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Post by Trouserdog on Feb 17, 2012 8:16:39 GMT
For the last 12 months we've all bemoaned the lack of cover for the wide men.
However, this season I'm starting to wonder whether we already have that player here in Ethers and should be looking instead to replace him in the first team with a younger, better model.
He's not been the same since his injury against Wolves, is now 30 years old and seems to have lost that extra gear he had before. I know there are problems elsewhere in the side that need addressing as well, and Ethers has played a massive part for us over the last four years, but I think he might be permanently on the wane.
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Post by rambomcslaphappy on Feb 17, 2012 8:27:51 GMT
I think he needs competition
We need 2 wingers in the summer to freshen our squad up
Relying on just 2 wingers is impossible, no wonder tp hardly starts them both
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Post by rambomcslaphappy on Feb 17, 2012 8:28:46 GMT
Why we got rid of marshall I will never know
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Post by andychk on Feb 17, 2012 8:30:28 GMT
Ethers, Walters, Delap all need dropping
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Post by potterpaul on Feb 17, 2012 8:33:19 GMT
Agreed, said this before and I think the same can be said for Pennant.
The whole of the midfield is a complete shambles with no one in any form. The only players who have any decent form is Huth, Wilko, Fuller and Jerome, the last two can't get a start, Huth suspended and Wilko is in and out of the team like a Jackinabox.
PS
Post not influenced by lastnights game only watched part of 1st half
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Post by Menorca Stokie on Feb 17, 2012 8:34:34 GMT
I'm not in to knocking our players however I think that Ethers is very overated. He does have flashes of brilliance but they are becoming more and more frequent.
Whether it's a confidence issue or he's lost a yard of pace I'm not sure.
Jermaine for me is far superior in skill, crossing, deadball play and his willingness to defend is often overlooked.
The left wing for me would be a priority for sure.
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Post by cheekymatt71 on Feb 17, 2012 8:44:01 GMT
been thinking this is more than just a loss of form. Matty needs a challenge to motivate him. WHen he came to Stoke he had a point to prove after the gambling problems he had at West Ham. Now hes got no competition for his place and looks like hes just turning up without looking really to impress - (he knows now he'll never get that elusive England cap so why bother?)
Hes still our most creative player when Pennant/Fuller arent playing but I would be looking for a replacement
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Post by Jamo on the wing on Feb 17, 2012 8:46:11 GMT
Pennant looks the more likely of the two and keeps the ball better.
As for Ethers, his confidence seems so low and he simply refuses to go past players at pace and I assume it's because he doesn't want to take a another hit.
We need these two lads firing but it looks a way off at present.
I've said it before but I'd sooner us not play them at all away from home and try playing three centre halves.
There's no point playing 442 without one or both of them so save them for the home games.
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Post by potterpaul on Feb 17, 2012 8:51:48 GMT
Pennant looks the more likely of the two and keeps the ball better. As for Ethers, his confidence seems so low and he simply refuses to go past players at pace and I assume it's because he doesn't want to take a another hit. We need these two lads firing but it looks a way off at present. I've said it before but I'd sooner us not play them at all away from home and try playing three centre halves. There's no point playing 442 without one or both of them so save them for the home games. Agreed, love to see a 5-3-2 away from home tommy Wilko Woodgate Ryan Huth Wilson Whitehead WP Whelan Fuller Jerome/Crouch With a little bit of overlapping from Wilko & Wilson |
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Post by cobhamstokey on Feb 17, 2012 9:18:00 GMT
Pennant was far more impressive last night and apart from looking a little more lively towards the end Ethers was awful. Having been our best player for a couple of seasons he's very out of form and looks tired.
Why we sold Marshall and didnt address getting in a replacement with what was clearly a weakness is ridiculous.
Still our best option though and far better than Walters or Delap on the wing.
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Post by mrred on Feb 17, 2012 9:31:35 GMT
Why does he think he's a CM this season? There were ample opportunities to get into massive amounts of space on the wing last night, but he decides to drift in further than Rory.
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Post by bunnyscfc on Feb 17, 2012 9:34:07 GMT
Ethers body language has been a worry al season.
He doesn't just look unhappy, he looks worse than Jane Torvill when she's been told all her family have been killed in a plane crash whilst having her knees rubbed with a cheesegrater.
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Post by chellpotter on Feb 17, 2012 9:35:16 GMT
Matty certainly doesn't seem the same player since the FA cup semi final. He seems to back out of challenges and doesn't take on players as much. A bit like Rocky losing the eye of the tiger!  |
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Post by wardrobe monster on Feb 17, 2012 9:35:37 GMT
I thought last night was his best game for quite a while.
He struggles when we play with just 1 winger (ie, him) as the opposition can afford to almost double up on him making his job impossible.
