Abraders
Player Valuation: £60m
We aren't only in the league though are we?
Stop finding excuses to put the lad down. He's got 16 goals or so so far ffs.
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Stop finding excuses to put the lad down. He's got 16 goals or so so far ffs.
Goals scored on a Thursday dont count mate.
Abraders
Player Valuation: £60m
Makes sense now. Get rid asap...
Wonder if we could do a straight swap for that Shane Long lad
They don't count in the league though, do they?
Seven goals in twenty-eight games in the league, seven goals in eight games in Europe, which suggests something is wrong with him in the league. That isn't "finding an excuse", it's absolute fact. Until he starts delivering in the league he's open to criticism.
He's breathtaking in Europe, and dreadful in the league. His age is no excuse either - Berahino, Kane, both outscoring him comfortably. Even Jelavic, Ings and Sakho, in much less talented sides than ours.
Diego Costa hasnt scored a single goal on a Thursday, neither has Aguero, the best strikers in the world simply dont bother with Thursday.
Its almost like we are struggling for form in the league.
Indeed, and he's the guy leading the line during that run of form isn't he? So he's part of the problem (in my view, a big part), as much as he's a massive part of the success in Europe.
Abraders
Player Valuation: £60m
Why are we saying something is wrong with 'him' in the league sorry?
There is a clear difference between the entire teams form in both competitions. One we have been scoring somewhat freely in, and the prem which we have consistently put in terrible performances? The midfielders don't feed.
Defenders are good players, if you give them time to get set up they make it very difficult for forwards to punish them. If you pull them out of position with incisive passes then they have trouble. If they are pressing high up the pitch and are caught on the break then again they have a problem. If you take 20 passes to get from back to front they have set themselves up waiting for you. Lukaku can't be expected to unlock defences without proper service. That is what we have lacked in the league.
I don't think Thursday makes him the second coming but it gives a glimpse of what he can be. Managers manage players as well as teams, Martinez has seen the best of Lukaku now let us see him manage in a way we see it more often.
I don't think Thursday makes him the second coming but it gives a glimpse of what he can be. Managers manage players as well as teams, Martinez has seen the best of Lukaku now let us see him manage in a way we see it more often.
And he's part of that team. He leads the line incredibly well in Europe, but does nothing in the league. Yeah, the team as a whole slumps, but you can't tell me you can't see the difference in him personally - the ball sticks like glue to him in Europe, but bounces off him like a pinball bumper in the league.
This is a Lukaku thread, so I'll discuss Lukaku. If someone wants to highlight the difference between, say, James McCarthy in the league and Europe, it's a somewhat similar situation there too, but it's so much more pronounced with Lukaku that it can't help being noticed.
Hes not the problem in the league, the managers tactics are, you know this, I know you see it, you just want to blame Lukaku and hes at as much fault as any of the players, offside, touch of a bouncy castle at times, but on the whole hes not missing chances, if he was Altidoring it all over the place you would have a point, but youve admitted on countless times we are not playing to his strengths, so you know what the problem is.
We're not playing to his strengths (he's a power runner with the ball and against Kiev he dominated as we turned defences and gave him room to work)... BUT in Europe he also holds the ball up, lays off, passes accurately etc. These aren't his natural strengths but in Europe he does a job in doing it.
In the league, he's beyond useless.
As I've said, I just want to see him do what he does in Europe in the league - that is drop intelligently into space, hold the ball up with his physical strength (for some reason he looks like he weighs six stone lighter in English football) and as such get the full backs into the game higher up.
I'm actually not bothered if he personally scores or not - I just want a better performance as a footballer from him domestically. Goals are secondary; if he had the record he has in the league but he'd been good at the basic stuff a player has to do in a single striker role, I'd be giving him no grief whatsoever.
Tubes be honest mate do you have a teeny weeny bit of a problem with black people?
I think everyone would be sound if you admitted it, as long as it was less than 10%.
I think everyone would be sound if you admitted it, as long as it was less than 10%.
Hes against a different class of defender in Europe.
Confidence plays a part in anybodys game, in Europe he clearly thinks he can bully people, so he bullies them, in the League hes played against these defenders.
Confidence plays a part in anybodys game, in Europe he clearly thinks he can bully people, so he bullies them, in the League hes played against these defenders.
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