Eddy Chibas

I really hope our safety status is secured before we face Remy. This guy is launchng himself into a pole-position slot in the Summer market-window. I've only seen bits & pieces of him - classy looking forward, but it's the workrate i hear about, and his energy level is indicator of a guy really trying to raise interest. He's doing a bloody good job of it. QPR maybe done&dusted in the survival race (Harry got onboard too late) but Remy is an X-factor atm, due to talent & motive combined. And the energy put on show, by a motivated & energetic forward chasing down speculative balls & pressing/harassing defenders, is infectious - the Bellamy Effect for the want of a scattershot phrasing. Politics aside (as a half-a-season-and-done fly-in, qpr=stepping stone) Remy is a noteworthy intangible.

May as well punch Ben Arfa's ticket. Possibly most other prodigious talents too (recruited by Carr - if we strike it lucky again), where an arrogant swagger/ego, a touch of volatity is often baggage which comes with genius. I don't know whether DD handles those sort of individuals well, sort of a one-speed man-manager where the single gear is driven by his ego.

Not saying that anybody (including us) will be playing musical chairs with them on the table, and drop into the shit. As for the hanging of hats on the QPR game, as the popular pick for a survival clincher, or 3-point boost if nearby teams on the table keep scraping-up some points. This i have doubts with, due to reason/s already mentioned. I don't think QPR is the obvious/easy 3 pointer.

I think you might be right iirc, missed some footy when coming through the reserves iirc. If so, due to the type of injury & how he plays (risk factor involved), it has the makings of a rinse & repeat cycle.

Glad to see Rudi Garcia on the list. He's coped well despite have been gutted in the transfer market - lost quite a few key players in the space of two seasons. Rate him as a coach & developer of players with technical excellence.

Very fair point that. Keepers put their bodies on the line - rough & tumble position, falls onto shoulder points etc. Krul's a brave & agile one too, a cracking shot-stopper who throws himself around with abandon. Impacts & collisions, awkward falls etc, are an occupation hazard for somebody like TK. Shoulder injuries (dislocations espec) are reoccurers, as you allude to. Hitting the ground, on a diving save, with an outstretched arm as the point-of-impact with the body's momentum trailing behind the jolting stop- canny way to jar/crunch the shoulder like. Undesirable type of injury this.

That's what you hope for. Remy's the dangerous intangible however. Good player, can worry any defence (with his pace) BUT most importantly he's bidding a pole-position seat in the shop window come Summer. Concerned that he's going to show up and put in a blinder of a shift. QPR would have to start caring before they can stop really. They've been a more resilient outfit thanks to Harry's input (i think he's a decent motivator, promotes positive mindset in his players), and they do the perform the basics much better. Harry's inclusion was too late, heartless 1st half of the season left them with too steep a hill to climb. Remy is an intangible of note. One can question his motivation for joining qpr (ie. half-season-and-done, stepping stone). Those politics aside, the sight of a forward chasing everything (speculative balls, aggressive pressing) is infectious.

That's what everybody hopes for - done&dusted team. Remy's the dangerous intangible however. Good player, can worry any defence (with his pace) BUT most importantly he's bidding for a pole-position seat in the shop window come Summer. Concerned that he's going to show up and put in a blinder of a shift.

Can't be arsed providing an official reference, to a print piece i read ages ago, for a forum. In the case of Ben Arfa, applying logic & context to my argument re:overconditioned footballers. After he was given the green light to hit his rehab full tilt, after getting rid of the cast following the break, there would have been alot of micro tears occuring, from those targeted workouts, when he was basically rebuilding muscle loss (caused by inactivity). The amount of micro-tearing going on, to simply rebuild & get back to former strength level, would have caused muscle instability, cue his hammy issues later on. His hamstrings are probably loaded with scar tissue, on the back of what would have been a gruelling rehab progrsmme. Apply that same ratiional to a footballer, or athlete, living by a high performance, targeted workload on localised muscle groups, to extract another x% of power etc & performance. You've got a comparable amount of localised micro-tearing going on. It's no wonder, imo, today's finely tuned footballers are breaking down so often with soft tissue inj's, of the hamstring etc variety.

