Just looks like he doesn’t know whether he’s coming or going. Difficult to know what that’s about if you haven’t followed his career. He’s found fitting in difficult imo but that doesn’t explain all of it.
He was brought in too quickly considering we had/have Robbo.
It was a position that needed looking at, also because Robbo had his own certain struggles when he was tucked in as the 3rd CB in build up.
I’m not sure whether having Robbo and Gio at the club will do a great difference for Kerkez. The lad is 22, has physicality and can swerve a nice cross out of nowhere. I just hope he can be a useful first team squad player for a few years.
But it’s again a position we might look at, considering Robbo’s contract, Tsimi will be 30 and have a year left so we’ll probably sell.
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I wonder if Harvey desrves a place on that list. Lots of energy and a bit of a super sub.
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Forget about the 125m, and focus on the player. He’s just a member of the squad now. Nothing more and nothing less.
Exactly, and he has to be treated like a player who is off the pace. I.e. don’t start him. Let him earn his place in the team.
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Yes. These are choices that are being made, not a situation Slot has been forced into. If we accept the premise that we are not doing enough hard training at this point in the season as a side to get Isak up to speed with the amount of training he missed, then pull him out and give him an individual pre-season for as many weeks as is needed. He will still be short of match sharpness, but when he has built up a base, let him accumulate those minutes as a sub and in cup/CL games where there is more margin for error and less downside from it not going well.
Many people pointed out in the summer that the situation with him was not ideal, but we at least had the benefit of being able to take our time to get Isak right before using him given the investment that had been in Hugo and how well he started. Slot has instead responded to the Isak situation like we’re short of numbers and need to risk getting Isak in as soon as possible.
It really started with Palace. He made a very underwhelming debut in the midweek before against Atletico, which even though it was a surprise that he started it at least makes sense to have given him his opportunities to get minutes into his legs in the CL and cups rather than the league. But Slot then turned around and started him in the league against Palace and it was terrible. Then the next CL in the following midweek he gave way for Hugo and it continued like that…a desperately unfit Isak getting starts in the more important games, even being played into a muscle injury that further disrupted his rhythm and fitness. And if someone wants to connect dots, that Palace game where this unusual and I would argue irresponsible use of Isak started is the game where our season first started to go off the rails (and the only games we’ve looked even competent in since were two of the 3 Isak missed through injury, forcing Hugo back into the side).
These are choices and not ones where his hand is being forced due to the absence of other good choices available to him.
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Nah we have adequately replaced him with Chiesa
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It’s definitely something to watch. Frimpong has had a great injury record until coming here. Bradley has had well documented problems, but the hope was they were growth related and his fitness record would improve.
I haven’t given up on them as long term solutions, but it is something to watch especially as at the moment we can’t get either one on the pitch, and have to use a midfielder or an injury prone defender in Gomez. (Ramsey could be a third choice but I don’t think he is eligible for the CL).
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I agree that in form Ekitike should start over Isak and with hindsight starting it the other way around against Forest was a mistake.
Presumably Slot thought Isak was very close, and to take the final step to match fitness he would need to do it on the pitch, and play his way in as it were. Slot probably had in mind a nice goal scoring hour’s work for Isak, then a hungry Ekitike coming in to prove a point, with the result of having a win on the board and two sharper strikers moving forward.
Instead, Isak laid an egg and was peripheral, hence all the calls that it was a mistake and Ekitike should have started. I agree with that, but I can see what Slot was trying to do with that one, even if it didn’t work.
I dont think there is much to worry about with Frimpong. It’s just an unfortunate situation that when he was feeling the pace of his first game with Bradley and Gomez both unavailable we asked him to try to push it further than we otherwise would have and he has been suffering the consequences ever since. The biggest issue is with the recurring fitness issues of the other two he may be forced back into action and for longer than he’d otherwise want.
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I was excited to sign Isak. He has proven in the Prem that he is a smashing player, and a clear upgrade on Nunez, even if, for various reasons, he hasn’t shown it at Liverpool yet.
The wrangling over the transfer was a messy business and I didn’t like it, but from Isak’s perspective Newcastle reneged on a contract agreement, then blocked his transfer to Liverpool, while also turning the pressure up to the max with officials round at his house. He withstood the enormous pressure and was consistent and resolute in telling them he wanted out, which in its own way, for me, shows real strength.
His training alone was unseemly - partly his own choice and partly the choice of Howe. Eddie Howe started out more magnanimously, in the hope that Isak would stay, but once it became apparent even to Howe that Isak wanted to leave, Howe went on the record saying he only wanted players to train with the group who wanted to be there.
I am delighted Isak is here and now it’s up to Slot to get him up to speed and find a way to integrate him into the side, along with the other attacking talent we have brought in.
That was the worst possible game to give him a PL start in. Both for him personally and for the team.
He was clearly lacking legs and fitness. Chiesa should have started that one.
He even came on and equalised.
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He might still be feeling the effects of missing out on that Barbecue. It did look brilliant - Howe had got in four different kinds of sauce and Tindall’s chicken kebabs are tasty.
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I have had similar thoughts. Ekitike’s red card may have been a sliding doors moment…
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Andy Carroll and isak…we really should stop buying newcastle strikers…cant think of anyone good who signed from there since beardsley
Hopefully Isak kicks on and has a good career at Liverpool. I’m backing him to do that. Still, I hear you, he hasn’t really got going yet.
As for Carroll, I remember reading an article a little while ago about him, playing on a per game sort of basis for relative pennies, way down the footballing food chain. It made me warm to him a bit. He was a bad signing for us, and he also liked a drink which somewhat derailed his career.
Since Beardsley: Hamann, Carroll, Wijnaldum, Enrique, Isak.
We can say 3 and a half good signings as we speak.
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I really wanted us to go big on Alvarez over Isak. Not sure if Atletico would’ve budged, but he just has everything we actually want, including the off-the-ball work we’ve become accustomed to over the years.
Some interesting points in the last day or so about the make-up of our squad. It does feel like we need some ‘needle’ type players, those who will get stuck in, harass the opposition, and bully them.
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Did he leave City cos he didn’t like the weather in the North West?
There could be an “Alvarez” situation here with us in the near future.
But that would mean that we have one who is doing brilliantly (Haaland) and another one, very good one, who is happy until a certain point as backup (Alvarez) and then all parties decide it’s best to change. I’d be happy with that. But first need to get there.
As for Ekitike and Isak up top together long term, I’ll believe it when it starts happening and if it proves to be the right formula.
How that corelates with nearby positions (Salah, Szoboszlai, Wirtz), that’s all very interesting questions for the decision makers of this club.
Sometimes they say, sweet problems. I think this summer we likely ended up with too much sugar for everyone’s good.
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