Player Ratings v Watford Home

[The Large One]

Not true. If you bought a tea cup from John Lewis you'd expect quality. Argos not so.

When I moved to Brighton I treated myself to some new crockery and I invested in John Lewis with the expectation none of the handles will fall off. 9 years later they're holding firm.

That's not my point, and you know that.

You're comparing the expectations of the quality and reliability of an inanimate object (which has one function) and a blonde haired Paul Nicholas-lookalike human being (which has four - or possibly even more - functions) in life.

 

[Mellotron]

The thing is that Barnes isn't "rated". CMS, irrelevant of form or goalscoring is because he works hard. What frustrates me is that people ignore how hard Barnes works supporting the full backs, something that actually benefits the team.

Funny that, I would argue Barnes works just as hard as CMS.

 

[Langley]

1. Gonzalez 5. Didn't inspire confidence, lacked presence.
2. Calderon 7. Good display, lovely finish.
3. Painter 5. Lack of pace is being found out at this level.
4. Bridcutt 9. Did the work of three men (literally).
5. Dunk 5. Very rusty, get out the WD40.
6. El-Abd 7. Held the defence together with Calde and Bridcutt.
7. Dicker 5. The invisible man, he played apparently they said so on the tannoy.
8. Barnes 6. Left his touch in the changing room, plenty of effort.
9. CMS 5. Supply wasn't too bad but never seemed to be in the right place.
10. Buckley 8. Showed for the ball, strikers finish
11. Lualua 7. Lively, and got kicked to bits

Vicente 8. Class, changed the game
Vincelot 6. Firmed up the defence.

CMS - Forward balls should be aimed at the attacker, not for him to guess where they might go. Bridcutt 9, what game were you at. Those type of performances were about 12 games back. I think you need to go to Specsavers. Of all the fans I spoke with Bridcutt was about 5th in line for
M O M.

 

[Mattstrugnell]

Surely you want the midfield to be working hard. You want Strikers to be in position, i.e. somewhere around the box when a ball gets crossed in. Strikers are there to score goals. I'd much rather see a striker in position, than one that works hard and is rarely in a goal scoring postion when he needs to be.

Funny that, I would argue Barnes works just as hard as CMS.

 

[Mellotron]

Surely you want the midfield to be working hard. You want Strikers to be in position, i.e. somewhere around the box when a ball gets crossed in. Strikers are there to score goals. I'd much rather see a striker in position, than one that works hard and is rarely in a goal scoring postion when he needs to be.

I'm confused, are you referring to Barnes, who has been playing as a midfielder pretty much all season?

 

[Herr Tubthumper]

I should have twigged our season would end like this when I turned my Gully's Girls calendar to April and saw the fat one.

 

[Titanic]

On the basis of 6 being acceptable as a benchmark:

Gonzalez 6 - at fault with free kick and distribution played us into trouble at times...

If that is 'acceptable' we'd better give up now.

 

[Oscar]

Gonzalez - 4 - At fault for the free kick and generally appalling in the first half. Gets some credit for his kicks out to the left wing in the second half but I see no point in playing him again.

Caleron - 7 - Always involved and another great goal.
Dunk - 6 - Quietly did what he had to do but not as good as Greer.
El Abd - 7 - Relished the phyisical battle and generally came out the better.
Painter - 5 - Poor first half not just defensively but for is poor balls up to LuaLua

Dicker - 4 - Way off the pace. Lucky not to be subbed at half time. Does he not know that you don't have to wait for the ball to come to you?
Bridcutt - 6 - Did his best to mop up the terrible mess in midfield.
LuaLua - 6 - A couple of good runs but lacked service. Shame he was subbed.
Buckley - 7 - Good to see him take on his man unlike against Reading. Took his goal well.
Barnes - 6 - Missed an utter sitter in the first half but exposed again by having to constantly drop deep. Still doesn't deserve the stick he gets.

CMS - 7 - One of his better games as the lone striker. The longer and more direct we play, the more dangerous he looks.

SUBS
Vincelot - 7 - Showed that he's been unlucky not to play more. Surely he will start on Saturday at left back or even in midfield.
Vicente - 7 - Given his injury record, it's a delight to say his almost matchwinning input is now considered normal.

 

[The Large One]

However, when watching a game, you do expect different things of different players, and the price tag can (to an extent) inform that, along with MANY other factors. AGAIN, Man Utd fans would not expect the same of Tom Cleverly on his debut, as they would Paul Scholes, in his 700th game.

Of course I expect different things from different players; I never said otherwise.

The transfer fee is often down to another club's valuation of his worth to them - not necessarily about their qualities overall, which might be different to another club. e.g. we bought Buckley as a winger, whereas he is most effective in the channels; or Barnes as a striker, and plays as an attacking midfielder.

Would we be having this discussion if CMS only cost £100,000? I'm wondering why this has to be a discussion point just because Peterborough wanted £2.5m for him. At the end of the day, he is still the same player. How much he cost is Tony's concern. Once he's here, getting the best out of CMS is Gus' concern.

