Damien Duff

[junkhead]

Who is this "Duff" you speak of?

the only winger in european top divisions who couldn't beat a fullback last season

[Dave]

how is viduka fat?

 

Too many pie, crisps, that sort of thing.

[Guest DazzaNufc1892]

jesus boys, give duff a break. He was injured and had to play. He played alongside utter shite, with no tactics and no hope going forward, at least now we have a direction. If you take duff, and give him direction, a clear job, and tell him his only thought is to get the ball, run at the defender and make things happen, things will. Mourinho didnt want to keep the guy just for fun! dont write the boy off, if you do, he will only feel pressure and crack

[tmonkey]

jesus boys, give duff a break. He was injured and had to play. He played alongside utter s****, with no tactics and no hope going forward, at least now we have a direction. If you take duff, and give him direction, a clear job, and tell him his only thought is to get the ball, run at the defender and make things happen, things will. Mourinho didnt want to keep the guy just for fun! dont write the boy off, if you do, he will only feel pressure and crack

 

Why was he exactly the same then for Chelsea for a season and a half before they sold him? He wasnt surrounded by shiite, playing in a team with no tactics or hope - he was playing for the champions, but was just as poor as he was for us last season.

 

From £17m to £5m at a peak age - bit of a hint surely. Mourinho is smart enough not to tell the press a player is shiite or not wanted when he might think it in private, which is why he said similar things of Babayaro when he was likewise flogged at a "bargain" basement price. Add Parker to the "I dont want him to go, hes good, but my hands are tied" list too.

[sicsfingeredmong]

A multi-paced dribbling winger who can his man guessing when cutting-in or when beating his man on the outside, but more importantly he's two footed and has a tendancy to cut-in on a dime and shoot ie. a right-sided version of Robert, and Robert could shoot with his right as a last resort although the "The Robert is s****" pack will steadfastly disagree with this.

 

I'll be happy if Duff walks into starting line-up, on the right side that is. He's a better option on the right than Milner.... who lacks Duff's pace off the mark, lacks Solano's guile and decision making on-the-ball, and ultimately is still hit & miss with his delivery from out wide.

 

Duff, with his aforementioned strengths and pattern of play, will still inflict more damage on the opposition than the naturally right-sided Milner imo.

 

 

[Northern Monkey]

jesus boys, give duff a break. He was injured and had to play. He played alongside utter shite, with no tactics and no hope going forward, at least now we have a direction. If you take duff, and give him direction, a clear job, and tell him his only thought is to get the ball, run at the defender and make things happen, things will. Mourinho didnt want to keep the guy just for fun! dont write the boy off, if you do, he will only feel pressure and crack

 

Mourinho wanted to keep him so much that he left to join an average-sized club. Or, more realistically, Mourinho didn't want him and he left.

 

He has never played well for us consistently, even before he got crocked. The Zog is a far better bet at left wing in the long run, so expect the team selection genius of Allardyce to continue to make the same mistakes, and we'll have anyone but the Zog on the left.

[Northern Monkey]

A multi-paced dribbling winger who can his man guessing when cutting-in or when beating his man on the outside, but more importantly he's two footed and has a tendancy to cut-in on a dime and shoot ie. a right-sided version of Robert, and Robert could shoot with his right as a last resort although the "The Robert is s****" pack will steadfastly disagree with this.

 

I'll be happy if Duff walks into starting line-up, on the right side that is. He's a better option on the right than Milner.... who lacks Duff's pace off the mark, lacks Solano's guile and decision making on-the-ball, and ultimately is still hit & miss with his delivery from out wide.

 

Duff, with his aforementioned strengths and pattern of play, will still inflict more damage on the opposition than the naturally right-sided Milner imo.

 

 

 

lmfao. Have you seen Duff play on the right? He was shit.

[Guest RodrigoPalacio]

how is viduka fat?

 

Too many pie, crisps, that sort of thing.

 

He's not fat, just big boned.  Howay man, give the bloke a break, he's mint.

[steve_69]

The reason Duff wanted to leave Chelsea was because he wanted regular first team football. He loves the game, is still passionate about it, and wants to play as much as he can - so much so that he left the best team in the land (at the time) to get it.

 

For that reason alone he is exactly the kind of player I want at Newcastle United. The fact that on his day he is one of the best in the world at what he does. Granted we haven't seen the best of him yet but we will.

 

I also think he'll fit perfectly into a 4-3-3, will create plenty of goals and will probably score a few as well.

 

..................Given

 

Beye.....Faye....Roz.....Enrique

 

 

......Barton..Butt...Emre

 

 

......Martins..Viduka..Duff

 

 

[Northern Monkey]

The reason Duff wanted to leave Chelsea was because he wanted regular first team football. He loves the game, is still passionate about it, and wants to play as much as he can - so much so that he left the best team in the land (at the time) to get it.

