TeaCider24 12,639 Posted November 26, 2019 Share Posted November 26, 2019 People always say this about Ayala, but you can probably count on one hand the number of penalties he's given away in his time here. Link to post Share on other sites
Denzel Zanzibar 6,972 Posted November 26, 2019 Share Posted November 26, 2019 8 minutes ago, TeaCider24 said: People always say this about Ayala, but you can probably count on one hand the number of penalties he's given away in his time here. Just because he often gets away with manhandling players in the box on corners doesn't mean it's acceptable. Link to post Share on other sites
TeaCider24 12,639 Posted November 26, 2019 Share Posted November 26, 2019 39 minutes ago, Denzel Zanzibar said: Just because he often gets away with manhandling players in the box on corners doesn't mean it's acceptable. He's been "getting away" with it for 6 years now, after a while you just have to accept that he's not really that much of a penalty risk. I think Ben Gibson gave away more in his last season. 2 Link to post Share on other sites
RiseAgainst 3,793 Posted November 27, 2019 Share Posted November 27, 2019 In 33 matches last season, Ayala received 11 yellow cards and 2 reds (stats from Google). I'd hardly say that's a great record, especially considering he'd have played 39 matches if it wasn't for the reds. He's a really good player overall, and I'd miss him if he left. He's also our best CB by a distance. I'm not nit-picking, but I don't think it's wrong to point out he's prone to stupid fouls and is notoriously hands-y at corners. Link to post Share on other sites
TeaCider24 12,639 Posted November 27, 2019 Share Posted November 27, 2019 (edited) One of those red cards was rescinded for being wrongly given, it was a joke by the ref, so I'm not sure it should be held against him, the other was a second yellow. Every other league red card he's had here, and there are only 3 others in his 6 years here, was for a second yellow. Edited November 27, 2019 by TeaCider24 1 Link to post Share on other sites
Motor Mouth 255 Posted November 27, 2019 Share Posted November 27, 2019 1 hour ago, RiseAgainst said: In 33 matches last season, Ayala received 11 yellow cards and 2 reds (stats from Google). I'd hardly say that's a great record, especially considering he'd have played 39 matches if it wasn't for the reds. He's a really good player overall, and I'd miss him if he left. He's also our best CB by a distance. I'm not nit-picking, but I don't think it's wrong to point out he's prone to stupid fouls and is notoriously hands-y at corners. Ayala was always a hot head but as you have said one of the best centre backs we have had at this club for some time. Has for the cards when you play under the manager we had (Pulis) who I ain't knocking by the way then your defenders are always going to commit fouls and get more bookings because the team is so defensive all the pressure is on players like Ayala. Also don't forget he was probably the most ever present in the back line. 1 Link to post Share on other sites
Jamie-H 1,322 Posted December 4, 2019 Share Posted December 4, 2019 (edited) https://www.thenorthernecho.co.uk/sport/18077510.middlesbrough-set-modify-transfer-approach-january/ We're so skint we're apparently taking on experienced PL squad players who can barely get a game? What could possibly go wrong, that League 1 experiment sounds like it's went down a storm and any time I see us targeting 'proven' Championship players I get a strong Guedioura/Gestede vibe. This 'new' approach sounds very January 2017-January 2019 to me... He also says Clayton's contract's up along with Howson and Ayala they're attracting Championship interest what would we realistically get at this point for Howson/Clayton? 700k? Maybe 1 mill for Howson? Edited December 4, 2019 by Jamie-H 1 Link to post Share on other sites
Duvel 2,446 Posted December 4, 2019 Share Posted December 4, 2019 4 minutes ago, Jamie-H said: https://www.thenorthernecho.co.uk/sport/18077510.middlesbrough-set-modify-transfer-approach-january/ We're so skint we're apparently taking on experienced PL squad players who can barely get a game? What could possibly go wrong, that League 1 experiment sounds like it's went down a storm and any time I see us targeting 'proven' Championship players I get a strong Guedioura/Gestede vibe. This 'new' approach sounds very January 2017-January 2019 to me... Just goes to show the preseason talk about a new philosophy was pure horse ***. Do we really lack experience at this level? Randolph, Shotton, Ayala, Friend, Howson, Saville, McNair, Clayton, Britt, Gestede There's a lot of championship experience there. I know they're not all fit at the moment but I don't think we've got a team full of kids either. Link to post Share on other sites
wilsoncgp 9,283 Posted December 4, 2019 Share Posted December 4, 2019 I think if you look at certain areas of the team, we could certainly do with some more experience. It's no good that 4 of those players listed are centre-mids, Gestede and Friend look like they'll never be consistently fit again. We could do with a proven, experienced winger or two given we've been asking for that for over a year. Browne and Johnson are our only real wingers and they're not exactly boasting a great deal of experience at this level. We could do with an experienced defender or two, particularly when you've got seemingly never-ending injuries to Shotton and Friend and we never replaced Flint. I can't imagine it definitely means buying permanently, either. I think we'll be looking to do some loan deals to add to the squad, mostly because we won't want to keep anyone on Prem wages on a long-term deal. 1 Link to post Share on other sites
