Hayley Ladd | moves to Everton

jojojo

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Leaving aside the puns for the moment...



She's 25 and she's played for Birmingham for a couple of seasons, she was with Bristol before that. Birmingham came fourth in WSL1 last year.

I think we'll have signed her as a (mostly) defensive midfielder, though she played centre-back for Wales last night.

Good Ladd.
 
Quite the coup when we can pluck a regular starter from the 4th best club in the WSL.
 
What I want to know is this all Casey Or is Ed involved in these negotiations as well.

Think she was Birmingham’s player of the season as well from what I saw on her Twitter.
 
Yes but will she play with or instead of zelem? She's cm as well isn't she?
 
nokillingmoths said:
Yes but will she play with or instead of zelem? She's cm as well isn't she?
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I think it will mean that for the tough games we'll start with a Ladd, Zelem, Groenen midfield. We used Greenwood in midfield a couple of times in those kind if games last year, so it'll help them avoid that. Whether that will become our default formation, with just rotation changes I don't know. We usually play with good width, but we've used different formations to deliver it, so we might see a few variants. She certainly gives us an option that we didn't have before - a true holding midfielder.
 
She will improve all our lads behind the scenes. How she does it we don't care about, but just get them horny in the LVG style way and they might perform on the field ;).

Also this gives us hope that Ed still knows how to bring in players. It is easy to doubt him.

Being serious good luck to her.
 
jojojo said:
I think it will mean that for the tough games we'll start with a Ladd, Zelem, Groenen midfield. We used Greenwood in midfield a couple of times in those kind if games last year, so it'll help them avoid that. Whether that will become our default formation, with just rotation changes I don't know. We usually play with good width, but we've used different formations to deliver it, so we might see a few variants. She certainly gives us an option that we didn't have before - a true holding midfielder.
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Ok great. I thought zelem was excellent last season so would be a shame to see her playing time cut.
 
This is a coup!!

1. One of best performers in WSL last season as a defensive midfielder.
2. Birmingham Players' player of the season last season.
3. Good passer of the ball and good fk taker too (according to Birmingham fans and some pundits :))



I wonder why she chose us, when City also looked for a defensive mid. Maybe Casey promised her to start. If that's the case we'll see more 4-3-3 or diamond next season. Casey wow she knows WSL is going to be a tough challenge and she added nice additions so far. Couldn't be more happier that our women's team understands its weaknesses and addressing it. Refreshing.
 
RedPamie said:
This is a coup!!

1. One of best performers in WSL last season as a defensive midfielder.
2. Birmingham Players' player of the season last season.
3. Good passer of the ball and good fk taker too (according to Birmingham fans and some pundits :))



I wonder why she chose us, when City also looked for a defensive mid. Maybe Casey promised her to start. If that's the case we'll see more 4-3-3 or diamond next season. Casey wow she knows WSL is going to be a tough challenge and she added nice additions so far. Couldn't be more happier that our women's team understands its weaknesses and addressing it. Refreshing.
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Money over Pep!
 
nokillingmoths said:
Ok great. I thought zelem was excellent last season so would be a shame to see her playing time cut.
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Oh, I don’t think so. Ladd is more of a Gattuso to Zelem’s Pirlo-ing, based on last season. I guess the games vs Arsenal and Reading told Stoney something about what we lack to challenge the top half teams at least.

Ladd and Groenen looks like two very solid reinforcements in midfield!
 
Top Ladd! Good luck to her.

Maybe we're just cancelling our men's team and focusing on women's football. I'm not completely against the idea, honestly.
 
Finally we got these proper signing announcement tweets. Welcome Ladd
!! :lol:




 
The United Twitter account has upped its game during the summer :D They're posting regularly and they've done some work on the graphics. Nice to see training pictures and stuff being posted as well

Of course the big test will come on match days, but it's a good start.
 
Hayley has won the women's team, Player of the Year award for 19/20 season.

Not a surprise for a regular watcher, she was a consistent performer and an important addition to the team. An interesting choice - the defensive midfielder in an attacking team doesn't often get much recognition. However I think this award was from the squad/coaching team so not that much of a surprise perhaps.

 
When I first saw her I thought she looks Welsh.. and she is Welsh! cool!

Also yeah congrats
 
The injury bug strikes again:

Hayley Ladd will miss the rest of the season with a hamstring injury.
 
For the last couple of seasons I've had the opinion that the CM alongside Zelem is one where we need reinforcements. Especially for a side that wants to challenge for trophies and be more dominate on the ball, I've felt that Ladd doesn't offer enough, even though she works hard and gives everything on the pitch. I still think we need at least more depth there, although Naalsund & Cascarino have added to that. Looking at the first XI a world class CM next to Zelem is perhaps still the first position to upgrade, but the thing I actually came here to post is:

Ladd has been really good this season. To me she's added more to her game going forward and she's more ambitious on the ball in general. In my opinion it has taken her too long to kill the ball and her first touch often seems to be too soft, which leads to her taking too many touches meaning our game slows down often when she gets the ball. Perhaps she's been working on this with the coaching staff but she's improved in this regard.

Ideally, in a PL winning & CL playing team Ladd in my eyes would be a really good rotation player and one that could help us shut down the opposition when protecting a lead etc. So I'd still be looking to find that CM monster but I'm happy to have her playing there this season as a starter. We might have a couple of other positions (RB & ST) to upgrade first though as things stand.

Am I the only one and way off the mark here?
 
top1whoisman said:
Am I the only one and way off the mark here?
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I don't think so. When Groenen left I had doubts about state of this midfield, but Ladd kept everything in perfect order and as you wrote, she excelled in her role to almost universal type of midfielder.

