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[Blog] The Day Pablo Was Officially Done Written by Sindre94 on Saturday, 9th Apr 2011 21:16
Norwegian fan Sindre94, 17, gives his opinions on a few of the latest news stories, including Pablo Couñago's Portman Road exit.
1: The new shirt – Personally, I find it all right. I know a lot of our fans don’t find it very nice, but I’m sure it will grow on the most of us, even though it feels awkward at this time.
2: Connor Wickham signing new deal – The fact that Wickham has committed himself to Ipswich until 2014 is some of the best news we could have got. I’m sure he wont stay here until 2014, but the good thing about this deal is the fact that we are guaranteed to get some cash for him, and to lose such a huge talent without getting a decent fee, would be a disaster for our club.
When we look back at the days when Bent, Westlake and Richards were the names coming through, it’s almost unbelievable to realise that we just got £2-3 million for a very proven talent, and for a not so proven talent, we are offered crazy fees around £10-15 million? I know the times have changed, and for us to get a decent fee for Wickham is vital.
3: Youngsters being released – When I went on TWTD a few days ago I was really shocked to see that we didn't want to keep Billy Clark at this club. It’s not that I rate him at all, but I’ve heard so much good about him. To be honest, the minutes I’ve seen of him haven’t been any good at all. I went with my dad to England (we are Norwegian) for the QPR and the Pompey games, and in between those matches we decided to watch the reserves thrash an awful Southend side 4-0, and the details I took with me home from that match, were that Clark seemed like an angry, gritty, negative lad who looked for me, not interested at all.
All in all, I’m pleased to see him leave, especially after saying he was glad he got out of here anyway!
While I am on the subject, I feel like giving Ronan Murray, Josh Carson, Troy Brown, Jack Ainsley, Tom Eastman and Reggie Lambe some credit, all of them looked very promising.
4: Luciano Civelli - I will not say too much about him, It's just that I see so much potential in the guy, I really think he has the potential to take Ipswich further. And he could fast become a hit again at Portman Road, he just needs to get the proper chance.
5: Pablo is officially done at Ipswich. Well, this is for me some the saddest news I’ve been brought this season.
As a passionate Norwegian lad, I was luckily one of those who got to experience the joy of being Ipswich mascot on September 30th 2003. The first thing I noticed when I got into the dressing room, was an exotic and exciting person standing in the middle of a bunch of typical English people. It took me two seconds to realise who I was facing, it was my all time favourite player: Pablo Couñago.
I got his autograph, a feeling I’ll never forget, just the feeling of having the best and most loved person around Ipswich at that time, just in front of me, was the proudest moment of my life. We later went on to warm up on the pitch, and I got to pass the ball around with him. Shaky feet? Indeed.
I’ve seen a few fans at this club calling him lazy, slow, etc, but for me, that is Pablo through and through. An unpredictable player who could do things nobody could, a player who could beat five defenders on his own, a player who always surprised, a player who loved Ipswich Town Football Club. Is it a rule in England to just have 'typical' players? I hope not, because Pablo was a unique talent who always got the fans on the edge of the seat.
I’m now 17, and it’s eight years since I got the joy of being mascot. I still respect Pablo 100%, he is one of heck of a player on his day (even though those performances became rarer).
Anyone remember my blog written in December, about getting behind Eastman, Keane, the team etc? If you do, you can remember me writing that I thought we should support Keane no matter what, but four months on that I realise how much he really split our fans.
There were times when fans wanted to fight each other, and we never got an agreement on getting behind him or demanding him out. It was just in the beginning of December I really wanted to get him out of here, because I'd always thought he deserved a proper chance, which he truly got.
This blog is really about Pablo, so this is the part when he and Keane comes in. I know this is harsh, but I’m completely serious when I’m saying that I think Keane destroyed Pablo as a footballer, not just footballing wise, but also mentally, I think Keane got Pablo thinking he wasn’t a true part of Ipswich any more, and that’s a sad, sad, thing by a 'man' manager to do.
Call me stupid, or whatever. But Pablo Gonzalez Counago deserves something, he deserves a tribute at Portman Road, I’m not talking testimonial or anything like that, just a look back at his best days, because he has undoubtedly been one of the most popular players for the last ten years, it’s just a shame he ended his career at Ipswich the way he did. A tribute would heal that wound, and we could all celebrate a happy ending.
Thanks for everything Pablo, you have been great.
-Enough said-
Greetings from Sindre - Norway.
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What a load of tripe, what good to us is nostalgia, scored a few decent ones but just what has he achieved since he came back, precisely nothing, a waste of wages.
Very good read. I agree 100% with your comments about clark and pablo. He was (and for some still is) one of our most popular players. And we will always remember that brilliant game against coventry one of my top 10 moments that was.
Can I just mention his back heel goal against Charlton the other year? He'll be missed; on his day he's a class above though those days have been fewer and fewer in recent times. That Coventry match was sensational though...
his best goal for us that backheel against Charlton a few years back, if only he had a little more pace and consistant then he could have really have made it, bit of a shame really. Hope we give him a send off as i think he deserves it. Ole!
Sindre for prime minister! Seriously, ever thought of becoming a motivational speaker?
'tractor boy' how can you be a town fan and not understand nostalgia? That's what we take pride in, otherwise there is nothing, its our history (better than norwich's) and without that the club wouldn't exist.
Interesting point about keane 'destroying Pablo'....totally right. Felt so sorry for him being lumped out on loan as some useless old piece of un-needed rubbish from a club where he'd spent effectively about 8 years and loved and loved every minute there. To me he is more ipswich than anyone we've got at the moment, new contract or not!
