03 Oct 2024 11:37:38
Composure needed from Darwin trying too hard and getting it wrongp he is so scared of being offside he is not reacting just needs to chill and he can come gòod.
03 Oct 2024 12:13:55
It was a good finish, but wasted with the offside. Needs to work on that.
03 Oct 2024 12:15:19
I’m not saying Darwin’s game doesn’t need improvement. However, Darwin provides one thing better than any player we have at the moment - chaos, and he’s uniquely really good at it. He needs a long run in the team, his work rate is excellent. I don’t like the arguments about him “coming good”. He already has for me, and I’m glad to see him in the 11 every time he plays.
I’m not expecting him to ever be our most clinical finisher, but this will also improve with a good run in the team.
03 Oct 2024 13:06:29
Scared of being offside.
Like saying a pilot is scared of flying.
03 Oct 2024 13:09:12
I still have faith in Darwin but Slot favours Diaz at the moment and when Nunez gets opportunities he has to take them.
So far I don’t think he’s done that.
Even the goal against Bournemouth, spectacular as it was, what we need more from him is better all round play rather than moments of brilliance. He has always had these crazy finishes in him (loves hitting a volley from an impossible angle) but I think we need to see him work on his all round game.
03 Oct 2024 13:13:58
Sadly, I'm still not convinced by him. Hope he shuts me up like Gravenberch has.
03 Oct 2024 13:33:12
Nunez for the size of lad he is, is v disappointing when competing for a long ball or goal kick from keeper, never seems to get a flick on or hold it so team can get up field.
Last nite with bologna tactics of man marking allover field left ali too kick long to forwards, i don't remb nunez winning 1 header r hplding it up at all, his oppentent dominated. Has te do better in them 50/ 50 type situations.
03 Oct 2024 14:13:50
Good analogy, JK. Made me smile.
03 Oct 2024 15:32:23
You could see he was still not fully recovered from being sick over the weekend. Wasn't full of energy as he usually is.
03 Oct 2024 15:33:06
If he ever gets it right and I think he will and can, he will move "Mountains", no one can doubt he has massive, massive talents (and not just for straying Offside? ) personally I though he and Jota made a good partnership against West Ham, one which i would like to see have more chances of playing together at home particularly versus the eleven behind the ball teams. Perhaps all he needs is a Loving partner after all!
03 Oct 2024 16:51:16
If Trent plays that ball one second quicker (not having a go at Trent here) then Darwin is still on side and he scores cos the finish was already brilliant, exactly the way I would want him to take the chance. That is what I wan from him. To take the "easier" chances rather than scoring the "harder" ones. That split second allowed the defender to step up and Darwin is offside. That's football, IMO.
Even Slot said our players were not finding him despite him making the ideal/ correct runs cos IMO, either the pass was late in coming, never came at all or a diff. decision was made by the ball carrier. In the EFL Cup game vs WH, he did the exact same things but still, he never got the ball. There was a time where Jones had the ball, Darwin makes the run BUT Jones dallies too much and the pass never came. Is that Darwin's fault too? He is doing the right things and making the correct decisions and runs. Oh, and his linkup play is getting excellent, IMO.
All in all, It is up to the players to provide the correct service at the right time and up to him to finish them. The whole offside thing is just white noise that I personally, could not be bothered with. If you are not getting caught offside as a CF then, you are not doing your job.
03 Oct 2024 17:27:15
OliRed, how many times does Haaland get caught offside? Is he not doing his job?
03 Oct 2024 18:45:21
No Rome, the difference is teams don’t play offside against City. They drop off so it’s actually much easier for Haaland to stay onside most of the time.
There were a few occasions yesterday where Nunez made the right run but his teammate played the wrong pass. One where Mo played it in behind where there was no space and he’d already checked out into acres springs to mind. Had Mo just played it to his feet he’s got a free shot from 8 yards out.
Szob did a similar thing too.
You see with Nunez, when he calms down he’s an excellent footballer and a great finisher. His brain just seems to go at 100 miles an hour and his feet can’t keep up half the time.
I think a good run of games is all he needs and he could be an absolute monster.
03 Oct 2024 18:54:54
Yes I agree. It’s everyone else’s fault.
{Ed025's Note - you lot dont half talk some crap at times, @ Oli..."if you are not getting caught offside as a CF then you are not doing your job"...really!!!, so the job of a CF is to be caught offside?...are you for real?
and @ BP, "hes an excellent footballer and a great finisher", you need to lay off the drugs mate, he cant get a game because hes a really awful finisher and a very average footballer, if you 2 want to be taken seriously you do really need to stop talking through your arses!!..
03 Oct 2024 19:12:30
Beckers, I hope you're right and I'm wrong, I really do. Because as it stands all I see is a headless chicken. I'm not bothered if this offends folk, I was singing his name, last night, which perhaps makes me a hypocrite. I don't expect that he reads this site.
03 Oct 2024 19:16:03
Sally is caught offside just as much as Darwin, and Sally has two advantages that Darwin does not have?
Looking across the line at all the opposition defenders, and having no one at the back of him only the linesman, who sally also uses to gauge his offside when the linesman keeps up with play, perhaps that is what Darwin has to do have a look at the linesman as well as the defender and stay one yard behind. Sally knows if the linesman is in front of him he's okay as most of the time the linesman is standing next to him for one half of play.
Shankly always told his full backs to play one yard ahead of there own two centre halfs when defending as it was easier to look across the field than when you was facing your goal or opponents goal, that has been passed down over the years and copied by everyone, as VVD does it now, one of the problems could be also every time he is interviewed he has to have an interpreter such as Diaz, as his English is poor, though offside is offside in any language.
{Ed025's Note - stop making excuses for him 007..
03 Oct 2024 19:38:40
Sally. Sally. Who the f##k is Sally.
03 Oct 2024 19:40:49
Salah (I assume that's who you mean by "Sally") isn't caught offside as much as Nunez, when they're on the pitch together. And, out of interest, does Diaz even speak English?
03 Oct 2024 19:42:55
This old argument about how it's the passers fault for Darwin being offside is rearing its head again. Chaos is his biggest asset. Is chaos a good thing? Sometimes maybe but not when it's headbutting defenders or fighting fans. The fact he's passionate and emotional and human make us love him but I want my striker to be able to time his runs and score one on one's and I'm losing patience with him. Hope he turns is around big time because he is so loveable but I don't think he's got the football IQ to be a consistently top player and i don't see any improvement in him since he joined.
03 Oct 2024 23:34:44
I took Sally to be ‘sadly’. Don’t you mean Alice @JK ?? I suppose it could have been long, tall Sally, who was, after all, built for speed.
04 Oct 2024 07:35:55
WDW I was trying to be inventive.
Alice has had her day in the sun.