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This has been what has been intriguing me this summer - it was only when Mass and Morsy started games together that the team went into an 18 month overdrive. Farke claimed, when Leeds failed to go up, that if he had had both in his central midfield all season, Leeds would have been champions.
It's also been my primary issue with Taylor that he never gells with whoever he is playing alongside and that 'chemistry' superpower we had is AWOL.
Obviously getting a midfeld pairing that gells is the aim but this I imagine is about luck as much as anything else.
Napoleon Bonaparte is famously quoted as saying, "I'd rather have lucky generals than good ones." luckily for us McKenna is outstanding as a manager and he is also lucky (in terms of Morsy & Luongo)
Hopefully Matusiwa lives up to the hype and softens the blow big time. From his interview and supposedly style etc he may become a real cult favourite with us, fingers crossed. Taylor doesn't cut it in any form for me. 2 years under McKenna and he has not improved at all. To me, 2025/6 Morsy is head and shoulders above the best possible version of Taylor which makes the though of Sammy going even worse. Cameron Humphreys is an interesting one. He looks like he 'could' become a really good player but, if we go back to the Premier League this season, will that be good enough for us next season? I think if he is in our plans he needs a lower midtable championship loan where the terms are totally loaded to the loaning club if he plays each week may be the best bet. He develops at a reasonable level and we can worry about the future for him at the end of the season. Also agree, min 2 in. I would still like Gus Hamer if we could prise him away - him and Matusiwa would be something else.
Taylor for me needs to be shifted. Never asserted himself as a starter and he has had plenty of chances. For a player McKenna really chased, has he improved at all after 2 years of McKennas coaching? With him clearly wanting to start games but only having 1 year on his contract, I would deffo be looking to get anything back for him to avoid him leaving on a free in the summer. From my persepective his ship sailed long ago. His biggest failing that I see is not forming a partnership with any other player on the pitch let alone his double pivot partner. He looks lost in the double pivot and is miles behind our attacking options as a 10 - just does not suit our system in any way.
Possible options (a) Sell now (b) keep as squad player and accept he will likely walk for free next summer (c) extend contract and possibly accept his wishes for more starts
I am currently reading the autobiography of another from that era with similar gravitas and authenticity, "Going to the Wars" by Max Hastings, which is a very interesting book.
I was reading an article about Grealish this week and how Man City want £40 million for him and that several big clubs want him but none will pay anything like that for him. Obviously at 29 he would be a depreciating asset but it did make me think that £35 million for Omari is a serious amount to spend and hopefully puts many clubs off
Taylor has had 2 years to learn/adapt under McKenna and failed to do so. Anonymous on pitch, doesn't work with any other midfielder. I would rather have kept Massimo than Taylor. Trouble is he has cost a fair bit of money (pre-premier league amounts) as i recall Darragh MacAnthony saying on the hard truth that the big money from the sale of Taylor to us is if we get into the premier league.
Similarly with Ben Johnson - doesn't appear to be a wingback or defender full stop. how does he get ahead of our wide attacking players? maybe the odd game where we are worried about opposition.
I am still waiting to see this dominating Central midfielder that Taylor is claimed to be. He has not improved at all in 2 years under McKenna which is damning. Again today he showed he has not the slightest clue how to play as a holding midfielder (I can't remember a single challenge) and he is only marginally better as a 10 - yes he may be a great 8 but we do not play that role in our system. He has also not formed a partnership on the pitch with any of our players (in the way Mass and Morsy have). If Taylor starts every game next season I doubt we will even make the playoffs. Insipid , invisible non-entity of a player at this level
Site is a nightmare for me on android tablet, zooming in, ads running amok, unstoppable page scrolling. Site needs it's responsive settings looking at for different sized devices
interesting replies, in particular the ones suggesting O'Shea and Greaves may both be too front-footed attacking to be a great partnership - will deffo have to look at that when they play together next.
i am also encouraged most people seem to think O'Shea will be here next season and with Hirst bigging up his leadership today fingers crossed he is here next season
In terms of physique, aggression, ball winning and bravery we could lose our 3 best defenders - Burgess, Tuanzebe and O'Shea.
I fully get Burgess considering moving on, I'd want to start regularly.
Lots of talk that Tuanzebe may similarly be off which would be disappointing as he is clearly our first choice right back. I really hope we keep O'Shea and make him captain.
Woolfy and Greaves are very good players but not same style and maybe as a result not great playing together as need a Burgess or O'Shea type alongside them.
If those 3 need replacing alongside 2 DM that is some rebuild
I am still waiting for Taylor to fit into our system. He gets a couple of goals a season which inspires a load of our fans but I never see him as a genuine engine room midfielder driving us forward and linking play.
Have been noticing this for a while now, for some reason Lief rarely passes to Clarke even when Clarke is in space and the obvious option. In the bristol rovers game it was even more highlighted by how well Townsend and Clarke linked up.
I hope to be proved wrong but, I am yet to see him form a partnership with his DM partner. Just having possible long range goal does not do it for me as a DM. Darragh MacAnthony must be licking his lips on the next payoff we have to make.
Agreed we don't need to close the door on it. I am sure we are already working on plan B, and, if not, we should be - if that looks like succeeding we then decide if we still prefer Szmodics over the plan B option, in which case, we give blackburn a now or never ultimatum.
Also agree we have been caught waiting too long before - this is starting to have a philogene feel about it - albeit, in this case the player wants to join us.
Blackburn will be in sticky situation if it collapses and Szmodics loses out on chance to play in Prem.
From what i have read: - Our interest only started this summer when Szmodic's agent contacted us. We must have had alternative targets before this happened. - Blackburn set deadline of today to both us and Leeds - presumably if they mean what they are reported to have said, the deal will soon be off from their end.
Literally got the max/xl a week ago. Cooked the best chicken on it and to prove it is capable, baked a cake, cooked a homemade pizza and roasted veggies/potatoes. Cooking meat with the temperature probe so it is not dried out a game changer
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