His goal against Portsmouth when they had already gone up will I think be my favourite memory of Pab, him all over that goal was (as was cov last season) and capped off a superb day. All the best Pablo.
Counago was not a Roy Keane type of player, he was technically very good, wanted to pass the ball on the floor and wanted to ball at his feet instead of long ball punted up too him, and that is why he didnt choose him. He was a player who would do well in a passing team like Swansea or Blackpool or someone who would give him the ball at his feet, Pablo just could fit in to the long ball style of football which just didnt suit him (and wasnt the Ipswich way)
As already stated, technically gifted but just a bit lazy, like a championship Berbatov (without the goals)
I will now write a blog in Norwegian.... Your written English is better than half of the folks that "contribute" to TWTD.
Pablo will and still does divide opinion. I have seen him do things that were worth the entrance money alone. The back-heel at Charlton was superb - had Rooney scored a similar goal we would still be hearing about.
There have been many much worse, better paid players, many of whom have cost much more than Pablo at Portman RD and I think it is only Pablo's popularity with some fans that force his detractors to have so much hatred against him. Unfair? Probably, but that's football and its a game of opinions. Never really got a chance under Keane, but others didn't either. And who can say what he'd have done had he played for us this year. It's not as if our front line has been prolific, so what exactly are our other strikers doing that he wouldn't have?
All the best to him, I hope he finds a club, does well and he's appreciated by the fans.
Good blog in my opinion. Good to hear from fans overseas.
Excellent blog. Don't worry about the sour, ill-informed comments of the likes of first responder - they are in a miserable minority. Pablo was inconsistent, yes, but he brightened up many a day at Portman Road with lovely skill and imagination. He tore Norwich apart in April 2008, and my favourite goals are his solo runs against Bristol City (home) in the same season, and then away at QPR the next. Ole!
This is a decent blog and there’s definitely nothing wrong with a bit of nostalgia. But it shows how far we’ve fallen over the past 10 years that a very average striker like Pablo Counago can attain hero status. He had one good season in his first spell. When the club got relegated in 2001 he stayed put on his very generous contract while the club slowly went broke. They were desperate to offload him but I can remember Pablo saying: “I didn’t put a gun to their head to pay me what’s in my contractâ€. Afterwards he went to some unheard of Spanish second division side and hardly set the place on fire. Then Jim Magilton came along and offered his old mate another big payday at Ipswich Town. We would have done a lot better to invest that money in a sharper, more potent striker.
I don't want to prolong yet another Pablo debate, but to say he had 'one good season in his first spell' is a distortion of the facts and should be put right, if only for the record. In 2007-2008, in his second spell, he scored 12 goals and contributed probably as many assists. Town finished one point off the play-offs, and it is clearly arguable that if Pablo hadn't missed three games towards the end of the campaign (admittedly because he himself was sent off against Scunthorpe) we would have been in the top six. In the games in which he was absent, we drew homes matches against QPR and Cardiff (0-0 and 1-1) and lost 2-0 at Colchester - two points out of nine! Just one moment of Pablo's creativity in those games would have put us in the play-offs. So Jim's 'old mate' was in fact brought back to good effect - until old Keano came along, with the disastrous consequences we've seen, for Pablo and many others.
PS Oh, and the 'unheard Spanish second division side' he went to were Malaga - who were in Division One, La Liga, at the time.
Don't worry about the sour response from your first responder. He clearly doesn't understand the joy that you can derive from following a team with the heritage we have. We all have memories connected with this great club that warm the heart.
Hermir 10, I respect Pablo’s commitment and the love he had for our club. But I think many fans are overly generous when it comes to his real abilities. If in your eyes the season 2007/08 qualifies as a success because he scored 12 goals, then it proves my point.
I have to disagree with you about Malaga – they are hardly a powerhouse. They finished bottom of La Liga in Pablo’s first season there and he also played for them in the Second division. He was released after scoring just 10 goals in 54 matches.
In many ways I am one of Pablo's biggest critics because I think he was capable of so much more. But that doesn't change the fact that he was an absolute joy to watch in an Ipswich shirt on many occasions and was a special special player for us, as the clip you chose rightly showed. Only Pablo could drag us out of the depths of dispair with a cool finish like that. His story may be a little bitter-sweet, but he's still one of my favouite ever Town players. Ole, ole, ole!
Good blog Sindre. Your English makes me proud to be one quarter Norwegian. Hardly anyone on this board writes it as well. I am saddened by Pablo's treatment, and I have to confess I missed that winning goal against Coventry. I was on the stairs on my way out and very depressed. Irritatingly, my grandson saw it and has never let me forget it.
Enjoyed your blog, thanks. Pablo was a clever player and is a really nice bloke, passionate about ITFC too. My boy was also mascot and Pablo was my son's favourite Town player too. Great memories. Well done and say hi to Skarsvag and Hammerfest for us!
Am getting more and more disappointed to the response to these blogs. There always seems to be people saying "what a load of tosh" or "you dont know your @rse from you elbow".
Of course these are the people that sit on their fats @rses doing nothing but moaning. They claim to be behind the town, but in reality are just confused and angry.
Some blogs come and some blogs go. Some are good, some not so. I would never moan at somebody for trying, atleast they are trying to give back.
Like the author I was a big Pablo fan. However, it was the correct decision to send him out on loan and recoup some of his no doubt massive wages. The bottom line is Pablo is sadly past his best. Just 2 or 3 goals last season and I believe only two for Palace. This simply isn't good enough.
All the best to Pablo, as I wish him well for the future. But PJ is right to release him.
terrible waste of talent, he had more skill in his little finger than most of the players at ipswich, but sadly he had as much fight, energy and commitment as my granny (and she's been dead a few years now)
[Blog] The Day Pablo Was Officially Done
