Lucas Neill - Speculation

[enema of the state]

I think finnans a decent pro but there are LOTS of better right backs..Alves would be a vast improvement

I dont think neil is the answer to our problems although hes another good pro wholl do a decent job especially in the hurly burly of the epl

riise is a much better player and a much better fb than finnan, neil or aurelio.

i want to see riise and alves as our fullbacks.

people might think it heresy but i honestly think we can improve on jamie in central defence. Agger looks like the real deal as someone wholl take over from sami and play for a decade but jamie????? again, top pro in terms of application and attitude but there are better centre backs out there.

[paulcooper4]

Can anyone who's seen a lot of Alves play comment on his ability in the air?

leaps in the air


Hes **** hot, fast and skilful with a good shot and a good engine



lands on a stone and twists ankle

[Los Rojos]

I've only seen him play a little but I don't think he's up to much in the air. Then again, he was supposedly being a bought instead of Pennant, i.e. as right wing not right back.

Ok cheers

[Neil Young]

I dont think neil is the answer to our problems

To be fair to me, I never said I was.

[Shaggy]

people might think it heresy but i honestly think we can improve on jamie in central defence. Agger looks like the real deal as someone wholl take over from sami and play for a decade but jamie????? again, top pro in terms of application and attitude but there are better centre backs out there.

Controversial!

I agree there are better centre backs out there but I don’t think there are many (if any) who’d be better FOR US. Carra for us is like Puyol for Barca – if they swapped clubs they may both be exposed. For Barca, Puyol is the best available and Carra is perfect for us.

[dww]

I think finnans a decent pro but there are LOTS of better right backs..Alves would be a vast improvement

I dont think neil is the answer to our problems although hes another good pro wholl do a decent job especially in the hurly burly of the epl

riise is a much better player and a much better fb than finnan, neil or aurelio.

i want to see riise and alves as our fullbacks.

people might think it heresy but i honestly think we can improve on jamie in central defence. Agger looks like the real deal as someone wholl take over from sami and play for a decade but jamie????? again, top pro in terms of application and attitude but there are better centre backs out there.

I would love to see this list of many better right backs than Finnan. I'm not sure I would go so far as believe some of the hype on here but quality full backs in general seem to be in short supply. I think we could improve on Finnan but it would be hard although I accept the fact we could do with cover which gave us better aerial protection.

I think Carra is one of the best covering CBs in the world. We do need a dominant player though - the type of player Sami has been in the past. I'm not yet sure Agger is that player but he is an exceptional talent by the look of his performances so far.

[Parm]

He's also better in the air than Finnan. I think Rafa sees that as a real weakness in Finnan's game which might be why this has resurfaced immediately after the Bolton game where Finnan didn't exactly do a great job on Campo for their second goal. I certainly think it's an area teams will try to exploit.

I don't care that much for Neill but he would add something to the squad.

I might as well say it - I think sometimes Finnan gets a little overhyped around here.

agree with all except about Finnan being overhyped.
He is a quality defender who does not get enough praise. eh gets on doing his job very well and with the minimum of fuss. An unsung hero like Didi.

[Parm]

leaps in the air


Hes **** hot, fast and skilful with a good shot and a good engine



lands on a stone and twists ankle

to be honest we all thought Aurelio was going to be the nuts....

I dont think Neil or Alves are quite what we're looking for.

[Neil Young]

agree with all except about Finnan being overhyped.
He is a quality defender who does not get enough praise. eh gets on doing his job very well and with the minimum of fuss. An unsung hero like Didi.

He's not an unsung hero because people are always singing his praises!

I think he's good and reliable but he ain't no Zambrotta.

[dww]

I think we need to give Aurelio time. Judge him after Christmas.

Not sure that Neill would be anything other than a cover player used in specific situations. Alves I think could really do things for us but we need him to come when we have a settled and assured back four so we could ease him in without disrupting the team shape.

[dww]

He's not an unsung hero because people are always singing his praises!

I think he's good and reliable but he ain't no Zambrotta.

That may be fair but Zambrotta is pretty exceptional. Who else would you genuinely rather have at RB. I'm not sure there is a player in the PL I would rather have at RB.

The thing with Finnan is he gets no coverage in the press but if he is ever mentioned on Forums he is jizzed over. Over hyped on the internet, unsung in general I would say.

[Red_Polo]

I think fans of other teams don't appreciate how good he is whilst we tend to think he's even better than he actually is. I still think he was brilliant for us last season, and we'd struggle to sign a better RB. I hope he can repeat that for us this season but he's fallen a little short of that so far IMO.

[Red_Polo]

The thing with Finnan is he gets no coverage in the press but if he is ever mentioned on Forums he is jizzed over. Over hyped on the internet, unsung in general I would say.

Eggsackly

[Neil Young]

That may be fair but Zambrotta is pretty exceptional. Who else would you genuinely rather have at RB. I'm not sure there is a player in the PL I would rather have at RB.

The thing with Finnan is he gets no coverage in the press but if he is ever mentioned on Forums he is jizzed over. Over hyped on the internet, unsung in general I would say.

Yes, I'd go along with much of that.

[Morph]

I also think Finnan's probably the best option at RB in the prem, but I think he's prone to being drawn out of position at times, quite often you see him at the edge of the 18 yd box or closer to the center of it, when he should be further out towards the attacking winger, so he doesn't give them room to cross. Noticed it a couple of times this season, but I hope it doesn't become a regular part of his game.