Lascelles

[ashingtoon62]

so why did it take him so long
diame according to most hasbeen dire for all of last season and most of this

i reckon he upped his game about the transfer window and when we played further up the field

lets see how he does at bournemouth
who have a small pitch the game will be compact and they either concede a lot or score a lot

Exactly how small is their pitch???
You do realise there are strict guidelines on width/length? or maybe you don't...

[ashingtoon62]

I did think Dubravka made a big difference in the Man Utd game mind - he was making his back 4 aware of everything from the first minute onwards. Doesn't matter how good a defender you are, if you're running toward your own goal you can't see what's directly behind you, and having a keeper you trust telling you which call to make is a massive help.

Yep totally agree..

[Andy1981_2]

Exactly how small is their pitch???
You do realise there are strict guidelines on width/length? or maybe you don't...

It's actually the same size as St. James', and one of the bigger ones in the league, but I know what he means

[pboromag]

Exactly how small is their pitch???
You do realise there are strict guidelines on width/length? or maybe you don't...

yep
and you have a wide discrepancy in which to bend te rules
for instance 90 meters long to a maximum of 120 so a big range also in the width 45to 85-90 meters wide

although they do have to meet a ratio

so not all that strict

[pboromag]

It's actually the same size as St. James', and one of the bigger ones in the league, but I know what he means

the pitch is but you can and they do move the lines in and out

bothe about 7000 square meters

[Andy1981_2]

the pitch is but you can and they do move the lines in and out

bothe about 7000 square meters

Aye, so even within the square footage you can have longer pitches, or narrower pitches... that's why I said I know what you mean. But is their pitch longer than ours, or narrower? Both create two totally different problems. But only one of them benefits Bournemouth's style of play, which is to make the pitch narrower so they can move the ball quickly across the width with a short passing game. However, that also plays into our hands a bit given Benitez's watchword is 'compact', meaning he likes to flood the central area with bodies. And if it's longer, that's usually helpful to teams playing long balls or trying to beat the offside trap. We don't play the offside trap high enough up the pitch for that to be a worry, and I don't expect to face a team playing hoofball. Presumably it's shorter and wider?

[Zippity]

he signed for us as a championship player with potential, to be fair, as recently as last year he was still that.

now he is being watched by the England manager and is more than just our captain, he is a ***** part of our defence and inspirational to his team / club.

not bad for a lack of progression.

Aye, this.

He's a hugely improved player from even last season when I thought he looked pretty shaky quite often-letting the ball bounce and getting caught, being pulled out of position...now, though...first name on the teamsheet.

In fact, I challenge anyone to think of a player in our recent history who has actually improved so much in so short a time period.

And, actually, there's a lot more to come from him. There's a danger of us going overboard about him precisely because he has come on so well but no-one believes he's the finished article. Like any defender he'll make some mistakes and with the way we often let the opposition have more of the ball he's going to come under more than his fair share of pressure but he's made great progress and will, imo, continue to do so-hopefuly with us.

[ronandtet]

yep
and you have a wide discrepancy in which to bend te rules
for instance 90 meters long to a maximum of 120 so a big range also in the width 45to 85-90 meters wide

although they do have to meet a ratio

so not all that strict

well if you look carefully at st james you,ll see they never change the pitch size

[pboromag]

lascelles wont reach his potential here due to the players he is with and the coaching staff

as for england
is he going to get in ahead of jones smalling or keane
i would say the lad from burnley and leicester would get a jump on laselles as well

however playing with better players over a longer period i have no doubts he would be progressing quicker

[Zippity]

however playing with better players over a longer period i have no doubts he would be progressing quicker

This is true of any player, though. Can't use that as one of your many sticks to beat us with.


*breaks stick and throws it away