Derek McGovern In The Mirror

Status
Not open for further replies.
Spargel said:
He's talking shite. Colback is a neat and tidy player who is underrated. He is never going to be a world beater but it is just typical journalist ignorance.
Click to expand...

Don't know why he just doesn't change his name by deed poll to Jack Neat and Tidy Colback.......:rolleyes:

Anyone who thinks he's good enough to be playing for England needs certifying.

I watched their game against Man City......you know, the one where he was apparently superb and imo the game just passed him by......Man City's midfield went past him at will and he was like a 10 year old school kid playing with the seniors.
 


Abdoujaparov said:
Not to reopen a debate that I'm sure has been to death on here already, but his game isn't to deliver a defence splitting pass or to score on a regular basis, so that's like asking why Vito has such poor crossing stats or why Vergini hasn't scored any penalties. It's something that he could develop and would improve him as a player, but it's not essential because the point is that there's other people in the team to do that and he's the one that helps them do it.

When for so many teams the focus on football these days is about patiently keeping possession, recycling and building phases then Colback is a good fit for that, he's very comfortable on the ball, has a better range of passing then he's given credit for and is athletic and very hard working (which has a negative connotation, as if it's another way of saying he tries but is shit, or the whole Deschamps 'water carrier' thing, but that's no the case. Colback is a 90 min player who will work as hard as anyone else on the pitch. Compared to Ben Arfa, who is 10 times the footballer Colback is but puts in 10% of the effort, and so has been castigated.).

It's daft that he's been written off as shite by so many people when that isn't the case at all. He's not Ronaldo, he's not even that exciting a player, but he is a good Premier League footballer, and it's not a complete shock that after the retirements and injuries that he's been given a chance in a pretty experimental squad for a friendly. My only complaint is that Cattermole deserves it as much as him.
Click to expand...

It's no f***ing use keeping the ball and being neat and tidy if all you can do is pass back. He's weak, has no vision and if he's among the best couple of dozen English players then what a parlous state it is
 
Boots said:
Just wondering why you think neat and tidy but never a world beater is worthy of an England call up.? The 'journalist' may have been taking the pies but l dont think he's too far off the mark.
Click to expand...
Because a team isn't just made up of creative, attacking players. You need players to link play and do the unheralded dirty work. He is not a Scholes or a Gascoigne, he is more Butt, Hargreaves or Barry.

Never heard of the journalist and don't read The Mirror so no idea if it is meant to be "humour" or not.
 
Neat and tidy should be a standard for any professional footballer, it certainly doesn't warrant an England call up.
 
HettonSAFC said:
Mag or not. If, and that's one hell of an if, he goes on to be an England regular, it's because of what he did in a Sunderland shirt. Personally I don't rate the lad but hey if needs must and we can't find a few classy midfielders in our country then we (England) are well and truly up shit creek as far as world football is concerned.
Click to expand...

It's not about classy midfield players. Henderson has a touch of class, as does Barkley and Wilshere on their day. We have Oxlade Chamberlain and lots of promising young wide players but what England are crying out for is steel and leadership to protect the kids and our pretty average defenders. Jack Colback is a nothing player and he doesn't have leadership or steel. He keeps the midfield ticking over with short passes and that's about it.
 
Boris Bear said:
It's no f***ing use keeping the ball and being neat and tidy if all you can do is pass back. He's weak, has no vision and if he's among the best couple of dozen English players then what a parlous state it is
Click to expand...

Yes it is, it's a lot of use, and it's a lot better than aimlessly hoofing it 30 yards up the pitch or not being able to hold on to it for more than 2 seconds.
 
Spargel said:
Because a team isn't just made up of creative, attacking players. You need players to link play and do the unheralded dirty work. He is not a Scholes or a Gascoigne, he is more Butt, Hargreaves or Barry.

Never heard of the journalist and don't read The Mirror so no idea if it is meant to be "humour" or not.
Click to expand...

Jack Colback didn't do the dirty work for us, Cattermole did. Bridcutt was bought for that job too. Colback isn't as good as Nicky Butt as Butt had a nasty streak that Colback hasn't got. Butt also got forward.
 
Can somebody tell me what makes Colback any better than Leadbitter? Having watched both in a Sunderland shirt I thought they were both of the same quality except Leadbitter had more goals in him.
 
