Leeds Pre Match

[Lesta2014]

Give me a scrappy win after a big effort put in midweek 

[Clever Fox]

11 hours ago, Foxxed said:

Everyone loves to hate him. I normally don’t read his stuff but I decided to have a look after the criticism. So he said we have no Vardy and Leeds are dangerous because their tails are up after losing two and then winning one. Lazy really. Maddison and Barnes are in great scoring form. Without Ndidi we will struggle however. Not that he mentioned that of course.

 

Would an out of position Fofana really be better than Mendy? Bren would get lynched if we lose because he decided to experiment with Fofana instead of using a proven and able premier league DM. We could always revert if it’s not working but that would mean using a sub early on against a good goal scoring team when we don’t have our main striker. But yeah I  would be fascinated to see how Fofana fairs.

There's a reason players play in the positions they do, It's usually because some Coach has decided that's were he sees them at their best. But there's also players who can comfortably play in several positions like JJ. There's others who started in one position and moved to another and excelled like Vardy and Ricardo.

My point is sometimes your forced into a situation and have to try something, Granted we're not desperate we have Mendy., decent as he is we'll lack NDiddi pace over the ground and his timing in tackles which is important so as we don't give too many free kicks in dangerous area's. Fofana would give us that extra defensive talent in the midfield area plus we know he likes to get forward so who knows how it could go.  I think it's an experiment worth trying, But Brendan works every day with them so I'm sure he has his own ideas.

The one thing I am sure of is that we need to stop Leeds further away from our Goal or they can hurt us and adding Fofana into the midfield would do that, Even if it was alongside Youri and Mendy in a 3.

So we'll see tomorrow if it would have been worth trying. I still expect us to win provided we turn up ready for a tough challenge. 

[Nick]

3 hours ago, deanolegend1989 said:

The sad reality is the stats back me up and show Mendy to be exactly what he is, a very poor limited player.

This is a board where I’ve heard ‘Jamie Vardy is not good enough for league 1’, ‘Ndidi will struggle to get back into the team because of Mendy’ and ‘I’d rather have Mendy than Kante’.
So I don’t take much on here seriously, other than a few posters who can give good arguments where I can see that they follow football.

 

 

 

Mendy hasn't looked poor or limited - he's an above average DCM that isn't anybody's starting choice but has certainly been a good enough no.2 this season.

 

Poor and limited is just nonsense - he has strengths in areas where Ndidi does not, but obviously they are different sort of DCM'S with differing attributes and weaknesses. 

 

I think it's ridiculously arrogant of you to label anybody that disagrees with your opinions that they 'don't know football' whilst saying in another breath we should just play Fofana as a DCM as Mendy is that much of a risk... Have you ever seen Fofana drive forward with ball at feet and pick out passes and technically hold the ball and lay off and move in the centre of the park whilst surrounded by opposition players with the ability, poise and pass completion rate of a player like Mendy? Of course you haven't. But you suggest playing Fofana in the Ndidi role as a potential masterstroke and not as higher risk as playing Mendy there? Worth a try you say? Righto.

 

But you know football and I disagree with you, so I won't waste my time hoping for you to take my opinion seriously as you put it.

 

 

 

 

[KingsX]

Leeds haven’t drawn a game since November 22, losing five of the 10 games by a combined score of 15-3 while winning the other five by a combined 14-3 margin.  Win big, lose big.

[reynard]

I'm not expecting an easy game at all. Willf is a big miss as is Vardy. Are they missing anyone?

[moore_94]

1 minute ago, reynard said:

I'm not expecting an easy game at all. Willf is a big miss as is Vardy. Are they missing anyone?

Missing both of their starting centre backs - Llorente and Koch

[PaulW]

6 hours ago, deanolegend1989 said:

I think it’s very very naive to think we dominated the game vs Everton and deserved to win. Had it not been for an awful keeper throwing a tame effort into the net, we lose, like we usually do in tough situations like that conceding the first goal.

We are a different team without Wilf and if you can’t see that then it’s fine.
Just don’t be suprised when we lose to the likes of West Ham, Everton and Fulham at home without laying a glove and wondering why we can beat Spurs. Chelsea and Southampton so convincingly recently then drop points vs Leeds.

Unfortunately for your argument, we were a far better team in the 2nd half against Everton.

