Andre Bikey...Discuss!!!

[Turns8]

Ok Mr Bikey...so some sections of the fan base seem to think this guy is the best CB we have and apparently oozes class and can never put a foot wrong.

Now I'm not getting into a massive debate about how he is better than Doobs (cos apparently he is utter dumb ) but can I just point a few things out about Mr Bikey which may make him sound anything but the 'outstanding' player some think he is...

In the last 2 games I would say he has been up against some pretty average forwards Best, Morrison, Henderson and Beattie...and in both games he seems unable to stand the forward up...instead he chooses to dive in all heavy handed in areas where there is no apparent danger and concede some very silly freekicks...there were about 5 or 6 occasions today and a similar amount against Coventry...

We have been lucky in both games to only concede one goal and given that the strikers have been woeful, yet both opponents have had an abundance of decent free kick takers, would it not be wise for Mr Bikey to try and stand the player up rather than dive in...

He also seems to often float in and out of position and seems rather casual in his approach to marking, not to mention the number of times he brings the ball down and comes inside and so very nearly loses the ball rather than just doing the simple things first and releasing it.

Counter that with the brilliant run from inside his own half in the 2nd half today ...actually Ive been won over ANDRE BIKEY is awesome

If you play in defence...defending should be the main priority...save your showboating for when you go on international duty...

[SteveRoyal]

I liked him running through to the opposition penalty box - nobody else was doing it.

[AlexY25]

Maybe the low expectation this year, has made Bikey seem better than he actually is. But I wouldn't doubt that he is our best centre back but the competition is:

Ingimarsson.........Too old.
Pearce...............Too young.
Doobs................Too crap.
Sodje.................Who?
Bennett...............See Sodje.

[Turns8]

I liked him running through to the opposition penalty box - nobody else was doing it.

[PEARCEY]

None of us have said he is the greatest thing since sliced bread and yes as with Duberry he gave away too many soft free-kicks and yes he is way too casual at times.
BUT he has the ability to cover for his mistakes and how many goals has been at fault for since he's been in the side?
A lot of us see the ability, strength and pace he posseses....which as he matures makes him a bloody good player at this level.
He needs to concentrate for 90 minutes. Thats his biggest failing but if he sorts that out he will be a very fine centre half.

[Turns8]

Maybe the low expectation this year, has made Bikey seem better than he actually is. But I wouldn't doubt that he is our best centre back but the competition is:

Ingimarsson.........Too old.
Pearce...............Too young.
Doobs................Too crap.
Sodje.................Who?
Bennett...............See Sodje.

He can barely cope with average Championship stirkers...he would get absolutely rinsed up against the likes of Torres, Adeybayor, Berbatov, Rooney, Anelka and Drogba... HTH...

Not that it matters as he probably won't be here next season and Reading certainly won't be in the Premiership anyway...

[Alan Partridge]

I like Bikey, I think he is rightly in the team but the double standards on this board and also at the game is laughable. Bikey 'hoofs' it just as much as Duberry. In fact Bikey's are far more aimless. Wild swipes into the sky, Duberry's are at least clearances away.

both are decent defenders, Bikey is the better footballer, he's as good as we've got so I dunno. Duberry can't do anything right in the eyes of some and if you watch him defensively he is as sound as we've had in recent years. For tackles, blocks and in particular aerially. The rest of his game seriously lets him down.

But it's not the problem. The problem is still Coppell's useless midfield. The midfield he changes yet again because all 5 of his central midfielders are about the same, his two wingers are woeful and the replacements no better.

[John Madejski's Wallet]

Bloody hell some people are hard to please.

We moan when defenders play it simples, then moan when we have a proper ball-playing centre back that can run it out of defence

[Terminal Boardom]

Liability

[Turns8]

At this level I would much rather have Morgs and Killa, they kept Doyle and Kits quiet for most of the afternoon and you know what you are going to get eg no nonsense defending and concentration for the full 90..

When Bikey joined, his biggest weakeness was his attention for the full 90mins...umm hello, that was 2 years ago... I would hazard a guess that it is a weakeness that they have tried to work on and I can't really see an improvement...all I can see is that the standard of forward he still has to needlessly fail has actually decreased...

[PEARCEY]

I like Bikey, I think he is rightly in the team but the double standards on this board and also at the game is laughable. Bikey 'hoofs' it just as much as Duberry. In fact Bikey's are far more aimless. Wild swipes into the sky, Duberry's are at least clearances away.

both are decent defenders, Bikey is the better footballer, he's as good as we've got so I dunno. Duberry can't do anything right in the eyes of some and if you watch him defensively he is as sound as we've had in recent years. For tackles, blocks and in particular aerially. The rest of his game seriously lets him down.