 

[Eddie Bee]

If Barnes HAD scored that absolute sitter, SOME may have said "What an absolute stunning volley, goal of the season maybe?!" Also towards the end of the game he pulled back a brilliant cross for CMS who could not quite direct it towards goal. I thought Barnes had an average game...less than 6 I don't think so!! Below average performances Gonzalez 5(crowd on his back didn't help) Painter 5, Dicker 5 otherwise average apart from Calde 7, El Abd 7, Bridcutt 8, Vincelot 7 and Vicente 8.

 

[Acker79]

Gonzales 5.5 - While he could and should have done better with the free kick, I don't think it was as bad an error as people think. His first few kicks were a little lacking in confidence, but he had solid handling. I don't remember him really being tested other than the free kick and penalty, so can't remember any saves he made.

Painter 5 - I didn't notice any costly mistake, he just didn't seem to contribute much
El Abd 6 - a little too scrappy lately, like he knows the fans like it so looks for players to scrap with instead of concentrating on his game.
Dunk 5.5 - playing on the right so a little out of position, but seemed lost at times, some poor passing in the first half, didn't see much of him in the second
Calderon 6.5 - Not sure how good the finish was, the initial shot was the better strike, but good awareness and reaction to follow up, though hit it into the ground Defensively ok.

Lualua 6 - didn't get on the ball enough, but did well enough when he got it. Not sure how dangerous his shots were.
Bridcutt 6.5 - better than his last performance, but too many stray long balls.
Dicker 5 - I stood up for him last year, and he had a few moments of great possession but it's when he tries to pass it that it goes wrong for him, he also seemed unaware at times that he was playing a game of football. Having said that, he did manage to play in Calderon for the first goal.
Buckley 6.5 - Very dangerous on the wing, but kept drifting inside taking away an option for Calderon. Again, once his full back was booked he seemed to ease off, rather than put him under pressure. We've done that a lot this season (that is ease off players once they're on a yellow, as if we don't want to use it to our advantage)

Barnes 6 - some poor first touches, but some great first touches (particularly his control of a bullet pass on the touch line), worked hard, but also took an easy fall way too often. Played some good balls, played some bad, skewed a volley wide.
CMS 5.5 - If I did these last night, it would be lower. Last minute one yard out, the ball played to his feet and he just falls over. So frustrating. He does run around a lot but the rest of his game was not up to par for him. I hope he can get his confidence back in pre-season.

Vincelot 6 - Good to see him back on the pitch, but he did seem a little rusty at times, and I'm not sure it was such an amazing performance he should displace Mattock, but ahead of painter for me.
Vicente 6.5 - initially struggled to get into the game, but later on started to exert an influence, some great runs down the channel, and provided the equaliser.


Overall, I thought the first half was really bad. Coming off a 6-0 loss you're looking for a reaction from the players and it just never came. It really felt like they didn't want to win, no fight, no reaction, passes going astray, no strength on the ball. Every clearance blocked by them, none of their clearances blocked by us.

We improved in the second half, but it still wasn't great. We were hoofing it too much for my liking. I'm not sure we deserved the draw, but don't think Watford deserved to win, either.

Despite that I really don't think the attacks on Poyet and the team I heard in my area were fair. One guy in front of me kept abusing dicker, painter and barnes throughout the game, and then when dicker and barnes weren't taken off he started abusing poyet, questioning if he knew what he was doing, his kid started singing 'sacked in the morning'. Unbelievable. Some guy in front of him started to sarcastically complain at Poyet for having the gall to take us from the league one relegation zone to the edge of the play offs, making me smirk. And the crowds reaction to Gonzales made me angry. Cheering whenever he caught the ball or kicked it long. Pathetic.

I thought the ref had a good game. Barnes could have been in more trouble for leaving his foot in, or throwing himself to the ground so much, Dicker could have gone for studs up lunge, Eustace could have gone for raised hands, but the ref showed common sense and leniency. Time wasting is a hard thing to handle satisfactorily, if he stops the game to book players he is accused of wasting time too, if he just adds on time it looks like he's not doing anything. But I have no complaints over his handling of the game.

 

[ROSM]

If that is 'acceptable' we'd better give up now.

He was at fault for one goal - but then he didnt give away the free kick and theres no guarantee he'd have got it if he hadnt anticipated to his left. He improved as the game went on and made some good solid stops (nothing spectacular) in the second half. First half distribution should have been better, second half it had improved. I bordered on giving him a 5 but gave him the benefit of the doubt.

 

[Mackenzie]

CMS - Forward balls should be aimed at the attacker, not for him to guess where they might go. Bridcutt 9, what game were you at. Those type of performances were about 12 games back. I think you need to go to Specsavers. Of all the fans I spoke with Bridcutt was about 5th in line for
M O M.