100% success rate of dribbling attempts vs Liverpool not so long ago, a monster game from her. She's not Casemiro just yet, but she's definitely key for stability that allows you to win multiple matches.
 
Van Piorsing said:
I don't think so. When Groenen left I had doubts about state of this midfield, but Ladd kept everything in perfect order and as you wrote, she excelled in her role to almost universal type of midfielder.

100% success rate of dribbling attempts vs Liverpool not so long ago, a monster game from her. She's not Casemiro just yet, but she's definitely key for stability that allows you to win multiple matches.
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Fair enough. I think she’s almost a perfect Herrera/Fletcher type player who can offer something different in big matches and is a solid performer. In some of the matches when we’re struggling to break teams down it feels like she, well at least used to, slow down the play when intensity and tempo was much needed.
 
top1whoisman said:
For the last couple of seasons I've had the opinion that the CM alongside Zelem is one where we need reinforcements. Especially for a side that wants to challenge for trophies and be more dominate on the ball, I've felt that Ladd doesn't offer enough, even though she works hard and gives everything on the pitch. I still think we need at least more depth there, although Naalsund & Cascarino have added to that. Looking at the first XI a world class CM next to Zelem is perhaps still the first position to upgrade, but the thing I actually came here to post is:

Ladd has been really good this season. To me she's added more to her game going forward and she's more ambitious on the ball in general. In my opinion it has taken her too long to kill the ball and her first touch often seems to be too soft, which leads to her taking too many touches meaning our game slows down often when she gets the ball. Perhaps she's been working on this with the coaching staff but she's improved in this regard.

Ideally, in a PL winning & CL playing team Ladd in my eyes would be a really good rotation player and one that could help us shut down the opposition when protecting a lead etc. So I'd still be looking to find that CM monster but I'm happy to have her playing there this season as a starter. We might have a couple of other positions (RB & ST) to upgrade first though as things stand.

Am I the only one and way off the mark here?
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Hard to say how many who are much better at what she does? What she brings is certainly crucial when other MF options are Katie Zelem and Vilde Bøe Risa. Part of the reason Jackie Groenen could be prized away, was that Ladd was more important to the team and oftwn the competition was for the other CM spot.
 
Grande said:
Hard to say how many who are much better at what she does? What she brings is certainly crucial when other MF options are Katie Zelem and Vilde Bøe Risa. Part of the reason Jackie Groenen could be prized away, was that Ladd was more important to the team and oftwn the competition was for the other CM spot.
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Yeah that’s fair enough. As for the bolded part perhaps that’s the thing. She does what she does well, but I kind of want to see someone doing the other bits better. But as mentioned, happy with what she’s done this season and she has improved from last year in my opinion.

Maybe in some of the matches where we’re expected to have most of the ball we should look for either Bøe Risa or Naalsund to bring more urgency on the pitch. Also I feel that both Zels and Ladd prefer to play quite deep and in these type of matches I’d wish we had one of them playing a bit higher attacking the box consistently.

Perhaps this is more to do with the development of the whole team, the way we play and how Skinner & staff see this. Maybe it is the next step or maybe this is how Skinner wants us to play. And I mean I naturally don’t have a problem with it, super happy how we’ve done this season.
 
I think we have a problem with balance in midfield. Toone has a fair bit of freedom and mostly that works, but can leave us looking underpowered in games where we need more control.

Zelem's long passes, her long range shots and set pieces can be game changers but the flipside is that she has weaknesses as well. She doesn't seem to have the speed, the close control or the snappy short game for breaking down teams who are defending deep or for matches where we're relying on sharp counterattacking play. Nor can she do the defensive work that Ladd can.

I think we're a weaker team, defensively and in terms of possession and positional play when Ladd doesn't play. I've seen us lose control of the rhythm and the ball, even against some quite ordinary teams when she's not there.

That said - I also think that Marc Skinner is often slow to react during games - leaving subs so late that they're basically on as a last throw of the dice. It sometimes looks as if he sees tactical changes and subs as an admission of failure - plan B often looks like plan A with a vague demand of "but better".
 
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top1whoisman said:
Yeah that’s fair enough. As for the bolded part perhaps that’s the thing. She does what she does well, but I kind of want to see someone doing the other bits better. But as mentioned, happy with what she’s done this season and she has improved from last year in my opinion.

Maybe in some of the matches where we’re expected to have most of the ball we should look for either Bøe Risa or Naalsund to bring more urgency on the pitch. Also I feel that both Zels and Ladd prefer to play quite deep and in these type of matches I’d wish we had one of them playing a bit higher attacking the box consistently.

Perhaps this is more to do with the development of the whole team, the way we play and how Skinner & staff see this. Maybe it is the next step or maybe this is how Skinner wants us to play. And I mean I naturally don’t have a problem with it, super happy how we’ve done this season.
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Yea, I get what you’re saying. Good questions regardless. My feeling is that we’re almost, almost there, that us challenging both for the league and for CL spot is a bit of a everything coming together at once, that we need a bit mote even to take the level Arsenal, Chelsea and City have been on the recent seasons. I suspect too that there is some top level ro be added both in midfield and attack.
 
Apparently we've either triggered the option year for 2023/24 or she's signed a new contract altogether.
 
top1whoisman said:
Apparently we've either triggered the option year for 2023/24 or she's signed a new contract altogether.
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That's good. When I saw the thread bumped I thought for one horrible moment she was leaving!
 
jojojo said:
That's good. When I saw the thread bumped I thought for one horrible moment she was leaving!
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Haha, sorry about that heartburn. Although at this rate we won't have any players left in two years... :nervous:
 
Hayley's doing some research and needs people to take part in a survey she's conducting.

 
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