Player Ratings?

[Bryn]

Schmeichel 7.5 - Some really smart saves. His massive kicks are an asset but I wish he'd mix it up a bit, there were times where we were under the cosh and he was kicking it back to Almunia.

 

De Laet 7 - Solid at the back, they didn't get much down that side, keen going forward but usually wasteful.

Morgan 8 - Rock solid

Keane 7 - Couple of iffy moments but generally untroubled

Schlupp 5.5 - Far too many mistakes to get a better mark than this but is a threat going forward. Terrified me at the back though.

 

Knockaert 7 - Blew hot and cold, better in the first half than in the second but his assist was magnificent.

James 8 - Very, very composed in possession, mopped up all over and a couple of penetrative runs.

King 8 - Similar to James, covered every blade of grass tonight.

Dyer 7 - Always a threat with his pace. Some good deliveries and one memorable slide-rule pass from a central possession warranted a goal.

 

Nugent 7.5 - A lot of his work will have gone unnoticed tonight as offensively he was very quiet but he was operating in a crucial area, sitting off Wood and reducing the space for the defence to link with the midfield. And a wonderfully taken goal which clearly meant a lot to him.

Wood 5 - Very poor.

 

Kane - Hard to rate in the time he had but looks a much better option than Wood right now.

[Danno]

And that means De Laet played well? No, definitely not.

That just shows your distinct lack of football knowledge then.

[okie fox]

Schmeichel -8- Some good saves

 

De Laet -6- Weak defensively

Morgan -7- Sound

Keane -8- Good game

Schlupp -5- Very nervous, but made a few good runs forward

 

Knockaert -7- Mixed bag, but great free kick

King -8- Prominent

James -9- MOM

Dyer -8- Great at start of game

 

Nugent -7- Worked hard

Wood -5- Slow

 

SUBS

Kane -6- More mobile than Wood

Drinkwater -NA-

[davieG]

Dont forget to vote in the MOM Poll - http://www.foxestalk...ter-city-forum/

[Blueforever]

Schmeichel 7.5 - Some really smart saves. His massive kicks are an asset but I wish he'd mix it up a bit, there were times where we were under the cosh and he was kicking it back to Almunia.

De Laet 7 - Solid at the back, they didn't get much down that side, keen going forward but usually wasteful.

Morgan 8 - Rock solid

Keane 7 - Couple of iffy moments but generally untroubled

Schlupp 5.5 - Far too many mistakes to get a better mark than this but is a threat going forward. Terrified me at the back though.

Knockaert 7 - Blew hot and cold, better in the first half than in the second but his assist was magnificent.

James 8 - Very, very composed in possession, mopped up all over and a couple of penetrative runs.

King 8 - Similar to James, covered every blade of grass tonight.

Dyer 7 - Always a threat with his pace. Some good deliveries and one memorable slide-rule pass from a central possession warranted a goal.

Nugent 7.5 - A lot of his work will have gone unnoticed tonight as offensively he was very quiet but he was operating in a crucial area, sitting off Wood and reducing the space for the defence to link with the midfield. And a wonderfully taken goal which clearly meant a lot to him.

Wood 5 - Very poor.

Kane - Hard to rate in the time he had but looks a much better option than Wood right now.

agreed with this. De Laet was much better than people are giving credit for.

[cc_star]

Find some of RDL's criticisms a bit weird

 

Defensively he never gave their left side a sniff

 

Attacking... people saying he runs into dead ends or whatever... then in the same comment praise Knockaert for his runs - Who is the very definition of running into dead ends, whose astonishingly slow pace is at times a real issue & selfishness causes attack after attack after attack to break down & us face a counter... Despite this I love Knockaert though, he's got real talent and is a real genuine match winner & worthy of his place.

 

I'm not suggesting RDL was MotM or anything, & yes RDL wasn't his usual attacking threat last night as he was prioritising the defensive side of his game to great effect - But I don't understand the lashing he's often given... Very, very little has come down that side over this whole season, his attacking threat keeps opposing widemen pinned back & he has the pace to cover at the back.

 

Still, opinions... and all that.

[Dickov22]

Find some of RDL's criticisms a bit weird

Defensively he never gave their left side a sniff

Attacking... people saying he runs into dead ends or whatever... then in the same comment praise Knockaert for his runs - Who is the very definition of running into dead ends, whose astonishingly slow pace is at times a real issue & selfishness causes attack after attack after attack to break down & us face a counter... Despite this I love Knockaert though, he's got real talent and is a real genuine match winner & worthy of his place.