 

For that reason alone he is exactly the kind of player I want at Newcastle United. The fact that on his day he is one of the best in the world at what he does. Granted we haven't seen the best of him yet but we will.

 

I also think he'll fit perfectly into a 4-3-3, will create plenty of goals and will probably score a few as well.

 

..................Given

 

Beye.....Faye....Roz.....Enrique

 

 

......Barton..Butt...Emre

 

 

......Martins..Viduka..Duff

 

 

 

Couple of things -

 

The "loves the game" thing is in direct contrast to the inferences of former NUFC players who are still associated with the club, regarding his not being arsed, and picking/choosing when to play. Still, i'm sure you know better than them about the motives and feelings of a man you don't know and have not met.

 

Also, the "one of the best in the world" tag - how does that square with his pre-injury shiteness, and the fact that Chelsea let him go so easy?

 

Oh, and that midfield would be a fucking nightmare. You've dropped our best wingers, and selected a 433 solely to accomodate a few players, haven't you.

[tmonkey]

The reason Duff wanted to leave Chelsea was because he wanted regular first team football. He loves the game, is still passionate about it, and wants to play as much as he can - so much so that he left the best team in the land (at the time) to get it.

 

For that reason alone he is exactly the kind of player I want at Newcastle United. The fact that on his day he is one of the best in the world at what he does. Granted we haven't seen the best of him yet but we will.

 

Talk about living in the past. Duff hasnt even looked as good as NZogbia, let alone "one of the best in the world". Duff today is an average Premiership winger who works hard up and down, has decent technique, doesnt lose the ball easily, but doesnt do much with it either.

 

A more accurate fact would be to state that our key players on paper are "gifted" players who hit their peak 3-5 years ago. Owen (European player of the year), Emre (looked like hed turn into a top draw international and Serie A deep lying midfield playmaker), Duff (top class winger) are all shiite now compared to what they were when a few years younger, and shouldnt be judged on the level they were at a few years ago as opposed to the level that they are at right now. I think thats down to constantly being injured over several years, and the permanent loss of form as a result, and although these players have still retained some of their abilities, enough to show glimpses of shadows of their form selves occassionally, ultimately theyre not what they used to be and are pretty much average Premiership players now.

 

I wouldnt complain if we cashed in on all 3, in fact im hoping for it, hoping that we'll replace them with better players, since that hope is more realistic than living in the hope of them turning back the clock and performing consistently for us. To top it all off, theyre crocks too.

[Dave]

how is viduka fat?

 

Too many pies, crisps, that sort of thing.

 

He's not fat, just big boned.  Howay man, give the bloke a break, he's mint.

 

Just a joke woman man.

[James]

The reason Duff wanted to leave Chelsea was because he wanted regular first team football. He loves the game, is still passionate about it, and wants to play as much as he can - so much so that he left the best team in the land (at the time) to get it.

 

For that reason alone he is exactly the kind of player I want at Newcastle United. The fact that on his day he is one of the best in the world at what he does. Granted we haven't seen the best of him yet but we will.

 

Talk about living in the past. Duff hasnt even looked as good as NZogbia, let alone "one of the best in the world". Duff today is an average Premiership winger who works hard up and down, has decent technique, doesnt lose the ball easily, but doesnt do much with it either.

 

A more accurate fact would be to state that our key players on paper are "gifted" players who hit their peak 3-5 years ago. Owen (European player of the year), Emre (looked like hed turn into a top draw international and Serie A deep lying midfield playmaker), Duff (top class winger) are all shiite now compared to what they were when a few years younger, and shouldnt be judged on the level they were at a few years ago as opposed to the level that they are at right now. I think thats down to constantly being injured over several years, and the permanent loss of form as a result, and although these players have still retained some of their abilities, enough to show glimpses of shadows of their form selves occassionally, ultimately theyre not what they used to be and are pretty much average Premiership players now.

 

I wouldnt complain if we cashed in on all 3, in fact im hoping for it, hoping that we'll replace them with better players, since that hope is more realistic than living in the hope of them turning back the clock and performing consistently for us. To top it all off, theyre crocks too.

 

I think it is unfair to say that Duff doesn't do very much with the ball, when last season we had no strikers who would attack the six yard line, and that pretty much made all our wingers useless, except Milner as he was pretty good cutting inside.

[steve_69]

So, on that basis anyone who is over 27 is shite and past it. Nice One!

 

Owen is still as good as he was at Real Madrid and Duff is still as good as he was at Chelsea.

In order to recreate the form they showed they need to be FULLY FIT and be utilised and managed properly.

 

FFS, anyone plays a few bad games for us (despite how fit they are) and they're labelled as shite.

 

And which expert on the subject was it that told you Mourinho let Duff go easily? I suppose Alan Shearer is you next door neighnour is he?

