STRAQ or YAK?

[Matt Damon]

That's a complete fallacy.

Yakubu had his best year with Maccabi Haifa in his third season, his best goals return for Pompey in his second season, his best goals per game record for Pompey in his third season and scored only 1 less league goal in his second season for Middlesbrough.
For us he got a career-threatening injury in his second season, which surely merits consideration.

But don't let the facts get in the way of your blind hatred.

You've been...

Owen Coyle lover that you are.

 

[Baines' left foot]

The fact is that when Moyes put the Yak on the pitch then, one derby shoulder barge apart, his attitude stank the place week in, week out. He was so lazy he made Saha look interested which is no mean feat.

I agree that he was crap besides the derby. But he bossed that game and I was so baffled to see him dropped after that performance.

 

[TheFinnFan]

yak was Shi.
stracq has heart and works for us. luv him.

 

[RFUS]

The fact is that when Moyes put the Yak on the pitch then, one derby shoulder barge apart, his attitude stank the place week in, week out. He was so lazy he made Saha look interested which is no mean feat.

I think interpreting his attitude through 90 minutes of football a week is kind of hard. Everyone from the club only seems to have good things to say about Yak. I recently saw Phil Neville saying how great a presence he was in the dressing room (on MOTD2 I think) and how the guys all loved him.

And I don't like the lazy tag for Saha either. He's putting no more aimless running into his Spurs career but he's reaping more rewards because they're playing more to his strengths. Well, in his case, they're actually giving the ball to him in dangerous positions. And also on the ground. And also not while he's got support within 30 yards.

 

[Frank Drebin]

I agree that he was crap besides the derby. But he bossed that game and I was so baffled to see him dropped after that performance.

As was I. Don't get me wrong, I preferred yak to saha but I wanted both of them out the club for a long time.

 

[Goat]

That's a complete fallacy.

Yakubu had his best year with Maccabi Haifa in his third season, his best goals return for Pompey in his second season, his best goals per game record for Pompey in his third season and scored only 1 less league goal in his second season for Middlesbrough.
For us he got a career-threatening injury in his second season, which surely merits consideration.

But don't let the facts get in the way of your blind hatred.

2008/09 14 games 4 goals
2009/10 25 games 5 goals
2010/11 14 games 1 goal

53 games 10 goals

And lets not let these facts get in the way of your fanboyism.

Oh sorry he wasnt used "correctly", I mean considering he was used the same way every Season he played.

I adored him his 1st Season.

I was even willing to give him plenty of time to come back from his very serious injury, but he was fat and lazy and wasnt scoring.

Im not a Yakubu hater, well, I wasnt, I was a fan, but he simply wasnt doing the job he was paid to do.

 

[RFUS]

2008/09 14 games 4 goals
2009/10 25 games 5 goals
2010/11 14 games 1 goal

53 games 10 goals

And lets not let these facts get in the way of your fanboyism.

Oh sorry he wasnt used "correctly", I mean considering he was used the same way every Season he played.

I adored him his 1st Season.

I was even willing to give him plenty of time to come back from his very serious injury, but he was fat and lazy and wasnt scoring.

Im not a Yakubu hater, well, I wasnt, I was a fan, but he simply wasnt doing the job he was paid to do.

Oh are we repeating statistics now?

2011/12 17 games 13 goals.

The thing is, that above one is from the current season. So clearly Blackburn are doing something we didn't, because they seem to have a goal machine on their hands.

If it's not the old chestnut that Yak plays boss for his new club, as you thought it was, then what is it?

Maybe -- just maybe -- it's because they're using him correctly. With a bit of support, with some service, by not dropping him for a goal-barren crock with turd hair....

 

[Frank Drebin]

I think interpreting his attitude through 90 minutes of football a week is kind of hard. Everyone from the club only seems to have good things to say about Yak. I recently saw Phil Neville saying how great a presence he was in the dressing room (on MOTD2 I think) and how the guys all loved him.

And I don't like the lazy tag for Saha either. He's putting no more aimless running into his Spurs career but he's reaping more rewards because they're playing more to his
strengths. Well, in his case, they're actually
giving the ball to him in dangerous positions.
And also on the ground. And also not while
he's got support within 30 yards.

So unless you go to watch training every day you can't judge a players attitude? Yak wasn't even making token efforts to chase or make himself available, even up to the point that some fans were convinced he couldn't do the running post-injury. Lo and behold at Blackburn he's miraculously breaking sweat.
And Saha was very lazy, thought too much of himself and had no discipline. Dropping back to link play, fine, then ball in the box to no one. It is his job to make the run and get on the end of things which he couldn't be bothered to do.

