Dan Neil

[hank evans]

He may not be up to the PL. The idea he struggled last season is absolutely nonsense.

Struggle on here means not scoring loads and loads of sliding tackles.

I don’t think he’s great, I don’t think he can step up as his style is a bit too slow. He is and would be a very very good championship footballer for about the next 10 years! He will probably play about 600 professional games.
Shit no
Struggled last season. Not really- was poor at Wembley (what people will judge it all on)
Good enough to step up? Not for me.

 

[seahamstar]

I think because we don't see exactly what goes on it leads to people filling the void with their own imagination, whether that's 'player x clearly has an attitude problem' or 'the club have fallen out with player y' and often there is very little/no evidence to support any of it.

As you say, trust the management's judgement.

Good point.
I suppose that's going to be the case in any club.
I know it happens with us (Boro).
And then of course the people that like/rate a particular player see it from a different point of view to those that maybe see his weaknesses (or decide so).

All about opinions I suppose, but ultimately it's just trusting that the management have the clubs interest at heart (and know what they're doing).

 

[Bald King]

I don't think he'd have played much more if he'd signed a contract, but from his point of view it would have looked like he'd been valued and offered one .That may have actually kept his stock up .
As it stands it looks ( to potential suitors ) like he has been an English quota filler kept around to cover the AFCON in case of additional injuries that didn't happen

Good posts

 

[chriswallace85]

Seems like is a good point, no doubt they're at it for months before anything is mentioned.

I think because we don't see exactly what goes on it leads to people filling the void with their own imagination, whether that's 'player x clearly has an attitude problem' or 'the club have fallen out with player y' and often there is very little/no evidence to support any of it.

As you say, trust the management's judgement.

I remember me dad used to joke that Martin Smith musta been shaggin' Reidy's daughter when he couldn't get in the side.


Looking at Smithy's career progression post-Sunderland, the real reason will have been a lot less risqué.

 

[daveyboy123]

Neil and rigg in the centre tomorrow I expect, probably see o nein at DM or centre back as well

If all smb,ers were to predict tomorrows team. I doubt many would be correct.

 

[Boredom]

Neil and rigg in the centre tomorrow I expect, probably see o nein at DM or centre back as well

I think tomorrow needs to be used as a shop window in all honesty for those fringe players who need to go elsewhere to get minutes.

Rigg, Mundle, Hjelde, Neil and 09 I’d expect to all feature.

 

[Perryqhill]

Struggle on here means not scoring loads and loads of sliding tackles.

I don’t think he’s great, I don’t think he can step up as his style is a bit too slow. He is and would be a very very good championship footballer for about the next 10 years! He will probably play about 600 professional games.
Shit no
Struggled last season. Not really- was poor at Wembley (what people will judge it all on)
Good enough to step up? Not for me.

He wasnt even poor at Wembley, tiring 2nd half maybe.

My initial thoughts were all the midfield were poor till we made changes.

Having watched the full 90 back what actually happened is, despite not being able to get Le Fee on the ball first half or Jobe we gradually wore Sheffield United down who physically tried to overpower us in midfield.

Dan Neil went off with cramp having played a large part in that keeping things ticking over in the first half and spreading play around the United midfield much better than anyone has ever acknowledged at a time when Lee Fee and Jobe were having no impact on the ball.

By the time he went off it allowed us to bring Lee Fee and Jobe back and introduce more attacking players as there was now space with United starting to tire - people only remember how it finished though.

I don't think he'll step up to the PL ans he doesn't warrant a starting place here - but he was good last season.

 

[The Cabbage]

I remember me dad used to joke that Martin Smith musta been shaggin' Reidy's daughter when he couldn't get in the side.


Looking at Smithy's career progression post-Sunderland, the real reason will have been a lot less risqué.

Aye. There's still a bit of a wrinkle in the psychological effect of cutting a lad out of their hometown club that may impact their subsequent career. Certainly that's why I don't necessarily hold with the idea that this is the only metric of player ability - particularly when the club loses young players. My general assumption is that all these lads have ability, but often the thing that makes the difference is opportunity. Could someone like Joe Hugill have had a better career if he hadn't been pushed out by The Clowns for instance?

Personally I believe that this is the case with Neil too, even if he may never have the ability to be a nailed on starter in a pl team. When you see some of the players that are currently solid squad members at this level, I don't see Neil as being massively deficient. For whatever reason, the club is not willing to give him opportunity, which means we can only ever infer a lack of ability in my view. We can't truly 'know' it - even if DN goes on to never quite make it at this level. On Smithy, I'll always believe that it was not a question of ability. He was plenty talented enough to contribute to that 105 pt team - and could well have gone on to make some level of impact at the higher level if he'd had a manager who genuinely believed in him. Sometimes that's is the missing ingredient. Subsequent performance isn't quite concrete proof IMO.

 

[Perryqhill]

I remember me dad used to joke that Martin Smith musta been shaggin' Reidy's daughter when he couldn't get in the side.


Looking at Smithy's career progression post-Sunderland, the real reason will have been a lot less risqué.

I'm still never sure on Smith. For a winger his ratio of goals, generally from wide in starts was as good as most here till Phillips and Quinn.

When he left he went to Sheff United he played up front and was top scorer in the championship around the turn of the year. He ended the season with 19 in all competitions.

