Leko

[iBOB]

Firstly,

I get that he loses the ball, makes poor decisions sometimes and some bad passes. He doesn't defend enough for a 3-4-3 or 3-5-2.

He's far from a complete player.

The club chose not to loan him out. It's frustrating to me that we don't see more of him this season.

I don't think he should start for us... but he should be the first name on the bench... from which he's usually absent... and rarely used. He's unpredictable, players back off him, he can run with the ball. For me, most games we are losing at 50-60 mins, he should be on, without question. He'll create chances when we are creating none.

Just don't get it.

I wasn't there today so haven't seen 90 minutes, maybe I missed something.

I'd love to be educated by someone with a better understanding. I just really don't get why we don't use him more.

[holmleighchris]

Yesterday he was always a worry to the opposition's defence but made the wrong pass or passed when he should have shot on every occasion. There was really no point him being out there. A good coach would hopefully sort him out.
On yesterday's performance he isn't worth a spot.

[wbaliquidator]

He promised so much a few seasons ago.
But many young players do.
We see the impact they make in the last 20 mins or so, their darting runs, step overs, all the tricks and they often have a massive impact.
But how much of this down to the sheer athleticism and enthusiasm of youth and an opposition tired and exhausted.
Personally if you don’t make the squad on match day there is a reason.
To succeed as a professional footballer you also need a football brain.
After 3 managers and three seasons if it’s not developed by now then maybe it never will.
As fans we all like to dream that there are some real gems in our youth. We see promise and then it all goes quiet. We almost demand our mangers play them. But the sad fact is that most of them aren’t good enough.

Take Harvey Barnes for example, he is a kid really and is generally the first name of the timesheet.

Leko’s career went backwards when Andros Townsend picked his pocket and ran the length of the pitch and scored the winner. Townsend has played 88 Mins at full throttle and Leko was fresh on. But Leko was unable to catch him over strided and fell over and stayed down. This should have been a lesson for him. Was it?

[mickd1961]

Leko is just 19 years old.

He seems to have been around a long time but in all truth he’s still very young.

He may yet become the next Michael Perry.

See.....you’re feeling more relaxed already.

[Johnny on the spot 1]

He promised so much a few seasons ago.
But many young players do.
We see the impact they make in the last 20 mins or so, their darting runs, step overs, all the tricks and they often have a massive impact.
But how much of this down to the sheer athleticism and enthusiasm of youth and an opposition tired and exhausted.
Personally if you don’t make the squad on match day there is a reason.
To succeed as a professional footballer you also need a football brain.
After 3 managers and three seasons if it’s not developed by now then maybe it never will.
As fans we all like to dream that there are some real gems in our youth. We see promise and then it all goes quiet. We almost demand our mangers play them. But the sad fact is that most of them aren’t good enough.

Take Harvey Barnes for example, he is a kid really and is generally the first name of the timesheet.

Leko’s career went backwards when Andros Townsend picked his pocket and ran the length of the pitch and scored the winner. Townsend has played 88 Mins at full throttle and Leko was fresh on. But Leko was unable to catch him over strided and fell over and stayed down. This should have been a lesson for him. Was it?

Good post Liquidator
The only thing i would say against your post is some Lads do develop later in football than others , but i absolutely agree most of the lads or young men never really make the top of the tree , & after a few seasons get moved out but still earn a decent wage playing lower league football , like you say Leko & Barnes no comparison i played with Derek Statham in the town team when i was at school , i suppose we were all pretty decent , but Derek was 3 times better than any one he played with or against thats the difference.

[wbaliquidator]

Yes football can be a brutal business for youngsters. But these days even many who are almost classed as failures can command fantastic salaries.
I think my comments are more aimed at forwards and wingers in particular. This is where raw speed and youth can often deceive us. Fast wingers don’t really have a long shelf life and it’s important for them to make the most of any opportunities .
Lets face it any manager dreams of introducing a fast you kid in the last 10 mins who drives to the line and crosses to a forwards and wins the match. However it’s a manager’s nightmare if he comes on his cross goes out of play and the other team hoofs the ball up the pitch and they score!

[Dubbag]

Most young players can learn a lot from being around more experienced players. We certainly have that at the moment...
But the real learning ground is in a meaningful game...where quick decisions learned on the training ground can be implemented fast.. The right pass etcetra....

As with most things in life nowadays...younger people don't want to be told they are wrong or take offense very easily when been righted. Making mistakes is part of learning but it is not very well accepted anymore. A young player gets at best a few games of a run in a team today...and unless he makes a big impact he may very well not see the light of day for the first team again...

I think managers are terrible in this regard today...to much pressure to make the right choices all the time...As a club, I think we are very backwards in bringing young talent forward....and I do understand why many decide to move on rather then wait for an eternity....but if you are good enough you will snap the hand off at any chance to play...
I do hope our FA Cup team get another chance to prove themselves again and are actually given the chance to do so....

[Dubbag]

I see Liverpool gave a 16 year old his debut tonight against Wolves....he will most likely be nurtured along with loan outs and the like.
But the game is lob sided today....remember Izzy brown? Could have got first team football with Albion but got drawn away, most probably by agents talk and I am not sure where he is now...But I doubt if his football has improved, where ever he is? The big clubs the big money is a big allure today.....the actual playing of the game is almost secondary now...

[boingy]

Firstly,

I get that he loses the ball, makes poor decisions sometimes and some bad passes. He doesn't defend enough for a 3-4-3 or 3-5-2.

He's far from a complete player.

The club chose not to loan him out. It's frustrating to me that we don't see more of him this season.

I don't think he should start for us... but he should be the first name on the bench... from which he's usually absent... and rarely used. He's unpredictable, players back off him, he can run with the ball. For me, most games we are losing at 50-60 mins, he should be on, without question. He'll create chances when we are creating none.

Just don't get it.

I wasn't there today so haven't seen 90 minutes, maybe I missed something.

I'd love to be educated by someone with a better understanding. I just really don't get why we don't use him more.

That's why he don't play. You said it right. "I get that he loses the ball, makes poor decisions sometimes and some bad passes. He doesn't defend enough for a 3-4-3 or 3-5-2. He's far from the complete player" Burke is the same. Flashes of something, patches of nothing. You cant rely on this when you want to push for promotion. I would rather watch them improve for a team we dont care about how well they do. Not us.

[Albionic68]

Leko lacks an end product. Sometimes this is down to him overplaying and not releasing the ball soon enough. At others it's because those around him don't make best use of the space his runs create when the opposition doubles and trebles up on him. He could look up more but his team mates could also give him more options.

Whatever the cause he runs out of ideas. Overall I was encouraged by his performance and I reckon the Wigan players he came up against are still waiting for their blood to untwist from where they were being turned inside out. I'd much rather watch a home grown talent take players on in an effort to create than a journeyman playing it safe. Leko frustrates me at times but I reckon he frustrates his opponents far more. At the very least I think he should have had more game time from the bench than he has over the last couple of seasons.