[Albion] Carlos Baleba

[Papa Lazarou]

I think he has a very accomplished set of attributes for such a young age too. The only thing I worry about with him if his focus at time, it looks like it is improving but if I am completely honest I don't trust him for example to mark his man on the corner well or always be in the right position.

That said I definitely would start him against arsenal he is looking very good.

He has all the attributes we need:

Strong
Good in the air
Pace
Great at tackling
Strong runner with the ball

If we need an extra 'disruptor' in midfield v Arsenal, he's perfect.

 

[Nobby Cybergoat]

I think he has a very accomplished set of attributes for such a young age too. The only thing I worry about with him if his focus at time, it looks like it is improving but if I am completely honest I don't trust him for example to mark his man on the corner well or always be in the right position.

I just think this will only come with experience and we've got to go through the pain barrier of this at some point ... presumably we're not loaning the lad any time soon .... so I think we should make that investment in him

 

[Safe.]

I just think this will only come with experience and we've got to go through the pain barrier of this at some point ... presumably we're not loaning the lad any time soon .... so I think we should make that investment in him

Yeah I'm not suggesting anything else, just pointing out the only weakness I can see in his game.

 

[Skaville]

Clearly much better suited to the new managers style of play. Can be far more box to box. I think he’ll be a regular by the end of season

 

[Van Cleef]

I just think this will only come with experience and we've got to go through the pain barrier of this at some point ... presumably we're not loaning the lad any time soon .... so I think we should make that investment in him

I agree with this. But I think we went through a lot of the pain barrier last season tbf. I've seen a vast improvement and he's a starter for me for sure.
I'd like to see a lot more of him before he's sold to Chelsea.

 

[um bongo molongo]

I just think this will only come with experience and we've got to go through the pain barrier of this at some point ... presumably we're not loaning the lad any time soon .... so I think we should make that investment in him

I agree with this. I think the plan was for him to be back up to Wieffer, but possibly the only upside of the MOR injury is if it gives the chance for more minutes for Baleba.

 

[Not Andy Naylor]

On the Albion podcast, MATS Wieffer talks about 'coaching' teammates during games (by which I assume he means the usual talking and cajoling that goes on in games) but if he can talk Baleba through matches and keep him focused then he'll learn quickly and we'll have a real player on our hands.

 

[Marshy]

is Matts for for the weekend do we know ?

 

[Napper]

When he's good , he's very very good.

With O'Reillys injury , hopefully he will step up

 

[Hugo Rune]

Beast last night. Best player on the pitch. And he was one of a few willing to give it back to Crawley who were very dirty.

I believe he steamed straight through Williams in the 1st half using his body rather than kicking him.

Williams was tossed up and received plenty of air before landing in a heap. Hope he was brusied.

Pleasing.

 

[Monsieur Le Plonk]

He has all the attributes we need:

Strong
Good in the air
Pace
Great at tackling
Strong runner with the ball

If we need an extra 'disruptor' in midfield v Arsenal, he's perfect.

Totally agree. I'd be very surprised if he is involved on Saturday though. Looked like he had a hamstring issue at the end of the game yesterday and was surprised he wasnt immediately taken off (regardless of the fact we had no more substitutions available).

 

[Papa Lazarou]

Totally agree. I'd be very surprised if he is involved on Saturday though. Looked like he had a hamstring issue at the end of the game yesterday and was surprised he wasnt immediately taken off (regardless of the fact we had no more substitutions available).

He got cramp

 

[Nobby Cybergoat]

is Matts for for the weekend do we know ?

I know nothing about this, but my guess is that as we have a match which is a bit of a free hit, we have 6 points on the board, Mats didn't feature in the matchday squad at the weekend or last night and we have an international break after the match, my guess is that we'll look to bring him afterwards.

In addition, we don't really want him going to the Netherlands Nations league games and if he plays against Arsenal, there's no argument for him to pull out.

Finally Baleba is hammering on the door for a starting spot and Ayari is doing OK in a back up role.

All roads point to him not making the squad for Arsenal in my view

 

[Jimmy Grimble]

From RDZ to Fab I think it’s becoming clearer that it’s a tactical/game intelligence issue that holds back Baleba being given a regular starting slot because he clearly has an immense physical profile and outrageous skill set.

I have wondered if this is possibly a language barrier thing or if it’s just because he’s still young. He plays with a free spirit which is great to watch as a fan but presumably frustrating for coaches who want him occupying specific zones at the right times (it definitely would have been an issue for RDZ).

I agree with @Skaville that he should be more suited to Fabian’s style of play but presumably still isn’t trusted to follow tactical instructions for 90 minutes, otherwise he would’ve started ahead of one of Milner or Gilmour (or possibly even Hinshelwood) on Saturday.