I'm not suggesting RDL was MotM or anything, & yes RDL wasn't his usual attacking threat last night as he was prioritising the defensive side of his game to great effect - But I don't understand the lashing he's often given... Very, very little has come down that side over this whole season, his attacking threat keeps opposing widemen pinned back & he has the pace to cover at the back.

Still, opinions... and all that.

Totally agree with everything you've said

[ScouseFox]

Kasper 7

De Laet 7

Wes 7

Keane 7 - so composed for a kid

Schlupp 5 - massive lack of composure and generally looked terrified, what you'd expect from a kid

Knockaert 6 - tried too much at times, occasionally looked a threat and put in a great delivery for the goal. Mixed bag.

King 9 - best player on the park.

James 8.5 - would've been the best player on the park any other day.

Dyer 7 - tired but still stupidly fast.

Wood 5

Nuge 8 - welcome back

[Ricey]

Kasper - 7 - Couple of good saves to save our (danish) bacon again.

 

De Laet - 5 - Not with it at all today. Poor first touch, poor final ball and repeatedly ran himself into trouble.

Morgan - 8 - Usual.

Keane - 7 - Coped with the occasion well, but slow to react a couple of times.

Schlupp - 6 - Extra point for his pace, which got him out of trouble and caused problems going forward. Very shakey defensively though.

 

Knockaert - 7 - Work rate superb, creative and great free-kick. Sloppy at times though.

King - 7 - Worked very hard to close down.

James - 9 - Superb, an all-round brilliant performance. I love his ability to control the ball into space when under pressure.

Dyer - 8 - A constant threat.

 

Nuge - 7 - Scored and dropped deep to close Chalobah well. Looked knackered at the end.

Wood - 4 - May seem harsh, but I can't think of one good thing he did. I've never known a 'target man' time his jumps so badly.

 

Kane - 7 - Changed the game. Won more headers in 5 minutes than Wood has for weeks.

Drinkwater - N/A

 

Pearson - 8 - I was sceptical about 442, but Nugent dropping deep helped. Having said that, they created better chances than we did and should have had a least 2 goals.

[smudgerfox]

King 9 - best player on the park.

James 8.5 - would've been the best player on the park any other day.

 

Agreed James and King were immense. Their ability to keep nudging the ball back was reminiscent of Neil Lennon and James' distribution was superb. Without doubt the key to our improvement.

[Daz93]

Kasper 7 - A few great saves, but kicking wasn't all that. Maybe because of the wind.

De Laet 6 - First half was good and he attacked well throughout, just switched off a bit towards the end.

Morgan 7 - Pretty good performance, was first to intercept many balls.

Keane 7 - A lot better from young Michael, but should have done so much better with his chance.

Schlupp 5 - Proved that he's a striker. Some horrible gaffs, Konchesky to start away.

Knockaert 7 - Brilliant in the first, although did little to threaten in the second. Great cross for the goal though.

King 8 - Superb again. Tackling back, going forward, linking play. This is the Kingy we love.

James 8.5 - Outstanding, just pips King. Both were great. At the start of the season he looked awful, just shows what a few games and some confidence can do.

Dyer 7 - Looked a threat throughout, but did not use his pace enough against the terrible Doyley.

Nugent 7 - Pleased for him to get back on the goal trail, he worked tirelessly throughout.

Wood 6 - A few good take downs but wasn't in the game and slowed down the play when the ball was at his feet.

Kane 6 - Surprisingly effective when he came on, actually challenged defenders for 50/50s and won the free kick that led to the goal.

[foxfanazer]

The King and James partnership is working so well at the moment. Long may it continue!

[darko2k7]

Schmeichel - 7 - Couple of good saves .

 

De Laet - 4- Awful i thought gave the ball away alot , couple of good runs forward though. 

Morgan - 8 - Solid

Keane - 8- Solid

Schlupp - 5- Look nervous but did ok bar the air kicks , unlucky to get booked from where i sat the guy looked of dived . 

 

Knockaert - 8 - Great ball in for the goal and was a good treat all night .

King - 8- Very good tonight . 

James - 9- My MOTM broke up play all game and seemed to be every where , good in the air too.

Dyer - 7.5 - Good first half but marked out off it second half i thought. 

 

Nugent - 8 typical energetic performance tonight and could/should of scored more .

Wood - 6 It ok having him hold up play but the balls into him were over ambitious IMO .

 

 

(Kane - 7)- Did well .

[Vlad The Impaler]

From the match

 

Kasper - 7

Made some important saves which kept us in the game, distribution from goal kicks needs improving though.

