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El Scorchio 7:46 Sun Nov 19
Midfield - What's the answer?

Clearly it's where a lot of our problems come from.

What do we do with the players we have? None of the centre midfielders apart from Lanzini looks worth the price of a block of cheese at the moment.

Obiang and Kouyate?
Obiang and Noble?
Noble and Kouyate?
Fernandes?

Who on earth do we play in there and in what combination? I've literally no idea what would actually work for us at this point in time.

Ashy 9:19 Tue Nov 21
Re: Midfield - What's the answer?

As much as I agree than Noble is not the player he was 2 seasons ago, he is still the best we have in there unfortunately and it's frustrating reading the same old blinkered shit about him not playing forward.
He doesn't want to lump it forward he wants to build it properly, but that's hard to do with players that don't show or are unable to control it or pass it on properly so he keeps the ball plays it simple and gets slaughtered for it.
One example...

andyd12345 12:59 Mon Nov 20
Re: Midfield - What's the answer?
Ornchurch - but he's still too slow on the ball. When its with Lanzini he's quick footed and zips the ball about. With Noble everything is slow and laboured, and he takes too many touches. We are never going to control games with Noble as our ball playing midfielder

Who was involved twice and created the 1st Kouyate chance with a perfect quick pass on the edge of the area after a (very rare) decent passage of passing play?
With quicker legs on decent players like Lanzini around him Noble can still do it.
We can't trust the board to buy any though!

Willtell 5:54 Mon Nov 20
Re: Midfield - What's the answer?

William Carvalho is the answer apparently. Yes we could have signed him but David Sullivan thought a ruck with his club would be more fun instead...

stirlinghammer 5:52 Mon Nov 20
Re: Midfield - What's the answer?

alex song even now & with 1 leg would be better than obiang/ noble or both of them combined

a kid from the championship taking the piss yesterday was comical

White Pony 5:29 Mon Nov 20
Re: Midfield - What's the answer?

I'll tell you on thing. The answer never has been, and never will be, Edmilison fucking Fernandes.

longford 5:26 Mon Nov 20
Re: Midfield - What's the answer?

Lanzini in the middle , with two either side of him ..

ie noble Lanzini obaing ...

Also id like to see if Antonio could cut the mustard as a box to box type in the middle

clem132 5:04 Mon Nov 20
Re: Midfield - What's the answer?

has to be Lanzini with Kouyate and Noble

my team would be

Hart
Zaba Reid Collins (Rice if injured) Cresswell
Kouyate Lanzini Noble
Antonio (Arnie if injured) Arthur
Hernandez (Sakho if injured)

Jim79 4:48 Mon Nov 20
Re: Midfield - What's the answer?

If Carvalho is stupid enough to still come then they should move heaven and earth to sign him to provide us with someone who can command the centre of the park.

Additionally, and I know some will slaughter me for this, we should sign Wilshire to give us some creativity and an ability to spot and execute a pass. In a World Cup year he has so much to prove and lets be honest its not like we're gonna be able to get near anyone better, in fact even he might tell us to do one.

El Scorchio 3:44 Mon Nov 20
Re: Midfield - What's the answer?

I agree that Payet and good feeling that season masked a lot of deficiencies. We also rode our luck greatly at some points that season (being soundly beaten 2-0 for 80 mins by 10 man Everton before an extraordinary comeback in the last 10 mins to win 3-2 springs to mind)

We scored several goals from free kicks and the team had this immense self belief that they were never beaten.

All that is gone now. I don't think the players were simply never good enough and were just lucky passengers that season. I believe they are still decent, but just shorn of confidence, fitness and a bit broken and rudderless. They can be moulded into a functional unit, but can the guy currently in charge do it, and can he do it quickly enough?

Sir Alf 3:36 Mon Nov 20
Re: Midfield - What's the answer?

El Scorchio 2:58 Mon Nov 20

I am thinking that Payet was a massive reason for that first great season. Confidence from winning at places like Anfield obviously helped all of them but really once he ( Payet ) started to be dealt with better by teams towards the end of that great first season and the "downing of tools" the season after, we have been seeing the same problem. Payet and the blend with Noble and Kouyate and Lanzini. Is it not the case that Payet's influence was a whole lot more than anyone realised? He had 144 assists that season alone.

