https://www.football-italia.net/115285/okaka-holds-out-great-torino Stefano Okaka has issued a come-and-get-me plea to Torino and Coach Walter Mazzarri. “They’re a great team and I’ve always enjoyed working with him.” Okaka has made just two starts for Watford this season, and the former Sampdoria striker made it clear he hoped to reunite with Mazzarri at Torino before the end of January. “I just want to play,” he told Gazzetta dello Sport. “I’m 28 years old, I’m in the prime of my career, I can’t spend any more time in this limbo and I’m not happy at the moment. “I only ask to be able to do my job and get back to normal. I talked to [Watford owner] Gino Pozzo and I hope everything can be resolved in complete harmony. “Torino? They’re a great team, with a legendary history, which makes this club special. I’ve been told that the Torino shirt gives off unique sensations. “Mazzarri? I’ve always enjoyed working with him because he’s honest to his players. He tells you things to your face and I appreciate people like him. “I don’t think there’s much else about him that’s up for discussion. Even in England, he proved to be a good Coach.”
The guy I used to sit next to in the rookerys shirt used to give off unique sensations on the nostrils.
You know things must be bad behind the scenes when a player wants to go back to Mazzarri. Lets hope Silva doesn't **** it up with players like Richarlison, Doucoure etc.
Looks like Torino have turned him down. http://www.calciomercato.com/en/news/watford-striker-offers-himself-to-torino-but-is-rejected-73383
I get the impression that it is more a case of he wants to play football, rather than particularly wanting to leave Watford, although of course, if he feels that Silva is not giving him enough chance then of course he will want to be away. Great shame really.
Big ******* baby! Try putting in a real shift two games running, then perhaps snake b0110ck5 will start picking you.
'For years'? As I said in a different thread, highly amusing that the 'Deeney is fat' joke became reality to the idiotic.
How has he? If the rumoured bust-up is true, then it’s only to be expected that the club would back the manager over a player. And if said bust-up didn’t happen, maybe Silva just plainly doesn’t rate him? I agree that Okaka brings a different dimension when he plays but that’s just it. He’s one dimensional. And he’s completely unfit. People were clambering over themselves to tell Silva that Okaka should start - well he did against Swansea and was as poor as the rest of them. The one time I’d say Okaka was treated poorly was being dropped after scoring on the opening day. Since then I’d say he’s been treated the same way as the other players that Silva deems not quite good enough. If we can get anywhere between £8-£12m for Okaka, take it.
He’s been completely out the picture, not even given minutes to maintain fitness with the u23s, despite the fact our strikers have clearly not been up to the task. Poorly treated.
Karnezis, Holebas, Wague (before Xmas), Capoue, Watson (before Xmas)... All of the above off the top of my head and I’m sure there’s more - all these players could have been given plenty of minutes for the U-23’s and weren’t. It tends to be the case that players don’t build up fitness by playing reserve or youth games anymore. I wouldn’t say Okaka is anymore frozen out than any of the above players. There’s no evidence to suggest as such. There’s far more evidence to say he just doesn’t fit in. If he’s poorly treated, then so are the 7 players who don’t make the squad every week. Or maybe they just aren’t good enough? I know which I believe. Ben Watson gave a great interview the other day where he said he knew he wouldn’t get a game - but rather than kicking up a fuss and getting his agent to leak all sorts of stories about how he loves his former managers etc etc, he realised he’d get games over a busy Xmas period so knuckled down, stayed as part of the group and as such had been rewarded. Can Okaka say the same? He’s had a few minutes but save for a good game back in August and 45 okay minutes against Leicester, he’s shown what I suspect Silva thinks he is. It’s up to him to prove the manager wrong and I suspect he isn’t capable of doing so hence the agent chatter.
It’s a shame but it sounds like he’ll never get that run of games to allow the ‘not fair’ posters a chance to U-turn their opinions and start posting about just how crapp he is.
Had a good game in August and then a good 45 against Leicester represents a very large chunk of his minutes played, at the same time as his fellow strikers have proven themselves mostly inadequate or unavailable. For that reason it is at the very least peculiar that he has not been given more of a chance, and if it hasn't raised your eyebrow, it has certainly piqued the curiosity of many other fans.
