First on the Team-Sheet for McD?

[Snowball136]

ATM, forgive me if I'm wrong but only two players seem to be clearly worth a place


Blackman

Norwood.


What looked like a brilliant squad, now maybe doesn't"

Keepers

El-Habsi, can pull off a good save but he was dodgy last season has been dodgy this.

No way can we think of him as a serious, safe, reliable keeper, and I can't see him changing.


BOND

Yes, a few years down the line he may be a very good keeper but again, ATM he isn't Mr reliable
not exactly great at kicking. I'd play him, develop him over El-H, but I'd rather have a solid safe keep.


CENTRE-BACKS

Hector

Can be great but he's prone to errors and anyway he's Chelsea's. If we could swing a deal to keep him for next season I'd have him in the side and work on his concentration, eliminate those errors, but if he's going in Jan or at the end of the season then we need a replacement ASAP

Ferdinand.

Shame he is past it and injury prone as he has class at this level, but we'd be crazy to bet on him. Needs to be replaced.

McShane

Looked solid-as-a-rock but something seems to have gone awry there. He's not looked so good in a fair few games, pulled about a bit (is that Gunter's fault?)

The new manager may be able to "get him back". If so, then OK, but I feel a bit worried that maybe he isn't quite as good as I thought.

Cooper

Going to be a very decent CB at this level but he needs game time. Do we give him that, maybe write off this season? If the POs become realistically out of reach then I'd play him as much as poss, decide at the end of the season, but now? Still hoping to make top six? Scary.


Full-Backs

[Gunter is an enigma. Athletic but not the best tackler, can be good going forward but seems frozen in the headlights this season. I'd rather have a thug that just stops wingers, but maybe that's too old-fashioned?

Obita. I think he's an OK full-back, decent supporting the attack. Still reasonably young, but I am not sure how much improvement there is in him. To me he looks like he's coasting, isn't trying to be the best player he could be. Not sure.

Taylor is "OK" unspectacular, but he just looks like a near-solid journey man. I would never look at the team sheet and go, "Oh brill, Taylor's in" (ATM I feel like that about too many of this squad.)

We need a right back, preferably one that can also cover LB


CENTRAL MIDFIELD

Norwood is IMO excellent (but might someone be sniffing around him in January?)

Tish, I think can be a top top player. I see him as a Viera and we've missed him. RFC desperately need a Leigertwood-type player who does the dirty stuff, wins a lot of tackles in defensive midfield. When he's fit he'd be third on the team sheet for me.

Fernando (what IS his name?) I quite like him and think he'd be a decent midfielder. I'd prefer him to Williams. But he's a loanee. Is he exactly what we want? Dunno. Good squad player, undoubtedly.

WILLIAMS

He frustrates me. I wouldn't blink if he left. He has ability but he's like the good guy in a Sunday football side, a bit flash, fancies himself but doesn't work well-enough as part of a machine.

The midfield against Everton was lovely, played like a unit. That's how a midfield should be. Williams for me, despite loads of raw ability, is wrong for us (definitely wrong in a two-man midfield) as he seems to just want to run with it (often loses it) unlike Norwood who wants to find a man, make things move smoothly. If Williams was injured we might miss the occasional "exciting run" and a goal or two but I think we'd have a more solid midfield that leaked fewer goals and got the wingers in more consistently

WIDE

Meh. McLeary isn't anything like he might have been. Will he ever return to top form? Not convinced his back's OK, looks too heavy, looks slower. Of course, every now and then he'll do something good, grab a goal or two but he doesn't frighten defences any more.

Think how, when Jimmy Kebe was on fire, every time he got the ball we'd be excited? McCleary just looks a bit "journeyman" to me like (sadly) HRK. Where is the out and out exciting flair? Fosu maybe?

John shows flashes, but not once have I watched him and thought he was going to rip the full-back a new one for 90 minutes.

I miss having wingers who made you optimistic, excited.

I have no idea about Hurtado. Maybe McD will give him a run. We need to get at leat one winger doing special things like Blackman has. Of course Blackman is only "sort-of a winger" and I'm still not sure how to play him.

Sa is so much better than the Pog as a target man, good at holding up, but, like too many of our players, whatever his stats he just feels "ordinary" and unspectacular. At least The Pog would occasionally score a cracker.

We need some serious speed up front, a Shane Long type, hard, fast, wears down defenders. Long-Hunt (in their prime) as a pairing I would LOVE being fed by Norwood. I just think, in general we're a bit dull, lack difference, flair, surprise, a Jimmy K, a Longy, a Kitson, good at holding it but also gonna score 1 in 2, or a Mr reliable Kevin Doyle.

Vydra. You tell me! Maybe McD can find the key, the right partnership, and a game-plan to use Vydra in the right way, turn him back into a goal machine. Dunno. He might yet come good, but not alongside Blackman, and not sure alongside Sa. But if Watford recalled him and we got an old pro like Roberts, would anyone be sad?

PS I watched RFC v QPR in a pub with a Watford fan who said Vydra's great season was brilliant at first, then went off the boil, came back towards the end of the season, "covering up the cracks".

Don't know if that's true. He said that since then he's been basically shit and Watford have been looking to overload him.


Cox.

Might McD work his magic here? Cox is a bit "journeyman" too, but he can score spectacular goals and he's the workhorse-type we need leading the line (that Sa MIGHT be if he was a Brit).

I'd rather have Shane Long, of course, but overall we've become a pretty-boy team that can occasionally put together a lovely move (e.g. our opener at Hull, a thing of beauty) but a lot of our goals have been individual's goals and we look, overall, not a tough, gutsy winning machine.

Can McD get this particular set of players to gel? Not just to gel, but to play with fire in their bellies? We want some PASSION, a few crunching tackles, a Noel Hunt running through walls, a Long slamming into a CB, a box-to-boxer with an engine.

