Petrov. The gezza comment

[BILL DE VALL]

I will collect my uefa coaching certificate now(if someone can fake me a good one)

[Monty]

Sure, he made that mistake. But watching the game back it's quite clear to me that it was NRC's brief to stay on VDV and Petrov's to try and block off the space for Modric. I thought he did this very well, NRC doing his job less well but his job was probably the more difficult. Now, with NRC otherwise engaged, Petrov had to fill in his brief. He didn't do this on the second goal, but I really think people were just waiting for Petrov to hit a rough patch and then pounce on him.

[TheSandman]

We have to play Petrov. We simply haven't got the players to replace him with. Ireland cannot play the deep lying role. That means one of Sidwell, Osbourne, Salifou or Hogg playing. We cannot sacrifice the strength of having two primarily defensive players in the team as we are setting out to attack all out with three wingers.

That is why the only change I'd make would be Cuellar in for Dunne... That said I would also consider a more defensive line up where we sacrifice one of Albrighton or Downing for Ireland.

[Dave]

We have to play Petrov. We simply haven't got the players to replace him with. Ireland cannot play the deep lying role. That means one of Sidwell, Osbourne, Salifou or Hogg playing. We cannot sacrifice the strength of having two primarily defensive players in the team as we are setting out to attack all out with three wingers.

That is why the only change I'd make would be Cuellar in for Dunne... That said I would also consider a more defensive line up where we sacrifice one of Albrighton or Downing for Ireland.

That all looks pretty much correct to me.

[BILL DE VALL]

Petrov is really(or was when he joined) an attacking midfielder
but with a team with Young Albrighton and young needs defensivly minded midfielders to stem the flow from the enemy
Petrov is a good passer of the ball and has a decent football brain
but he is not defensively minded(see above and many other examples on you tube)
He cannot head it or really tackle or get physical
MON bought him to link in behind the big man he had in mind(Carew or heskey)
In his 1st game he was bursting in and almost scoring-but didn't score and his confidence waned
MON kept faith with him and moved him back to be a 'midfield general'
but he hasn't convinced there either
and yet he is Captain undroppable no matter how crap he plays,unfit he looks or goals he is plainly culpable for

we cannot get rid soon enough
what kind of Captain is he?I rarely see him doing much besides the occaisional exasperated bit of pointing

[KevinGage]

Petrov played in Scotland as an attacking midfelder.

Stick him in League One and he might even get away with playing as a striker.
NRC would probably be a goalscoring midfielder up there.

Far more telling is that for a large chunk of his international career - a higher standard in other words- he has been utilised as as a far deeper CM/ DM. He was doing this for Bulgaria long before he became a Villa player.

I accept that part of the frustration many have with him is when we signed him we thought  we were getting our very own Lampard/ Gerrard. It didn't work out that way and we only got the best out of him when he was deeper joining up play from the back.

Also: he can tackle. It's just not in the bone crunching manner that gets people off their seats. At his best he is a canny player, who reads the game well intercepts the ball and keeps things ticking over. I agree he hasn't been at his best this season, but he's still a vital player for us. He's not an obvious captain in the fist clenching kiss the badge manner. But he is vocal out on the pitch and is well thought of at the club by the younger and older players alike.

I'm glad that GH doesn't view him as completely untouchable though as MON seemed to. When he tires in the latter stages of the second half we tend to get overrun. Part of that is the workload he gets through, but if he needs to come off he needs to come off. Hopefully he'll be better rotated and rested with a new face or two coming in in Jan so that this becomes less of an issue.

Used correctly he can still be  a very valuable player for us for a few years yet. His game was never about pace and the strengths he relies on -touch and awareness- tend to be the last things to go.

[Monty]

Agreed 100% Kevin.

[DrGonzo]

Petrov WAS primarily an attacking midfielder when he signed, yes, and an awfully ineffective one at that.  We all (?) applauded MoN for his foresight in playing him in the deeper role he now occupies, and getting some productivity out of him.  However if he is now struggling to keep up with the pace of the game there, where does he go next?? Leicester City.

[TimTheVillain]

Thus, GH must sign a replacement in the January window alongside a decent striker if we're going to be up there fighting for Champions League again this season.

[Monty]

I'm not sure we even really need to be challenging for the CL positions this year, though it would be nice obviously. If Young signs his contract that means we're losing no more top players next summer and will have the chance at a proper rebuild. We should also give our very promising youth more of a chance to shine through - including up front. Man City's need to comply with the Platini rules means, by their own admission, that the days of spending £125m in a summer are behind them for at least a while now, meaning they won't necessarily stretch so far ahead of us. Neither will Spurs, and Liverpool need a miracle - especially if the Platini regulations stop a loss-making club from being supported by a mega-rich owner, as that would rule out one available shortcut for Liverpool getting back to the top.

As for Petrov himself, I think he's starting to look a bit more like the player we know from the last two seasons.  Once Ireland regains form and Delph regains fitness, we'll have proper options for a genuine midfield three. Combine this with GH's passing philosophy, and I think we'll see the best of Petrov again this season.