"Useless" - the scapegoat thread (Reading)

[Maxiedge]

After all this recent waffle about CROUCH not getting a game....and being courted by suiters.....HE WAS LESS THAN USELESS TODAY! We all know he can't head the ball to save his life, nor can he pass it....but now we mus add the complete inability to 'read' an attack...and get onto the end of crosses (how many of those did he fail top connect with today? What does he add to our team...? Nothing!

SISSOKO also cant pass or head the ball...and he blunders into tackles (unlike mascherano), and contributes as much as Crouch - nothing!

Get rid of BOTH in JAN and put us all out of our misery!

From a footballer, Crouch was poor but Momo played OK.

[Radar]

They are two players along with Riise that should not be playing for Liverpool

[Gazmo1]

Obviously I have my own opinions of the game, that being that Momo simply is not good enough, Riise makes me want to scream, the crow in ineffective as was Crouch). But it does lead you to team selection and/or rotation.

My opinion was that Gerrard was taken off because Rafa had effectively written the game off at this point. The team selection was made according to Rafa perception of Readings strenghts (or weakness, depending on how you look it). This in itself could be seen as disrespectful.

So, what do we have? Rotation doesn't work or a squad that isn't good enough to sustain being rotated? What is Rafa thinking? Keeping players fresh all season in the hope that other 'big teams' fall back and we come galloping past? Or just a cup team?

To me it seems like the theory is spot on but the skills base Rafa has to call on is not good enough. What would you do? Play the strongest 11 and hope nobody gets tired or injured and get burn out in March and finish 4th anyway or do what he does now?

Is this Rafa trying to make a point to the owners that we have no depth in our playing staff?

[Nicey]

Wall to wall you know whats ... Blanks of the highest order ... useless good for nothing sea of etc etc

[geoxf]

I post ****e posts (sometimes) but this must be up their with the


http://www.****e Post Awards.Est.1892.co.uk

Hey, it's easy to close your eyes fella.....but as the expression goes.. "Don't piss down my back and tell me it's Raining!" YOU SHOULD WAKE UP and open your eyes........CROUCH + SISSOKO simply aren't either good enough or consistent enough to be in a premiership winning team!

[StevieG08]

My take on the game is Rafa got his formation and tactics all wrong. He underestimated a Reading side that are scrapping for their very survival and were prepared to run through walls to get the points they needed. You can't tinker with the formation to that extent and expect anything other than an arse kicking. If i was to pick holes in Rafa it would be underestimating the so called lesser teams. It can be argued that Voronin and Momo aren't good enough but it was the formation which let us down yesterday IMO.

[badpiggy]

just a couple of questions (slightly leading and loaded ones) as i didn't see the game or highlights:

1. were crouch and voronin playing on the wing?

2. did riise constanly give the ball away?

3. did momo constantly give the ball away?

4. were any of these players substituted or moved into their natural position?

5 were there players on the bench who could have been doing the job that the out of position players were doing from the start?

i totally accept that today could have been "one of those days" and that it's our first loss this season and that even league winning sides get an unexpected thumping each season but the answers to the above questions - if they are what i think they will be - should be revealing in how they show the concerns some of the more sceptical fans have in relation to rafa winning us no 19. the manner in which you lose can be much more revealing than the actual result. we all say this when we win by 3 and could have had 5 more - "3-0 didn't reflect our dominance".

[JPK]

just a couple of questions (slightly leading and loaded ones) as i didn't see the game or highlights:

1. were crouch and voronin playing on the wing?

2. did riise constanly give the ball away?

3. did momo constantly give the ball away?

4. were any of these players substituted or moved into their natural position?

5 were there players on the bench who could have been doing the job that the out of position players were doing from the start?

i totally accept that today could have been "one of those days" and that it's our first loss this season and that even league winning sides get an unexpected thumping each season but the answers to the above questions - if they are what i think they will be - should be revealing in how they show the concerns some of the more sceptical fans have in relation to rafa winning us no 19. the manner in which you lose can be much more revealing than the actual result. we all say this when we win by 3 and could have had 5 more - "3-0 didn't reflect our dominance".

