Matejovsky slams selfish strikers

[Huntley & Palmer]

Spot on from Marek for me

[Nezhen]

Gordons cumming wrote:

Most strikers will shoot instead of pass, most of the time.

Tell me one who didn't?

Steve Moran for one. He just seemed to be afraid to score all the time and would constantly look to lay the ball off to Senior or Whitehurst

[Fat Leather Jacket]

Fair criticism.

[Vision]

Gordons cumming wrote:

Most strikers will shoot instead of pass, most of the time.

Tell me one who didn't?

Steve Moran for one. He just seemed to be afraid to score all the time and would constantly look to lay the ball off to Senior or Whitehurst

I dont think it was scoring that Moran was scared of. To be fair i'd have passed to Whitehurst whenever he told me as well.

[Gordons Cumming]

To be fair to the strikers, when you are getting so little service you'll probably shoot at any chance you get.

[rg6royal]

Strong but fair comments!

[loyalroyal4life]

Think Kevin Doyle springs to mind. ATM marek has more chance of scoring then him, no wonder he thinks they are selfish

[papereyes]

I do wonder how much idiom and subtlety in the guy's comments may have been translated out of that interview. Certainly, some of the phrasing looks a bit ... basic?

[Squelchy2507]

I do wonder how much idiom and subtlety in the guy's comments may have been translated out of that interview. Certainly, some of the phrasing looks a bit ... basic?

This article probably puts his comments in perspective a little more.
http://uk.eurosport.yahoo.com/13032008/58/premier-league-matejovsky-pans-selfish-reading.html

Upon his arrival at Reading in January, Marek Matejovsky was billed the ideal linking player - unselfish, hard working and an excellent distributor.

Two months into his stay, the Czech midfielder is still coming to grips with the single-minded approach employed by many of his new team-mates. Just as he expected of the Premier League, unselfishness is a rare commodity.

"Strikers are solving it individually although they can give a pass," he said.

"When they can pass, they would rather try to go past the opponent. This is what they were telling me at the beginning of my Reading spell - they bought me because they wanted to see some more passes. [They wanted me] to change the style of the game."

The 26-year-old, who has been capped seven times by the Czech Republic, has been trying to instil the virtues of a short-passing game during training sessions with Steve Coppell and his staff.

"We had a kind of practice match and there were some moments when a player kicked a long ball to the strikers and they saw how angry I was about it. I gesticulated a few times.

"I am not saying that we can always play short passes, but if the possibility is there, we should try it, shouldn't we?"

Matejovsky also shed light on the approach of his manager, painting Coppell as a hands-off operator.

"If the coach feels that one should improve something, we usually speak with him individually. Mr Coppell is the boss here but basically he does nothing during training. He just walks and looks how every player is committed. Everything else is the three assistants' job."

When asked which Reading player impressed him most, he had no hesitation.

"The player with best technique in our team is left back Nicky Shorey. A defender! What things he can do with the ball! It is not about tricks, it is about how he can stop the ball and how he can pass the ball in difficult situations."

[juanpablo]

thanks very much for posting the full interview\article


makes you laugh how much shit gets about

[brendywendy]

the real article makes much more sense

hate the british press at the moment

[Archie's penalty]

I do wonder how much idiom and subtlety in the guy's comments may have been translated out of that interview. Certainly, some of the phrasing looks a bit ... basic?

This article probably puts his comments in perspective a little more.
http://uk.eurosport.yahoo.com/13032008/58/premier-league-matejovsky-pans-selfish-reading.html

Upon his arrival at Reading in January, Marek Matejovsky was billed the ideal linking player - unselfish, hard working and an excellent distributor.

Two months into his stay, the Czech midfielder is still coming to grips with the single-minded approach employed by many of his new team-mates. Just as he expected of the Premier League, unselfishness is a rare commodity.

"Strikers are solving it individually although they can give a pass," he said.

"When they can pass, they would rather try to go past the opponent. This is what they were telling me at the beginning of my Reading spell - they bought me because they wanted to see some more passes. [They wanted me] to change the style of the game."

The 26-year-old, who has been capped seven times by the Czech Republic, has been trying to instil the virtues of a short-passing game during training sessions with Steve Coppell and his staff.

"We had a kind of practice match and there were some moments when a player kicked a long ball to the strikers and they saw how angry I was about it. I gesticulated a few times.

"I am not saying that we can always play short passes, but if the possibility is there, we should try it, shouldn't we?"

