• The forum upgrades are now largely complete.
    Please read this thread for more details.
    New user registrations are currently disabled.

O'Nien at CB

He'll be on a two match ban soon enough for reaching 10 yellows. He's a bit thick to be honest and will never learn. Not sure he's even that good at defending in all honesty. Can play a ball though and that's why he's in the team
 

Curry said:
Statistically the 6th best CB in the league. The top 2/3 teams with the better CB stats. Not bad for someone who's shite and not a CB.

We can't score and can't defend set pieces. Those are the biggest problems currently.
Click to expand...
We also switch off and concede soft goals through it, but agreed.
 
I highly doubt Luke will be in defence next season when a new coach is in place.

Likable lad, who'll give his best, but he's not the answer at CB whilst there's two sat on the bench. Again, on Saturday his arms were all over opposition players, trying to over-compensate for his lack of height and strength against bigger opposition. Its always feels like last ditch tackles with Onien.

I don't expect it to change this season seeing as tho Mowbray made him captain. Maybe an unsurprising sending off could see things change for a few games before Tony reverting back.
 
Arfa Sleep said:
Hume being miles out of position didn't help things.
Click to expand...
Agreed. I know we want to attack and entertain, but our back line do get a bit silly sometimes. O'Nien volleyed from a cross in the first 10 mins, wtf is he even doing in the box? Hume sometimes gets confused and thinks he's actually Ronaldo. Huggins thinks he's Welsh Messi. We leave ourselves open for the Plymouths of the world to waltz down the wings.
 
Roker Rick said:
Agreed. I know we want to attack and entertain, but our back line do get a bit silly sometimes. O'Nien volleyed from a cross in the first 10 mins, wtf is he even doing in the box? Hume sometimes gets confused and thinks he's actually Ronaldo. Huggins thinks he's Welsh Messi. We leave ourselves open for the Plymouths of the world to waltz down the wings.
Click to expand...
Good summary like
 
Curry said:
Statistically the 6th best CB in the league. The top 2/3 teams with the better CB stats. Not bad for someone who's shite and not a CB.

We can't score and can't defend set pieces. Those are the biggest problems currently.
Click to expand...

The issue here is that a lot of mistakes he makes aren't "clear and obvious", so don't get picked up on by those statistics.

I have no doubt he'll have excellent numbers for pass completion, progressive passes etc, but when it comes to the intricacies of the position, he falls down massively.

His ability on the ball does benefit us at times, but is a bit overrated and not as much of an advantage that we can afford to keep playing him at CB at the expense of the errors.

It's also worth pointing out that he's putting in these sort of performances whilst playing alongside one of the better CB's in the division in Ballard. I dread to think what sort of mess it would be without him in there alongside O'Nien.

People will ask for examples which is fair enough - off the top of my head (and several more could be added):

- Losing his man for both goals in the 2-1 defeat to WBA at the SOL last season

- Hull's equaliser away from home last season

- Out of position and leaving a massive amount of space on two occasions at Coventry this season. Bailed out by a Simms miss and an excellent save from Patterson

- Kissing an opposition player at Norwich away which is a red card if the player goes down

- Clear red card challenges against Coventry and Sheffield United last season that went unpunished, followed by a very costly red card at home to Swansea

- Poor positioning for Rotherham's goal at the SOL this season

- Done on the set piece for Cardiff's goal at the SOL this season

- Gives away a needless penalty at Swansea this season, again because he can't defend set pieces

- Lets his man run through unopposed for Ipswich's opener at the SOL

Etc etc etc.

I know I'll be accused of having an agenda against him. That really couldn't be further from the truth. I love Luke, he's largely the perfect example of a role-model player and a breath of fresh air given some of the jokers we have had robbing a wage from our club over the years, but we are simply never, ever going to get promoted with him playing at CB.

Every player makes mistakes, I get that. But it's several a game for O'Nien now that could be punished.

It's not even his fault really. He isn't a CB and shouldn't be played there.
 
Last edited:
Another stupid unnecessary booking on Saturday, not the leadership I want to see from the captain of the team, blame the manager for that decision, makes him hard to drop. Fill in player at best handy on the bench to cover a few positions. Nice lad though I’m sure, without Stewart at corners we have been frail defensively and of course his goals at the other end are a big miss. It would be nice to see a Sunderland centre forward score a goal before Christmas, not holding my breath but of course the model is the most important thing. I don’t see any challenge for promotion any time soon but I will still be there and I will stay until the end win lose or draw.
 
Billy Batts said:
And he's been relatively poor this season compared to last but mostly because he's being asked to fill in in midfield in this bullshit hybrid position.
Click to expand...

Now this I just don't understand.

Mowbray has said the main reason for Onien playing at CB is so he can move up and join the midfield, which is fair enough. So why does he also want Hume, who been so effective linking up with Roberts and overlaping to also join midfield?

It's like he's been sat at home watching City or Liverpool and thought, I'll have a bit of that in my team, its absolutely pointless! It slows our build up play down even further, makes Roberts starting position deeper when he gets the ball and leaves Hume in no man's land when we turn the ball over and the opposition counters.

An ill thought out tactic based on watching other clubs top players, instead of playing to his own players best attributes.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top