[Always Next Year]

12 hours ago, Foxxed said:

Everyone loves to hate him. I normally don’t read his stuff but I decided to have a look after the criticism. So he said we have no Vardy and Leeds are dangerous because their tails are up after losing two and then winning one. Lazy really. Maddison and Barnes are in great scoring form. Without Ndidi we will struggle however. Not that he mentioned that of course.

 

Would an out of position Fofana really be better than Mendy? Bren would get lynched if we lose because he decided to experiment with Fofana instead of using a proven and able premier league DM. We could always revert if it’s not working but that would mean using a sub early on against a good goal scoring team when we don’t have our main striker. But yeah I  would be fascinated to see how Fofana fairs.

He’s only saying that because Vardy is out, scruffy runt needs a good wash and shave and a visit to a charity cloths shop.

[PaulW]

19 hours ago, DanNDH88 said:

Yes!.....I'd been struggling think who it was he reminded me of!

[Beachyboy]

2 hours ago, Lesta2014 said:

Give me a scrappy win after a big effort put in midweek 

The template of how to beat Leeds has been proven time and time again this season, it doesn't need to be scrappy, defend well, start fast, establish a lead, and plenty of chances will come on the counter attacks. 

[deanolegend1989]

4 hours ago, ARTY_FOX said:

You can put part of the blame on N'didi as he had a chance to put a foot in and didn't. Probably because Tielemans had shown Rodrigues on to his right foot but he still could have attempted to block but didn't   a good performance for mendy isn't a 'steady eddy' his bog standard is much like Albrighton probably a 7/10. Even sides challenging for Europe's big competition  need players like that. 

 

Personally I don't think Fofana would just walk into the position and be great. Its not an easy place to play. N'didi always seems to be in the right place at the right time and his positioning is exceptional, maybe only equalled by his tackling ability but then part of that comes from the fantastic positioning he takes up. Its not as simple as 'Oh he passes well let's stick him in'. 

 

Wilfred N'didi isn't the reason we lose to teams with a low block, its our inability to break them down and lack of a big man in the middle to aim something at. To be fair to vardy he's got a great leap and decent heading ability for his size, but he isn't beating two 6ft odd centre backs in the air that are happy to just sit deep and head it out all day. That's got nothing to do with N'didi. As we saw vs Everton those teams are also more than happy to bypass the midfield and get their forward chasing a ball with our defenders. Much like we have in the past. This is without even factoring in our inability to defend corners. N'didi can help with that but the bigger problem is having people like Tielemans marking their biggest threats.  

I disagree, it’s completely Fofanas fault. He made a mistake and then he should be crunching James. He didn’t. Simple as that.

 

Hes not in the same bracket as Albrighton. Albrighton won’t cost us games, he’s just not the most talented guy. I bet if you compare the win rates of each one of them in the team you’ll see who costs us more points.

The 2 worst players in our squad this season are Mendy and Fuchs. There the 2 who cost us the most points. There performances vs Everton at home we’re so embarrassing they should both never play for us again.

 

I’m not the only one suggesting Fofana plays there, read the other messages in this chat. It is an option that night and could turn into a master stroke. Thierry Henry was a winger and then turned into one of the greatest strikers ever. You just never know so don’t knock it until proven.

 

The last paragraph is just ridiculous, so 90s football. Big men lumping up doesn’t work anymore, the games passed that by. Newcastle break down so many teams with Carroll up top don’t they..

No top team has a target man anymore, and even the 1 who you could argue does(Spurs/Kane) he drops so deep he’s not actually playing as a target man. The game is long moved on.

[moore_94]

8 minutes ago, deanolegend1989 said:

I disagree, it’s completely Fofanas fault. He made a mistake and then he should be crunching James. He didn’t. Simple as that.

 

Hes not in the same bracket as Albrighton. Albrighton won’t cost us games, he’s just not the most talented guy. I bet if you compare the win rates of each one of them in the team you’ll see who costs us more points.

The 2 worst players in our squad this season are Mendy and Fuchs. There the 2 who cost us the most points. There performances vs Everton at home we’re so embarrassing they should both never play for us again.

 

I’m not the only one suggesting Fofana plays there, read the other messages in this chat. It is an option that night and could turn into a master stroke. Thierry Henry was a winger and then turned into one of the greatest strikers ever. You just never know so don’t knock it until proven.

