[Albion] Dale Stephens? Really??

[RandyWanger]

I thought schools went back already?

 

[Perkino]

his biggest flaw is the amount of goals he scores or maybe the amount of goalscoring positions he gets into especially against teams when we dominate possession and an additional figure around the box could be helpful

 

[Sheebo]

Like Zaha for Palace, we haven't won a premier league game when he hasn't played.

Shite stat for so many reasons and nothing like ‘Zaha for Palace’ which stretches over several years. In my opinion.

If you’re struggling with why I say that think:

How many prem games did Stephens not play in & also what our win % in the prem is FYI.

 

[Thunder Bolt]

I think its fair to say if your peers constantly vote you in the top 2 each season as player of the season then you are doing more than enough right.

He's a class performer simple as that.

I saw and heard Inigo Calderon call Stephens the best player at the club. That's good enough for me.

 

[Super Steve Earle]

This is a question for those of you with a deep knowledge of the technicalities of the game. We are told regularly that Dale Stephens is an absolutely pivotal member of the team, first name out of the hat, a real players' player, etc, etc.

What we non-cognoscenti will actually see is a player who:–

Constantly slows the game down, resulting in loss of impetus and attacking opportunity
Is ponderous on the ball, looking simply indecisive
Instinctively passes backwards or sideways, rarely forward
Frequently misplaces even the simplest short passes, to howls of anguish from the crowd
Wastes shooting opportunities through poor technique – eg spectacular Row ZZ example against Fulham

​

And yet… And yet… People in the know really rate the guy.

Anyone care to explain why?

You summed it up perfectly. A question from someone with a shallow knowledge, if any, of the technicalities of the game - possibly the bloke who sits behind me. Non-cognoscenti. Yet somehow, people in the know rate the guy. Sadly, something you will never do.

Don't worry, I know you were only fishing so no need to post an outraged reply. You can take mine too with a pinch of sea salt.

 

[Stat Brother]

Next game you go to, take a few minutes to solely watch Stephens. Ignore the rest of the game and don't take your eyes off him. I once did the same while watching Claude Makelele. Absolute midfield masterclass.

We did this at the back end of last season.

Jnr (13) plays in the same position, but obviously being part of the Youtube generation he believes football is all about skillz, tekkers etc.
He played accordingly and was frankly shite.

So we watched Stephens with 3 questions in mind:-

1 - How many times did he win the ball.
2 - How many times was he responsible for losing the ball.
C - How many tricks.

I can remember the numbers but he did have a perfect half, I don't imagine that was just lucky.

As a result, and much to my surprise, Jnr took this on board, cut out the crap, and is now a considerably better footballer.



In defense of the OP, if he sits low down, the full extend of Dale's prowess might not be easy to see.

We spent one game in the top row of the WSU, and Bridcutt was a revelation, something that I never quite got in our usual, considerably lower down, seats.

 

[Bwian]

To be fair, we haven't won many PL Games when he has played. 2 wins in our last 13, thankfully both against a very out of sorts Man Utd.

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[Acker79]

Shite stat for so many reasons and nothing like ‘Zaha for Palace’ which stretches over several years. In my opinion.

If you’re struggling with why I say that think:

How many prem games did Stephens not play in & also what our win % in the prem is FYI.

My tongue was planted in my cheek for the Zaha comparison. The criticism laid out in the intial post seemed ridiculous, so I wasn't taking it entirely serious with my response.

 

[Sheebo]

My tongue was planted in my cheek for the Zaha comparison. The criticism laid out in the intial post seemed ridiculous, so I wasn't taking it entirely serious with my response.

Agreed

 

[Wardy's twin]

We did this at the back end of last season.

Jnr (13) plays in the same position, but obviously being part of the Youtube generation he believes football is all about skillz, tekkers etc.
He played accordingly and was frankly shite.

So we watched Stephens with 3 questions in mind:-

1 - How many times did he win the ball.
2 - How many times was he responsible for losing the ball.
C - How many tricks.

I can remember the numbers but he did have a perfect half, I don't imagine that was just lucky.

As a result, and much to my surprise, Jnr took this on board, cut out the crap, and is now a considerably better footballer.



In defense of the OP, if he sits low down, the full extend of Dale's prowess might not be easy to see.

We spent one game in the top row of the WSU, and Bridcutt was a revelation, something that I never quite got in our usual, considerably lower down, seats.

