The same team he picked against Newcastle could and should have beat Newcastle. We cannot carry five or six rank bad performances.
Quote from: pauliewalnuts on September 19, 2013, 10:53:57 PMQuote from: Ads on September 19, 2013, 09:15:28 PMI think people are wrong to think we signed Kozak instead of an attacking midfielder. We just didn't sign the later because the player Lambert wanted wasn't available at the right price.Couldn't you then make the argument that instead of spending anything at all on Kozak, who plays in a position we're pretty well stocked for, he'd have been better off putting some of that money towards the AM we definitely need?Don't get me wrong, Kozak may or may not be a good player, I really don't know, but what I do know is that whilst you could possibly make a small case for another striker (Benteke getting injured, for instance), you could make a significantly bigger one for an AM.I don't think we are stocked in that position. If Benteke is injured, then there was no natural target man replacement. Only Gabby can play up top on his own, but then if he is up there, we lose width and pace out wide.Lambert didn't switch to Kozak at the last minute, he had been chasing him for a long time and had an amount set in his budget to buy him.
Quote from: Ads on September 19, 2013, 09:15:28 PMI think people are wrong to think we signed Kozak instead of an attacking midfielder. We just didn't sign the later because the player Lambert wanted wasn't available at the right price.Couldn't you then make the argument that instead of spending anything at all on Kozak, who plays in a position we're pretty well stocked for, he'd have been better off putting some of that money towards the AM we definitely need?Don't get me wrong, Kozak may or may not be a good player, I really don't know, but what I do know is that whilst you could possibly make a small case for another striker (Benteke getting injured, for instance), you could make a significantly bigger one for an AM.
I think people are wrong to think we signed Kozak instead of an attacking midfielder. We just didn't sign the later because the player Lambert wanted wasn't available at the right price.
I am going to be honest in that I simply don't know what Helenius brings to the table because I have seen five minutes of him in a league Cup game. I know some have said he is a bit different in the sense that just because he's 6' 5" doesn't mean he is a target man. Perhaps he has been brought in for something more unorthodox up top?As to the midfield, Bacuna is a right sided midfielder. His display in there against Liverpool was iffy, but he looked lightening quick and actually did some decent things inbetween trying too hard a failing. Tonev is another alternative.I am not arguing that we don't need that player with the guile to do something special in the advanced midfield role, but against the point that Lambert chose to buy Kozak instead of one.
I remember a lot of comments on here after Benteke's first games saying he looked a dud..
Quote from: stubbsyandy on September 20, 2013, 05:45:06 PMI remember a lot of comments on here after Benteke's first games saying he looked a dud..But it's not about how good Kozak is - he may be brilliant, for all we know. It's just that he's the wrong sort of player.
I couldn't watch the game today, can someone explain Bentekje's injury? Did it look bad or was he taken off as a precaution? Please let him be OK.