Matejovsky also shed light on the approach of his manager, painting Coppell as a hands-off operator.

"If the coach feels that one should improve something, we usually speak with him individually. Mr Coppell is the boss here but basically he does nothing during training. He just walks and looks how every player is committed. Everything else is the three assistants' job."

When asked which Reading player impressed him most, he had no hesitation.

"The player with best technique in our team is left back Nicky Shorey. A defender! What things he can do with the ball! It is not about tricks, it is about how he can stop the ball and how he can pass the ball in difficult situations."

These comments really impress me. He seems to say what he thinks which is great. I love the way he gets angry in training if we play the ball long.

Great signing in terms of mentality as well as ability

[Huntley & Palmer]

Ideal slams lazy unfit Czech:
The new boy should keep his mouth shut and instead get on with improving his fitness so he doesn't look so completely devastated after 60 minutes of play!!

Indeed, he could learn a lot from the world class John Carew

[Forbury Lion]

He has a point though.

Doyle was the most guilty on Saturday. Desperate for a goal I guess...........

Agreed, his worst effort went so far wide of the goal that it could have been mistaken for a pass to Shane Long, who also refused to pass it, instead sending it past the keeper for a goal. We'll never win with greedy play like that. Bring back the unselfish Nicky Forster, that's what I say.

[Victor Meldrew]

Gordons cumming wrote:

Most strikers will shoot instead of pass, most of the time.

Tell me one who didn't?

Steve Moran for one. He just seemed to be afraid to score all the time and would constantly look to lay the ball off to Senior or Whitehurst

I dont think it was scoring that Moran was scared of. To be fair i'd have passed to Whitehurst whenever he told me as well.

The rumour always was that Whitehurst did the scoring where Moran should have been scoring.

[Daniella]

He has a point though.

Doyle was the most guilty on Saturday. Desperate for a goal I guess...........

Agreed, his worst effort went so far wide of the goal that it could have been mistaken for a pass to Shane Long, who also refused to pass it, instead sending it past the keeper for a goal. We'll never win with greedy play like that. Bring back the unselfish Nicky Forster, that's what I say.

LOL- Forbury in pulling Gordon's pants down and making him look a tit shocker!!!

[Royalee]

More comments taken out of context by the media. Ah well, I agree with Matejovsky's sentiment, although I'm sure he gets on with our strikers and he's added an extra dimension to our team going forward since he's signed. For me he's the most creative player we've got and he's doing an excellent job at the moment.

[PremAddict]

He has a point though.

Doyle was the most guilty on Saturday. Desperate for a goal I guess...........

Agreed, his worst effort went so far wide of the goal that it could have been mistaken for a pass to Shane Long, who also refused to pass it, instead sending it past the keeper for a goal. We'll never win with greedy play like that. Bring back the unselfish Nicky Forster, that's what I say.

LOL- Forbury in pulling Gordon's pants down and making him look a tit shocker!!!

True - I think saying Doyle is selfish is getting it incorrect. He did put it in the side netting late in the match and I remember thinking "why did he take that poor shot when so many were in the box?". More true is the tendency for the long arial pass over midfield which has to piss Marek off a bit. Short passes and possession tend to open the defence up more than direct play (unless it's a counter).

[Gordons Cumming]

He has a point though.

Doyle was the most guilty on Saturday. Desperate for a goal I guess...........

Agreed, his worst effort went so far wide of the goal that it could have been mistaken for a pass to Shane Long, who also refused to pass it, instead sending it past the keeper for a goal. We'll never win with greedy play like that. Bring back the unselfish Nicky Forster, that's what I say.

LOL- Forbury in pulling Gordon's pants down and making him look a tit shocker!!!

It'll take more than mere sarcasm to make me look like a tit!

[earleyroyal]

It is possible to seem to be doing nothing when you're doing a lot of observing and thinking.

Your comment about Coppell being quiet just confirms that you are indeed SDR.

What!!!

No I am not SDR, it was mentioned in a previous attack on my fine character that I was as he used to use nicnames and one called The Quiet One was mentioned, I did consider the Quiet Balding Guy, but that didn't have the same ring to it.

One day, SDR whoever he is will come back and post and you will all see that you are so wrong and I'll be doing my victory dance, oh yes.

Purely out of interest...why the crusade against the 'Balding Guy?' Did he run over your dog or something? Even a total moron can see he's a superb manager, admittedly he's not been at his best this season but then give me a shortlist of better alternatives.