Spargel said:
He's talking shite. Colback is a neat and tidy player who is underrated. He is never going to be a world beater but it is just typical journalist ignorance.
Click to expand...

Can people stop calling him "neat and tidy" please, aside from "he's a crisp passer of the ball", it's the biggest cliche going.
 
Papa Smurf said:
Can somebody tell me what makes Colback any better than Leadbitter? Having watched both in a Sunderland shirt I thought they were both of the same quality except Leadbitter had more goals in him.
Click to expand...

Less goals, a bit more pace but they're not dissimilar. Leadbitter likes to get forward more. I like Grant but then I love a midfielder who scores goals :)
 
Boris Bear said:
It's still no use
Click to expand...
How can you win a game of football if your midfield can't keep hold of the ball then?

Maybe we're arguing different things, but I'm saying ball retention and recycling is essential in football these days, and Colback is good at that, and it doesn't matter if some of his passes go backwards.
 
In these situations I always wonder why it's the player who gets the stick. What's Colback meant to say? 'Nah, actually Roy, I don't really fancy getting a cap for England, I'm not good enough'.

Hodgson should be the one getting pillared, not the ginger Pirlo.
 
Abdoujaparov said:
How can you win a game of football if your midfield can't keep hold of the ball then?

Maybe we're arguing different things, but I'm saying ball retention and recycling is essential in football these days, and Colback is good at that, and it doesn't matter if some of his passes go backwards.
Click to expand...

My point is England aren't crying out for someone who can retain the ball. Henderson is far better than Colback at doing that. All our players can control and pass the ball. We need to pick a balanced side that has someone who can lead, organise and allow the young, attacking midfielders to get forward without leaving our defence horribly exposed. If the best man for that role man is Jack Colback then I've been watching the wrong player for the last 3 or 4 years.

Crammy Mackem said:
In these situations I always wonder why it's the player who gets the stick. What's Colback meant to say? 'Nah, actually Roy, I don't really fancy getting a cap for England, I'm not good enough'.

Hodgson should be the one getting pillared, not the ginger Pirlo.
Click to expand...

I'm not slagging off Colback the man. I'm pointing out his lack of ability and bottle to make a difference on a regular basis during football matches. I've slagged off Woy plenty, the man's a berk.
 
Abdoujaparov said:
How can you win a game of football if your midfield can't keep hold of the ball then?

Maybe we're arguing different things, but I'm saying ball retention and recycling is essential in football these days, and Colback is good at that, and it doesn't matter if some of his passes go backwards.
Click to expand...
I'm saying that it's a waste of a spot in the 11 if ALL he can do is pass the ball back or sideways. He is incredibly limited and it is ridiculous that he is anywhere near the England team.....as it is with Delph......as it was with Geoff Thomas and Carlton Palmer (both tidy players)
 
Not saying that Colback is an outstanding player or will suddenly transform England into a great team, just that there have been worse players to have played for England.
 
Abdoujaparov said:
Yes it is, it's a lot of use, and it's a lot better than aimlessly hoofing it 30 yards up the pitch or not being able to hold on to it for more than 2 seconds.
Click to expand...

Bit like David Vaughan he was also neat and tidy but never an England standard player
 
Keith S30S said:
My point is England aren't crying out for someone who can retain the ball. Henderson is far better than Colback at doing that. All our players can control and pass the ball. We need to pick a balanced side that has someone who can lead, organise and allow the young, attacking midfielders to get forward without leaving our defence horribly exposed. If the best man for that role man is Jack Colback then I've been watching the wrong player for the last 3 or 4 years.
Click to expand...

I agree, and it'll be interesting to see how Jack fits in to that, but knowing the way that England managers try to shoehorn players into systems I wouldn't be surprised to see Colback played as a wide left forward or behind a striker or something stupid. Like when Capello gave Henderson his debut, after a season playing either wide right or bombing on through the middle, and put him at the base of a CM triangle with instructions to not cross the half way line. Then he got slagged of for looking crap!

I think the player you just described England needing is Cattermole and I agree, but like I said, this is an experimental squad hit by retirements and injury so no massive surprise that he's been called up, just the timing is shit for us. He'll have to really do something special this season to keep his place in the squad though.
 
Spargel said:
He's talking shite. Colback is a neat and tidy player who is underrated. He is never going to be a world beater but it is just typical journalist ignorance.
Click to expand...
Well in that case it's about time Leon Britton got a call up
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Back
Top