Ngakia is shyte. He runs weird, he can’t stay fit, he’s not comfortable on the ball and he switches off repeatedly losing his man. His 1v1 tackling is good, a homeless man’s Wan Bissaka. I am increasingly worried he’ll be starting on Saturday which frightens me.
I didn't realise "bang average" meant "comfortably better" than "extremely average", but I will make a note of it so I know for next time, thank you.
Be careful on the criticism of Watford players. Andrew French doesn't like it or the club has told him so. Bachmann and Ngakia in the firing line. Happy clappers will be out in full force to the WO.
Please go ahead and go back through my post history, yet again, to pinpoint when I made those two assertions about each player and the context surrounding it. Not that it makes any difference to my opinion right now that Ferreira is the better option and letting him go whilst keeping Ngakia is idiotic, but I'm sure you'll enjoy it.
I mean, neither player has played a competitive game of football since you called them both average, so I'm just wondering what changed your opinion (which I share, btw) about how Ferreira is so much better?
As little as we've seen of Ferreira, Navarro was one of the worst players we have ever had, I remember Sierralta of all people showed him up as a wing-back in the cup game at Oxford!
Ngakia was never anywhere near Kiko, or going to be - my posts when he first joined already pointed out that fact.
Because Ngakia now has yet another season behind him of looking poor and being unable to stay fit. He can't keep himself available and hasn't improved at all since the day we signed him. Ferreira was up and down in the little he did play for us but at least showed glimpses and some actual ability with the football, which Ngakia obviously lacks, and there was also at least the hope he could grow and improve now that he'd settled more into the club, country etc. after a mid-season move. In our near neverending list of **** ups and stupid decisions this doesn't place anywhere near the top, but it's still dumb, still bizarre after we spent a couple of million on him only a few months ago and it still weakens an already woeful squad.
Ngakia seems to have been slightly preferred over pre-season, just as Bayo has over Healey, I hope there are some good reasons for those calls and not that he's genuinely going to favour them...
That doesn't really answer my question as to how you rate them as players currently as you've said JF is comfortably better right now, not based on potential. They were both bang average in your eyes a couple month back, neither of them have played since, but now one is much better than the other. That's what confused me. But let's leave it there as there's no point going round in circles. Agree with the last paragraph. I'm desperately hoping AL is wrong and we're looking for an upgrade on Ngakia
This is the infuriating thing for me, people (ie, seemingly Pozzo) using it as a stick to beat Manga with, when he showed some talent in an unfamiliar league with no pre-season. Manga is just a man, he isn't a magician, but he's the only person in any position of authority 'upstairs' who has any kind of track record in the game...
I'd say it does seem strange to move on a guy who has just come in on a 4 year contract mid season without so much as more than 5 games but then maybe it's not for us! Fairly late in the window too...or certainly when the season is starting in a few days.
There’s nothing strange about the contract lengths, anybody owned by Watford is owned by Udinese too (in the eyes of Pozzo) it’s the most simple move and it’s available to every player if they should want it. Just consider it a roster of players, especially with fringe players, then things like this make more sense. Hell, our two most sellable assets post-relegation moved to Udinese for seemingly nothing. I’m sure money was exchanged but only for official bookkeeping, it’s one pot in their minds I’m sure.
I’m enjoying the fact you are getting interrogated on this so heavily by the guy who thought last year’s squad was the “best in championship history”
One of my big hopes for this season is to really see Andrews kick on. Impressed by what I’ve seen of him so far. It would be so nice to have a local homegrown player cement a regular place in the team. I think it’s what many of us hoped for at times when we felt our team was being hijacked by mercenaries from overseas just passing through. Based on the end of last season, I’d be starting him instead of Ngakia but I’ve no idea what VI sees in training.
I think people would agree Andrews has started well and looks a good prospect . But people as with the squad in general are worried about the depth and someone like Andrews at 18 will have a dip and cannot be expected to be great each week .
Exactly this. Andrews looks a player, but he's very young. Players of his age usually fluctuate in form. We need a reliable rotational player to step in. We had that now we don't. The drop from first choice and backup is too big. We've got that in a number of positions too. First choice isn't great but backup is vastly below. That fits for keeper and central striker. If we get a bout of injuries Hamer, Morris, Ngakia, Pollock, TDB, Baah, Adeyemo, Forde and Livermore could all be first team starters this season. Let that sink in.
