Hatem Ben Arfa

[Guest sicko2ndbest]

Hatems our balotelli

[Guest]

[Dr Venkman]

"I think if we gain in confidence, we can go and get the title.

 

"I think the only thing that makes a difference is the confidence. We really have good footballers here. If we carry on like this, then we can do something."

 

You tell em son.

[Guest BlacknWhiteArmy]

It's possible.

[taxfree]

[Lush Vlad]

Ben Arfa assist to BA for the goal.  But they still can't play together.

 

Problem Ronaldo.

 

 

Seriously though, I think they could form a very good partnership, HBA has set him up for two decent chances now, away from home against the two best teams in the league.  Once we start getting more possession, they develop more of an understanding and HBA gets some sharpness back, I reckon they will do well together. 

 

I'm a big fan of Best, but we rely too heavily on punting it up to him.  After this weekend, we should be looking to keep the ball down and get the likes of Cabaye and HBA into the game.

[krybel]

I agree. And putting Tiote behind Cabaye gives Yohan much more freedom to roam forward aswell.

[Ronaldo]

They've started up front together 3 times now and they've haven't shown any signs of developing a good partnership to me, and the lack of goals with them both in those roles speaks volumes. Nowt at Blackburn, nowt at City, and a lucky penalty at OT.

 

If we're going to play Ben Arfa up there we need someone to turn lose balls into possession, and that isn't Ba, never will be. Conversely, you simply can't drop Ba because he's the only natural goalscorer we have, apart from arguably Best. Ba also needs someone to play higher up the park than him to thrive as a goalscorer.

 

Keep perpetuating this 4-4-1-1 nonsense but it'll eventually cost us if we stick with it for too long. Square pegs don't fit in round holes.

[Guest Haris Vuckic]

''nowt at City''

 

Apart from that assist Ba should have finished 9 times out of 10.

[Ronaldo]

But he didn't. With Best in the team he'd probably have been on the end of more than one good chance.

[Christmas Tree]

They've started up front together 3 times now and they've haven't shown any signs of developing a good partnership to me, and the lack of goals with them both in those roles speaks volumes. Nowt at Blackburn, nowt at City, and a lucky penalty at OT.

 

If we're going to play Ben Arfa up there we need someone to turn lose balls into possession, and that isn't Ba, never will be. Conversely, you simply can't drop Ba because he's the only natural goalscorer we have, apart from arguably Best. Ba also needs someone to play higher up the park than him to thrive as a goalscorer.

 

Keep perpetuating this 4-4-1-1 nonsense but it'll eventually cost us if we stick with it for too long. Square pegs don't fit in round holes.

 

Dumbfounds me how people dont understand this, really does. 

[Guest Haris Vuckic]

But he didn't. With Best in the team he'd probably have been on the end of more than one good chance.

 

If someone else played that perfect lay off would Ba have done it any different?

[Ronaldo]

That's irrelevant. We have to create more than one good chance for him in 3 games if we're going to be successful.

[madras]

They've started up front together 3 times now and they've haven't shown any signs of developing a good partnership to me, and the lack of goals with them both in those roles speaks volumes. Nowt at Blackburn, nowt at City, and a lucky penalty at OT.

 

If we're going to play Ben Arfa up there we need someone to turn lose balls into possession, and that isn't Ba, never will be. Conversely, you simply can't drop Ba because he's the only natural goalscorer we have, apart from arguably Best. Ba also needs someone to play higher up the park than him to thrive as a goalscorer.

 

Keep perpetuating this 4-4-1-1 nonsense but it'll eventually cost us if we stick with it for too long. Square pegs don't fit in round holes.

the way go on you'd think best was a workaholic, he's not. he tends to win a lot in the air which leads to us going longer and higher instead of keeping possession. more of an issue is our old problem of a lack of getting forward from the midfield (rob lee style) to support the striker

[Beren]

They've started up front together 3 times now and they've haven't shown any signs of developing a good partnership to me, and the lack of goals with them both in those roles speaks volumes. Nowt at Blackburn, nowt at City, and a lucky penalty at OT.

 

If we're going to play Ben Arfa up there we need someone to turn lose balls into possession, and that isn't Ba, never will be. Conversely, you simply can't drop Ba because he's the only natural goalscorer we have, apart from arguably Best. Ba also needs someone to play higher up the park than him to thrive as a goalscorer.

