Millwall fans cracking up and saying “good luck with him” - they had him under Edwards who wanted midfielders to get the ball down and pass it
Luton fans looking at it and saying “lump on Charlton to win the league” - they had his best form under Jones who wanted defensively disciplined midfielders
He’s a central midfielder - he is NOT a creative central midfielder but he is very good at being a spoiler. Jones absolutely loves him. I see him as Conor Coventry competition.
I can’t take Millwall opinions seriously, Alex Mitchell didn’t make a single appearance for them yet would probably walk into their side easily
I can't believe you wrote that, has the difference in the two divisions and the quality of that football not dawned on you ? Alex Mitchell has done very well here in three games, yes three games, he didn't 'walk into their side' because three managers at Millwall, decided he wasn't good enough .
Hard for some of them to play him to be fair once he was on loan at Lincoln last season and could only be recalled in January (if at all).
Scoham, you are missing the point. He was loaned out because his parent club had better cover in the position he plays. If, as you are suggesting, the managers had their hands tied by a loan deal then that would only apply to one those three managers, as the other two loaned him and sold him, which brings me back to my criticism of the post, Mitchell would not walk into that side because, at least two managers maybe three didn't think he was better than the players they had.
Yeah I don't disagree with that, but all I'm saying is we don't know how the first two managers would have viewed him this summer after his good spell at Lincoln. Probably not well enough to walk into their team, but he made good progress last season so even the manager who loaned him out may have changed his opinion.
Wasn't he just into the last year of his contract & wouldn't sign the new one that millwall offered plus he wasn't going to be a first choice & so they reluctantly let him move on for a small fee + a decent sell on clause rather than lose him for nothing next year.
That's about right Bob, but my point was in response to DDOUBLEE declaring that Alex Mitchell would walk back into Millwall's back four. Alex Mitchell played one first team game for Millwall coming on as substitute in a Carabo cup game, Millwall friends of mine tell me that he was always touted as a player with potential but they have never seen him play so couldn't give an indication of where he's at. There was inference in responses, rightly or wrongly, that we'd 'turned Millwall over', that's far from the truth, the signing of Alex Mitchell is good for the player and both clubs, this is chance of almost guaranteed first team football for Alex Mitchell but, as I also pointed out, we are only three games into the season and it's far too early to declare we've signed the next Bobby Moore.
Potts signing on a year deal would complete the jigsaw and give cover as we dont know exactly how long Edwardes will be out. Ive a feeling Kanu may get a start soon alongside Adahme as TC not really cutting it in that role - Can see them both running oppostion centre backs ragged and then bring on Chuks and Godden on the hour to capatilise when they are tired. What a starting X1 and also a very very strong bench. - what a turnaround from the past few seasons.
Amazing how we all see things differently. I don’t think Ahadme & TC will ever be a good enough line leading pairing but can see I’m clearly an outliner.
Nowhere near good enough, they will not fire us to promotion
Amazing how we all see things differently. I don’t think Ahadme & TC will ever be a good enough line leading pairing but can see I’m clearly an outliner.
Think this will become more obvious when we concede a few and are under pressure to attack and score goals.
Very good point, 50% of our goals have come from opposition mistakes and Ahadme and TC have yet to score
Amazing how we all see things differently. I don’t think Ahadme & TC will ever be a good enough line leading pairing but can see I’m clearly an outliner.
Think this will become more obvious when we concede a few and are under pressure to attack and score goals.
Very good point, 50% of our goals have come from opposition mistakes and Ahadme and TC have yet to score
Mistakes? I'm not sure what your logic is, but in theory all goals scored are due to mistakes made by the opposition.
Amazing how we all see things differently. I don’t think Ahadme & TC will ever be a good enough line leading pairing but can see I’m clearly an outliner.
Think this will become more obvious when we concede a few and are under pressure to attack and score goals.
Very good point, 50% of our goals have come from opposition mistakes and Ahadme and TC have yet to score
Interesting this one, I think Ahadme and Campbell gave an improved performance against Bolton and we scored the first from a press that they were very much part of, even though it was ultimately a bad pass out that led to the goal. In terms of a goal threat, it's obvious that Aneke and Godden provide much more than Ahadme and Campbell, that said I still think that Ahadme and Campbell will start against Reading.
Amazing how we all see things differently. I don’t think Ahadme & TC will ever be a good enough line leading pairing but can see I’m clearly an outliner.
Think this will become more obvious when we concede a few and are under pressure to attack and score goals.
Very good point, 50% of our goals have come from opposition mistakes and Ahadme and TC have yet to score
Mistakes that we force. Our entire tactical setup is based around an aggressive high press forcing the opposition to turn the ball over in dangerous positions. It's not luck that these mistakes have happened and a lot of our goals will come from it. The interesting thing so far is how clinical we've been. We've forced these opportunities but we've also not wasted them when we have. That might not be hugely sustainable, but then equally we're three games in and we already looked a lot more coherent against Bolton. If we carry on like this we may drop points where we don't take the few chances we get, but the advantage of forcing errors so high is when you do make it happen you have men around the ball and very little distance to travel to the goal so the chances do tend to be that bit easier. Lots to come this season
TC played well on Saturday, indeed he was more effective than Ahadme.
As a different option, Godden could play the number 9 role alongside TC or Kanu as he's more physical than May. It's not as if Ahadme won anything in the air on Saturday.