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Post by jimmygscfc1234 on Feb 17, 2012 9:38:25 GMT
Due to our questionable tactics, selection and transfer dealings we're stuck with the wingers we've got for the remainder of the season so it's stating the bleeding obvious that we need new ones/cover. That was a debate that occupied a massive signings thread so let's sit back as we struggle towards 40 points and continue to bore the pants of everyone.
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Post by oggyoggy on Feb 17, 2012 9:41:26 GMT
both matty and pennant had very poor delivery last night, ethers has had a poor season, and we are DESPERATE for competition. decent delivery last night and we could of knicked a draw. valencia realised our only threat was from set pieces/crosses/throws, and defended very well, but the delivery was never good enough to really test them.
we played well last night against the best defensive side who have come to the brit for a long time.
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Post by anarchicalan on Feb 17, 2012 9:44:37 GMT
We didn't "get rid" of Marshall, he chose to go.
The reason is bloody obvious, he won't get a game till he's 30 under Pulis
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Post by rorymscfc on Feb 17, 2012 9:56:21 GMT
The obvious replacement for me would be Matt Jarvis, which is why I'm praying the dingles get relegated!
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Post by smigchop on Feb 17, 2012 10:14:29 GMT
Not looking good for ethers is it. Hasn't shown any sort of form all season. Working hard but creating/offering little going forward. He hasn't got 90 minutes in him at full pace and if we could get any decent offer for him i'd take it... so long as we get a replacement!
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Post by fentonstokie1 on Feb 17, 2012 10:43:15 GMT
It's too easy to blame the wingers though isn't it, it doesn't take a genius to see that virtually all our creativity comes from them so if you reduce their effectiveness we are left with hopeful long balls forward and set pieces which teams are now much better prepared to defend against. Our attacking strategy is just too predictable we may get away with it this season but if changes are not made we will surely be in real trouble next season.
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Post by nutterpotter on Feb 17, 2012 10:54:13 GMT
Anyone think that we can sign Moses?
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Post by Staying up for Grandadstokey on Feb 17, 2012 11:03:34 GMT
For the last 12 months we've all bemoaned the lack of cover for the wide men. However, this season I'm starting to wonder whether we already have that player here in Ethers and should be looking instead to replace him in the first team with a younger, better model. He's not been the same since his injury against Wolves, is now 30 years old and seems to have lost that extra gear he had before. I know there are problems elsewhere in the side that need addressing as well, and Ethers has played a massive part for us over the last four years, but I think he might be permanently on the wane. I agree ,he has never been the same since that hamsting pull he got against Wolves , he has seemingly lost the confidence to take players on as he used to , and I'm afraid he does need replacing at the end of this season or at least someone to provide him with some competition . |
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Post by frodekippe on Feb 17, 2012 11:32:06 GMT
Anyone think that we can sign Moses? Most definitely. If Wigan and Blackburn go down then Moses and Hoilett should be at the top of our shopping list in the summer. Got a suspicion that Hoilett might be aiming above us though sadly. |
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Post by jimmygscfc1234 on Feb 17, 2012 12:05:44 GMT
The problem is I think Jarvis will be overpriced, although I do rate him. Same goes for Hoillet. Why can't we find another Nathan Dyer for pennies in the lower leagues?
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Post by frodekippe on Feb 17, 2012 13:32:31 GMT
The problem is I think Jarvis will be overpriced, although I do rate him. Same goes for Hoillet. Why can't we find another Nathan Dyer for pennies in the lower leagues? There's a good young winger at Leicester  |
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Post by mermaidsal on Feb 17, 2012 13:34:24 GMT
I think it's time to move on, he played out of his boots for a season and a half but he's dropped back to what he was beforehand. Not in the same league as JP at the moment - let's go shopping.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 17, 2012 13:38:06 GMT
It was negligent not to bring a winger in during the summer. It was howling at the moon lunacy not to get one in Jan.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 17, 2012 13:43:47 GMT
We rely on Marty and pennant because the midfield is clueless. They can,t be expected to do it week in week out with no support! MIDFIELD main problem, should have been addressed years ago, end of!
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Post by Deleted on Feb 17, 2012 13:47:10 GMT
Ethers body language has been a worry al season. He doesn't just look unhappy, he looks worse than Jane Torvill when she's been told all her family have been killed in a plane crash whilst having her knees rubbed with a cheesegrater. Yeah, she certainly looked pissed off then. I wonder whether Matty is one of those 3 season players you sometimes get. Good couple of seasons or so where he settles into a new club, and has something to prove and it's all fresh and interesting, then gets bored, needs a change etc and on he moves and the process repeats itself. We may now be seeing the last stages of that process. |
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Post by fortressbritannia on Feb 17, 2012 14:01:12 GMT
I think Matty is naturally coming towards the end of his career is about 30/31 now so he will start losing that extra yard of pace now. Personally I think we should go for one out of:
Moses (Wigan)
Jarvis (Wolves)
Hoilett (Blackburn)
I thinks it's highly probable that at least one of these clubs will go making it easier for us to prise one of them away form their club
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