For me, the squad was not understood. The focus was on strikers and no one thought about this area because we were 4th in March and the conceding of goals that started was seen as just an end of season blip I am guessing. I remember Gold saying we had plenty of midfielders and that strikers was all we were missing.

What I am saying is yes, we can improve but without some other options I do not think it will be enough in the midfield. We look too slow, lumbering and disconnected.

El Scorchio 3:06 Mon Nov 20
Re: Midfield - What's the answer?

Trouble is for his limitations, he's almost the only one who wants the ball.

Kouyate and Obiang should be good enough between them to keep Noble out of the team, given his apparent weaknesses and their obvious physicality. Problem is they are both themselves playing football hopelessly at the moment.

Alex V 3:04 Mon Nov 20
Re: Midfield - What's the answer?

I think even during that great season we were extremely brittle in midfield. The difference was that we were such a threat on the counter that teams that came onto us could get caught out.

One McAvennieeeeee 3:03 Mon Nov 20
Re: Midfield - What's the answer?

The Managers don't have to pick Noble you know.

Dr Moose 3:01 Mon Nov 20
Re: Midfield - What's the answer?

Have said many times before, its now time to thank Noble for the shift he has put in over the years and move on to a league\\club that will suit him more.

This is the Rooney\\England effect, in that we are trying to fit him in when pace is clearly an issue. Time for him to move on to Villa!

El Scorchio 2:58 Mon Nov 20
Re: Midfield - What's the answer?

The same players were plenty good enough two seasons ago.

In Noble's case, I think age has probably caught up with him and he's not very effective any more, but Obiang and Kouyate are 25 and 27 respectively and should be in their prime, certainly as good if not better than 2016.

Both have regressed massively over the last 18 months for some reason.

It's happened also to Cresswell and Antonio, and it's happening to Lanzini.

We need to figure out WHY, and we need to put it right.

Sir Alf 2:52 Mon Nov 20
Re: Midfield - What's the answer?

Does anyone believe a different manager with different tactical plans, fitness regimes and formations/roles can get the same set of midfielders since Payet left ( with the exception of Arny I suppose) to start dominating games, passing and moving, being a tight unit that also presses the opposition and gives them little space. They have not done so for the best part of 2 years under Bilic and 1 game for Moyes. Can they?

I think we need some different type of players but we will know soon enough ( by Xmas) if Moyes can deploy them in a different way if their fitness and stamina improvements make the difference. I suspect not but will take any improvement at this point tbh.

connolly8 2:32 Mon Nov 20
Re: Midfield - What's the answer?

I think Wilshere would suit us perfectly can run with the ball and pick out forward passes. Only issue is staying fit.

boleyn8420 2:19 Mon Nov 20
Re: Midfield - What's the answer?

Infidel. we seem to be agreeing about the management as the teams occupying those placesare managed by Dyche, Silva, Houghton and Wagner and we have David Moyes. But I still don't think our squad is up to much to be honest

El Scorchio 1:49 Mon Nov 20
Re: Midfield - What's the answer?

Having lesser players playing together as greater than the sum of their parts is the key to success.

We currently have 'good' players playing as less than the sum of their parts, which is disasterous.

We just have to hope the manager can find a way to flip the situation from the latter to the former.

Alex V 1:44 Mon Nov 20
Re: Midfield - What's the answer?

Having good players is better than having big names.

Infidel 1:37 Mon Nov 20
Re: Midfield - What's the answer?

Boleyn

Burnley, Watford, Brighton and Huddersfield occupy 7th to 10th places in the league. None of them have any recognised big name players.

So yes, if minor clubs like that can make top half with a third of the season gone then we ought to be top 6 with the players we have.

The rest of your post is agreeing with everything I have said about the staggeringly stupid decision to appoint Moyes. People on here expecting an improvement in fitness, tactics, motivation or anything else need their heads examined. He is going to take us down.

Mace66 1:12 Mon Nov 20
Re: Midfield - What's the answer?

boleyn - set up and tactics ok, but you wouldn't expect to see an improvement in fitness after a week. That won't come for another 3-4 weeks. Infact, if their training regime has been upped significantly i'd expect them to be fucked after a week and carrying that into the game !!

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