 

Keep perpetuating this 4-4-1-1 nonsense but it'll eventually cost us if we stick with it for too long. Square pegs don't fit in round holes.

the way go on you'd think best was a workaholic, he's not. he tends to win a lot in the air which leads to us going longer and higher instead of keeping possession. more of an issue is our old problem of a lack of getting forward from the midfield (rob lee style) to support the striker

 

Agree with you partly. Having a forward who is good in the air is a great excuse to pump it long, but I think that's

a) harsh on Best's contribution to the team

b) caused more by full-backs who aren't comfortable on the ball

 

Best is actually pretty vital for holding the ball up when the ball is played to his feet, and he encourages our often deep-lying midfielders forward very well. Ben Arfa has been pretty good at transitioning us from defence to attack too - though obviously using a much different style! Ben Arfa and Ba are improving together, and time may prove me wrong, but so far the best I've seen us play this season is with Best as a key component. He's very difficult to pick up for such a big guy and he pulls/stretches defences forward by dropping deep, and creates space for Ba/midfielders around him.

 

The temptation to knock it long is a problem, but can be addressed by transitioning Santon into the side IMO. Simpson is quite adept at knowing when it's good to knock it long IMO.

[Guest Haris Vuckic]

 

Best needs to throw away his Inzaghi DVD's unless he's trying to break one of his offside records...

[madras]

They've started up front together 3 times now and they've haven't shown any signs of developing a good partnership to me, and the lack of goals with them both in those roles speaks volumes. Nowt at Blackburn, nowt at City, and a lucky penalty at OT.

 

If we're going to play Ben Arfa up there we need someone to turn lose balls into possession, and that isn't Ba, never will be. Conversely, you simply can't drop Ba because he's the only natural goalscorer we have, apart from arguably Best. Ba also needs someone to play higher up the park than him to thrive as a goalscorer.

 

Keep perpetuating this 4-4-1-1 nonsense but it'll eventually cost us if we stick with it for too long. Square pegs don't fit in round holes.

the way go on you'd think best was a workaholic, he's not. he tends to win a lot in the air which leads to us going longer and higher instead of keeping possession. more of an issue is our old problem of a lack of getting forward from the midfield (rob lee style) to support the striker

 

Agree with you partly. Having a forward who is good in the air is a great excuse to pump it long, but I think that's

a) harsh on Best's contribution to the team

b) caused more by full-backs who aren't comfortable on the ball

 

Best is actually pretty vital for holding the ball up when the ball is played to his feet, and he encourages our often deep-lying midfielders forward very well. Ben Arfa has been pretty good at transitioning us from defence to attack too - though obviously using a much different style! Ben Arfa and Ba are improving together, and time may prove me wrong, but so far the best I've seen us play this season is with Best as a key component. He's very difficult to pick up for such a big guy and he pulls/stretches defences forward by dropping deep, and creates space for Ba/midfielders around him.

 

The temptation to knock it long is a problem, but can be addressed by transitioning Santon into the side IMO. Simpson is quite adept at knowing when it's good to knock it long IMO.

you also have to bare in mind the teams that the ben arfa/ba combo has played against.

[Christmas Tree]

If Leon Best is back and with Jonas out, I think we may stumble into our best team and formation.

 

Ben Arfa scaring them down one side, Obertan on the other and a nice little triangle of Cabaye, Ba and Best linking it all up could be extremely tasty and productive.

[Beren]

They've started up front together 3 times now and they've haven't shown any signs of developing a good partnership to me, and the lack of goals with them both in those roles speaks volumes. Nowt at Blackburn, nowt at City, and a lucky penalty at OT.

 

If we're going to play Ben Arfa up there we need someone to turn lose balls into possession, and that isn't Ba, never will be. Conversely, you simply can't drop Ba because he's the only natural goalscorer we have, apart from arguably Best. Ba also needs someone to play higher up the park than him to thrive as a goalscorer.

 

Keep perpetuating this 4-4-1-1 nonsense but it'll eventually cost us if we stick with it for too long. Square pegs don't fit in round holes.

the way go on you'd think best was a workaholic, he's not. he tends to win a lot in the air which leads to us going longer and higher instead of keeping possession. more of an issue is our old problem of a lack of getting forward from the midfield (rob lee style) to support the striker

 

Agree with you partly. Having a forward who is good in the air is a great excuse to pump it long, but I think that's

a) harsh on Best's contribution to the team

b) caused more by full-backs who aren't comfortable on the ball

 

Best is actually pretty vital for holding the ball up when the ball is played to his feet, and he encourages our often deep-lying midfielders forward very well. Ben Arfa has been pretty good at transitioning us from defence to attack too - though obviously using a much different style! Ben Arfa and Ba are improving together, and time may prove me wrong, but so far the best I've seen us play this season is with Best as a key component. He's very difficult to pick up for such a big guy and he pulls/stretches defences forward by dropping deep, and creates space for Ba/midfielders around him.

 

The temptation to knock it long is a problem, but can be addressed by transitioning Santon into the side IMO. Simpson is quite adept at knowing when it's good to knock it long IMO.

you also have to bare in mind the teams that the ben arfa/ba combo has played against.

