i would play jesus at left backthey could be or they might just be the opposite in terms of players actually producing some of what they promise, whilst others come to the fore knowing that they are retained as part of the system.
Rafa has been known to turn certain players into altered positions.
He did it with carragher and he could do it with certain players we already have.
Look at mbemba. He played left back and didn't look out of place.
Sometimes we assume that some players just aren't capable of change but in cases like mbemba as an instance, he's more than capable of adapting to that role when required.
There are others that could equally do it and could end up doing a sterling job until we get to the stage where we can literally go into the next season in a proper strength addition for that role.
Equally it could all go teets up and all of what looks good could turn to crap. It's possible and will be more possible if the mood around the club goes negative.
I think that what we have as it stands and with a bit of tweaking, for now... Rafa can get the best out of most of these players, or at the very least the better half of their potential.
Left back is an issue. The main issue to be fair.
However, all we can do is hope that players like mbemba and the likes can do a good covering job, or some out of the woodwork player pops up and comes in to be a revelation as a free.
It's possible and if all else fails, we actually do have cover at left back. In fact a lot of cover.
It's not totally ideal but could serve us well enough till january or even produce a shock regular contender to start regularly.
Like i said, nothing about it all is ideal but then again it's a rarity when everything has ever been ideal at most clubs but especially ours.
I know we all love rafa and after all of the managerial dross we've been subjected to it's almost like kids being tortured by nanny after nanny and praying for a mary poppins to appear.
We now have rafa and the fans want to hold him and cling onto his coat tails and grab his feet just so he doesn't walk away, or fly out of the effing window. :d
it blinds us all to the task ahead.
We get all doe eyed at the prospect of rafa being given a nanny mcphee stick where he can just smack it to the floor and everything will turn out great and all will fall into place.
If he doesn't get what we think he deserves or he shows his discontent, then the scrutinisation starts and the hierarchy get it in the neck before we actually really know the ins and outs.
This is when negativity rears its ugly head. It's a cloud that zaps the players and the entire club and city in general.
We all know everything isn't ideal.
We all want more and we always hope for that one signing that will excite us and get us plotting.
We're getting battered from head to foot by media and pundits who are creating a negative mood around us all and which is spreading into the club.
We are getting told that huddersfield and brighton are leaving us behind and are showing us how to spend money, etc.
We are told that the burnley's and the bournemouth's are spending big and leaving us standing and standing ourselves out as sitting ducks for relegation problems.
Look at the signings all those teams have made.
Literally none of their signings...or very few would whet the appetite of us lot any more than what we've already bought in.
I personally think that we've bought some absolute class and i genuinely believe that if we can all stay positive, including rafa and the squad, then we can actually do quite tidy this season and easily banish any talk of relegation fairly early.
Just to give people a heads up as to what we can use and who could actually do a job for us at left back, from extreme potential to lesser effectiveness, i'll name a few.
Manquillo.
Haidara.
Mbemba.
Clark.
Colback.
I could add the likes of aarons in but the issue i'm making is, we can cover for dummett and could unearth a shock contender for that position...or like i mentioned, we could still sneak a freebie in that appears to be not worth the effort but who could...i say... could turn out to give us a smile.
Like i said before. I'm not exactly jumping for joy at what's gone on but i'm content enough to see what this squad can actually do now that we've trimmed the excess from it.
3 games in and 3 points says nothing about anything, good or bad. It simply says that we can compete but guarantees nothing.
The premier league guarantees nothing for teams like us, except for dodgy ref's and decisions and we all knew this. ;d:d
anyway let's see what transpires over the coming months.
he was good when he played last season
i would give haidara a chance to get his confidence back as he was good before the assault