I used to say where I sat when i posted because you do get a much different view of the game play from higher up. I sit in very middle of WSU and you can see passes that should have been played and runs that were made/not made a lot better than from WSL where. I spent the first year at the AMEX. I think the same 'issue' is true of the North & South Stands where you get a good view of some action but the view of the overall game is very limited.

 

[Doonhamer7]

Dale Stephens role to the team is that you only really notice him when he isn’t playing - this is the best compliment you can give to any holding midfielder.

As for sideways passing - Ray Wilkins (the crab) if you believed the story only ever passed sideways and he didn’t have a bad career

 

[Geestar]

So how what's our PL record with him? Without him?

Haven't seen any figures yet

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[Lewes Punk]

I love Dale Stephens and love watching him play.

I think you have to take a moment to imagine what it's like to do the job he does, to play in his boots. You get the ball off our defender and immediately there's some big athletic ******* like Pogba or maybe Doucoure closing you down. So you have a split second to make about five important decisions (take one touch or is there time for two? Back to the keeper or have I got time to turn and go? Are the full-back in the right place for the simple pass? Can I spot the run the forwards are making? Etc, etc)

So it's a massive testament to DS that he seems to make the right decisions about 90% of the time. And by doing so, he's the pivot of the team, setting the pace and turning defence into attack or slowing things down when our shape's not right at that particular moment.

And all of that even before you get into the technical skill you need to control the ball, pass it short and long, check and change direction, time your runs forward etc etc.

Then there's the defensive job. Again you have a split second to decide when to dive in on an oncoming attacker or stand off. And you know if you get it wrong you might get a red card. That role is all about playing with controlled aggression - being combative but knowing instinctively when and how far you can use it .

So maybe that helps understand what he brings to the team? As you will have gathered, I'm a bit of a fan.

 

[Snowflake]

His shooting it has to be said is woeful.....It's an ongoing joke with my son about whether he has his shooting boots on today.
That aside, he's not on the pitch for that. So I really don't care.

He is class. End of.

 

[nwgull]

Don't credit David Burke with the purchase of Stephens. Nathan Jones was the driving force for that one. He'd seen him whilst a youth coach at Charlton.

Burke was head of recruitment, so he gets the credit from me where it’s due - he got the blame for all the crap we signed. And Stephens wasn’t in the U21s anyway, but was a regular starter for Charlton, so hardly under the radar.

 

[Thunder Bolt]

Burke was head of recruitment, so he gets the credit from me where it’s due - he got the blame for all the crap we signed. And Stephens wasn’t in the U21s anyway, but was a regular starter for Charlton, so hardly under the radar.

I didn't say Stephens was in the under 21s.

 

[Acker79]

So how what's our PL record with him? Without him?

Haven't seen any figures yet

Sent from my TA-1020 using Tapatalk

played 3
won 0
drawn 0
lost 3
for 0
against 6
win percent 0%
goals per game average 0
points per game average 0

 

[The Large One]

I love Dale Stephens and love watching him play.

I think you have to take a moment to imagine what it's like to do the job he does, to play in his boots. You get the ball off our defender and immediately there's some big athletic ******* like Pogba or maybe Doucoure closing you down. So you have a split second to make about five important decisions (take one touch or is there time for two? Back to the keeper or have I got time to turn and go? Are the full-back in the right place for the simple pass? Can I spot the run the forwards are making? Etc, etc)

So it's a massive testament to DS that he seems to make the right decisions about 90% of the time. And by doing so, he's the pivot of the team, setting the pace and turning defence into attack or slowing things down when our shape's not right at that particular moment.

And all of that even before you get into the technical skill you need to control the ball, pass it short and long, check and change direction, time your runs forward etc etc.

Then there's the defensive job. Again you have a split second to decide when to dive in on an oncoming attacker or stand off. And you know if you get it wrong you might get a red card. That role is all about playing with controlled aggression - being combative but knowing instinctively when and how far you can use it .

So maybe that helps understand what he brings to the team? As you will have gathered, I'm a bit of a fan.

Fully agree.

Also I don't get the point from others about 'you only notice him when he's not playing'.

To coin a phrase from this thread... really? Does the work he gets through really go unnoticed? Evidently so, it seems.

 

[nwgull]

I didn't say Stephens was in the under 21s.

I know, sweet-cheeks.

 

[Thunder Bolt]

I know, sweet-cheeks.

Yuk!