Ross Barkley

[FatSam]

Will Smith (as he’s promised)  get him in the Euro squad? If so then I think he will stay.

He certainly is our fresh prince.

He is Legend!

Good to see he’s a man in black ... ink.

There might be a hitch if he’s seen as one of the bad boys, but then his competitors might be seen as the bad boys 2.

[Lastfootstamper]

The biggest problem with Ross is....he pulls his socks over his knees.  No, no, no and indeed, no.  Sort it out.

Even John Terry managed to ingratiate himself with us despite the same faux pas. Time heals.

[The Edge]

The biggest problem with Ross is....he pulls his socks over his knees.  No, no, no and indeed, no.  Sort it out.

Even John Terry managed to ingratiate himself with us despite the same faux pas. Time heals.

I'm glad it's not just me. For some reason I get really pissed off with players who pull their socks over their knees. And from memory I think JT was the first in the Premier league do this affront to football. Time is a great healer but not on this one for me. Anyhow I hope our people are already working on a permanent deal for Barkley. He has helped to take our midfield to another level. And Jack's game has got even better as he seems to be getting a little less attention from the opposition.

[Jon Crofts]

The biggest problem with Ross is....he pulls his socks over his knees.  No, no, no and indeed, no.  Sort it out.

Even John Terry managed to ingratiate himself with us despite the same faux pas. Time heals.

I'm glad it's not just me. For some reason I get really pissed off with players who pull their socks over their knees. And from memory I think JT was the first in the Premier league do this affront to football. Time is a great healer but not on this one for me. Anyhow I hope our people are already working on a permanent deal for Barkley. He has helped to take our midfield to another level. And Jack's game has got even better as he seems to be getting a little less attention from the opposition.

Very noticeable re the last point, that said we've yet to come up against the real cloggers like your Burnley's or Albion's.

[Sexual Ealing]

The biggest problem with Ross is....he pulls his socks over his knees.  No, no, no and indeed, no.  Sort it out.

Even John Terry managed to ingratiate himself with us despite the same faux pas. Time heals.

Not all of us!

[OCD]

To get the best out of him, I think he's got to play as a 10 and have McGinn and Luiz sitting in front of the defence. Then if he does play that role, the front 4 can swap positions.

[DrGonzo]

To get the best out of him, I think he's got to play as a 10 and have McGinn and Luiz sitting in front of the defence. Then if he does play that role, the front 4 can swap positions.

I have a sum total of zero problems with that.

[ChicagoLion]

To get the best out of him, I think he's got to play as a 10 and have McGinn and Luiz sitting in front of the defence. Then if he does play that role, the front 4 can swap positions.

I think he has to play where he played last night, 'The Mighty Reds YNWA' and Leicester. There are risks when we dont have the ball as mentioned.

If you look at our forward play, Olllie was often pulling out wide and RB was in the 9 position. RB is given liscence to roam and find pockets of space in wide, deep or advanced positions. That is not a 10 in my understanding of the role.

[brontebilly]

To get the best out of him, I think he's got to play as a 10 and have McGinn and Luiz sitting in front of the defence. Then if he does play that role, the front 4 can swap positions.

McGinn next to Luiz is so much better for our shape. But not sure that will be McGinns best position in the medium/long term. It's not often a holding midfielder has the ball in the opposition net within 45 mins away from home...He would prefer to be further forward I'm sure.

Equally as important was the shift Trez put in without the ball on the right. I'm struggling to see how Traore gets in. Traore/Barkley/Grealish will leaves us unbalanced no matter what I think.

[OCD]

It's ok for McGinn to make breaks forward as long as other players have the intelligence to fill-in. Mings likes to make runs forward which makes me nervous but it's the same principle. Someone has to slot in. The quality and tactics of the opposition is also relevant. Sometimes McGinn (and Luiz) may be allowed a bit more freedom because of the quality/tactics of the opponent.

Traore's got a challenge on his hands for sure. Well done for Trez for rising to the challenge of seeing a big money signing made who can play the same position.

[brontebilly]

It's ok for McGinn to make breaks forward as long as other players have the intelligence to fill-in. Mings likes to make runs forward which makes me nervous but it's the same principle. Someone has to slot in. The quality and tactics of the opposition is also relevant. Sometimes McGinn (and Luiz) may be allowed a bit more freedom because of the quality/tactics of the opponent.

Traore's got a challenge on his hands for sure. Well done for Trez for rising to the challenge of seeing a big money signing made who can play the same position.

Mings shouldn't be making many runs, hasn't the technical ability. Ridiculous effort at Arsenal again that nearly cost us in the second half. It might be a forlorn hope but I really wish he focused more on the defending side which needs enough improvement as is....not his ball playing inability

Agreed that if McGinn breaks forward then someone should be covering but that appears like it won't be Barkley too often. I think that's going to be a problem for us. Grealish and Watkins don't have an issue in getting back so I'm not sure why Barkley seems to be exempt.

[Risso]

If McGinn breaks forward then Luiz sits, and vice versa.

[ChicagoLion]

It's ok for McGinn to make breaks forward as long as other players have the intelligence to fill-in. Mings likes to make runs forward which makes me nervous but it's the same principle. Someone has to slot in. The quality and tactics of the opposition is also relevant. Sometimes McGinn (and Luiz) may be allowed a bit more freedom because of the quality/tactics of the opponent.

Traore's got a challenge on his hands for sure. Well done for Trez for rising to the challenge of seeing a big money signing made who can play the same position.

Mings shouldn't be making many runs, hasn't the technical ability. Ridiculous effort at Arsenal again that nearly cost us in the second half. It might be a forlorn hope but I really wish he focused more on the defending side which needs enough improvement as is....not his ball playing inability

Agreed that if McGinn breaks forward then someone should be covering but that appears like it won't be Barkley too often. I think that's going to be a problem for us. Grealish and Watkins don't have an issue in getting back so I'm not sure why Barkley seems to be exempt.

i think you have to accept that cetain players are not very good at certain things, what he brings to the team is from getting on to the ball in attacking situations, to do that he can not be one of the ones filling in and chasing down. as someone said, in games where we need gaps plugging and closing down space then Barkley is not your man for that.

[Abbeyfealeavfc]

This is fine in principle but needs to be applied to all players in the team/squad. Some players are expected to be without fault or weaknesses, but the tolerance levels for them are very low when they fall short. Allowances can't just be made for certain individuals and not others, not if we want a successful "team"

[Lastfootstamper]

I don't expect Barkley to thunder up and down all day because it's not nor ever has been his style of play, and it's not what he's in the team to do. To denigrate Mings for getting forward is equally nonsensical to me as he's a bloke we brought in less than two years ago to, amongst other things, provide cover and competition at left back.