I don't know that it's true that Campbell was more effective than Ahadme, they both have different roles. Ahadme was very involved in the first goal despite not touching the ball because he's an intelligent and diligent presser, much more so than TC. Pressing isn't just running at the opposition player as fast as you can, it's about timing, body shape and positioning as well. A good press doesn't just put the man under pressure, it blocks passing lanes as well and funnels the ball to where you want it to go. Ahadme's timing for the first goal is very good. Bolton's wide centre backs split to draw attackers away so that Santos can receive the ball under less pressure. TC is near the LCB but the RCB steps further forward so Ahadme stays close enough to Santos to be able to rush his pass but not so close that the keeper can pass the ball to the RCB as Ahadme has blocked that channel. Ahadme waits until the keeper has played the ball and sets off. The pass from the keeper is a lazy one which lets Ahadme close a bit more, but as he gets to Santos he changes his body shape to be side on, still blocking an out ball to the RCB and showing Santos where he wants him to pass it. Berry has also got close to his man to cut off the central option and Santos plays the one pass he has on which is out to the RWB who has been given a bit of space by Small. The pass is also hilariously bad but Small is right onto it, Docherty has already started his move into space and he smashes one in, though he also could and probably should have slipped it through to Ahadme who has positioned himself nicely between the RCB and Santos. He also could have put it through for TC who is left alone when the the LCB comes across the try to block the shot. No complaints from me if you can take that shot and hit the back of the net but I bet you Nathan Jones was beyond happy with what Ahadme did for that goal. There's an art to a good press and counter-press as Klopp and Pochettino have shown at a very high level and Ahadme is the bloke you can trust to cover two defenders himself to make sure there's still an overload at a turnover. It might not be eye-catching or put a lot of pleasing stats on the board for him but there's a reason Jones wanted a big galoot with an engine and it's to create situations like the one we saw for our first goal.
Jones wouldn't have gone after Ahadme (or been given the backing) unless he was really keen. It may or may not have been 1million up front or based on various clauses or what have you but it was a sizeable investment and I suspect Jones is quite happy with what he's seen so far. He may not ever be a spectacular eye catching player but he does a job.
Jones wouldn't have gone after Ahadme (or been given the backing) unless he was really keen. It may or may not have been 1million up front or based on various clauses or what have you but it was a sizeable investment and I suspect Jones is quite happy with what he's seen so far. He may not ever be a spectacular eye catching player but he does a job.
I'd be surprised if Jones wasn't expecting a lot more from him in possession, even if he's working hard out of it. NJ isn't a guy with mid standards.
TC played well on Saturday, indeed he was more effective than Ahadme.
As a different option, Godden could play the number 9 role alongside TC or Kanu as he's more physical than May. It's not as if Ahadme won anything in the air on Saturday.
I don't know that it's true that Campbell was more effective than Ahadme, they both have different roles. Ahadme was very involved in the first goal despite not touching the ball because he's an intelligent and diligent presser, much more so than TC. Pressing isn't just running at the opposition player as fast as you can, it's about timing, body shape and positioning as well. A good press doesn't just put the man under pressure, it blocks passing lanes as well and funnels the ball to where you want it to go. Ahadme's timing for the first goal is very good. Bolton's wide centre backs split to draw attackers away so that Santos can receive the ball under less pressure. TC is near the LCB but the RCB steps further forward so Ahadme stays close enough to Santos to be able to rush his pass but not so close that the keeper can pass the ball to the RCB as Ahadme has blocked that channel. Ahadme waits until the keeper has played the ball and sets off. The pass from the keeper is a lazy one which lets Ahadme close a bit more, but as he gets to Santos he changes his body shape to be side on, still blocking an out ball to the RCB and showing Santos where he wants him to pass it. Berry has also got close to his man to cut off the central option and Santos plays the one pass he has on which is out to the RWB who has been given a bit of space by Small. The pass is also hilariously bad but Small is right onto it, Docherty has already started his move into space and he smashes one in, though he also could and probably should have slipped it through to Ahadme who has positioned himself nicely between the RCB and Santos. He also could have put it through for TC who is left alone when the the LCB comes across the try to block the shot. No complaints from me if you can take that shot and hit the back of the net but I bet you Nathan Jones was beyond happy with what Ahadme did for that goal. There's an art to a good press and counter-press as Klopp and Pochettino have shown at a very high level and Ahadme is the bloke you can trust to cover two defenders himself to make sure there's still an overload at a turnover. It might not be eye-catching or put a lot of pleasing stats on the board for him but there's a reason Jones wanted a big galoot with an engine and it's to create situations like the one we saw for our first goal.
What he said
Ahadme was constantly on the move.
When we had the ball he was finding space or creating it for others.
They they had the ball he was closing down or limiting passing options.
Jones wouldn't have gone after Ahadme (or been given the backing) unless he was really keen. It may or may not have been 1million up front or based on various clauses or what have you but it was a sizeable investment and I suspect Jones is quite happy with what he's seen so far. He may not ever be a spectacular eye catching player but he does a job.
Seeing Jones’s reaction to a couple of Ahadme’s missteps, I would think he’s expecting a lot more from him. To put it bluntly, his current form is not good enough for a team challenging promotion. His positioning wasn’t great to receive a pass and when he did get possession he was so hesitant. For me he didn’t win enough long balls in both home games. There were hints of a good first touch, hopefully it’s nerves and he will improve quickly, he needs to.
Think we are done on midfield personally, inclusive of outgoings. Berry, Doc, Campbell, Anderson & Coventry will play most games and REG & Z Mitchell can play in the 6 role if needed. Think NJ will see that as enough
Comments
To save me scrolling through hundreds of unread posts, are we likely to see any more incomings or is that expected to be it now?
Thanks in advance
LCB - 70/30
He may not ever be a spectacular eye catching player but he does a job.
Ahadme was constantly on the move.
When we had the ball he was finding space or creating it for others.
They they had the ball he was closing down or limiting passing options.
He set up a good chance for Doc too.
The rest would have to be on the bench.