Having signed a short term deal there he turned down a deal and went to Huddersfield who had been splashing the cash and had Bruce as manager. But Bruce had overspent at Huddersfield and got sacked soon after when they were struggling and Huddersfield had to sell players off. His first season there went ok personally playing wide and getting 8 goals but huddersfield were relegated and he got a serious injury in march during the run in and didn't play for something like 18 months.

he scored 18 goals on his return in what is now L1. The following season he scored 17 in L1 with Huddersfield relegated again

Northampton were spending a few quid for the level under Calderwood and he took a decent contract there - and again scored about 15 at that level in his first season, 10 the next. By now he seemed to be carrying a bit of weight, certainly had his fair share of injuries but was still good at that level eventually moving into midfield.

Maybe it was professionalism or fitness. But he was good enough earlier in his career, but he made some shocking moves.

 

[East Riding Mackem]

I'd like to see how he gets on in a midfield with Xhaka and Sadiki, hopefully this weekend. He was never a 6, he's an 8, he was played as a 6 because at one point in time Evans was crocked and at another point he was a better bet there than Jobe.

 

[Coeus]

Okay, but if you take that attitude, what is the point in critiquing anything? There can always be an unknown reason that means that RLB is correct 100% of the time.

As I said, it's not a massive thing in the context of a successful season. However, Dan Neil being a useful and trusted squad player, even for a season or two, would have been hugely beneficial. There's been opportunities this season to give him a chance where we could properly judge him and they haven't been taken. And that is a shame for us and somewhat self-defeating.

I'm not sure on the assumption that he would have been happy to be a squad player?

I think the shame for us would have been had we not gone up and we believed he still had potential and missed out on a fee.

The club have done a great job and warrant our trust, but absolutely none of them are completely infallible. We've seen errors and missteps along the way - very much including this summer and this season. Most we've got away with, but some have impacted us. We can't directly affect things, but unquestioning, unwavering trust is rarely a good thing for a fanbase to show.

Entirely fair enough, however, to suggest Neil's game time as baffling, is well ott IMO there.

 

[The Cabbage]

Entirely fair enough, however, to suggest Neil's game time as baffling, is well ott IMO there.

I don't think his game time is baffling overall. I think only two minutes before Wednesday is very surprising, though, and reflects the way that Reg uses his squad (for good and ill). Neil not getting onto the pitch away at City WAS baffling though. For us to put 4 wingers on in a haphazard 'formation' down 3-0 against that City team was bizarre - particularly ahead of a period where we knew we would be threadbare in the middle of the pitch. For Reg to refuse an opportunity to learn something that may have proved useful (given he very rarely allows minutes to players in 'real' game states when they have fallen out of his zone of trust) was an odd - and poor - choice in my view.

 

[daveyboy123]

I'd like to see how he gets on in a midfield with Xhaka and Sadiki, hopefully this weekend. He was never a 6, he's an 8, he was played as a 6 because at one point in time Evans was crocked and at another point he was a better bet there than Jobe.

Yes, playing alongside this quality of players would show if he will be good enouh to stay.

 

[Gloucester]

I would be quite surprised if the offer of a contract was still on the table for Dan.

 

[MustardAndOnions]

100% this, DN isn’t worth anything to the club now, if we boost his value now it would only benefit him. This club is run like a business with every decision made having the best financial outcome for the club.

Yeah. Worth noting we wouldn’t have signed like of Xhaka without Dan Neil

Shouldn’t be a bad word said againt him

 

[chriswallace85]

I'd like to see how he gets on in a midfield with Xhaka and Sadiki, hopefully this weekend. He was never a 6, he's an 8, he was played as a 6 because at one point in time Evans was crocked and at another point he was a better bet there than Jobe.

Every time he played as an 8 the past couple of seasons he looked rank.

He's a 6.

 

[Coeus]

I don't think his game time is baffling overall. I think only two minutes before Wednesday is very surprising, though, and reflects the way that Reg uses his squad (for good and ill). Neil not getting onto the pitch away at City WAS baffling though. For us to put 4 wingers on in a haphazard 'formation' down 3-0 against that City team was bizarre - particularly ahead of a period where we knew we would be threadbare in the middle of the pitch. For Reg to refuse an opportunity to learn something that may have proved useful (given he very rarely allows minutes to players in 'real' game states when they have fallen out of his zone of trust) was an odd - and poor - choice in my view.

I think we had 3 on the pitch, right? Considering the formation, I don't think it was a massive thing, not to mention the coach's ability to react to games being beyond my comprehension.

Mundle needs minutes to get fit, and Im thinking Luke has some sort of short-term place here. Im just not entirely sure what bringing him on there would have done. I don't think he was ever getting played in the AFCON stuff without 4 other players getting injured.

I get it though, for those who still believe he can make a prem footballer, maybe he can, it just doesn't look like it'll be with us, so there is little to no upside in him playing. I mean the other night, I guess Geer got a 20-minute rest?

 

[Rocky77]

Every time he played as an 8 the past couple of seasons he looked rank.

He's a 6.

That could be because there isn't a proper 6 behind him, just a thought

 

[Coeus]

Every time he played as an 8 the past couple of seasons he looked rank.

He's a 6.

I think early doors he showed far more promise as a cm than he has as a dm. I don't think we've treated his development that well.

 

[Mackemansj1]

I remember me dad used to joke that Martin Smith musta been shaggin' Reidy's daughter when he couldn't get in the side.


Looking at Smithy's career progression post-Sunderland, the real reason will have been a lot less risqué.

Reidy isn’t a good barometer for thing like this though as he clearly feel out with players all the time and they’d be bombed out