 

De Laet - 5.5

Always a threat with his pace but seemed to keep making the wrong decisions last night with his passing. Some of his marking when they had free kicks was criminal, on another day this may well have cost us.

 

Morgan - 7

Kept Geijo and Vydra pretty quiet all game, was solid.

 

Keane - 6.5

Played his part in keeping the clean sheet and looked better than his last few outings.

 

Schlupp - 5

Could have cost us not once, but twice. I wish he would be more direct with his play sometimes, the amount of times he got the ball and I thought 'Go on Jeff, run at him' only for him to put his foot on the ball and slow it down was frustrating. Corker of a pass to set up Keane's volley, maybe a future LM?

 

Knockaert - 5

Yes, he assisted the winning goal but his corners and free kicks before that were dire. Every time he got the ball he would either flick it straight to the opposition or try and dribble his way through before losing it. Should have crossed for Dyer to slot in before half time. Love the guy but not his best.

 

James - 8.5

MOTM for me. Didn't put a foot wrong, great tenacity to win the ball at times. This guy is just a joy to watch at the minute. Keep it up Matty!

 

King - 7.5

Another solid performance. Was unlucky a couple of times when he made clever passes but no one was reading it. Him and James are starting to dominate.

 

Dyer - 7

Typical Lloyd, works his socks off. Did well against a good RB.

 

Wood - 3

Shocking. A good player on his day but last night was his worst performance in a city shirt.

 

Nugent - 7

Looks like he's back to his old self again, worked tirelessly and got his just reward with an unstoppable header, let's hope this spurs him on to grab a couple more before the seasons out.

 

SUBS:

 

Kane - 6.5

Gave us that extra bit of energy upfront which we were lacking all game, i'd start him over Wood in the away leg.

[Fox92]

Kasper - 8 - Some very good saves but kicking still frustrates me. Too long.

 

De Laet - 6

Morgan - 7

Keane - 7

Schlupp - 6 - Ok. A few dodgy moments but matched Anya for pace and strength.

 

Knockaert - 6

King - 8 - Box to box.

James - 8 - MOTM - Fantastic display. Controlled midfield.

Dyer - 6

 

Nugent - 6

Wood - 6

[Fathead81]

Kasper - 7 made some important stops but kicking and crosses still need working on

De Laet - 6 Gave the ball away a lot and hate it when he kicks the ball 15 yards in front of him when turning inside as leaves us exposed to their quick counter

Keane- 7 Was solid throughout especially 2nd half when watford went a lot more direct

Morgan - 7 As Keane

Schlupp - 5 Defensively a time bomb waiting to happen but felt for the lad as not a natural defender and left exposed by Dyer

Knocky - 7 Threatened so much 1st half but just lacks that pace to take him away when he turns a defender

Dyer- 6 1st half ok 2nd half looked shattered, tucked inside and offered little width or cover to schlupp

James - 9 MOM thought he was awesome last night comfortable on the ball and breaks up play superbly worried he seemed to be injured last 10 mins

King - 8.5 Just pipped by James but another who kept it simple and broke up their play

Nugent - 6 Just for the goal his play apart he looked tired and very short of confidence and unsure of what position to take up defensively

Wood - 5 Felt for him as had the ball coming to him head height with little support but offered very little

Kane - 6 Did ok but does not look a footballer surprised some have called for him to start Sun

Pearson - 7.5 Thought we were quite fortunate to win as a draw about fair and was frustrated he could not see their 3 in midfield over ran us at times and after 65 mins we were struggling and thought another sub was required BUT we won and offered far more than the home league game

[dmayne7]

Find some of RDL's criticisms a bit weird

 

Defensively he never gave their left side a sniff

 

Attacking... people saying he runs into dead ends or whatever... then in the same comment praise Knockaert for his runs - Who is the very definition of running into dead ends, whose astonishingly slow pace is at times a real issue & selfishness causes attack after attack after attack to break down & us face a counter... Despite this I love Knockaert though, he's got real talent and is a real genuine match winner & worthy of his place.

 

I'm not suggesting RDL was MotM or anything, & yes RDL wasn't his usual attacking threat last night as he was prioritising the defensive side of his game to great effect - But I don't understand the lashing he's often given... Very, very little has come down that side over this whole season, his attacking threat keeps opposing widemen pinned back & he has the pace to cover at the back.

 

Still, opinions... and all that.

 

Speaking of this; its such a strange one. He at times seems to glide across the pitch and seems nippy. Other times he looks like he is running through treacle. Could do with some serious areobic training over the summer.