TeaCider24 12,639 Posted December 4, 2019 Share Posted December 4, 2019 I notice Mo Besic has only played 9 minutes of league football for Sheffield United this season. Wish we'd managed to sign him permanently rather than Saville, even if he did cause problems with his ball retention and little circles. Link to post Share on other sites
RiseAgainst 3,793 Posted December 4, 2019 Share Posted December 4, 2019 I was so disappointed by Besic. If he'd spent half as much time linking up play as he did throwing himself into risky tackles, he'd have been quite the player. As it was, him and Mikel seemed totally superfluous. Always looking for the easy short pass, as if pass completion statistics are the only thing that matter in football. There's a reason Sheff U haven't given him more than ten minutes of football in almost half a season. Link to post Share on other sites
Duvel 2,446 Posted December 4, 2019 Share Posted December 4, 2019 29 minutes ago, wilsoncgp said: I think if you look at certain areas of the team, we could certainly do with some more experience. It's no good that 4 of those players listed are centre-mids, Gestede and Friend look like they'll never be consistently fit again. We could do with a proven, experienced winger or two given we've been asking for that for over a year. Browne and Johnson are our only real wingers and they're not exactly boasting a great deal of experience at this level. We could do with an experienced defender or two, particularly when you've got seemingly never-ending injuries to Shotton and Friend and we never replaced Flint. I can't imagine it definitely means buying permanently, either. I think we'll be looking to do some loan deals to add to the squad, mostly because we won't want to keep anyone on Prem wages on a long-term deal. Do you need experience in every area though? I'd say we can put out a team where the spine is fairly experienced. I think the priority is to sign better players, I'm not particularly bothered how old they are. The argument that we need experience is the total opposite to what people were asking for on here in the summer. Link to post Share on other sites
mendieta420 1,007 Posted December 4, 2019 Share Posted December 4, 2019 20 minutes ago, RiseAgainst said: I was so disappointed by Besic. If he'd spent half as much time linking up play as he did throwing himself into risky tackles, he'd have been quite the player. As it was, him and Mikel seemed totally superfluous. Funny you say that, I thought our best performances came the few times they were (rarely) paired together. Link to post Share on other sites
wilsoncgp 9,283 Posted December 4, 2019 Share Posted December 4, 2019 2 minutes ago, Duvel said: Do you need experience in every area though? I'd say we can put out a team where the spine is fairly experienced. I think the priority is to sign better players, I'm not particularly bothered how old they are. The argument that we need experience is the total opposite to what people were asking for on here in the summer. I'd say experience is probably needed more in situations like we're in, the young lads who are in the team and are absolutely required on the bench right now don't get to come into games and play to their own strengths as an individual, they need to fit the team because we're desperate for points. You are right, it is different to what we asked for in the summer but given the consensus on here seems to agree that we're in a relegation battle and indeed you yourself have said we've not even bottomed out as a club, it's vital we get players who are proven at this level as good players to ensure we avoid that situation. I don't think anyone can disagree we need more quality than 'age' but as you've also shown by your own post, experience isn't only categorised by having simply older players, the likes of McNair, Saville and Britt aren't old players but they do have more experience at this level than the kind of players we want to bring through in the long-term, the 3 we've brought in this summer are entering this level for the first time and in a battle at the bottom, it's not overly surprising we're not seeing the best out of them. And bringing in an older head doesn't necessarily mean a long-term signing as I've also said, you could bring in a 32-year old for 5-6 months and that's not respectively affecting the long-term commitment of finances as much. I'd honestly much rather we do that now and give Woodgate a chance to turn it around than switch to the alternative, which seems to be Warnock. That is a considerably greater change in direction than changing your short-term recruitment goals. Link to post Share on other sites
Duvel 2,446 Posted December 4, 2019 Share Posted December 4, 2019 Just off the top of my head, you could pretty much put this team on the pitch at the moment. Randolph Djiksteel Ayala Fry Coulson Clayton McNair Saville Wing Britt Fletcher. That's with Friend, Shotton and Gestede to come back from injury. That to me is a nice blend of youth and experience which is what Woodgate supposedly wanted. I knew all those players aren't firing on all cylinders at the moment and that team also lacks flair, but that isn't a team that should be fighting relegation either. 1 Link to post Share on other sites
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