Roberts


2 goals and 1 assist is hardly pulling up trees though is it? Just because Roberts is really struggling for form and set the bar low doesn't mean that Ba is the answer. For a start, I'm not even convinced he's a winger. I would sooner persist with Roberts personally, I think he'll find some form sooner or later.
It's a damn sight more than Roberts unfortunately and in a lot less time on the pitch. How long do we persist with the same thing that isn't working then? Another 15-20 games of no end product? The whole season? Is he guaranteed a first team place indefinitely?
 
It's a damn sight more than Roberts unfortunately and in a lot less time on the pitch. How long do we persist with the same thing that isn't working then? Another 15-20 games of no end product? The whole season? Is he guaranteed a first team place indefinitely?
Well, based on what we know he can do he has a lot of credit in the bank for me. Ba has played 50 times for us now after last night and has 3 goals and 2 assists. I genuinely don't think he's a winger. If we were talking about someone else potentially replacing Roberts and giving him a break I'd be more open to it, but if the answer is Ba then I would rather stick with Roberts.
 
Well, based on what we know he can do he has a lot of credit in the bank for me. Ba has played 50 times for us now after last night and has 3 goals and 2 assists. I genuinely don't think he's a winger. If we were talking about someone else potentially replacing Roberts and giving him a break I'd be more open to it, but if the answer is Ba then I would rather stick with Roberts.
Crazy thinking that imo. Expect more of the same on a matchday then.
 
Alas we are now seeing the true Roberts and why he has had so many clubs. Trust us to give him a 4 year contract. Clever at times but does not know when to release the ball and has no goal threat. His goalscoring record is poor.
 
He has bags of ability without question but take a look at his form this season.

It speaks volumes and that is what the main bulk of discussion has been around.

He has been undeniably shite this season.
Well, ok, let's think about this.

Last year was his best season since his days at Celtic. So I can see why (as I read here) some people think we're now seeing his Middlesbrough and Derby form. I would flip that on its head and ask what was different this year compared to last year for him personally?

The short answer would be, better quality in attack. For a while there he had two good strikers in Stewart and Simms, but he also had Amad Diallo. I know you can't expect to sign a 40m forward every season, but those two were on the same wavelength and there were a few times I remember watching them pop it around teams to each other.
 
Can you please explain why Roberts is in the team. Week in week out he gets the ball and runs, thus ends with him running into a defender, producing a pass that is so late because he realises he is about to run into a player or he just shoots nowhere near the goal. 17 games and he has zero goals, zero assists.
Same as Clarke. Only difference is that Clarke scores goals but his assists numbers are very poor for a winger. I reckon we should try him as striker or false 9 and put Ba on the left wing who I reckon will create more and produce a better final pass
Can you please explain why Roberts is in the team. Week in week out he gets the ball and runs, thus ends with him running into a defender, producing a pass that is so late because he realises he is about to run into a player or he just shoots nowhere near the goal. 17 games and he has zero goals, zero assists.

Pritchard is the closest player we have to Amad in terms of football intelligence and linking up with roberts
 
He's a quality footballer out of form. For me when someone has his level of quality it's worth keeping him in for a bit to play himself back into form.
Not indefinitely though. Time to bring someone else in.
We’ve done this. It hasn’t worked. He’ll get impact minutes, of course. But that was so bad last night, final straw.
Same as Clarke. Only difference is that Clarke scores goals but his assists numbers are very poor for a winger. I reckon we should try him as striker or false 9 and put Ba on the left wing who I reckon will create more and produce a better final pass


Pritchard is the closest player we have to Amad in terms of football intelligence and linking up with roberts
It’s not hard to see why.

Clarke’s crossing is absolutely shite.

His shooting is Premier League quality.

Mowbray seems to have reacted to this by giving up on crossing.

But Cirkin - sorely missed - can cross. And Hume can if he’s allowed to overlap.

I’d be playing Auochiche right wing too. We need to get more balls into box.
 
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Pre-assist man. What a load of shite. A pass to somewho passes to someone then scores. I like Roberts skill but he has been useless this season. I was amazed he got a new contract. Should have been hooked at HT last night.
Amazed one of our best players last year got offered a new contract?
 
If we had someone who would overlap on the right he would be much more effective.
At the moment all the fullback is doing is showing him the outside whilst someone is covering any move to the inside. The same is happening with Clarke, who has a bit more pace and strength than Roberts and can go wide successfully at times.
It was even more obvious than usual last night so why oh why don't they switch wings occasionally and aim to get to the byline and cross the ball?
Thats why Clarke is not as effective, Cirkin did that a lot and made space for Clarke or would end up crossing or scoring himself.
Hume does not do that now in his silly midfield role.
Huggins will so for me we have the players but neither played last night down to injury I presume.
 
He’s going through a very poor spell and couldn’t really argue if he was dropped.

The problem we’ve got is there’s no obvious like for like replacement.

Ba has shown fleeting glimpses of form but hasn’t set the world alight in recent cameos.

If he drops Roberts we’d need a complete change in set up - maybe try 352 but I don’t see him going for that away at Millwall.
 
Can you please explain why Roberts is in the team. Week in week out he gets the ball and runs, thus ends with him running into a defender, producing a pass that is so late because he realises he is about to run into a player or he just shoots nowhere near the goal. 17 games and he has zero goals, zero assists.
Hrs a good player. Have you ever thought that nearly every game he has nothing to aim at in a central striking area and that the right back behind him changes every other game thanks to Mowbray’s constant pissing about with the team? Against Huddersfield the full back behind him was a lanky centre half in Seelt who has still to hold a place down in his specialist position never mind get games as a right back-it’s just absolutely farcical.

He is not helped by the way we set up and the constant changes to the starting eleven and if you’re on about goals we have four strikers who haven’t scored a solitary goal between them and we’re shortly into December-that must be a world wide footballing record!
 
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I reckon we should give Aouchiche a start down the right. I'd even put Ba in atm. He might look a bit clumsy and and isn't as flair orientated as Roberts but he's had more end product this season even with much fewer minutes on the pitch.
 
Ba did even less when he came on, so there goes that argument

How do you expect him to perform when Mowbray hoys four of them on together?

It’s messy, and loses all of our shape.

He’s shown that he can contribute earlier in the season, and Roberts could do with the break imo.
 
How do you expect him to perform when Mowbray hoys four of them on together?

It’s messy, and loses all of our shape.

He’s shown that he can contribute earlier in the season, and Roberts could do with the break imo.
I don’t believe he’s a winger for a kick off mate. I don’t think anyone knows his best position even himself
 
He is a hub. Needs players around him. The Amad link up revitalised him. In this squad he needs an overlapping fullback, a wall of a No10 to be potentially effective.

I think he’s got huge value to the team but he has to have a team around him that understands what he’s about.

He attracts defenders and must open up space but we are struggling to use that at present.

At the minute it seems as it’s give it to Clarke and Roberts and hope.
 

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