Just my opinion. I thought Bridcutt was excellent last night, broke up the Watford play, was often the last line of defence and passed well. As for aiming balls at the forward, when balls are whipped across the six yard box shouldn't you expect a forward to be there attacking the ball, I think they call it a strikers instinct. My eyesight is fine.

 

[Hatman1234]

Gonzalez - 6. Nervous first half, did well in the second.

Calderon - 7. Solid defensively, scored important goal.
Dunk - 8. Solid all game, won every tackle and header. His quality shows.
El-Abd - 3. Gave away too many freekicks (one of which they scored from). Didn't win a single header. His passing and first touch was poor.
Painter - 2. Gave the ball away. Very sloppy in possesion. Slow getting back. El Abd's passing didn't help Painter at all.

Bridcutt - 8. Spent most the game covering for El Abd. Deserved MOM.
Dicker - 1. Didn't make a single pass to feet. A miss kick could have given Watford a win. Defensively all over the place; looked lost.
Buckley - 7. Did well in a difficult game. Didn't get very good service, most passes his way went out of play. Good finish.
KLL - 6. Same as Buckley, didn't get the ball.

Barnes - 3. Gave the ball away too often. Fell over a lot. Missed some glorious chances. Conceded the penalty.
CMS - 7. Worked hard. Created his own chances. Unlucky not to have scored. Hard game for him upfront on his own as Barnes was nowhere to be seen.

Vincelot - 7. Solid in the tackle. Brilliant in the air.
Vicente - 7. Looked good, but tired. Few wayward crosses. Few too many Champagne Chalire Nicholas passes that didnt reach.

 

[AMEXican Wave]

Gonzalez 2
Calderon 7
Painter 1
Bridcutt 5
Dunk 6
El-Abd 8
Dicker 1
Barnes 6
CMS 7
Buckley 6
Lualua 7

Vicente 8
Vincelot 7

 

[Northstandite]

What did he contribute? The fans are blinded by him getting close to closing down the keeper once every 3 games.

Accurate comment of the day. £2.5m (rising to £3.25m) for running around frantically trying in vain to close down opposing keepers & defenders. 10/10 for effort. 3/10 for ability and application as a scorer & creator at CHAMPIONSHIP level.

 

[BobbySmith]

We can all debate if Barnes is good enough or not, I do not think he is, but surely one thing that he does which really annoys me (and El-Abd does as well), is go down to try and get players sent off, there is no excuse for that in my book and yes I will call it cheating, as that is what it is. Last night people around me were suggesting that he should be sent off for simulation, that guy hardly touched him and it is giving Brighton a bad name with Refs etc. If Poyet still thinks he is a good player and plays him (yes Gus I dont know about football if I think Barnes is not a good player, and you play him up on on his own at West Ham, when everyone just groaned when they saw the team ??), then please ask him not to dive around all the time, it will make him a better player and person and he might just get fans on his side a bit more. On a positive note we will finish in the top 10, after a very enjoyable season, so cant complain about that, just need to stop the antics a bit.

 

[Ninja Elephant]

David Gonzalez 4 - Comedy debut. Distribution was shocking first half, reasonable second, but he never settled. No presence at corners at all. Crap.
Inigo Calderon 7 - Don't think he did anything overly wrong, and popped up with a goal.
Lewis Dunk 6- He wasn't really tested I didn't think, couldn't be blamed for either goal. Lovely range of passing.
Adam El-Abd 7- No problems at the back, only problems he had were when Gonzalez insisted on throwing/passing to his left foot.
Marcos Painter 4- Awful performance, totally one footed with no pace and no positional nous either. Good League 1 left back, no shame in that.
Liam Briductt 7- I thought he did ok, not sure he was man of the match, but showed his class at times.
Gary Dicker 6- I like him as a player, but I'm not sure he's quick enough in thought to play at this level. His passing is up to the standard.
William Buckley 7- Mainly for the goal. He roasted the left back with ease a couple of times, but drifts out of games.
Kazenga LuaLua 6- A couple of rasping drives in the first half and one quality cross in the first minutes, but faded.
Ashley Barnes 5- The volley was awful, his touch was amiss and his passing was dire. Good work rate underpins his game, but needs to improve technically.
Craig Mackail-Smith 6- Really good run second half, but should have scored his 1 on 1 at 0-0.

Subs
Vicente 7- Wasn't at his mecurial best but his cross for the equaliser was sheer class.
Vincelot 7- Much better left back than Painter, and offers more going forward. Should have played more this season.

Richie Reynolds 4- Terrible interview with Eric Gill at half time, his worst performance since the Clough question to Powney.

 

[JBizzle]

Funny that, I would argue Barnes works just as hard as CMS.

I would agree entirely.

 

[DT Withdean]

If that is 'acceptable' we'd better give up now.

Exactly.

Following the Argus method of everyone starts with a base rating of 5; no matter how bad a game. 5 is the new zero in kind, blue-tinted world.