The thing with Okaka, which I think goes against him, he appears slow and cumbersome. Whether that’s s reality or not, it’s the impression he gives. There’s no doubt he does tire dramatically during games. When he does get a game he’s got to make it count. He scored a good goal against Liverpool but has not looked like scoring since. He’s not created many chances for himself and when one did come along in the final seconds at Brighton, it hit his knee and bounced wide. He’s got to take that. If he scores then he lays a strong claim to being picked next game. If a player delivers consistently game after game then he plays. Simple as that.
The players you’ve listed were either unknown quantities, or known quantities, who just aren’t good enough (Capoue, Holebas-ish). In my opinion, our best displays from our strikers this season (correct me if I’m forgetting any, I probably am) have been Okaka vs Liverpool, Deeney vs Arsenal, and not much else. When Okaka came on against Brighton, we looked a different team, and it was clear to everyone in the away end that he should have been getting more minutes. Yes I know he missed a chance, but can you blame him for being rusty. Ben Watson is 32 and knows that in all probablity , this is his last Premier League contract. Okaka is in his prime years and watching his value and reputation depreciate due to the fact our Head Coach prefers Deeney and Gray. I don’t begrudge him wanting a move.
He hasn’t exactly been given a chance game after game, has he? He’s played about 120 minutes since August. Have Deeney/Gray delivered consistently every game? Constantly delivered nothing, maybe. Have they played? Yes.
But it’s your last comments that are the issue. ‘The head coach prefers Deeney and Gray’. So how does that constitute him being treated poorly. We play one up front, so figures that one plays, another sits on the bench and the other misses out. My argument directly corresponds to what you have said at the top of this comment as well - why is Okaka ‘treated poorly’ rather than being a known quantity who isn’t good enough? He came on against Brighton and put himself about but he didn’t change the game. Much like he didn’t change the game against Swansea. Against Leicester he did. And he was good against Liverpool and should not have been dropped. But sadly that’s what happens when you pay £12m+ for a new striker and the other is your captain. I would argue that Deeney and Gray whilst being off-form and/or suspended have more sides to their game than Okaka. I just don’t see where he has been treated poorly compared to any other player, that’s all. I too don’t begrudge him a move based on the fact that he’s our third choice striker who we can get seemingly decent money for. I’d also add to that that he’s being vocal about wanting to leave so I wouldn’t want him in the squad if he’s not committed to getting his head down, getting fitter and fighting his way in. He has hardly made himself undroppable.
There was clearly a falling out between coach and player. Personally I back Silva in this instance. He can’t be undermined in front of the squad or else he loses respect. That takes care of the initial reason why he was not picked and that’s down to Okaka for putting himself in that position in the first place. After that he has to prove he’s better than the others when he does play. He’s been ok, but nothing special and no better or worse than Deeney or Gray. It’s down to Okaka to raise his game and force Silva to play him.
There’s no evidence about a falling out, or the details of it, so it’s tough to know for sure. In my opinion, he hasn’t been world class, but he has been better than Deeney/Gray each time he’s played. I don’t see them in training so I couldn’t tell you if he’s done that.
Silva said so in a press conference. He told of an issue with Okaka that everyone at the club knew about and this is why he was not being selected. He didn’t elaborate, but he made it clear Okaka had stepped out of line.
Whatever the incident, and I'm positive that there was one, if Okaka had said "fair cop I was out of line sorry boss" he may have got some game time, instead he pretended he had no idea what had happened.
Whatever the incident, and I'm positive that there was one, if Silva had said "fair cop I was out of line sorry Steph" Okaka may have got some game time, instead he pretended he had explained it in full.. Uninformed speculation swings both ways.
But Silva is the boss, and sometimes, when you are not the boss, even if you think you were in the right/vindicated/wronged, it's easier to eat a bit of humble pie and apologise (even if you don't mean a word of it).
I think maybe Silva, and the team, could have benefitted from giving Okaka an equal chance to prove himself on the pitch. That is all. That he didn't sounds Quique-esque alarm bells about stubbornly making a point when you could have won three, ending up with none. There is plenty of evidence to suggest that is what has happened.