Players the worst versions of themselves at LCFC

[Dan]

This is actually worthy of a thread now on a day where Faes is an ever-present in a Monaco team that have won 7 Ligue 1 games on the spin and James Justin's Leeds have made it to the FA Cup semi finals. I would love to know how time and time again we get the absolute worst version of basically everybody and as soon as they leave us, their careers get back on track.

 

Interestingly as well, many of them leave and actually make a pretty slow start at their new clubs before getting back to grips with everything. Hermansen really struggled at West Ham early doors but appears to have turned it around. Barnes and Tielemans did not make good starts at their new clubs before eventually both going on to play in the Champions League.

 

Odsonne Edouard has been Lens' starting striker this season and they're going to make the Champions League. He's scored at a 1 in 2 rate.

 

There are other examples I've missed I'm sure. All of this while time and time again you see players make a decent start here and completely lose form. See Mavididi, Stolarczyk, arguably Fatawu as well.

 

It's one of those things that you cannot definitively prove, but there are so many examples of this that I just can't help but bring it up now. What is going on? And what is the root cause of this? Because it clearly exists.

[Sampson]

Barnes is a weird example. Him and Maddison both took so much weird flack when they were both hitting double figures and goals and assists and our defence was conceding like a sieve. They weren’t the reason we went down, we’d have probably finished 20th with 07-08 Derby level points total without them that season.

[bovril]

Kristiansen at Bologna springs to mind. 

[FoxesTez]

You can include Hamza’s loan in your list of players who have shown considerably more elsewhere.

 

The whole club atmosphere and environment is just not a place where anybody is thriving. Hard to say exactly why, although from an outside perspective I just think we have nobody setting the standards and demanding the same from their teammates. 
 

The culture is set by an owner who is not there or willing to demand more from those around him, and that is evident throughout the squad as well. 

[Free Falling Foxes]

9 hours ago, Dan said:

It's one of those things that you cannot definitively prove, but there are so many examples of this that I just can't help but bring it up now. What is going on? And what is the root cause of this? Because it clearly exists.

I don't do Twitter/X but these who do could send a friendly tweet to all those players who fall into that improvement category you elude to and in a passive and curious way ask them how/why?

Through gritted teeth perhaps, something along the lines of......

'As someone who admires you as a player, I am delighted you seem to have regained your form since leaving LCFC. May I ask if you agree and to what do you attribute this?'

Edited 6 April by Free Falling Foxes

[Claudio Fannieri]

Culture and standards are absolutely on the floor. Recruitment has been dire, not only the quality of players signed but also the character. Under Pearson the recruitment focused just as much on the character as it did football ability. 
 

nowadays it’s all so stale and lazy in everything we do. Manager and player recruitment is honking and in a lot of instances heavily agent influenced. 

[ceebeefox]

Two words, poor coaching.

[DennisNedry]

Maybe @hfaes can shed some light on this? 

[21st Century Fox]

7 minutes ago, DennisNedry said:

Maybe @hfaes can shed some light on this? 

You have to say it three times into a mirror before she rematerialises.

[kiddo]

Kramaric certainly bloomed when he left us.

[Sampson]

5 minutes ago, kiddo said:

Kramaric certainly bloomed when he left us.

Kramaric was always clearly a good player when he was here though tbf, he just understandably couldn’t get in the side ahead of Vardy, and he never became as good as Vardy either, so we were right to let him go.

[shen]

3 minutes ago, Sampson said:

Kramaric was always clearly a good player when he was here though tbf, he just understandably couldn’t get in the side ahead of Vardy, and he never became as good as Vardy either, so we were right to let him go.

He had some pretty poor moments with us when he got the chance. One of those where you could see there was talent, but you were starting to doubt he'd make it at our level.

[kiddo]

9 minutes ago, Sampson said:

Kramaric was always clearly a good player when he was here though tbf, he just understandably couldn’t get in the side ahead of Vardy, and he never became as good as Vardy either, so we were right to let him go.

Yeah, bit unfair including him as he was never that bad here. I so wanted him to do well, you could see his talent, but that Vardy just kept on scoring.

[Collymore]

A player caught drink driving and breaking the law attending lockdown parties (who's not even that good) then given the captaincy as a reward!

 

Sums it all up really. 

[Collymore]

We tried to become a top 6 club with a football league mentality. 

 

It wasn't just the fact rudders changed our approach to the transfer market and started buying like the big boys on talentless crap that thought they'd made it, it was the fact we have and always have had very low standards and a rotten culture. 

 

It's always been the same - when you listen to the pods of players of the past many stories are based around alcohol and misadventures that we all laugh about but that lack of professionalism has always been at our club. 

 

It's not just the club - it's the fans too that have this mindset. The amount of times on here you see members posting "they're entitled to let their hair down" "do you not have a break in your job?" 

 

Madders a great example. He was trying to get into the England squad and it was a time when we were trying to make that transition to top 6 and I remember posting on here at the time how unprofessional it was he was being here there and everywhere gallivanting around the world - Dubai...next week the darts etc....dragging others like Barnes with him too.. Do you see Barnes now at Newcastle gallivanting about? No - I'd imagine Newcastle wouldn't stand for it. 

