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There were a lot of poor performances yesterday and NML was amongst the worst.
He couldn't control the ball, he couldn't hold on to the ball and when he did have a chance to do something - he didn't.
What is the point of playing him if he is not going to try to get past defenders?
Great at kick & rush, moving in straight lines. Sadly, little end product. Yet another at the club who is woeful at passing.
No first touch either, luckily he's quick so he can catch up to itOriginally Posted by Rock_Flock_of_Five
Old Mendez. There's a fundamental problem with him, he doesn't even know what he's going to do with the ball. I've actually seen him leave the ball behind and run it into touch. When it works it's brilliant, more often than not it doesn't. He needs three touches to set himself.
On his day, he's unplayable and is the best winger in the league. When he's off it, which is more often, my God he's bad. He hasn't got the technique or skill to play within himself, so he's very all or nothing. He's probably got to play but the bad is so bad.
A fair assessment
Considering that Hoilett has been out of form for a while, NML is at best inconsistent (and remember he can’t play during the winter due to his asthma medication) and Whyte is still unproven at this level... leaves only Murphy as a (semi) reliable winger..... makes the decision to let Kadeem go, who is doing very well, look like another transfer disaster
To me Mendez-Laing should be a striker, he doesnt do enough to play on the wing and leaves the full back so exposed at times.
I would pay good money to watch Mendez Laing play up front on his own, trying to hold the ball up and bring others into play. It'd be footballs version of Pin Ball. The only way the ball would stick is if we wrapped him in velcro and played the game with a tennis ball from Hyper Value.
Mendez Lang is a League 1 winger whose pace surprised one or two Premier League full backs because he knocked it past them and ran.
When he has no space to run into after doing that he is hopeless. He had a good end to last season but his passing or crossing is woeful.
I thought the relatively high possession we had in the first 20 minutes on Saturday left our players rather confused. All that ball and incapable of making a decent pass. Ralls was the worst offender, because he tried to pass and failed.
A depressing scenario, but a chance, somehow, to put some things right on Wednesday. I am keeping my fingers crossed, but not with a great deal of confidence. It could be argued that we have more League 1 level players now than at all recently, and we are relying on them to step up.
I sense the end of an era. I hope I am wrong.
I feel the same way that you do. Maybe Warnock squeezed every ounce out of the players during the promotion season, maybe he did the same with himself. I think Wednesday's game has become very important all of a sudden.Mendez Lang is a League 1 winger whose pace surprised one or two Premier League full backs because he knocked it past them and ran.
When he has no space to run into after doing that he is hopeless. He had a good end to last season but his passing or crossing is woeful.
I thought the relatively high possession we had in the first 20 minutes on Saturday left our players rather confused. All that ball and incapable of making a decent pass. Ralls was the worst offender, because he tried to pass and failed.
A depressing scenario, but a chance, somehow, to put some things right on Wednesday. I am keeping my fingers crossed, but not with a great deal of confidence. It could be argued that we have more League 1 level players now than at all recently, and we are relying on them to step up.
I sense the end of an era. I hope I am wrong.
Mendez Lang is a League 1 winger whose pace surprised one or two Premier League full backs because he knocked it past them and ran.
When he has no space to run into after doing that he is hopeless. He had a good end to last season but his passing or crossing is woeful
I thought the relatively high possession we had in the first 20 minutes on Saturday left our players rather confused. All that ball and incapable of making a decent pass. Ralls was the worst offender, because he tried to pass and failed.
A depressing scenario, but a chance, somehow, to put some things right on Wednesday. I am keeping my fingers crossed, but not with a great deal of confidence. It could be argued that we have more League 1 level players now than at all recently, and we are relying on them to step up.
I sense the end of an era. I hope I am wrong.
Just been watching Adama Traore for Wolves. Similar physique to NML. Came on as a sub and made an impact.
How could he be classed as a league 1 winger when he was one of our better players in the championship.
Like all players at this level, he lacks consistency of being at his best otherwise he wouldn't be with us in the championship.
NML needs to pick the ball up deep and run at people, and he needs that space to get the ball under.
He was injured for the majority of the second half but agree first half wasn't great from him like the rest of our midfield.
Yes, unfortunately he looked injured second half and the side were carrying him - changing all three subs (I know one was forced) by half time was always going to be a risk that simply did not work out
Should never have been on the pitch, still carrying an injury. Brought back too soon, could be out for a month now. Picking an injured player before Murphy shows what confidence he has. To be honest he should have come off instead of creating more damage to the injury.
NML like Junior Hoillett are both good on their day.
Unfortunately their good days are far outweighed by their bad days.
Yesterday they were both very poor.
Unfortunately like a lot of our players “their best days are long gone”
I was saying something similar lst season when some people were saying that alot of our players will slip into the chmpionship with ease, afterall, we were runners up the season before, it was the natural order of things. Not so in my opinion, sport doesn't work like the average workplace. In theory, most of those players have peaked, it isn't going to get any better for Peltier, Morrisson, Ralls, Bennett, Patterson,Bamba Hoilett,Ward etc or any of the other original promotion line up, Etheridge-probably-Murphy-Maybe. So om that basis we only really have one player from the original promotion aquad tht is on the up, and one debatable, the others have peaked and are on there way back down. It doesn't matter what level a player is at, if he's not getting better or sustaining a level of performance then the tem will not prosper.
The only way to offset a decline in player performance is to add players who are performing or who are on the upward spiral. I'll let others decide if that's wht Warnock hs done.
Ralls is only 25. He has some improvement left in him. Paterson's 24, but I've never really worked him out. I'd say the rest have probably peaked, though.
I can't see where Ralls can improve,He's played nearly 250 first class games already, if he is going to become a better player then he needs to get a shift on. Paterson actually looked a better player initially, seems that any natural ability he possessed has been rinsed out of him.
Agree, but I'd still take either ahead of Murphy who has no football brain that I can see. Can't see where the space is and has no end product.
Whyte has to be given a chance now.
I agree that both can have bad days going forward but NML has few good games whereas Hoilett has few bad games and Hoilett can defend.
Laing was one of our better players the latter part of last season after coming back from a bad knee injury, He gave the young Liverpool left back a lesson when we played them.
He just didn't look up for it Sunday, maybe not fit or unhappy about being pushed to play to early just for the manager to prove a point to Murphy. Has the manager lost the dressing room from last seasons players as we have lost our best players and replaced them with mediocre players.
Mendez-Laing looked injured and not over his recent absence. If he wasn't over it why was he picked when we had Whyte and Murphy to chose from. Also Paterson still looks out of sorts, so why bring him on? Warnock had to use one sub to cover for Pack's injury and then used up the next two at half time. We now have Etheridge, Bamba and Pack out injured and it looks like ML and Paterson are not fit. Add Jazz Richards to the list too and the squad has no cover in most positions except goalkeeper and striker. Oh and Peltier is out too.
I'll be interesting to see who Neil picks on Wednesday, the thought of Bacuna trying to play in midfield should be interesting.
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