But it's not the problem. The problem is still Coppell's useless midfield. The midfield he changes yet again because all 5 of his central midfielders are about the same, his two wingers are woeful and the replacements no better.

He doesn't hoof it as much as Duberry and does actually bring the ball down, actually beat a player and pass it forward....you would never ever see Duberry do that..

[Alan Partridge]

At this level I would much rather have Morgs and Killa, they kept Doyle and Kits quiet for most of the afternoon and you know what you are going to get eg no nonsense defending and concentration for the full 90..

When Bikey joined, his biggest weakeness was his attention for the full 90mins...umm hello, that was 2 years ago... I would hazard a guess that it is a weakeness that they have tried to work on and I can't really see an improvement...all I can see is that the standard of forward he still has to needlessly fail has actually decreased...

Morgan was outstanding. Although easy for him when the person he is man marking has the mobility of a Tesco shopping trolly and the work rate of Shaun Goater.

[Terminal Boardom]

At this level I would much rather have Morgs and Killa, they kept Doyle and Kits quiet for most of the afternoon and you know what you are going to get eg no nonsense defending and concentration for the full 90..

When Bikey joined, his biggest weakeness was his attention for the full 90mins...umm hello, that was 2 years ago... I would hazard a guess that it is a weakeness that they have tried to work on and I can't really see an improvement...all I can see is that the standard of forward he still has to needlessly fail has actually decreased...

Spot on. First and foremost, the role of a central defender is to defend and prevent the oppo centre forwards from having time and space. This is where Ivar is strongest. Hopefully Pearce will learn from the Ingimarsson school of defending rather than the Bikey version. If only the iceman was still around then Pearce would be onto a winner. By the iceman I refer to Darius Wdowczyk

[Terminal Boardom]

Kitson gave their two CBs a hard time today. Doyler did fack all!

[Thomas L'Heureux]

Maybe the low expectation this year, has made Bikey seem better than he actually is. But I wouldn't doubt that he is our best centre back but the competition is:

Ingimarsson.........Too old.
Pearce...............Too young.
Doobs................Too crap.
Sodje.................Who?
Bennett...............See Sodje.

He can barely cope with average Championship stirkers...he would get absolutely rinsed up against the likes of Torres, Adeybayor, Berbatov, Rooney, Anelka and Drogba... HTH...

Not that it matters as he probably won't be here next season and Reading certainly won't be in the Premiership anyway...

I'm not going to start singing Bikey's praises from the rooftops, but you come across as being rather clueless at times, Turns.

Bikey's concentration, and occasionally his decision making, is questionable, I'll agree on that. But to suggest he can't handle Championship strikers and would get absolutely destroyed in the Premiership is bordering on idiotic.

I take it you were present when Villa visited the Madejski in our first Premiership season, Turns? You know, the game in which Bikey single-handedly kept John Carew out of the game, not giving him even a sniff of the ball?

I'll also assume you were at the Man United FA Cup replay, when Bikey didn't allow Wayne Rooney any time on the ball and even turned him inside out, leaving him on the floor after charging the length of the pitch to catch up with his attempted break-away? Unfortunately Federici had already lost us that game after being named player of the round... Bikey was solid though.

So assuming that you were at both of those games, why have you chosen to neglect them from memory? Bikey is the only defender we have capable of dominating a centre forward, and he has proven this in the past.

[cmonurz]

Imho, long spells on the sidelines as Coppell attends to his personal whims has not helped Bikey develop at all.

[Turns8]

I'm talking here and now...not going on about how good someone was 2 flipping years ago...

Little was amazing 2 years ago he isn't anymore...HTH

The difference is that in his 2 years you would think that Bikey would have improved somewhat, given he joined us young and inexperienced, yet 2 years and good knows how many appearances later, Bikey is still the same ol' Bikey...one or two moments of apparent genius mixed in with some very average or very scary moments where he is more likely to lose the ball...than do anything worthwhile with it...

One good run in 90mins doesn't make him into the man of the match when his number one job in the team is to defend..when today as most weeks he concedes far too many easy fouls on the edge of the box in a position which immediately puts us under pressure from a freekick...

If the quality of delivery was slightly better, as it would be in the Premiership, we would be struggling even more than we currently are...

HTH

[PEARCEY]

Imho, long spells on the sidelines as Coppell attends to his personal whims has not helped Bikey develop at all.

Agreed.

[John Peel]

Bikey is the best centre back at the moment at this club. Doobs on the other hand is part of the reason why we're hoofing the ball so much. His chance today would also have been taken by practically any other Reading player, including the keepers (and probably my gran). Pearce must come in for Doobs. But leave the Bike alone.

[AlexY25]

I think todays performance is why many people want to see him play in midfield.....