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Dark Savante wrote:Nice post Bash ,
so this is your best team according to you
--------------Given---------------
Beye----------Faye--------Rozenhal--------Enrique
----Milner------Butt----Emre------------N Zog
---------------Martins-----Viduka
or Barton gets in there ahead of Butt , pretty solid looking defence just need some quality in midfield like Appiah perhaps.
Yeah, I think this is probably our best eleven, which means my own opinion has deviated slightly from what it was even a few games ago.
It would be harsh to leave Cacapa out of our defence, in that he has been very strong for us so far this season, hes been the one regular in defence, at least since his arrival, and he has the leadership qualites our defence has lacked in past seasons. That said, all of Beye, Rozehnal and Feye have good footballing experience. I think Faye is slightly more solid and physical than Cacapa, and so far, looks less likely to make mistakes, whilst for me, Rozehnal has been one of the best players of our season - there have been times when he has been carrying the team in terms of building play from the back; hes very fast and has great stamina; and Im also a big advocate of the novel idea that holds that the best form of defence is to retain the ball in the first place, and Rozehnal can help us do that. Really, its a joy to see the first ball playing centre back we have had in a long time; a player who can roam forwards and add to the attack rather than resorting to long balls which only put us back on the defensive.
Beye and Enrique are our only natural right and left full backs of any quality - fortunately the early signs are that they do have significant quality. Enrique looks strong and good on the ball, Beye is agile and, like I say, he has a lot of experience having captained Marseille.
For the midfield I think Milner and N'Zogbia are obvious choices. On the one hand they are both natural wingers, in that they like taking men on and going down the line - but both can also cut inside, both have a good shot, and they both track back, whilst N'Zogbia can be very strong in the tackle. Without those two playing we lack balance. It makes no sense to play Smith or Geremi on the wings. It renders one side of the pitch useless, and, particularly when there is this lack of balance, Allardyce regularly makes our two wide players switch sides, and this never really adds anything to our play but only tends to confuse the players involved. Milner and N'Zogbia should start and should remain on their respective sides, right and left.
Up to the last few games at least, our midfield has lacked any creativity in the centre. Emre, like I posted above, is, in theory, our most gifted central midfielder and on his last two performances he deserves to stay in the team. I dont particularly rate Barton in any sense and I still object somewhat to him playing for Newcastle - my initial objections having lessened to a degree, yet he doesnt help the situation by repeatedly making arrogant, selfish, inane comments. Hes an unlikeable guy. I dont think he is more creative than Emre, whilst to play him alongside Emre, and with Milner and N'Zogbia, would be too offensive. Hence we partner Emre with either Geremi or Butt (I did consider playing Faye as holding midfielder when he arrived, and thats still an option, but he looks to be settling into defence very well). Geremi has been disappointing this season, looks slow physically and mentally, whilst Butt has had a few good games and offers more purely defensively in a team that otherwise looks reasonably attacking.
Up front, as Ive said, whatever Owens qualities are they are not ones that really fit our play, at least at the moment, because we dont really press with the ball, and so when he starts so high up the pitch he rarely gets involved in the game. Its tempting to pair him and Martins just because to do so necessitates us playing a passing game. At the same time, I think its undeniable that he puts more in for England than he does for us - I was reading during the international week that, in two and a quarter years at the club, he has started the same number of games for England as he has for us, and that in itself tells a story. So, considering this alone - even ignoring the fact that Allardyce likes a big man/little man partnership - I think Viduka is the best partner for Martins, who for me is our most important player in that hes exciting to watch and, more than any other, can turn a game in a moment.
Things could change in January - Id still look for a top quality defensive midfielder, we could do with some cover down the right, and I guess we will wait and see how we are doing in terms of creativity in the centre by then. It will also be interesting to see what happens when Duff is fit again. Certainly, he in no way deserves to replace N'Zogbia down the left, though I dont think that means that this definitely wont happen. Another option is that he could play down the left and N'Zogbia could move into the centre of midfield - he has the abilities to excel there, but at the same time he has always been best for us down the left. And of course, Duff should only be considered for the first eleven if he showed some actual form.