@wfc4ever Yes, that’s very true and I wouldn’t disagree. In an ideal world I’d love to see JN kick on this season too and finally show us consistently the form we hoped for when signing him from West Ham. But like most other people here, I’m not very hopeful based on what I’ve seen so far. I think we all agreed we needed a huge clear out this summer, and for a total rebuild to at least begin this window. And I don’t think I’m alone in actually sitting at home with a sheet of paper, writing down all our squad and crossing out the names I’m glad to see the back of? I imagine others do that too? The trouble is meeting wishes v reality. It’s not Fantasy Football, it’s the real world and players are always going to leave that we prefer would stay, and sadly some we hope will leave won’t be able to find new homes. So our squad starts to look like the shelves of a store at the end of the first day of a big sale, messy, untidy and full of the items nobody wanted to buy. It’s very hard to control a summer clear out because once it starts, it won’t always go as planned. As I wrote yesterday, my main issue with this loan move is not so much the fact we are losing a player who may or may not have stayed fit and been an asset this season (although I liked what I saw of him, both on and off the pitch where I thought he cane across well) BUT that it’s another example of our nonsensical short-term approach to everything. To be signing players one window and seeing them leave during the next one is hardly the sign of a club learning lessons and giving any impression of having a long-term plan. We approach transfers like we do our Head Coaches, and every time we are told things are different now, we end up sacking Edwards after ten games or signing Bayo, Manaj, Ferreira etc and loaning them all out one transfer window later.
I keep trying to make this point. I suspect we will actually beat QPR and look decent and everyone will point and laugh at the naysayers. Irrespective this frightening point you make lurks in the background and our record of keeping players fit is diabolical over the years.
The naysayers will have their day if we beat QPR, but if they're as chaotic as it appears they are, then we really should win. Having said that, if we don't beat them then that will really sound loud alarm bells that once again we've started down the wrong track.
But people can be frustrated or incredulous about a number of transfers because they’d prefer we had kept the player, or got more money or whatever. To proceed such a big turnover with an indefensible one (sounds a bit grandiose, but weaker squad + no money doesn’t scream ‘good deal’) is quite understandably the tipping point for many imo.
We were always going to have to exit a lot of players, including most of our valuable players, and replace them with a few cheaper inferior players. The squad was always going to be thin as opposed to the previous bloated squad as we adapt to life with debts paid off, slashed income and no sugar daddy to bankroll us. That transition was always going to be painful to experience, .....and it is.
I agree, cost-cutting was completely necessary. That’s why I’m baffled we’ve just sent a player who cost £2m in January out on loan for the season. At least sell him and it would make sense!
I think everyone knows we are in for a tough season, like those last few pre Pozzo seasons. I doubt we will score >1 vs QPR so I doubt we will win that first game despite their problems.
This is exactly why we need a new owner. The one we have now is doing more harm than good. The direction of travel is firmly downward. Many are clinging on to the hope there will be lots of incomings to radically change the outlook, between now and the window closing. That may well happen in part, but I think it's clear what Gino is trying to do.
Yes I think this is less about finances and more about having 3 RBs, one of whom no-one wants so we are stuck with him. We could sell F but I'm not sure we'd get much. Maybe he wanted out. If he has a good season at Udinese maybe we can sell for a decent price ? I doubt he will be back here as a first choice, but who knows maybe he will be back and we will cash in on Andrews instead ?
Once again things are getting ‘factionalised’. It’s no crime to be optimistic, nor is it a crime to be highly critical. Different supporters seeing things differently. None of us are the enemy here. The ‘enemy’ are the people who’ve allowed our great club to be run in such a way that we are now the laughing stock of other fans everywhere for our hiring and firing managers policy, or for a transfer policy that sees a lot of us so outraged at the departure of a player who we only ever saw five times anyway. We have sunk so low since we reached the Cup final. Clearly eyes were taken off the ball. A team of Sarr, Deulofeu, Pereyra, Capoue and Doucoure now reads Livermore, Bayo, Ngakia, Kayembe etc. For me, the owners are now in last chance saloon, and I make my final judgement once this window shuts. But not too enthused so far. In any other walk of life, being loyal to a cause you believe in or something you follow or support is seen as a good thing, and I find it crazy how we are now in a situation where expressions like ‘happy clappers’ are thrown around as a negative. But equally I find it crazy how anybody showing any criticism is also given a negative label. There’s room for everybody at our club, either clapping or booing. None of us are responsible for the sorry mess our club have found themselves in.
I don't think any huge mistakes have been made this summer as I think there was always going to come a day, as there did for QPR, Swansea, Reading etc, where we had to accept champ finances again and go through a difficult financial rebalancing. A new owner with deep pockets would of course be great, a change may just be good in itself (careful what you wish for" ) but I don't think any new owner who a isn't loaded would do anything different to what Big Bad Baz, Simpson, Petchey etc did before the Pozzos came along.
They took us to the top and now back down to where they found us. We took that 2019 team for granted. What a squad they had managed to assemble. The squad this season will resemble the squad they found when they arrived.
For me personally, I'm in uncharted waters and I'm not totally convinced in my conviction for Gino to go. I've always felt he was the best guy for us, even through the bad times, but I've got to call it as I see it, and right now I think he's crossed the line in terms of doing what's best for the club. There were many things I didn't like about the ownership, but it's easy to overlook this when the club is progressing. You put up with the bad bits in that case. But when the club is regressing, as we clearly are, all the bad bits are still there and come closer to the surface. Right now, what's the benefit to having an owner intent on not investing, selling assets and filling the squad will rubbish? There is no benefit to it. So, unless anything drastically changes and we make at least a couple of signings to improve the situation, then thanks Gino, but your time is up. Go now, before the damage is irreparable.
