Mamadou Sakho

[SB]

Same. If he just kicked the ball out of play instead of letting the striker get on top of him it probably wouldn't be mentioned. He's quality, surely just a bad day at the office.

Yeah there's times when he should knock it out & let everyone regroup but I do love his confidence too.

[Dessy]

Same. If he just kicked the ball out of play instead of letting the striker get on top of him it probably wouldn't be mentioned. He's quality, surely just a bad day at the office.

Sometimes, just let sometimes it's his ****in job to 'kick the ball out of defense'.

His decision making and moments worry me but hey ho each to their own, he could be Skrtel LOL 😁😁😁😁

[Kenneth]

I don't understand what you're saying.

[Dessy]

I don't understand what you're saying.

I don't believe he's the quality some think he is. A quality centre half should understand his priorities and defend first. Sakho has too many momentary lapses for me, decent though he may be, he's not top draw. And there are some things you can see instinctively he will not refrain from doing every now and then...... Flick, trick, whatever.

Apologies if I misinterpreted your point, but I was trying to emphasise the importance of a quality CB knowing when to simply clear his lines.

[Kenneth]

Thanks for expanding. I think he's got a lot going for him, his size, his body strength, his heading ability, he's pretty quick, his passing is generally good, and his recent form has been good. There aren't that many quality left footed centre backs around and I don't think he's a weak point in our side.

[Dessy]

He s an evil looking bugger too!

Appreciate (and agree with) the positives but have nagging doubts when I see some of the calamitous situations he puts himself and the team in.

If he cuts that out then great, world class but IF?

[danperkins]

Everyone has a bad game or two, Sakho will be just fine.

[RichC]

Poor yesterday, looked like the occasion of it being "Derby day" got to him a bit. Everton were pretty smart with closing him and Can down quickly from the back as they've been used as two good out balls to get forward quickly down the flanks as of late.

[McDermotX]

They did a good job closing him down alright, but I don't think he done himself any help at all always favoring his left side. Certainly in the first instance early in the game, he allows the ball to come across himself as he receives the ball from Mig allowing an extra second or two for the attacker to close him down.
Granted, he wants to be on his stronger foot, but sometimes there's football to be played, and sometimes there isn't. It created a few moments of unnecessary panic, but its probably a good thing, as even though he's played in big games before, exposure to pressure situations like that can only be beneficial. Midfield not as smart as it has been of late either, especially after Lucas went off, but we needed to be quicker on the out overall, and Sakho did struggle a bit.
The defence has been paying well, but we've probably not been as 'rushed' as of late. Not overly concerned, but it was interesting to see Mig at times in the second half going long rather than our usual short pass out.

[Fierce]

I don't think he was rubbish yesterday. Wasn't his best game granted, I think like Can he sometimes suffers from trying to be clever as others have mentioned

When it works, it's brilliant and he looks a world class defender. But right in front of your own goal is not the time to be dallying with the ball and trying to take on an attacker who is almost always quicker

Can did the same, and Skrtel absolutely bollocked him too

[DannyMan2006]

Has to be said, both Can & Sakho nearly cost us a couple of times, despite there being a person in space they could pass too.

Granted, they likely wanted to be more progressive in their passing, but sometimes you should just quickly knock it on and allow another the chance to move it forwards.

[Daniel 7]

He didn't have the best game because he was being targeted by their forwards, they didn't let him settle on the ball and harried him, sometimes doubling up to cut down on his ability to make the pass. He looked jittery under that pressure, and I'm sure other teams will try this with him too. He'll have to find a way to get around it and make adjustments in his decision making when he is put under pressure. The momentum he can build up from the back is important to the system with the pace of his passing.

[The_weatherman]

Poor yesterday, looked like the occasion of it being "Derby day" got to him a bit. Everton were pretty smart with closing him and Can down quickly from the back as they've been used as two good out balls to get forward quickly down the flanks as of late.

When we are missing Lucas I think teams should close down on Can and Sakho, forcing us to play through Skrtel and Allen/Henderson. Lucas is just so good at offering himself as an option for the defenders that he can relieve pressure on them.

[Zapater]

Anyone notice his glove fall off in the first half during the tussle with Lamela?

[Red_Polo]

Anyone notice his glove fall off in the first half during the tussle with Lamela?

His hand fell off?