[cite]Posted By: razil[/cite]doing ok tho aint he?
hutchings?
like many have pointed out, don't panic after 2/3 games. also don't get carried away.
imo wigan, having survived on the last day, they lost a good manager, their best player (baines), and 'strengthened' their defence with bramble and melchiot. i think they may well be doomed.
Yes please please please!
ZZ made a difference, Reid on the correct wing made a difference, but the biggest difference in the second half yesterday was no Marcus Bent on the pitch!
I didn't think he did that bad yesterday, maybe everyone was so friggin awful that he didn't appear as bad, I don't know but thankfully I'm not manager as I'd have taken Iwelmu off at half time. Anyway still wouldn't be dissapointed to see him go, will struggle to get out of my mind his attitude at games last season, whatever he does this season. And bottome line he doesn't score enough or even look like scoring!
Shoot me but I do think Bent has abilty, just not anywhere near as much as he thinks he's got. That's the difference with him and Big Chris for me, Bent thinks he's world class but really isn't, Big Chris seems to want to prove he is! I'm not going to get over excited over 2 goals, much as I thought he played awesome. Just the fact he actually looks like he wants it is enough to have him on the pitch over Bent for me.
[cite]Posted By: RedArmySE7[/cite]Shoot me but I do think Bent has abilty, just not anywhere near as much as he thinks he's got. That's the difference with him and Big Chris for me, Bent thinks he's world class but really isn't, Big Chris seems to want to prove he is!
The basic difference is that Iwulemo knows his game and is a genuine target man who knows how to lead the line and bring others into the game, he is a far better player than many have given him credit for.
The problem with Marcus Bent, aside from all the off the field and attitude stuff, is that he is not really a target man (his touch is poor, is ineffectual in the air and does not lead the line very well) but neither is he quick enough or mobile enough to play "on the last man" a la Darren Bent or, in his heyday, Andy Cole.
What you get instead is a bloke who is fast, but not threateningly so, and big and strong but not in a way that is put to much good use.
We have missed a proper target man since Hunt left, given that Bartlett was in and out so often, and Iwulemo could finally fill that gap.
The big difference between Bent and Iwelumo for me is their positioning. Iwelumo on Saturday was always where you want your 6ft 3in striker to be - in the centre forward position. Bent in his games this year has been coming out wide far too often. This made it hard for Todorov to link with him against Scunthorpe, and when he's played with McLeod we kept having situations where we had the ball on the wing but neither striker in the box.
Todorov seemed a much more effectual when he played with Iwelumo as he could actually link with him. Would be also very interesting to see how well Iwelumo and McLeod play together.
Bent has tried harder this season, but if somebody is willing to pay money for him I'd take it.
[cite]Posted By: Gump[/cite]I remember Marcus destroying our defence and scoring two quick goals a few seasons back for Ipswich, although we came back and won 3-2 (I think ). He has the ability no doubt, just the application is lacking.
The Bent signing proved to me that Curbs' time at the Valley had come to an end. He paid over the odds for an average player simply to get somebody in, presumably in the knowledge that he (Curbs) was unlikely to be around the following season. If his heart had still been at CAFC he wouldn't have signed an over-rated, over-priced, under-performing journeyman but would have made the effort to unearth someone with a bit of potential, desire and heart
I think Curbs paid £2 million up front (add-ons to be paid later) for Marcus simply because:
A relegation struggled was feared - we had been in a desperate freefall for months.
A fresh face was needed to give a dispirited squad a lift.
We were desperately undermanned for effective forwards.
The previous season at Everton, they had finished 4th - Marcus had grafted and led the line really well in a 4-5-1.
Everton ran a comparatively small squad and Moyes didn't really want to let Marcus go until the end of that season.
In the January window there tends to be too many clubs chasing too few strikers, and the desperate clubs will pay whatever it takes.
Curbs was desperate and, if he was to get his man, knew he had to pay whatever Everton demanded.
Comments
men in white coats springs to mind.
hutchings?
like many have pointed out, don't panic after 2/3 games. also don't get carried away.
imo wigan, having survived on the last day, they lost a good manager, their best player (baines), and 'strengthened' their defence with bramble and melchiot. i think they may well be doomed.
No............I don't believe it either! :-)
ZZ made a difference, Reid on the correct wing made a difference, but the biggest difference in the second half yesterday was no Marcus Bent on the pitch!
I actually thought he was better than Iwelumo first half, shows what I know.
I think you've got that just about spot on....
The problem with Marcus Bent, aside from all the off the field and attitude stuff, is that he is not really a target man (his touch is poor, is ineffectual in the air and does not lead the line very well) but neither is he quick enough or mobile enough to play "on the last man" a la Darren Bent or, in his heyday, Andy Cole.
What you get instead is a bloke who is fast, but not threateningly so, and big and strong but not in a way that is put to much good use.
We have missed a proper target man since Hunt left, given that Bartlett was in and out so often, and Iwulemo could finally fill that gap.
Todorov seemed a much more effectual when he played with Iwelumo as he could actually link with him. Would be also very interesting to see how well Iwelumo and McLeod play together.
Bent has tried harder this season, but if somebody is willing to pay money for him I'd take it.
And the goal he scored for And Leicester...
will be happy if it goes through.
Do you think Curbs didn't know how to work a calculator and timesed it by 2?
Very odd.
He paid over the odds for an average player simply to get somebody in, presumably in the knowledge that he (Curbs) was unlikely to be around the following season.
If his heart had still been at CAFC he wouldn't have signed an over-rated, over-priced, under-performing journeyman but would have made the effort to unearth someone with a bit of potential, desire and heart
A relegation struggled was feared - we had been in a desperate freefall for months.
A fresh face was needed to give a dispirited squad a lift.
We were desperately undermanned for effective forwards.
The previous season at Everton, they had finished 4th - Marcus had grafted and led the line really well in a 4-5-1.
Everton ran a comparatively small squad and Moyes didn't really want to let Marcus go until the end of that season.
In the January window there tends to be too many clubs chasing too few strikers, and the desperate clubs will pay whatever it takes.
Curbs was desperate and, if he was to get his man, knew he had to pay whatever Everton demanded.