1. Yes Rafa played Crouch and Voronin on the wings whereas Kewell and Babel would have been better suited.

2.Riise is the most frustrating player at the club.Loves to shoot no matter where he is and it seems his fitness is not what it used to be.He seems to have put on weight.Selling him has to be priority No.1

3.Momo as AFII said is a destroyer.He desroys our attacks by losing possesion but breaks up there possesion.Very very poor yesterday.Leiva was a big loss.

4.Torres came off injured and his both claims for penalty decisions were correct decisions by the ref IMO.Rafa threw in the towel after 70 when taking of SG and Carra was taken off on 80 to avoid suspension.
It only takes a second to score a goal and with 20minutes left we gave up against the mighty Reading.Shocking.Could not give a **** about Europe but that is where the money is obviously.

5.Kewell and Babel were perfect for that system.

Hobbs did nothing wrong but caused uncertainty.Mascherano is a fighter and never gave up and having Momo beside him was braindead.Gerrard is the best player in the world at the moment.Crouch was poor but out of position.
Voronin annoyed me.

I think Rafa took a chance and hoped we could breeze into Reading and steel the points but they showed us otherwise.It was how we lost and how we played that is hard to take.The ref did'nt help with there penalty obviously.

Rafa is still the man for the job but needs to buy and sell.
You can tell alot about how we will play by the personel he puts out.

[FatTony]

SISSOKO also cant pass or head the ball...and he blunders into tackles

No! Really???

I've never noticed that!

At times Momo does not look like he belongs in Premiership football.

[Lecter]

I just mean that every week its Momo, Riise, Riise, Kuyt that we have the problem with but people still bang on about the crow and I've no idea why.

He's a tidy player and cost us nothing but isn't good enough.

Voronin didnt touch the ball until the 23rd minute

Sissoko, Voronin & Riise constantly gave away possession, I actually thought they were Readings most effective players

Voronin dwells on the ball too long
Sissoko just cant pass
Riise just wellies the ball anywhere

As for Hobbs I have one criticism hes poor in the air, he didnt win one challenge in the air with their forwards

[dom9]

I thought Hobbs was OK.

It's possible he was at fault for the 3rd goal though, as he didn't track the forward who scored on the break, even though they started from the same place, albeit near the Reading area. Lesson learned for him, but not a bad game otherwise.

Funny thing actually, I think Reading are the only team to score from a set piece against this season - 3 times now. We have not had our first choice defence in either game.

[Exiled_red]

I think the formation didn't help, Crouch was playing on the left of 3 strikers in a team with no width and got poor service, with that formation Babel and Kewell would have been better as wide forwards

[Armchairkopite]

Voronin didnt touch the ball until the 23rd minute

Sissoko, Voronin & Riise constantly gave away possession, I actually thought they were Readings most effective players

Voronin dwells on the ball too long
Sissoko just cant pass
Riise just wellies the ball anywhere

As for Hobbs I have one criticism hes poor in the air, he didnt win one challenge in the air with their forwards

Yep hobbs need to win more in the air but he looks a prospect.

Sami would've headed that freekick(the one they scored from) away imo.

[Gazzla]

Agree about Hobbs, he looks a good prospect and will only get better but he did lose out on nearly every flick on that the Reading forwards went for. On the plus side he is very comfortable in possesion and has a lovely range of accurate passing from the back. If we can develop him and bring him on he could be a star for us.

Crouch suffered from the formation but he hasn't looked great in several of the games he has played this year, maybe a consistant run of games in a 4-4-2 and we will get the best from him. Saying that if Man City offered £15M for Crouch would I sell? Yes!

Sissoko and Voronin were both **** and need moving on sooner rather than later, Voronin isn't a winger but just isn't of the right quality, a squad filler but nothing more. Sissoko is 5th choice central midfielder at best, he actually appears to be getting worse the more games he plays. If Inter of Juventus want to offer £10M for him then we should rip their arms off, that would be the deal of the century!!!

[Morph]

Voronin didnt touch the ball until the 23rd minute

Sissoko, Voronin & Riise constantly gave away possession, I actually thought they were Readings most effective players

Voronin dwells on the ball too long
Sissoko just cant pass
Riise just wellies the ball anywhere

As for Hobbs I have one criticism hes poor in the air, he didnt win one challenge in the air with their forwards

he did actually, headed one out for a corner, there may have been more but I can't recall