, we would have been unable to catch the likes of Hull and it would have resigned us to a relegation fight all season."

 

[Beach Hut]

Bad news - Leon and Albert both left as soon as MM announced the team obviously before KO.

I suspect he will be put up for sale which is no big issue providing we can get another decent forward in.

I just pray no-one makes a bid for Seb Carole as economics will no doubt mean he will be sold - didn't help with that wonder goal last Friday.

 

[DJ Leon]

Bad news - Leon and Albert both left as soon as MM announced the team obviously before KO.

I suspect he will be put up for sale which is no big issue providing we can get another decent forward in.

I just pray no-one makes a bid for Seb Carole as economics will no doubt mean he will be sold - didn't help with that wonder goal last Friday.

Well that shows you just how important the team is to them both.

If thats the way Knight wants to operate then let's get rid.

 

[Beach Hut]

Well that shows you just how important the team is to them both.

If thats the way Knight wants to operate then let's get rid.

I entirely agree very poor attitude IMHO.

 

[Schrödinger's Toad]

I suspect he will be put up for sale which is no big issue providing we can get another decent forward in.

Something of a large "if", that!

I very much doubt he will be transfer-listed - players as good as Knight aren't quite as easy to come by as a few people imagine.

 

[Beach Hut]

Something of a large "if", that!

I very much doubt he will be transfer-listed - players as good as Knight aren't quite as easy to come by as a few people imagine.

I agree but we cannot have players with his type of attitude at BHAFC, no good for team commitment etc