Petrov looking to prove Houllier wrong

[not3bad]

Petrov, NRC, Delph, Pires and Bradley will have to fight it out for the other position.

I think Bradley will be moved on before Petrov will be.  He hasn't been in the squad since his debut and it doesn't look like its working out for him.

[pablopicasso_10]

tbf to petrov, and im not a fan of his, he had a decent game against the barcodes, and did help settle things down a little in the centre of the park...

[KevinGage]

The problem for Stan has always been he came to us as a swashbuckling, goalscoring midfielder from  Scotland, and we were expecting some of that here. MON said as much when he brought him down (OK, maybe not the swashbuckling part).

What we got on Sunday was closer to Stan's best form for us in 2008/09 and the type of football he plays for Bulgaria. Namely; intelligent use of the ball and keeping things ticking over in a steady Eddie type of way. His close control in tight areas and general awareness are not things that are likely to go due to age, so a role as a squad player -if he was receptive to it- could be useful to us for a while yet.

[E I Adio]

If Petrov could play every week like he did on Sunday, I'd have him first on the team sheet.

I think we have MON to thank for his previously negative style of play. He is so much better in the more positive midfield role.

[darren woolley]

I thought he played good on sunday like you said E I Adio if he could play like that every game i would put him straight in.

[Mazrim]

He wont play like that every game though. That's the problem.
It's been the problem since he arrived here.

[Olneythelonely]

Straight question - would we prefer NRC or Stan to stay next season?

NRC for me!   

Neither are good enough. If I had to choose one to have as a squad player then I'd choose Stan.

[UsualSuspect]

I think we only really have room for one of Bradley, petrol or NRC because I think it is of paramount importance that we sign a player intended for the first team. Which of the three stays is not that important to me - they all have different qualities - so it would probably come down to economics for me.

Anyone know how many seasons Petrov has left on his contract?

Another 2 after this season phew thanks martin for tying him up on a long term big money deal

Pires wont feature next season and Bradley must be really really shit if Pires gets the nod before him.

I would like to see a midfield central 3 of makoun (with a pre season) NRC & Delph/Bannan

[Rip Van We Go Again]

Pires wont feature next season and Bradley must be really really shit if Pires gets the nod before him.

I know it was only one game, but Bradley was arse wipingly bad against Man City.

[Mazrim]

We know he's capable of a lot more though but if he doesn't show it soon he'll be sent back to Germany.

In the meantime, Petrov is so used to breathing through his arse that he's developed a second set of lungs in his battycheeks. It's time to let him go to warmer climes and easier paced game before he has a coronary.
The odd tidy (no more) performance shouldn't change that.
At least NRC, who has been far better than Stan this year, has the engine and attributes to still compete in this league.
Neither should be starting for us any more though and hopefully by the start of next season we'll have upped the quality in the midfeld area so they won't.
I do see a point in keeping NRC in the squad though but not Stan. I just dont see the point. He can hardly last a game and cant really come off the bench and change a game so why bother? He's a model pro and is an admirable character and deserves respect but that's it for me. Time to say tarrah a bit.

[UsualSuspect]

We know he's capable of a lot more though but if he doesn't show it soon he'll be sent back to Germany.

In the meantime, Petrov is so used to breathing through his arse that he's developed a second set of lungs in his battycheeks. It's time to let him go to warmer climes and easier paced game before he has a coronary.
The odd tidy (no more) performance shouldn't change that.
At least NRC, who has been far better than Stan this year, has the engine and attributes to still compete in this league.
Neither should be starting for us any more though and hopefully by the start of next season we'll have upped the quality in the midfeld area so they won't.
I do see a point in keeping NRC in the squad though but not Stan. I just dont see the point. He can hardly last a game and cant really come off the bench and change a game so why bother? He's a model pro and is an admirable character and deserves respect but that's it for me. Time to say tarrah a bit.

Agree Mazrim

I've only seen petrov in the flesh (so to speak) last season and this season and Ive what ive seen of him is that he tries hard, is a mediocre player and has an appalling level of fitness.

I dont think Bradley makes the bench these days so he will be on his way soon - good job he was only on loan

[Mister E]

he tries hard, is a mediocre player and has an appalling level of fitness.

What rubbish! He has great first-touch control, always sees the pass (even if it is backwards / sideways) and makes numerous interceptions / tackles. He is a 60-minute player to be sure, but to say "mediocre" is just ludicrous.
You don't get 100 caps for being mediocre .... even in a mediocre national side.

[Dave]

Straight question - would we prefer NRC or Stan to stay next season?

NRC for me!   

Neither are good enough. If I had to choose one to have as a squad player then I'd choose Stan.

Same here.

He'll be useful for the duration of his contract if for no other reason than to be steady and support the younger players coming through.

There's no way that Reo-Coker should be offered the sort of contract he'll be able to get from another club just to be a reserve, which is all that he should be.

[LeeB]

Hopefully he can carry on the form he showed Saturday, while he's still with us.

Best game i've seen him play for some time.

I didn't see Saturdays performance but I thought he was excellent on Sunday, and two top showings inside 24hrs must surely end questions about his fitness.

Seriously though, a decision between who to keep out of Stan and Nige will surely just come down to the fact one has a two year contract and the other one doesn't.

[Dave]

Seriously though, a decision between who to keep out of Stan and Nige will surely just come down to the fact one has a two year contract and the other one doesn't.

That's the crux of the matter. If each of them had two years left on their contract I wouldn't want to sell either of them unless an offer came in that made it really worth our while. They can then both be used in the right situation as they have been over the past few months.

But Reo-Coker on a free transfer will probably command £50k per week. Should we be paying him that much to sit on our bench?