[RECALLED] James Garner

I am just being cheeky.

You're right.

The loans system is one of biggest problems in football.

Far better for promising kids to be owned and play for lower league teams, than for the likes of Chelsea to stockpile the talent and see who develops (and even then don't always get it right).

Maybe there should be a cap on number of players per club at each age group or overall registrations.

 

What used to be the lifeblood of small clubs - developing talent and selling on the very best, has been stymied by a rigged system which sees all the best talent gravitate to a tiny handful of clubs.

 

Yup.

Not that we don't have a few on loan ourselves.

But it's got ridiculous for Chelsea, Man City etc

 

Which is a large part of the reason why a preferred model of promoting academy graduates into a PL first team is pie in the sky for all but the biggest clubs, it seems.

 

The EPPP system has basically made it pointless to run an academy for the vast majority of clubs.

It helps promising youngsters get to the big clubs ASAP, which you could argue has helped generate this promising crop of youngsters England have.

However, it feels very short sighted because clubs like ours have just given up on our academy when we know anyone with a modicum of talent can be picked up for peanuts by the nearest Cat 1.

 

See for example, Jadon Sancho.

If we had Ashley Young with EEP back before we were promoted we wouldn't have seen even a small fraction recieved that fee we got for him which saved the club financially.

 

Perpetuates the problem doesn't it. EPPP sweeps up all the young players to the top clubs, who inevitably farmed them out and they become journeymen. One big washing machine, with no incentive for clubs to develop talent themselves. Relying on the Pozzo network gets a fair share of criticism around here, but there isn't a lot of point in a club like ours looking to academy talent as an alternative.

 

There was nowhere near enough backlash to EPPP being passed either. One of the reasons I think Southgate is a bit of a *******, as he was one of those championing it.

 

Izzy Brown was picked up from West Brom (may or may not have been EPPP related)

 

Wasn't it the case that if it wasn't voted through that the PL would have cut funding to the lower leagues?

 

Yep. The lower league clubs couldn't afford to not vote for it.

 

Yeah. Bribery.

 

Wasn't the justification of it to improve the national team?

 

Less bribery and more coercion, I reckon.

 

Yeah. I'm having a mare today

 

This guy must be wondering what he has signed himself up for this season after tonight

 

Certainly a learning curve for the lad...

 

Yeah, he was used to playing with decent players in United's reserves.

 

He was dog **** tonight.

 

He was probably so embarrassed to be playing in such a **** team that it dragged him down to our level.

 

So from those 17 players tonight, who are likely to be part of it on Saturday?

Bachmann, Ngakia, Dawson, Garner, Murray, Sierralta, Pussetto, Sinclair, Cathcart and Perica (would have been if not for the red card)

So that's 9 players from 17 that would either be starting or on the bench. It doesn't bode too well for Saturday does it.

 

I don’t disagree with your overall point but as Ngakia and Cathcart didn’t actually play tonight, I’m not sure it’s fair to include them in your argument.

I’d imagine of the squad tonight, those two will start on Saturday and likely Perica would have too but for his moment of madness.

Garner, Dawson, Murray and either Pussetto or Sinclair would probably have been on the bench. We started the season with Pedro up top and may do again as Murray has been awful.

Guesswork of course but basing it on the two championship matches so far.

Foster, Ngakia, Kabasele, Wilmot, Sema, Cleverley, Chalobah, Pedro, Quina and omg let’s pray Sarr to come into the side, none of who were on the pitch tonight.

 

My point is, half of tonight's team is likely to be part of the squad on Saturday. Once we start playing poorly and getting sh1tty results it becomes infectious. The general feeling around the place gets damaged and everyone gets on a downer, especially after last season. You cannot say all 18 will be different on Saturday, as that wont be the case.

Once something starts going in the wrong direction, it's very difficult to turn the tide, as we discovered last season.

There's been a big push on using players who want to play for us, but if they can't even get close to a League Two side, what's the point?

 

So by that reasoning, getting a win in the league cup would lead to more wins, right? As it becomes infectious?
Like last season, when we beat Coventry 3-0 then we... *checks notes* lost 8-0 2 games later. Or when we beat Swansea then we *checks notes* didn't win in our next 6 games.

Or, to be fair, let's go back to the Championship, in the promotion season. We beat Stevenage in the League Cup then we...lost 3-0 to Norwich next game. Then we lost to Doncaster in the next round. Presumably that loss started a horrible spiral of bad form? Nope, we lost just once in the following 11 games.

Almost like League Cup results mean **** all.

 

Yep......all is good...nothing to see here.

 

I think the fact we have played poorly pretty much all season and we have our first local derby in 15 years is a legitimate cause for concern.

 

Very diplomatic!

 

No, his general level at the moment isn't much above that.

I did say at the start of this thread when we signed him:

"From what I've seen of him recently I'd be pretty underwhelmed by this. He has a lot of potential, but he also has a touch of the Sarr-esque stroppiness about him and is very inconsistent. Sometimes games can pass him by, and he plays too negatively even though he has the ability to be a very good passer and striker of the ball.

He'll still take time and a fair bit of coaching to be really effective"

It's almost as if my assessments of potential signings have some semblance of sense to them.

No doubt it would help if he has better players around him to pass to, but he's not yet the kind of player who is going to grab games by the scruff of the neck and lift the team on his own. I'd still be tempted to play him at the weekend ahead of Quina though if we have no one else available again, if only because unlike Quina he is capable of keeping possession at the moment and occasionally his corners have been alright.

 

I agree with you, I don't think we've played particularly well and I'm not massively confident about Saturday. I felt the same before the League Cup match as I do now, and I'd feel the same if we won 3-0.

 

And yet we're unbeaten in the league and yet to concede a goal.

Perhaps the championship really is a poor league these days.

Even from watching MotD it seems like a different world quality-wise in the Prem.

 

Two games is too small a sample to draw any conclusions. 15 games in, if we've won 6 and drawn 5 then, yeah, we have some idea of our quality, even if the performances don't seem impressive.

My view is that we can't score and will be exposed. Time will tell if I'm right or not.

 

And how many would start? Ngakia and Cathcart neither of which actually played. Possibly Garner and Murray (hope not). So from those actually on the pitch this evening it's quite possibly none!