Most of these players are good players. Most would be in a squad, get plenty of game time in a top half /top thirdChampionship team but apart from Blackman (and maybe Norwood, and briefly McShane/Tish) who INSPIRES, who raises the spirit like some of the older names at RFC, not necessarily GREAT players, but players who got more from bigger, better hearts?

[paultheroyal]

Vydra is a class act. He has shown that in every game. Unfortunately the players can never see that and none have the ability to make that pass to him. That's half the problem.

McDermott's style of play will suit Vydra and then fans will realise his potential.

[3points]

Does Stephen Quinn not exist in your world? He'd be first on my team sheet, when fit of course. He really made us tick in the first few weeks. Great engine, decent touch, sees a pass. Nearest thing we've had to Sidwell since Sidwell for me. Tish, Quinn and Norwood in a midfield three.

I'd definitely like a new right back and agree about a strong pacy front man.

I also think Piazon could be good in a front three, but only as a direct replacement for Vydra. You can't play both in the same team.

[Drew_3]

Vydra is a class act. He has shown that in every game. Unfortunately the players can never see that and none have the ability to make that pass to him. That's half the problem.

McDermott's style of play will suit Vydra and then fans will realise his potential.

+1
The problem for Vydra is that he does not have the right partner up front. He needs a strong hold it up and knock it round the corner type for him to run onto.

The last two games he has looked desperately isolated up front too but he has genuine class and his movement without the ball at times is on another level to any of our other players.

[Unbelievable Jeff]

Agree with the above posts regarding Vydra & Quinn, easily two of our classiest players.

Personally think Blackman isn't worth a start at the moment albeit he played well at Hull and depending on his relationship with Brian it could regalvanize him especially with Sa still out.

McShane: poor form at the moment but clearly better than any other CB we have so will be one of the first on the Team-Sheet.

Hec/Ferd/Coop all go into the same category for me as to it could be any of the partnering McShane, maybe Coop a little further back in the pecking order.

Gunter - Only RB so obviously and unfortunately going to play when fit.


Taylor/Obita - Personally I think Taylor has proven himself as to what it says on the tin, solid yet nothing outrageous and has made less mistakes than Jordan so would put in Taylor.


As stated Quinn has to play when fit, no coincidence our poor run of form coincided to when he got injuired.

If its the classic McD 4-4-2 then its either one of Williams/Norwood with Quinn in the middle.

2 Wingers: again not seen much from any of them for them to claim a start week in week out. I'd expect McCleary to play as McD knows him and we know what he is capable of.

Hurtado/John/Piazon - I guess one of these on the left side depending what he's seen this week and what other staff are telling him.


Vydraa - Got to start for me...4-4-2 system will suit him a lot with Sa/Blackman partnering.

Sa/Blackman - again if 4-4-2 then choice is between these, Think Blackman is more capable of scoring goals but is also very selfish so i would put Sa in to link up with Matej.

[3points]

With Sa injured, I might be tempted to play HRK as the front man with Vydra and Blackman running off him. I think HRK could spot and find Vydra's runs. For that to work though it needs Quinn to play the left side of a midfield three and probably Taylor as a more defensive left back than Obita.

[Pepe the Horseman]

McShane.

[Snowball136]

Does Stephen Quinn not exist in your world? He'd be first on my team sheet, when fit of course. He really made us tick in the first few weeks. Great engine, decent touch, sees a pass. Nearest thing we've had to Sidwell since Sidwell for me. Tish, Quinn and Norwood in a midfield three.

I'd definitely like a new right back and agree about a strong pacy front man.

I also think Piazon could be good in a front three, but only as a direct replacement for Vydra. You can't play both in the same team.

Hardly got to know him and then he was out injured

MUCH prefer him to Williams

[Snowball136]

McShane.

Which one?

[Snowball136]

I do realise we usually start with 11 men.

My point about "first on the team sheet" is very few of
the current 11/16 "demand" to be in the starting line up

[CountryRoyal]

Technically Gunter.

[Gunny Fishcake]

Micky Gooding ......he'll be there in the stadium

[moonwalklikebas]

Vydra is clearly a class act. What we must remember though is during both spells at Watford he had Troy Deeney as a strike partner. Powerful, big, holds the ball up, can see a pass. We have no-one like that at present to put alongside Vydra - Sa at his very best maybe.

[Simon's Church]

Cox.

Might McD work his magic here? Cox is a bit "journeyman" too, but he can score spectacular goals and he's the workhorse-type we need leading the line (that Sa MIGHT be if he was a Brit).

Please ban this racist filth

[Royal Ginger]

Vydra is a class act. He has shown that in every game. Unfortunately the players can never see that and none have the ability to make that pass to him. That's half the problem.

McDermott's style of play will suit Vydra and then fans will realise his potential.

He needs a Noel Hunt.

[Ian Royal]

Vydra is a class act. He has shown that in every game. Unfortunately the players can never see that and none have the ability to make that pass to him. That's half the problem.

McDermott's style of play will suit Vydra and then fans will realise his potential.

He needs a Noel Hunt.

I'm not so sure he needs any one in particular, more just to play to his strengths.

As long as we don't leave him isolated up top against a deep defence he'll add something.

We want him either dropping into pockets between the lines or on the shoulder of the last man in a high line defence where his pace will tell.

If we can get a frontline involving him and Blackman working, with one on the shoulder and one dropping off finding space, whilst still getting support to them - I fancy goals.

[oldebiscuit]

ATM, forgive me if I'm wrong but only two players seem to be clearly worth a place


Blackman

Norwood.


What looked like a brilliant squad, now maybe doesn't"

It is a good squad, but has been badly managed.
Brian is in my opinion the right man to get the best out of it.