'I'd like to take on men' - Babel

[Shaggy]

Yeah there were definitely ten better players than him in Red yesterday. No doubt about it.

[dww]

Yeah there were definitely ten better players than him in Red yesterday. No doubt about it.

There is an element of deliberately trying to find fault in that analysis. I thought he did a lot of things well - offered himself as an out ball, closed people down, had the defense worried about his pace. I think it is one of those days where you accept that every player did their part, I don't think he deserves to be singled out for being poor from that game.

I agree with all of the problems you see in his game and they all fall in line with my view that he shouldn't be a definite starter and that he will never (and never would have been no matter what manager he had) be the superstar some thing he has the potential to be. That said he has pushed himself into contention and is probably ahead of Benayoun in my personal list of people I want to see on the teamsheet now which is a big turn around from my views earlier in the season.

[Guest]

I can't agree that he's pushed himself ahead of Benni mate. He's maybe improved but he's nowhere near good enough still. He was grossly ineffective yesterday.

[dww]

I'm not sure that grossly ineffective is fair at all. He made lots of space for others - had their defense worried with runs across the box and allowed Torres more freedom by occasionally being the one closing down the last defender with pace.

His decision making was poor and he could have made more of the opportunities he had but he helped the team shape and pattern of play a great deal.

[Norbs]

He was, our play didn't flow as much when the ball was played to him, he kept slowing it down and his movement was nowhere good enough. He actually never managed to put himself in one good position all match despite the Sunderland defence being all at sea. I just can't see how you can take anything positive out of his performance, apart from the fact that he wasn't substituted.

Gets ball, cuts inside, head down, then

A.) has ball taken off him.

or

B.) drags weak shot wide of near post