love how shattered the players look. these double sessions remind me of klopp era…makes sense how bournemouth grew stronger after January and at the tail end of the season, while other teams wilted. another klopp team trait.
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for me, after watching the two games, most impressive player and youth player has been trey. rio for me is still very raw and is not a starter for me. the step overs are becoming predictable and he will get easier to stop. i have also liked ramsey, mcconnell and scanlon (spelling).
He made it work in their style at Bournemouth. But what works for them is not the same as what will necessarily work for us. We have much higher aspirations and the teams we play against play differently against us.
I place very little weight on these stats to be honest. I think they´re very dubious in what they tell you, without context of each pass (I am aware it´s many passes) they don´t work well at all as a grouping. So many factors go into whether a pass is good or not and how incisive it is. For example is it being bounced right back at you? Fair enough you think they will be much better. I expect to be discussing this with you in a few months as we struggle to break teams down, without certain signings, in all honesty.
You can indeed hide some weaknesses but not being able to pass through the lines is not something you can easily make up for unless you have an unbelievable front 3 and/or your full back is phenomenal at passing. It´s a core skill of midfield play.
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That’s unacceptable. He lost an entire season’s worth of football, he knows that he has a second chance, which is probably his last at a high level, and he shows up like this for the preseason. And this is after weeks of training under Iraola, imagine how bad it was when he reported back.
Extremely disappointing.
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That’s right, I’ve seen one or two clips of him practising his finishing in front of goal with, I think, some friends. He was quite a bit heavier back then. During matches, he mainly just jogs around. The lad’s blessed with an excellent left foot, but I reckon it’s going to be a real struggle for him to make the squad
Would never normally comment on body shape, but for an elite athlete on a huge salary, that’s really not good enough
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Well yeah we will definitely have games where we struggle to break teams down that pretty much goes without saying, its the Premier League there a tonne of teams who are really good defensively when they want to be.
The original point was that sending Nyoni on loan and signing someone else would be a poor use of resources. There is a very limited market of quality wingers and we’re going after the best one we can find which costs a lot of money. We also heard that signing him would mean we don’t have a lot of available cash to reinforce other areas and several positions on the pitch are of a much greater concern than CM. CB and RB being the most obvious ones.
Anyone actually worth signing is going to be £80m+ in this market, I see Adam Wharton is being quoted at £100m for example.
So its a question of resource allocation. Even if we accept the premise that the midfield is full of cloggers who can’t pass a ball to save their lives then the fact remains it is “full”. We have 5 full internationals for 2/3 positions depending on how Iraola sets up. Add Nyoni in to make that 6. Whereas at CB we 3 players for 2 roles, with two of those being 20 years old or younger and at RB we currently have one fit RB, who a lot of people don’t rate, and a kid who both Klopp and Slot never trusted to play even on the rare occasions when he was healthy.
We won’t be the perfect squad next year that’s just fact but I think it would be irresponsible, borderline neglegent, to head into the season without at least hetting a starting quality winger and a rotational CB. Reinforcements in midfield just can’t be a priority.
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Let’s not be too quick to judge; yes, his physical fitness leaves something to be desired, but we also don’t know what kind of mental state he was in. He was surely deeply unhappy about the whole situation. In any case, it wouldn’t surprise me at all if he had been in a deep slump that he now has to climb out of. That doesn’t happen overnight.
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The morning after. I didn’t see any of the Jones/Szobo stuff until now. Without knowing the context it’s hard to say much or make much of it at all. Perhaps I can say that whatever was going on, a little bit of passion was there, and it shows they care?
As for what I saw on the pitch, Nyoni did very well and to my mind should be kept with the squad and used as a rotational option in the Prem, and for cup games. He has filled out and isn’t the gangly kid that he was. Ok, there’s still a step up to come, as he gets to grips with some action in the Prem and cups, but I would be confident in deploying him that way now.
Ndukwe looks a player, and so does Ndiaye. Their partnership looked reassured. They were both strong, fast, and composed. Ok, just a preseason friendly, but the signs were good for such young players. Hopefully a good path is worked out for both, so they keep progressing.
It’s hard to think of more positives, as overall the game wasn’t very good. They looked tired to me, without much spring in their step, which is probably due to doing doubles and putting down a fitness base for the season ahead. Fair enough, as that’s the important work to be done right now. Along with getting to grips with what Iraola wants, of course.
The pitch was terrible, and I am glad nobody got injured going over one of those seams. In addition, it was very narrow, so it wasn’t really a set up to run into expansive spaces and do your thing. At that point it helped a compact and organized Wrexham side.
Not much else to say really. I understand the importance of preseason tours to continue to grow the fan base and revenue base. I can’t separate that requirement from wanting to be in the fight to sign the likes of Barcola for 100M+. It goes hand in hand, even if local games against the likes of Crewe also have their place in preseason.
For anyone who went, hats off to you. I thought about Nashville and Chicago, but decided to give it a miss this time.
We now have so much information about everything that we comment in depth on preseason games, when in reality, there are lots of reasons why it is never going to be close to our top level yet. It’s all about fitness. And growing the fan base. And yes, taking on board the tactical requirements set forth by Iraola. That is clearly a work in progress, understandably.
Oh, and it’s also a chance for some people to stake a claim. Nyoni is very much doing that. Others, not so much. And all that and more besides will be seen by Iraola.
I mentioned it semi jokingly about a month ago but acknowledging that sometimes the wrong fit of clothes at the wrong camera angle can be unflattering. But yesterday he played every bit like this is not just a cosmetic thing but something hampering his performance. He looked like that guy who is pressured to come out Sunday league retirement but is now 40lbs heavier than he last played. He’s got recollections of being a good player, but not in this body. He not only struggled to get around the pitch but just had a shocking lack of control, like he doesn’t understand how that his new proportions impact how his limbs works. There were at least 3 times where under barely any pressure he “controlled” the ball either straight into touch or it bounced off him to a a wrexham. it was a proper black hole performance
I have been a big advocate for Harvey over the years and I don’t want to write him off, but even the best case here seems like he’s a long way from being able to contribute meaningfully. And with his contract situation the way it is and a new manager who he has no credit with, I just don’t why he’d get the patience and grace here to work through that.
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You’re describing Ronnie Corbett
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https://x.com/LFC_Joseph11/status/2082624609359200272
Looks like they are working on something …
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Not really - if a bloke stood there for the whole 90 minutes blocking out half the pitch I’d be claiming it was an obstructed view 
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Going point out the pitch was shit, we arrived late to New York, Wrexham are a week away from their first proper game. They’ve beat Man Utd and Leeds and are unbeaten in their Pre season.
Basically they are one game from their first game, it’s a good test and good for our fitness.
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But my original response remains. Them being internationals or whatever is irrelevant if they are not up to the task.
None of us know our budget so it´s all speculation, but realistically we could get rid of at least one and bring in a player who is up to it. We´d get a solid sum of money for any of our midfielders. We could sell Mac and lose absolutely nothing from our side.
My view is that having a very good midfielder with an actual defined role will yield massive benefit. RB and CB may have fewer options but midfield is such a crucial role
Though why are you so certain we can´t get a solid CB and RB as well as a CM and winger?
Somehow I thought you were older. 
Yeah, he’s gonna have to go out on loan, and hopefully get some good first team minutes. Back next season with the permit sorted.
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