 

The last paragraph is just ridiculous, so 90s football. Big men lumping up doesn’t work anymore, the games passed that by. Newcastle break down so many teams with Carroll up top don’t they..

No top team has a target man anymore, and even the 1 who you could argue does(Spurs/Kane) he drops so deep he’s not actually playing as a target man. The game is long moved on.

You seem a bit obsessed with wanting to slate Mendy as often as possible

[ARTY_FOX]

12 minutes ago, deanolegend1989 said:

I disagree, it’s completely Fofanas fault. He made a mistake and then he should be crunching James. He didn’t. Simple as that.

 

Hes not in the same bracket as Albrighton. Albrighton won’t cost us games, he’s just not the most talented guy. I bet if you compare the win rates of each one of them in the team you’ll see who costs us more points.

The 2 worst players in our squad this season are Mendy and Fuchs. There the 2 who cost us the most points. There performances vs Everton at home we’re so embarrassing they should both never play for us again.

 

I’m not the only one suggesting Fofana plays there, read the other messages in this chat. It is an option that night and could turn into a master stroke. Thierry Henry was a winger and then turned into one of the greatest strikers ever. You just never know so don’t knock it until proven.

 

The last paragraph is just ridiculous, so 90s football. Big men lumping up doesn’t work anymore, the games passed that by. Newcastle break down so many teams with Carroll up top don’t they..

No top team has a target man anymore, and even the 1 who you could argue does(Spurs/Kane) he drops so deep he’s not actually playing as a target man. The game is long moved on.

2 midfielders were between them by the time he had a shot. It's his fault the ball ended up with James but not only his fault the shot got off. Simple as that. 

 

Honestly thats the most ridiculous thing you've said in a string of ridiculous things. Mendy has been outstanding for us this season. Everton did a job on us at home, helped by a goal keeping error that came from a wide player and had nothing to do with mendy soooo. You don't like him. Thats fair enough but to try and say he's been our worst player is hilarious. 

 

I never said you are the only one, just said I disagree. We'll see what rogers thinks tomorrow. I havent seen anything thay suggests he'll be an amazing defensive midfielder. 

 

It isn't. Teams do it all the time. Everton did in the week. Fulham did it at home. Burnley do it regularly. Whats carrol got to do with anything he doesn't even play so that makes no sense. Just random babble because you can't back your point up. You haven't mentioned a top team. Infact the only top team we've lost to is Liverpool. I also never said teams lump it to a target man, I said alot of teams put it long for their forward to chase. Which they do. Burnley however do pump it long to target men. 

 

Also (and I hate to bring it up because he's been admittedly brilliant recently) but is it the same Albrighton who's had a habit of giving stupid penalties away that 'won't cost us a game'

Edited 30 January 2021 by ARTY_FOX

[ARTY_FOX]

Just now, moore_94 said:

You seem a bit obsessed with wanting to slate Mendy as often as possible

So much so he's making stuff up now. Weird. 

[Countryfox]

Wilf will be a big loss but Mendy is a fantastic replacement for him and very underrated ...   personally I love him ! ...   

 

P.S.  Sorry for all the technical top end strategy football speak.  

[HighPeakFox]

17 minutes ago, deanolegend1989 said:

The 2 worst players in our squad this season are Mendy and Fuchs. There the 2 who cost us the most points. There performances vs Everton at home we’re so embarrassing they should both never play for us again.

There's having an opinion, and then there's just laying blame. You speak of other posters insulting you, but these remarks are so grossly insulting to two excellent professionals, one of whom is one of our immortals, and the other who has fought back against all the odds to contribute positively. That, plus telling most of us we don't know anything about football, means you have to own your share of the mudslinging.

[whoareyaaa]

6 minutes ago, HighPeakFox said:

There's having an opinion, and then there's just laying blame. You speak of other posters insulting you, but these remarks are so grossly insulting to two excellent professionals, one of whom is one of our immortals, and the other who has fought back against all the odds to contribute positively. That, plus telling most of us we don't know anything about football, means you have to own your share of the mudslinging.

Putting Fofona in Mendys postion is football intelligence at its finest.