 

The top players at top clubs don't have these podcast stories. They hold each other to account and the pressure of representing and being successful for their club is a driver that brings that success. 

 

This can only change now with a change from the top, but maybe we just have to accept we'll always be Leicester City that will make it on the back page of the Sun! 

Edited 6 April by Collymore

[Corky]

Justin is a capable Premier League defender. His first couple of years here were fine. Faes was just a poor player for us, too easily beaten physically and positionally. Same issues with Belgium too.

 

The culture is wrong here. Lazy recruitment, odd choices in terms of coaching and an owner not really interested. Who is pushing and demanding of these players?

[Sol thewall Bamba]

Perez.

[OntarioFox]

Hoo boy, this is a meaty subject. We could put together a whole squad of players who on paper are good (and in a few cases, world class), yet we've managed to get the worst out of...

 

Kramaric

Lookman

Choudhury 

Faes

Ayew x1000 🤮

Daka

Kane

Soumare x1001 🤮

Kristiansen

 

I guess Slimani too, though Newcastle fans might argue otherwise. He was shit for them by all accounts.

 

At this level, adding Cannon to the list even if he's bang average at best - he's now scored as many goals as either of our CFs despite being third choice at the Blades, and I'd bite your hand off to swap him for Ayew.

 

Barnes fell off due to Rodgers' appalling man management but was good overall for us, I'd say he's at his early level for us now with Newcastle. 

 

Maddison hasn't really shone at Spurs compared to his time with us, even when fit. And looking at their predicament I've come to the conclusion that he's just cursed. 

 

Skipping over a few who were right at the end of their careers and clearly past their best but who made some limited contributions (Solano & Dickov under Pearson spring to mind).

[Sol thewall Bamba]

Just now, OntarioFox said:

Hoo boy, this is a meaty subject. We could put together a whole squad of players who on paper are good (and in a few cases, world class), yet we've managed to get the worst out of...

 

Kramaric

Lookman

Choudhury 

Faes

Ayew x1000 🤮

Daka

Kane

Soumare x1001 🤮

Kristiansen

 

I guess Slimani too, though Newcastle fans might argue otherwise. He was shit for them by all accounts.

 

At this level, adding Cannon to the list even if he's bang average at best - he's now scored as many goals as either of our CFs despite being third choice at the Blades, and I'd bite your hand off to swap him for Ayew.

 

Barnes fell off due to Rodgers' appalling man management but was good overall for us, I'd say he's at his early level for us now with Newcastle. 

 

Maddison hasn't really shone at Spurs compared to his time with us, even when fit. And looking at their predicament I've come to the conclusion that he's just cursed. 

 

Skipping over a few who were right at the end of their careers and clearly past their best but who made some limited contributions (Solano & Dickov under Pearson spring to mind).

Soumare really tearing it up since he left tbf.

[OntarioFox]

1 minute ago, Sol thewall Bamba said:

Soumare really tearing it up since he left tbf.

I was thinking more about him coming from being a regular at a club that had just won Ligue 1, to go on to be the worst 'midfielder' I've ever seen wear the shirt. Point taken though.

Edited 6 April by OntarioFox

[Collymore]

3 minutes ago, OntarioFox said:

Maddison hasn't really shone at Spurs compared to his time with us, even when fit. And looking at their predicament I've come to the conclusion that he's just cursed. 

See my post above. He's not cursed,  he'd fit into that Spurs culture just fine! 

[HankMarvin]

Probably all got fit 

[davieG]

Nacho got the winner for Celtic yesterday

[Corky]

13 minutes ago, OntarioFox said:

Hoo boy, this is a meaty subject. We could put together a whole squad of players who on paper are good (and in a few cases, world class), yet we've managed to get the worst out of...

 

Kramaric

Lookman

Choudhury 

Faes

Ayew x1000 🤮

Daka

Kane

Soumare x1001 🤮

Kristiansen

 

I guess Slimani too, though Newcastle fans might argue otherwise. He was shit for them by all accounts.

 

At this level, adding Cannon to the list even if he's bang average at best - he's now scored as many goals as either of our CFs despite being third choice at the Blades, and I'd bite your hand off to swap him for Ayew.

 

Barnes fell off due to Rodgers' appalling man management but was good overall for us, I'd say he's at his early level for us now with Newcastle. 

 

Maddison hasn't really shone at Spurs compared to his time with us, even when fit. And looking at their predicament I've come to the conclusion that he's just cursed. 

 

Skipping over a few who were right at the end of their careers and clearly past their best but who made some limited contributions (Solano & Dickov under Pearson spring to mind).

Lookman was ok. Kramaric didn't flourish because Vardy was ahead of him. Choudhury is a mid-table Championship player at best.

[Collymore]

1 minute ago, davieG said:

Nacho got the winner for Celtic yesterday

Steven Hawking would bag 5 or 6 a season in a Celtic team upfront.

 

Some Middlesbrough fans at work were livid with him, I know that much! 

 

I think he is an example of someone who really was on a downward trajectory.