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[Albion] Alireza Jahanbakhsh joins Feyenoord
- Thread starter alexanderhills
- Start date
It doesn’t stop them expressing themselves when they attack though.
The fact we were inept going forward, isn’t just tactics it’s about ability as well.
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Of all the players in attacking roles.
Remind me again, who was the only Albion player to feature in ALL Premier League games, last season?
Ecosse Exile
New member
A lot of people or [MENTION=19]Icy Gull[/MENTION]?
It can't be both.
Either way it doesn't matter as we all know when a footballer is deemed shitehouse, he will forever be shitehouse, right up until the point he is moved on and becomes brilliant.
From then on he becomes 'well he never did that for us'.
While I was booing to him.
While that is unfortunately very true, it should be mentioned that many who now support Lewis Dunk, would have driven him to Fulham a few years back. I myself have never rated Dale Stephens, but during our woeful run last season there were times when ithought he was easily our best player. Solly March has won many of his detractors over and will continue to do so.
I personally think Alireza wont make it as a premier league footballer, he doesn't have the strength, speed, determination, or quality on the ball to succeed at this level from what ive seen so far.
However.... What we have seen so far is performances under an overly defensive manager who preferred his wingers to play as extra full backs against good teams and lets not forget every opponent we face "these are a good team". So we will see what he offers in his second season where he is used to the standard of full backs he will face, has had time to improve his strength and fitness and is playing under a different manager whos style may suit him far better. I'd love him to prove all his doubters wrong, because then we will be seeing the player that we thought we had signed in the first place.
You HATE him, want him to miss chances so you can LAUGH at him, and will sit in silence (or maybe boo a little bit) if he ever scores a goal.
Ecosse Exile
New member
You HATE him, want him to miss chances so you can LAUGH at him, and will sit in silence (or maybe boo a little bit) if he ever scores a goal.
Thats what i said isn't it?
macbeth
Dismembered
I do wonder if Ali J could perhaps fill a role as a false 9 or as an out and out striker. Particularly if he bulked up, he could potentially be an asset in that way.
TBH I'm wouldn't like to say either way.
I have never 'championed' Ali, certainly not in the same way I have Big Jurg (sorry man you might as well dust off your gramophone records, it's as good as over for you)
I have just fought the relentless tide of 'clearly not good enough' with a catalogue of mitigating circumstances and from trusting the process that bought him here in the first place.
All of the mitigation now goes and over the next few months we'll have a better idea as it whether he has the attributes to be a Premier League footballer.
Although with all that said I can see the next battle ahead:-
''He can't cross''
Ali's heat map comparison with last season and his previous season for AZ made 2 very telling statements.
The one we all picked up on -
Played out of position.
But also and less obvious -
He cuts in from the edge of the penalty area, a la the goal he scored last night.
This season Ali spent more time on his own by-line in the left corner, than he spent at the opposition right by-line (18 yards in front of where he was) the previous year at AZ.
So he's an inside forward, not a winger, but as said those furiously grinding their axes now won't hesitate, next season, to say 'but he should have crossed'. C'est la vie.
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Not Andy Naylor
Well-known member
Leicester, a club whose recruitment has been pretty good at times, also wanted him last summer and saw him as Mahrez-type player. On the right, in other words. Give him a run there and who knows? But it means resting or moving Knockaert, whose goal at Palace was surely the sort of thing we were hoping to see from AJ.
I've seen nothing from this fella to suggest the latter. He has been a really disappointing signing for the amount we paid. Can i see an improvement this season from him ? Well he can't get much worse going by his stats.
I'm holding out that he is still bedding in to a new country and surroundings. Despite having a poor first season i still like the fella. There's something about him. Can't say the same for Locacdia.
Ecosse Exile
New member
Big Jurg gets achance from me too, ive certainly seen more from him than Ali, i think the biggest problem for him is he looks clumsy, but he does have a lot of the qualities i said were missing in Ali, however i do think he is lazy at times, but if i felt i wasn't getting a chance by my manager (as he has previously stated) then i probably wouldn't give 100% for him either.
Wouldn't dust off those gramaphone records just yet, besides his music is crap imvho of course
Ninja Elephant
Doctor Elephant
- Feb 16, 2009
- 18,855
Knockaert played in his favoured position pretty much every time he was on the pitch, Ali J never did. All Knockaert managed was 2 goals and a couple of assists, all season. Played in his strongest position. He should have been moved to the left to incorporate our record signing and given him a real chance. If Knockaert were hitting shots like the goal at Palace more often, you could justify his continued inclusion on the right wing. At least if he were creating chances, you could make an argument for him. But he wasn't, his goal at Palace was one of two or three moments of actual quality all season from him which is clearly not good enough.
I know what you mean but there has to be a player in there somewhere.......agree that Big Jurg has at least given glimpses of being a decent footballer.
Knocky flatters to deceive a lot of the time for me. March (at his best) is the one I can see Potter really bringing on. He's got a fair job of work to do to get a tune out of what we have.
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That's my biggest concern - he seems to be neither fast nor strong, and you need to have at least one of those in the Premier League.
I'm struggling to see that a player would lose the ability to display these attributes, at least occasionally, even if being played out of position.
Knockaert totalled SIX Premier League assists last season, actually https://www.premierleague.com/players/8982/Anthony-Knockaert/stats?co=1&se=210
Along with the two goals (and two further goals in the FA Cup).
In our one dimensional Wembley performance he was clearly given one set of instructions:-
'Win freekicks in dangerous positions'.
He did that with aplomb, with the added bonus of doing enough to get a 1 man advantage.
I don't see how a player is expected to be 'quick' when he's starting 5-10 yards behind the player he's up against.
I'm not entirely sure what you mean by strong, assuming that's 'pushed off the ball to easily'.
If that is the case that too will become glaringly obvious esp if he's on the ball with options going forward, does nothing only to have the ball meekly taken from his toes, legally.
He might just be repeatedly fouled (or good at conning the ref).
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Really need more than 6 in 38 games from our supposed star winger. How many time did he give the ball away trying to beat he same player 3 times........?
I'm not sure it matters where you start from. If you have speed over the ground, it will be evident.
We know Murray's not quick and that's the case regardless of his starting position relative to defenders in any passage of play.
He has the advantage of starting a yard in front...
...oh.
I believe the further you go up in the division the difference in ability narrows.
There's a massive gulf in class between the quality of full back at the top and bottom of the Championship, Monkey Tennis league or in the Eredivise, if you will.
I don't think that's the case in the Premier League, and even if it were the Albion are still very much a bottom feeding side.
So why should we have players who can easily ghost past their opposite number despite giving them a lead?
There have been occasions, for the Albion, where Ali found himself past the defender in space, those were the games that a search of the phrase 'easily his best game for us, but that's not saying much', will throw up.
Sadly he then looked up and the rest is history, or not as is the case.
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