[Pub breath]

6 hours ago, deanolegend1989 said:

I just believe that Leeds having their fully fit squad back 

We don't.  We're missing our two big CB signings from the summer and Forshaw has been injured forever but possibly wouldn't be starting if he was fit.  Berardi been out since late last season and would certainly start if he was fit.

[volpeazzurro]

2 hours ago, Nick said:

 

Mendy hasn't looked poor or limited - he's an above average DCM that isn't anybody's starting choice but has certainly been a good enough no.2 this season.

 

Poor and limited is just nonsense - he has strengths in areas where Ndidi does not, but obviously they are different sort of DCM'S with differing attributes and weaknesses. 

 

I think it's ridiculously arrogant of you to label anybody that disagrees with your opinions that they 'don't know football' whilst saying in another breath we should just play Fofana as a DCM as Mendy is that much of a risk... Have you ever seen Fofana drive forward with ball at feet and pick out passes and technically hold the ball and lay off and move in the centre of the park whilst surrounded by opposition players with the ability, poise and pass completion rate of a player like Mendy? Of course you haven't. But you suggest playing Fofana in the Ndidi role as a potential masterstroke and not as higher risk as playing Mendy there? Worth a try you say? Righto.

 

But you know football and I disagree with you, so I won't waste my time hoping for you to take my opinion seriously as you put it.

 

 

 

 

No way is Mendy poor and limited and on so many occasions, last season and this, pundits have had him vying for man of the match. His contribution is sometimes difficult to see, he's not flashy and he can't recover the ball as well as Ndidi but not many players in the Premiership can! He does however keep the ball well and certainly pass it a little bit better than Ndidi. Rodgers is no mug and there was good reason why he was kept. 

Edited 30 January 2021 by volpeazzurro

[deanolegend1989]

I’m bored of this conversation now. I just lost the post I was writing that took me 15 mins so I can’t be bothered to re write it.

 

End of the day it’s just opinions. Im not bothered what anyone thinks when I see something, as you should all not if you disagree with my opinion on Mendy. It seems my opinion get people worked up, because I don’t go along with the easier option or I’ve hit a raw nerve by being able to back my opinions up and show up the truth.

 

Every single time Mendy is on the pitch , we are a poorer team and more likely to drop points and get run over. Nothing will change that and the sooner we get a better back up for Wilf the better.

 

Now I’m not going to say anything more on the matter because we’re going round in circles.

[HighPeakFox]

3 minutes ago, Pub breath said:

We don't.  We're missing our two big CB signings from the summer and Forshaw has been injured forever but possibly wouldn't be starting if he was fit.  Berardi been out since late last season and would certainly start if he was fit.

We don't take kindly to people interrupting narratives with facts around here  

[Countryfox]

25 minutes ago, HighPeakFox said:

There's having an opinion, and then there's just laying blame. You speak of other posters insulting you, but these remarks are so grossly insulting to two excellent professionals, one of whom is one of our immortals, and the other who has fought back against all the odds to contribute positively. That, plus telling most of us we don't know anything about football, means you have to own your share of the mudslinging.

You tell him Peaky !!

[Countryfox]

2 minutes ago, HighPeakFox said:

We don't take kindly to people interrupting narratives with facts around here  

You tell him Peaky !!

[HighPeakFox]

Just now, Countryfox said:

You tell him Peaky !!

It's such a shame, because he doesn't seem to understand the difference between a reasonable opinion on a player (I mean, who amongst us thinks Mendy is better than Ndidi?) and being incredibly insulting  I think what annoys me most is that the cognitive dissonance kicks in when challenged politely, and he just says 'I'm bored of this now' as if he was nothing to do with the conversation in the first place. All in the name of 'telling it like it is', which is generally an excuse to cover any horrible point of view.

[Countryfox]

3 minutes ago, HighPeakFox said:

It's such a shame, because he doesn't seem to understand the difference between a reasonable opinion on a player (I mean, who amongst us thinks Mendy is better than Ndidi?) and being incredibly insulting  I think what annoys me most is that the cognitive dissonance kicks in when challenged politely, and he just says 'I'm bored of this now' as if he was nothing to do with the conversation in the first place. All in the name of 'telling it like it is', which is generally an excuse to cover any horrible point of view.

Yes you’ve handled it very well Peaky and I totally agree with you ...   personally if someone insulted the little man like that ..  an excellent player and a humble honest servant of our club ...   I’d tell him to  ...  off ! ....