 

[Hotchilidog]

From RDZ to Fab I think it’s becoming clearer that it’s a tactical/game intelligence issue that holds back Baleba being given a regular starting slot because he clearly has an immense physical profile and outrageous skill set.

I have wondered if this is possibly a language barrier thing or if it’s just because he’s still young. He plays with a free spirit which is great to watch as a fan but presumably frustrating for coaches who want him occupying specific zones at the right times (it definitely would have been an issue for RDZ).

I agree with @Skaville that he should be more suited to Fabian’s style of play but presumably still isn’t trusted to follow tactical instructions for 90 minutes, otherwise he would’ve started ahead of one of Milner or Gilmour (or possibly even Hinshelwood) on Saturday.

Possibly, we forget how inexperienced Carlos is. All the tools are there though he just needs coaching. We will definitely see him on Saturday even if it just for the last 20minutes. Baleba is a real talent and seems like a lovely bloke too.

 

[Sarisbury Seagull]

I think he’s an unbelievable talent and agree he should be starting for us now. Some of the things he does on the pitch are astonishing.

We’ve got a hell of a player on our hands.

 

[CheeseRolls]

From RDZ to Fab I think it’s becoming clearer that it’s a tactical/game intelligence issue that holds back Baleba being given a regular starting slot because he clearly has an immense physical profile and outrageous skill set.

I have wondered if this is possibly a language barrier thing or if it’s just because he’s still young. He plays with a free spirit which is great to watch as a fan but presumably frustrating for coaches who want him occupying specific zones at the right times (it definitely would have been an issue for RDZ).

I agree with @Skaville that he should be more suited to Fabian’s style of play but presumably still isn’t trusted to follow tactical instructions for 90 minutes, otherwise he would’ve started ahead of one of Milner or Gilmour (or possibly even Hinshelwood) on Saturday.

Technically he needs to learn to tackle with his right foot, you can not be a top central midfielder and play with only one foot (although Declan Rice has no left foot to speak of) When he played for the U21s Caicedo use to do this strange cross over thing, where he would put his right leg across in front of his left and tackle with the outside of his right foot. Fortunately this was coached out of him. Baleba gives away too many fouls and or gets beaten too often on his right.

He still needs to work on his decision making. The Adringa goal was terrific, but there was also an incident in the second half where he carried the ball into a blind alley in the centre of the pitch lost possession and claimed a foul which wasn't given. This left the whole team out of position and a decent counter attacking side would have filled their boots.

Positioning is more than just out of possession, he needs to work on finding space and making himself more available to receive the ball.

So plenty of positives but still quite a lot to improve in my view.

 

[Hugo Rune]

Possibly, we forget how inexperienced Carlos is. All the tools are there though he just needs coaching. We will definitely see him on Saturday even if it just for the last 20minutes. Baleba is a real talent and seems like a lovely bloke too.

It’s so easy to forget how young and inexperienced he is isn’t it. For perspective, I can see him being the best all round midfielder in the EPL by 2027. He’ll have just turned 23. So much coaching and development yet to come to give him that top level decision making and game management. He has as high a development window than any Brighton player I’ve seen including Caicedo.

On the negative side, I don’t see the club doing anything about his whistling development. Currently, he is not going to be the next Roger Whittaker. Whilst profoundly joyful, his whistling lacks structure, direction and melody. I hope the club looks at this and gives him the support he needs. If he were to develop the ability to say, whistle GOSBTS, that would take his club profile to the next level. Just because he has gift for football, the club should not ignore his gift for music.

 

[Jimmy Grimble]

Technically he needs to learn to tackle with his right foot, you can not be a top central midfielder and play with only one foot (although Declan Rice has no left foot to speak of) When he played for the U21s Caicedo use to do this strange cross over thing, where he would put his right leg across in front of his left and tackle with the outside of his right foot. Fortunately this was coached out of him. Baleba gives away too many fouls and or gets beaten too often on his right.

He still needs to work on his decision making. The Adringa goal was terrific, but there was also an incident in the second half where he carried the ball into a blind alley in the centre of the pitch lost possession and claimed a foul which wasn't given. This left the whole team out of position and a decent counter attacking side would have filled their boots.

Positioning is more than just out of possession, he needs to work on finding space and making himself more available to receive the ball.

So plenty of positives but still quite a lot to improve in my view.

I think you’re spot on. I’ve said before that he doesn’t always create the right angles to receive the ball because he is so keen to take everything on his left, similar to as you’ve pointed out with his tackling. In the Man United game it looked like he had improved on this though.

 

[GT49er]

When he's good , he's very very good.

With O'Reillys injury , hopefully he will step up

What's happened to O'Reilly? Who is he? - a steward, a ball boy, or what? Is he any good at pouring pints of Harvey's? Does his demise make any difference to our midfield options?

Discuss.