Kenny Dalglish Won't Be Delivering the Module: English Premiership 2011-12

spurs away were historically poor iirc

Hull did well the first half of their first Prem season and were more or less abject after the thrashing at Man City/Phil Brown's Caligula complex kicked in

didn't do well thru playing excellent football tho iirc

It's the IPL, but for football. I'm up for this.

Am happy to see them figure out no longer being the worlds worst footballers or whatever they are supposed to be according to Why England Lose

Also hope this means I can say more about football to some of my workmates other than 'yes, that is Wayne Rooney you saw in the paper'.

Cahill to Chelsea has completed by the looks of things? Should convert David Luiz into a midfielder now.

defenders that would be better as midfielders, a list:

david luiz
djourou
Agger?
P jones
G johnson

Agger would be a beast now you mention it.

Loads of fullbacks would make serviceable-to-great wingers, central defenders are a different kettle of fish. I notice Kaboul has been making more and more marauding runs forward of late, and he can pass the ball as well, he'd be pretty decent.

kaboul a good candidate, tho tbf at pompey he was a roaming fb so not a new suggestion

http://www.runofplay.com/2011/11/22/generalissimo/

this isnt that common....i wrote abt fullback/winger swaps usually not working somewhere

cb--dm transfers work more often i think

luiz is the only one of those that might make sense

Phil Jones is developing into the original jack of all trades, master of none

Phil Jones is being developed into the original jack of all trades, master of none

Should have stuck with John O'Shea then.

Thought that Phil Jones was looking great for the first half of this season but he's looked newly calamitous of late.

jones will be a good defender in time

Still a young 'un tho

(xp)

I think it's more that fergie's asked him to play all over the pitch because of the thin squad, rather than being consciously developed in that way. xp

Smalling is gonna be way better tho

i have been reading run of play on my kindle as late, technology imo

Would have thought that positioning is as important at DM as it is at CB and therefore wouldn't fancy Luiz there at all.

older than time yet younger than theo walcott

there are many differences in midfield tho

luiz' recovery pace would be more efficient than at cb where its usually too late when the mistakes are made

but i dont think he would be a romeu-makalele type adjunct cb,, more a hyperactive gattuso

Shld just play Luiz as a winger already

dude is also a serious sight charging fwd with the ball

Essien's return makes it a bit academic tbh

Essien is a bit too Owen Hargreaves in my mind now. But I guess if Ledley King can still play regularly, Essien has a chance.

yeah he is impressive

but then lucio also looked like a storming attacking mid before he composed as a defender

essien will be able to play regularly cuz he has had injuries rather than a debilitating condition a la king

he looked past his best before the injury tho

luiz

You get the odd player like him on management sims, ability points assigned at fuckin random, fuck all good in any position

Abou diaby too i suppose

needs to bulk up, slow down and become big abou diaby

Abou Diaby is fine stats-wise for his AMC position and if he hadn't spent the 5 five years recovering from being shawx he would... aw fuck it.

no, he's shit

arsenal youngsters since the invincibles that are failures/shit, a list:

big henri lansbury
big jay emmanuel thomas
big philippe senderos

We'll be here all night

http://www.transfermarkt.co.uk/en/Premier%20League/mannschaftskapitaene/wettbewerb_GB1.html

walcott
Diaby
Gibbs
Others

a lot of british, not a lot of ~diversity~ xp

Arshavin
Denilson
Rosicky (RIP)
Bendtner
All the defenders except Vermaelan

Oh shit we're talking about youngsters right? Scratch most of them.

Wilshere's basically the only unqualified success, right?

ya was gonna say, and i like bendtndnteter tbh

Failures is such a ghastly word to use. Would Barca fans think of Arteta as a failure now it has been a decade since he left? Also i dunno how you could call Rosicky or Arshavin youngsters. So...

Denilson (Brazil u18 captain when we signed him to big expectations; now not really doing much at Sao Paolo and still not in the Brazil team despite it not being a vintage Brazilian midfield)
Vela (Top scorer at the u17s, wanted by p much every big club in Europe, scored some beautiful goals; now has a 2-in-12 record at Sociedad)
Bendtner (Great case of 'being bigger than everyone during yr teenage years doesn't mean you'll be able to bully them when everyone has grown up')
Freeman (Youngest ever player in the FA Cup, now back in League 2).
Theo (Has there ever been such a high expectation for a player? Denilson at Betis maybe? Even if he goes on to have a fine career, he'll never live up to it.)

Just shit, with no expectation-

The Hoyte brothers
Traore
Mannone
Randall
Many guys I can't even remember

Players who may go on to have a decent career-

JET (he is more like darragh's description of the player with his stats out of cock and he was tried at Arsenal in every position bar goalie. Once he finds a manager who can figure him out, I think there is a talented player to be used.)
Merida (Doing decent as cover at Atleti - has v. good technique, which is a talent that usually shines thru in the end.)
Senderos (looks v. stable in the Fulham back 4 now, come on, admit it)
Lansbury (in a v. good partnership with Collison atm, looks like he will be a good midtable player one day)

failure for arsenal

That was imo obvious

Wilshere's basically the only unqualified success, right?

― Matt DC, Monday, 16 January 2012 16:37 (14 minutes ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

If we are going on the idea that Cole doesn't count and we are only looking at new Hale End Academy prospects, we also have to remember that we are only judging players under 22. As successes, I'd look at Gibbs (injuries only problem but talent wise, it is p much a given he'll take over Cole as the best English left back) and maybe Frimpong as well as Wilshere.

What about Ramsey?

He has only been at the club 3 or 4 years, half of which were spent in recovery or on loan.

wilshere not yet, ramsey not likely, gibbs not ever

Oh right, I didn't realise he'd come from Cardiff City (xp) Ramsey's not bad?