First bit your not far off. But the second bit, oh my, what a load of bullshit. you can discuss loss of speed, mobility e.t.c. but saying greater muscle mass = more things that can go wrong you should really read up a bit. Actually i've read dribs&drabs about one interesting study, concerning footballers (particularly yth athletes, whether it be round ball, rugby & aussie rules) who over-do it when adding muscle mass in the upper leg areas, especially through the quads & nearby muscle sets, and how they're prone to experiencing persistent groin & hammy issues. It's more of a problem with youngsters, as their bones are still growing/ligaments are still developing, and rapid rate muscle increase can throw a spanner in the works re-durability( without getting into specifics). The Aussie rules code has experienced something of a mini-plague of gym & protein enhanced youngsters breaking down with oestitis-pubis/chronic groin issues. Several clubs are looking to peel back their scientificapproach slightly, by allowing youngsters to grow into their frame, rather than overly force the issue in a short window of time (re: muscle building). How often do you hear of spectacularly tuned track&fielders pulling-up lame, in training, during the lead-up to an event, or mid-event? Not often are they just right, certainly at a level where their ability to compete with the best isn't compromised. Those physical versions of an F1 peak during the small windows of opportunity they're not crocked, and with those guys (due to the excellence of the field) a slight niggle equates to being crocked, at least worthy of an withdrawal. The Easter Stawell Gift's (famous sprint event featuring amateurs v world class 'finely tuned' goliaths) guest stars , with their abbreviated appearances, reads more like a physio room casualty list ie. Christie, with Asafa Powell the latest. Professional footballers (of today) are not dissimilar, especially the young-uns: impressive to look at, more explosive thanks to modern science/time spent in the gym, when compared with players of yesteryear. Hence the phrasing earlier, they're like track&field beasts disguised in football kits. There's a greater demand placed on athletic physical excellence (cultivated and/or modified) in club football now, almost at a level akin to t&f, and like the finely tuned & muscular Christies/Powells etc, there's a trade-off/downside when gym-fed/conditioned/tuned explosiveness & power meets a lengthy season preparation & match workload.

The shorter, stocky players (and Ben Arfa falls into this category) shouldn't need to hit the weights, to further strenghten their core & upper body strength. The little guys naturally have a compact, lower centre of gravity, hence they're tougher whack off the ball - they often bounce off/ride challenges better than the big physical specimens. Look at Messi & Maradona - ungainly looking, but they could both ride a tackle, especially a bump from the side/when going past a player. They were both quick off-the-mark, but they didn't have the sort of 'deep' speed which the covering defense is incapable of reeling-in, so the low-centre-of-gravity is/was a pivotal attricute to have (when dealing with secondary etc challenges). Ben Arfa is like those two, he doesn't need to bulk-up in the gym imho. On the whole footballers i think have become overconditioned physically, too finely tuned. Too much time spent in the gym. They become labrats with a solid-to-excellent-to-prodigious technical ability. Admittedly some kids, like Pogba, are natural specimens - genetically blessed. Sometimes feel that training programes are geared toward producing track&field-like beasts disguised in football shirts. And high-performance athletes, like track&fielders, are prone to soft tissue niggles & tears (greater muscle mass, with their training & match-related workload = more things can go wrong/break down).

That aside, AC Milan have let some cracking prospects slip through the net, particularly the Frenchies & Africans- despite having them on the books/hanging around theperiphery of the first team, whether it be rotting on the bench/in the b-team or as frequent fliers in the loan market. Viera, a notable other, rescued by Wenger in a French Yth team homecoming of sorts. It's not as if PEA set a trail blazing pace, on the scoring charts, during his loan spells. Probably can't blame Milan's judgement that he wasn't going to make it there, in this instance. More a case of 'late bloomer biting them on the arse', similar to G.Rossi/Manyoo.

Get him through enough games with injections, as a team boost (in attack) to pick-up the points required for survival. I think as soon as we're mathematically safe, they'll put him out to pasture ie. surgery.

Whoever it is should be asking for more than 1 day a week, not that they should have to. Yep, tough ask, even for a top (attacking) coach to leave a significant imprint, under that restrictive allocation of training time. Flawed philosophy right at the very top. Embedding movement & understanding between players (to the point where it's instinctive/2nd nature/telepathic) is an ever evolving process due to positional switch-ups, transfer market incomings & outgoings, and generally maintaining a well oiled/cohesive unit. It shouldn't deserving of that of a one-day afterthought, priority-wise, that is left in the dust behind maintaining defensive team shape ie. organised chasing-of-shadows, generally playing on the backfoot in your own half.

It's no secret they're looking for a new manager. Swansea might be just hit the motherload (of compo pay-outs), if the Arabs are forward thinking enough.

Seemingly converted from a refined/technical, yet still physically imposing, 6ft'plus central midfielder to that of a battering ram (through extreme differences in training philosophies & tactics ie. Technique-based upbringing in France, schooled in pass&move football >>> 'One-day-per-week-designated-to-attacking-phases-etc' Pardew). This transformation brings to light the disconnect between the qualities Carr is looking for in a player (including the academy system a player has come through), and Pardew's limitations.

Fixture mix-up, on my account, in terms of timeline ie. if he had started at Goodison, after said tackle, then Martinez wouldn't be deliberately sheltering him. Anyway what's his return, from his first two starts? A goal, and an assist? Counterproductive to Wigan's survival chances to put a youngster (who has made an immediate impact) like on the backburner. This episode, and the attention given to him/McManaman, should be character/development building, if harnessed the right way. I tend to think he's carrying a slight knock.