 

[Matt Damon]

My money's on Goat to win this one.

 

[RFUS]

So unless you go to watch training every day you can't judge a players attitude? Yak wasn't even making token efforts to chase or make himself available, even up to the point that some fans were convinced he couldn't do the running post-injury. Lo and behold at Blackburn he's miraculously breaking sweat.
And Saha was very lazy, thought too much of himself and had no discipline. Dropping back to link play, fine, then ball in the box to no one. It is his job to make the run and get on the end of things which he couldn't be bothered to do.

Berbatov is also perceived to be lazy, but that doesn't mean he has a bad attitude. You're interpreting a lot, that's what I'm saying. I don't go to Everton training sessions obviously so don't be a ted Frank, you know that's not what I'm saying.

And I believe his job is to score goals, not necessarily run around. He's a footballer not a sprinter.

He wasn't scoring goals for us, admittedly, but for Blackburn he is. And he's not all of a sudden turned into Marcus Bent. He still does his little Yak walk-jog thing everywhere.

 

[Frank Drebin]

Ok if you want a comparison then think of how he was in his goalscoring season compared to how he was when he left. He's never been known for high work rate but he always made the run around the box and he always looked on his toes and alert for a goalscoring opportunity. That's what changed and if he's not doing that then he serves no purpose.

 

[Elong]

That's a complete fallacy.

Yakubu had his best year with Maccabi Haifa in his third season, his best goals return for Pompey in his second season, his best goals per game record for Pompey in his third season and scored only 1 less league goal in his second season for Middlesbrough.
For us he got a career-threatening injury in his second season, which surely merits consideration.

But don't let the facts get in the way of your blind hatred.

Nice counters from the RFUS there. He had to be sold, he was beyond gash at the end for us, and the workrate terrible. And his attitude about not getting a payrise (if that's true) was unacceptable.
But if we're talking about overall, when on form, happy, not weighing as much as a truck, then the Yak all day. One of the best striking records in the Premier League.

 

[RFUS]

Ok if you want a comparison then think of how he was in his goalscoring season compared to how he was when he left. He's never been known for high work rate but he always made the run around the box and he always looked on his toes and alert for a goalscoring opportunity. That's what changed and if he's not doing that then he serves no purpose.

You can say the same about Saha this season and last, too. I read it like the both of them were playing deeper. Saha this season, for example, would go ridiculously deep to get the ball, or drift out wide. I honestly believe he's told to do that by Moyes. If a player does something Moyes doesn't want them to do (or doesn't do something he wants them to do) then he changes it -- Moyes doesn't take sh*t, to his credit. So that's my reasoning there I guess.

Yak was a different player to how he was in his first season, you're right. But he did have that injury and that surely effects your game. And when you're going through poor form that does too -- look at Torres. I see him now with Blackburn and he doesn't look like 07/08 Yak to me. He looks like the Yak we had more recently. They're just managing to get goals out of him.

I wish we'd tried to adapt our play to get goals out of him, rather than adapt him (or any striker) to fit into our style. Beckford is a good example as well -- he's obviously a Darren Bent kind of striker (needs a partner of sorts, can't hold the ball up, plays on the last man) but Moyes tried to shape him into a lone striker as that's what our system demands.

Also, as an aside, how often did AJ and Yak play together? That's not rhetorical -- I'm actually wondering!

 

[Goat]

Oh are we repeating statistics now?

2011/12 17 games 13 goals.

The thing is, that above one is from the current season. So clearly Blackburn are doing something we didn't, because they seem to have a goal machine on their hands.

If it's not the old chestnut that Yak plays boss for his new club, as you thought it was, then what is it?

Maybe -- just maybe -- it's because they're using him correctly. With a bit of support, with some service, by not dropping him for a goal-barren crock with turd hair....

It has very little to do with support or service, its about effort, its about making that run, taking up that postion, he stopped all that, hes clearly started it again for Blackburn.

Good luck to him and no I dont mean it, I hope he falls down some stairs and stubs his toe.

He played like a total cnut in his last few Seasons at Everton and it had little to do with service or support and everything to do with application.

 

[Frank Drebin]

To be honest Moist's management of the pair was baffling. I cut yak some slack for a long time post-injury but at the end his heart wasn't in it and he was going through the motions.
I think Saha thought he could do as he liked. The amount of times Baines has ran seventy yards and pinged in a cross that no one attacked was disgraceful.