They are cold as feck. I did my internship there ( Arnhem). Wow. They looked at patients as a number.It's the Dutch way of coaching.
They are cold as feck. I did my internship there ( Arnhem). Wow. They looked at patients as a number.It's the Dutch way of coaching.
ETH falling out with an ever increasing list of high profile players is problematic. He seem to lack in man management skills. And is failing to adapt and squeeze out what's there in his squad to his and the club's benefit.
Varane isn't one for the future, that's clear to see. But what's the point in falling out like this? Would have been better to utilise and phase out silently and classy.
We're horribly run.
They paid 30 million for Mane (30yo) and 23 million for Koulibally (32yo) and 14 million for Henderson (32yo)I wonder if Man Utd can get a good transfer fee from Varane and Casemiro, both of them are over 30 and on very high wages.
Definitely need to send agents to Saudi to close the deals.They paid 30 million for Mane (30yo) and 23 million for Koulibally (32yo) and 14 million for Henderson (32yo)
They paid 30 million for Mane (30yo) and 23 million for Koulibally (32yo) and 14 million for Henderson (32yo)
It's a major flaw in his management style.
It also means that when the players do leave everybody knows that the club are desperate to get rid, so this will only drive down the transfer fee.
You can't assume this is on ETH, we don't know what's happening behind the scenes.
They were good in parts, but let's not rewrite history. They were the pairing when we conceded 6 at City and 7 at Liverpool. The whole team was bad, but it also doesn't paint them in a particularly good light.Martinez-Varane was amazing for the 2022 season but I don’t think we will get back to the level with them again. Same with Casemiro.
Indeed. I love how one good game changes everybodys mind all of a sudden. Idiots.Shouldn't get carried away with one good performance. He'll be injured by next week. Still needs to go.
Also on yesterdays basis let’s hand Evan’s a new 5 year contractShouldn't get carried away with one good performance. He'll be injured by next week. Still needs to go.
He's never played like our best defender, he's been average at best for most of his time here. When available.No way we sell him in Jan - he’s our best defender.
Review at the end of the season.
Plenty ahead of him to get out the door first.
Who's been better? Genuine question because our other defenders have been maguire and lindelofHe's never played like our best defender, he's been average at best for most of his time here. When available.
He's never played like our best defender, he's been average at best for most of his time here. When available.
He's obviously one of our best defenders fully fit that is surely not up for debate. When he's had a poor game, it's been when the entire team has been crap which isn't indicative of Varane being a poor player.
Nonsense. He's lost us a lot of games.
FCK away springs to mind he was dreadful in that game.Which games has he lost where he's been solely at fault? He's played shit, but only as part as the whole team playing shit.
Him and Martinez have been our best CB partnership in years.
FCK away springs to mind he was dreadful in that game.
I think if we could sell him to Saudi and get a decent return we should sell him and replace him with a younger defender.
Which games has he lost where he's been solely at fault? He's played shit, but only as part as the whole team playing shit.
Him and Martinez have been our best CB partnership in years.
I'm reading that a lot (that's he's had a poor season), but I don't see it either. I don't even think he's played shit, except apparently the Copenhagen game (which I didn't watch). He's far too often injured, which means you need a solid alternative option on RB. He's class.
Which games has he lost where he's been solely at fault? He's played shit, but only as part as the whole team playing shit.
Him and Martinez have been our best CB partnership in years.
I think this season he's been off the boil at times, but there's the huge caveat of a) he's hardly played b) he was fantastic (I thought at least) vs Liverpool and c) he came to the fore with Martinez next to him, who's been injured all season.
When it comes to defenders, we've got Varane, Martinez, Lindelof, Maguire, Evans. On form - which, to repeat, we haven't been on as a team all season - Varane and Martinez are our best defensive partnership without a doubt. Question is whether he can stay fit and if we were to bring in a young top class centre back then I wouldn't be adverse to flogging Varane to Saudi for a large amount of pound sterling.
they have been, but injuries for both is a concern. Varane has been here 3 years and not completed a full season, Martinez is in his 2nd season and won't complete a full season in either. You'd hope that Martinez injury was just a bad one that stretched across both seasons and we don't rush him back this time, and when he does come back he'll be good for the foreseeable. Varane, to be honest, you are just waiting on notification of his next injury it seems.
Looking at the match ratings from his starts to refresh my memory:
Wolves 1-0: 7.0, tied for team-best
Spurs 0-2: 5.5, 2nd best on team
Forest 3-2: 5.6, 8th best on team
Palace 3-0 (CC): 6.8, 6th best on team
Palace 0-1: 5.2, 2nd best on team
Galatasaray 2-3: 3.8, 7th best on team
FC Copenhagen 1-0: 6.2, 3rd best on team
FC Copenhagen 3-4: 3.5, 10th best on team
Bayern 0-1: 5.6, 2nd best on team
Liverpool 0-0: 7.7, team best
Included the second Copenhagen game, where he came on early. Obviously, Caf match ratings aren't exactly a precise science, but they at least give a pretty good pointer towards the general opinion of his performances at the time.
Not really that bad? There are three obvious poor ones, where he got both a low rating and was considered one of the weaker performances on the team: The losses to Galatasaray and FC Copenhagen, and also the win against Forest, where he will have been heavily deducted for his complicity in those two Forest goals within the first four minutes of the match.
The remaining seven, he either gets a good rating, or gets one of the best (or least bad) ratings on the team.
Team record in his starts; 4-1-5, pretty much average.
Goals; 13 scored, 13 allowed= 1.30 pr match. This is just on the season average for goals scored (1.32), but quite a bit lower than the season average for goals allowed (1.56).
So, the long and the short of it - no huge obvious impact on team results, except we allow a little bit fewer goals with him in the lineup. 3 bad performances out of 10 starts, otherwise good, among the best on the team, or both. Hardly the stuff of legend, but in an injury plagued season with a constantly revolving defensive lineup, it's hardly very damning either. Seems to me an awfully thin basis for concluding he needs moving out.
His lack of durability is a point in itself, but I think it's debatable what conclusion to draw from that. As long as he's playing well when healthy, why not keep him around and give the game time to a capable alternative RB option (as of now, Maguire)? Getting a younger, cheaper replacement sounds nice, but the simple fact is a decent replacement is going to come at a bigger cost than what we'll get for him. There aren't dozens of CBs who'll bring what he does. And there are many, many slots in this squad that are in more urgent need of upgrading than his.
Agree we would need to get a young defender of a certain class.I don’t disagree, upgrading him for a younger defender would be good. But that defender would have to actually be class, not another Lindelof etc.
Included the second Copenhagen game, where he came on early. Obviously, Caf match ratings aren't exactly a precise science, but they at least give a pretty good pointer towards the general opinion of his performances at the time.