Why the fuck else would he leave the League Champions? It's not like he was earning a pittance there.

[Dave]

So, on that basis anyone who is over 27 is shite and past it. Nice One!

 

Owen is still as good as he was at Real Madrid and Duff is still as good as he was at Chelsea.

In order to recreate the form they showed they need to be FULLY FIT and be utilised and managed properly.

 

FFS, anyone plays a few bad games for us (despite how fit they are) and they're labelled as shite.

 

And which expert on the subject was it that told you Mourinho let Duff go easily? I suppose Alan Shearer is you next door neighnour is he?

Why the fuck else would he leave the League Champions? It's not like he was earning a pittance there.

 

Try Cacapa.

[Northern Monkey]

So, on that basis anyone who is over 27 is shite and past it. Nice One!

 

Owen is still as good as he was at Real Madrid and Duff is still as good as he was at Chelsea.

In order to recreate the form they showed they need to be FULLY FIT and be utilised and managed properly.

 

FFS, anyone plays a few bad games for us (despite how fit they are) and they're labelled as shite.

 

And which expert on the subject was it that told you Mourinho let Duff go easily? I suppose Alan Shearer is you next door neighnour is he?

Why the fuck else would he leave the League Champions? It's not like he was earning a pittance there.

 

I suspect we're paying him more than they did. And who told you Mourinho wanted to keep him? No-one, like i thought.

[Syrette]

Who told you he didn't?

[Northern Monkey]

Who told you he didn't?

 

No-one. I was, if you have a look, responding to a point someone else originally made STATING that Mourinho wanted to keep him.

[Mowen]

I'm looking forward to Duff coming back to full fitness. He may be shite, but he's more likely to give us the pace and dynamism that can stretch a game than Milner ever is.

[Syrette]

Who told you he didn't?

 

No-one. I was, if you have a look, responding to a point someone else originally made STATING that Mourinho wanted to keep him.

 

I'm pretty sure I recall Mourinho stating he wanted to keep him too though. For a couple of weeks before he went there were constant rumours about him going to Spurs or us and in that time I distinctly recall Mourinho saying he wanted to keep him but understood why Duff wanted to leave (1st team opportunities).

[Northern Monkey]

I'm looking forward to Duff coming back to full fitness. He may be shite, but he's more likely to give us the pace and dynamism that can stretch a game than Milner ever is.

 

Shame he plays on the other wing, and is not as good as our best player in his actual position.

[Northern Monkey]

Who told you he didn't?

 

No-one. I was, if you have a look, responding to a point someone else originally made STATING that Mourinho wanted to keep him.

 

I'm pretty sure I recall Mourinho stating he wanted to keep him too though. For a couple of weeks before he went there were constant rumours about him going to Spurs or us and in that time I distinctly recall Mourinho saying he wanted to keep him but understood why Duff wanted to leave (1st team opportunities).

 

Lets not pretrend that a soundbite given to the Sun is an actual real opinion of a manager. No-one on here has a fucking clue what Mourinho thought.

[steve_69]

I didn't STATE that Mourinho wanted to keep Duff. I just disputed the guess that Mourinho let him go easily.

 

The fact is that despite your poo pooing of my comments, you haven't got any more idea about what happened than i have.

[Mowen]

I'm looking forward to Duff coming back to full fitness. He may be shite, but he's more likely to give us the pace and dynamism that can stretch a game than Milner ever is.

 

Shame he plays on the other wing, and is not as good as our best player in his actual position.

 

I still reckon what I said would hold if he was playing on the right. He'll also give us more options when Zog is playing crap, which he still does from time to time.

[ohmelads]

I think it might be better to play Duff on the right wing, both for his own good and for the sake of keeping N'Zogbia in the side. Besides, Milner is struggling on that side and doesn't look his sharpest (he played through the summer for the U-21s on the back of a long season).

 

Duff's always been a bit one-footed IMO but it was never a problem when he could run rings round defenders. He looks painfully one-footed now he's lost his pace which means he struggles to beat his man. In the days when he could skin the full back he could put in crosses all day on his left foot but now he has to cut inside onto that right foot where he's a lot less confident. This usually results in him deciding to play it safe and pass it sideways/backwards, stalling our attacks. Not really what you want in your winger. I know he's been pretty crap when he's played on the right for us, but he's hardly played any games there to be fair. He's going to cut inside more as he loses his pace, at least on the right wing you'll see him cutting onto his left foot. His control on his right foot is actually good but you'll rarely see him trying anything on that foot.

 

It's impossible to say how Duff will be when he returns, but he's never had a chance to find form here due to injury (a familiar story with Owen, Emre, and many of our signings in recent years). We can only hope he stays injury free, because I think given a run of 20 games he could find form and be a decent player for us. It's a big IF though, I wouldn't put my money on him staying injury free for that long.