No, given they're playing at home this weekend - and he did play at Everton iirc. Afterall he did leave the ground to a warm applause (against us), when Martinez subbed him, so i can't see the home support turning on a youngster. Anyway he's going to be a target for opposition teams from now on, verbally & physically - verbally from the terraces away from home. Re: opposition teams, if he as much as touches anybody, McManaman should be coralled/ganged-up on at every opportunity (in a targeted attempt/s to unsettle the lad). If McManaman doesn't have the mental dexterity to deal with that, Martinez may as well get rid of him, so this 'attention' he will cop could very well be the making of him - as footballer with a newly found level of maturity. I'd say it would be detrimental to his development, to shelter him from the subsequent dog's abuse/extra attention etc. Now is the testing time for him, for Martinez to gauge if he's able to make the transition from a live-wire 'sniper' (dating back to reserves), to that of a even tempered/mature footballer. He'll be fine as long as he keeps his mouth shut and avoids a verbal brain-snap (ie. in that he doesn't delve into 'lets kick racism out of football' territory, or a stream of F-bombs) he'll dodge the wrath of the eagle-eyed & somewhat overly self-righteous lip-readers in their armchairs - because McManaman must be close to the top of many neutrals' most-wanted/hated/love-to-see-fall list atm.

Might be wise for McManaman to wear a muzzle, when he takes to the pitch. He'll be a prime target for arm-chair lip-readers from now on, providing he is also vulnerable to outbursts of naughty words of a particular theme (thanks to his youthful enthusiasm).

I hate multipurpose/or athletics venues, when used for football (like Delle Alpi) - beasts they are (for size), but there's a disconnect. Perfect venue for Fat Sam's anti-football though, at least for his ego, if he's still at the helm. The olympic stadium won't have the intimate feel of a purpose built football ground, particularly when the natives rally against the results & style of football on offer, so the chants of 'we are West Ham, we play football on the deck' will be somewhat lost within the it's spacious interior.

If McManaman gets the leading boot out a little sooner, and hits him on the downward trajectory (and he was like a bull rushing out the gate), where the impact would be sliding down towards his ankle, it's a career killer. McManaman was coming in with more forward momentum & velocity than Taylor, when Eduardo was taken out. Extremely fortunate lad.

On the topic of McManaman's prior form, and whether or not he's a loose cannon (for this sort of s***). The kid he hacked down in the reserves fixture against City. It was reported the foul more or less took place in in the 90th min (after Wigan had fallen behind behind) as the match was winding down. So i'll put this out there if he did in fact take out the youngster in injury time. By the same logic of managers (protecting a lead, trying to control tempo, possession & time on tje clock) introducing a token 90th minute substitution , when chasing a game that late you simply don't go lunging-in & forcing added stoppages. What's the possibility that McManaman (contrary to what you should do in that situation) simply lost his head, and simply thought f***-it i'm take this c*** out. I'm thinking along the line that he's a loose-cannon, with possibly a nasty streak when he does take to the field, and this overrides the ability to demonstrate composure in particular match scenarios, because he certainly didn't show any composure at all, in the most counterproductive way (which should have cost his team a man), on his full debut. I think Martinez has got a live-one, or loose cannon, on his hands.

That's a bit like the citing system in rugby isn't it? I'm not really sure how well it works. I'm not a rugby fan. But it makes more intuitive sense than the current system where it's pretty much three games no matter what the offense and nothing at all if the ref had seen it at the time. Having said that, rugby doesn't exactly seem like the cleanest of sports. There aren't many other sports where you reguarly hear of people being banned for gouging. In rugby league lengthy suspensions are handed out to guys who just keep on accumulating points - careers have been halted too ie. John Hopoate/Stopafarte is one case-in-point, he copped one ban for fingering opponents' arses following a tackle.But usually officials are good differentiating a tackle that as a/started at chest height & then brushed upwards or b/when it's a genuine snipers/high shot. They're also cracking down on the 2nd or 3rd-man-in who takes out a ballcarrier's knees (as they're held-up in the tackle). Accumulating points system (re: the formula for calculating lengthy bans) is certainly forcing a culture change. Career snipers (the designated guy who takes out lads) don't survive now. Clubs are loathe to offer big contracts, and set aside room a potential vacuum in their salary cap, for guys who could potentially spend half a season+ on the sideline, because their list of priors (accumalated points) is too long. A fella whom i used to work with, admitted he was signed up to a professional contract for this very reason (ie. to target/take-out promising youngsters) but would find it tough getting by now (not enough ability to back-up the hardness). 16 games, and then some, are making serial offenders/cunts/loose-cannons obsolete (and i called him a cunt too, played the same code lol).

When calculating suspensions i'd like to see a player's prior form bought into the equation too, dating back to reserves & U19's too. If youngsters are coming through the system either as a/poorly coached in the art of tackling, or b/ progressing through as a loose cannon/a cultivated hit-man, then it needs to be nipped. Lengthy bans (6 - 12 mths, even longer for serial career wreckers) will phase out the established snipers, and herald a warning for young loose cannons (any yth coach who loosely encourages it) as they progress through the ranks.

Ahhh well, at least he hasn't blown-out an ACL again/yet.. touchwood.