Roberto Martinez discussion

[orly]

I can't be bothered to do the maths with the average starting XI age, but (and I'm not trying to blindly defend Martinez here) in fairness we've had Mori and Galloway playing for large parts of the season who are obviously a lot younger than Jags and Baines respectively. Stones is playing every game and is vital to the way we play - he was a bit part player in the first season.

I can see exactly what he means when he talks about the younger players taking much bigger roles now. First season the young guns were complimenting us in a way - now the side is built around them.

Bit part player? He played 28 games.

 

[maccavennie]

Personally don't think there's any way to dress it up or dress it down, results wise it's been another piss poor season but we are just over half way through and I'm hoping we can get some form going after the promising end to the Spurs game and looking a lot more balanced and solid last night.

 

[Goat]

I kinda agree with D tho, the reason we are 11th is not due to the age of the players, its down to part bad coaching, part lack of concentration.

 

[davek]

I'm sorry but I seem to remember last season it was all about how many PLACES we were away from the bottom 3, rather than points. Whenever people brought up that we were 3 points off 18th in February, you'd respond with "but we're 12th so we're safe as houses". How is this any different? We are 11th, so we're actually 6 places off 5th. There are 6 teams between us and 5th, separated by 6 points. By your own standards, that is in fact a long, long way off 5th

There's no contradiction there. The place we have now: I'm not saying is bad. You assume I'm making that point but I'm not. I know how much others fret over the regaining of the 7th place trophy so it's just to pacify them and their mediocre standards.

 

[ijjysmith]

@GrandOldTeam vs @Woolly Blue

I am aroused.

 

[ijjysmith]

And kind of understand both points.

That's right fence. I'm sitting.

 

[Goat]

There's no contradiction there. The place we have now: I'm not saying is bad. You assume I'm making that point but I'm not. I know how much others fret over the regaining of the 7th place trophy so it's just to pacify them and their mediocre standards.

Meanwhile you just slate our Captain and now John F Stones.

Would rather finish 7th than 11th tho.

 

[GrandOldTeam]

Personally don't think there's any way to dress it up or dress it down, results wise it's been another piss poor season but we are just over half way through and I'm hoping we can get some form going after the promising end to the Spurs game and looking a lot more balanced and solid last night.

Well said.

No excuses - just go and perform and climb the table. Our squad is capable.

 

[davek]

And me.

Again, that's the point - we're better now than we were so it's a jarg excuse. Inexperience is laughed away when you consider we were even more inexperienced when finished 5th.

Have you factored in Browning, Galloway, Funes Mori?

 

[kithnou]

This season has a different feeling to last season. Around February time last season we were all sitting here genuinely concerned at how bad we were playing, wondering if we would be dragged down into a relegation battle.
This season has been one of pure frustration at not getting the wins to showcase the quality of football we have played.
If we somehow manage to string 2 or 3 wins together in the League (my pet peeve this season) we are challenging for top 4.

 

[GrandOldTeam]

Aye, looking purely at average age in the squad means you miss the fact that young players have much more responsibility in the current setup.

Barkley and Lukaku were automatic starters then, just like now.

I kinda agree with D tho, the reason we are 11th is not due to the age of the players, its down to part bad coaching, part lack of concentration.

Thats the crux of it

@GrandOldTeam vs @Woolly Blue

I am aroused.

Nah, its common. Its how Woolly keeps his cred with the lids on here.

 

[micknick]

Have you factored in Browning, Galloway, Funes Mori?

And the signings we are making. Not many are even in their 20's.

 

[davek]

Meanwhile you just slate our Captain and now John F Stones.

Would rather finish 7th than 11th tho.

We haven't got a captain as far as I'm concerned. We have someone who wears an armband who keeps his trap shut.

 

[micknick]

We haven't got a captain as far as I'm concerned. We have someone who wears an armband who keeps his trap shut.

You give with one hand and then slap me with the other. I hate you and your ways.

 

[LinekersLegs]

There isn't a single key player in this seasons squad, missing from the squad that finished 5th.

We're 11th. We're underperforming and it's not because we're inexperienced - because the same squads average age is higher than it was.



No, it wasn't.

Honestly... Feel like a stuck record here.

At the actual press conference, on the subject of this being a disappointing season, Martinez said three years ago the side was experienced and knew how to win, but now, it's full of young immense potential.



That's definitely over egging it and a piss poor excuse for underperforming this season.

To demonstrate the point, I listed the squad from Martinez first season - which obviously knew how to bloody win because we won more PL games than ever before.

We've still got that same squad. No key player is missing.

To say 3 years ago we had a very experienced team who knew how to win, then tell us, who are we missing from that very experienced team who knew how to win? Distin?!



I've not, your splitting hairs and the point could be made with the squad from a few months before. What squad should I use? I used the squad from his first full season...

Tell us, who are we missing from that very experienced team 3 years ago that we don't have now...



Again, same bloody squad...

Although it is the a very similar squad they haven't had the same availability, both Jags and Baines have missed large chunks of this season and McCarthy/Coleman have also missed several.

Although Jags spent a lot of the second half of the 2013/14 season out by this same point (20 games) he'd only missed two, neither Baines or Coleman had missed a match and McCarthy had played every game since he joined.

All these players are major factors in our defence, the real weak area we've had this season, surely their absence is a large factor in our underperformance compared to that season?