 

Good point. Interesting to see how they fare against teams which sit deeper against us. Losing possession will be more costly in such circumstances I would imagine. I think the Ben Arfa/Ba partnership is more likely to lose the ball often since it's a little less measured/controlled than our slower, probing style.

[madras]

They've started up front together 3 times now and they've haven't shown any signs of developing a good partnership to me, and the lack of goals with them both in those roles speaks volumes. Nowt at Blackburn, nowt at City, and a lucky penalty at OT.

 

If we're going to play Ben Arfa up there we need someone to turn lose balls into possession, and that isn't Ba, never will be. Conversely, you simply can't drop Ba because he's the only natural goalscorer we have, apart from arguably Best. Ba also needs someone to play higher up the park than him to thrive as a goalscorer.

 

Keep perpetuating this 4-4-1-1 nonsense but it'll eventually cost us if we stick with it for too long. Square pegs don't fit in round holes.

the way go on you'd think best was a workaholic, he's not. he tends to win a lot in the air which leads to us going longer and higher instead of keeping possession. more of an issue is our old problem of a lack of getting forward from the midfield (rob lee style) to support the striker

 

Agree with you partly. Having a forward who is good in the air is a great excuse to pump it long, but I think that's

a) harsh on Best's contribution to the team

b) caused more by full-backs who aren't comfortable on the ball

 

Best is actually pretty vital for holding the ball up when the ball is played to his feet, and he encourages our often deep-lying midfielders forward very well. Ben Arfa has been pretty good at transitioning us from defence to attack too - though obviously using a much different style! Ben Arfa and Ba are improving together, and time may prove me wrong, but so far the best I've seen us play this season is with Best as a key component. He's very difficult to pick up for such a big guy and he pulls/stretches defences forward by dropping deep, and creates space for Ba/midfielders around him.

 

The temptation to knock it long is a problem, but can be addressed by transitioning Santon into the side IMO. Simpson is quite adept at knowing when it's good to knock it long IMO.

you also have to bare in mind the teams that the ben arfa/ba combo has played against.

 

Good point. Interesting to see how they fare against teams which sit deeper against us. Losing possession will be more costly in such circumstances I would imagine. I think the Ben Arfa/Ba partnership is more likely to lose the ball often since it's a little less measured/controlled than our slower, probing style.

will it lose more possession than the longer, in the air style we use with best ?

[AyeDubbleYoo]

It's funny how losing possession by launching the ball forward isn't as bad as losing possession by dribbling the ball at a player. In all levels of British football, if a fullback humps the ball down the line he's playing "percentage football" but if an attacking player dribbles at a defender he's taking unnecessary risks.

[Guest BlacknWhiteArmy]

Ben Arfa/Ba will work and is showing promising signs of working, imo.

[Beren]

They've started up front together 3 times now and they've haven't shown any signs of developing a good partnership to me, and the lack of goals with them both in those roles speaks volumes. Nowt at Blackburn, nowt at City, and a lucky penalty at OT.

 

If we're going to play Ben Arfa up there we need someone to turn lose balls into possession, and that isn't Ba, never will be. Conversely, you simply can't drop Ba because he's the only natural goalscorer we have, apart from arguably Best. Ba also needs someone to play higher up the park than him to thrive as a goalscorer.

 

Keep perpetuating this 4-4-1-1 nonsense but it'll eventually cost us if we stick with it for too long. Square pegs don't fit in round holes.

the way go on you'd think best was a workaholic, he's not. he tends to win a lot in the air which leads to us going longer and higher instead of keeping possession. more of an issue is our old problem of a lack of getting forward from the midfield (rob lee style) to support the striker

 

Agree with you partly. Having a forward who is good in the air is a great excuse to pump it long, but I think that's

a) harsh on Best's contribution to the team

b) caused more by full-backs who aren't comfortable on the ball

 

Best is actually pretty vital for holding the ball up when the ball is played to his feet, and he encourages our often deep-lying midfielders forward very well. Ben Arfa has been pretty good at transitioning us from defence to attack too - though obviously using a much different style! Ben Arfa and Ba are improving together, and time may prove me wrong, but so far the best I've seen us play this season is with Best as a key component. He's very difficult to pick up for such a big guy and he pulls/stretches defences forward by dropping deep, and creates space for Ba/midfielders around him.

 

The temptation to knock it long is a problem, but can be addressed by transitioning Santon into the side IMO. Simpson is quite adept at knowing when it's good to knock it long IMO.

you also have to bare in mind the teams that the ben arfa/ba combo has played against.

 

Good point. Interesting to see how they fare against teams which sit deeper against us. Losing possession will be more costly in such circumstances I would imagine. I think the Ben Arfa/Ba partnership is more likely to lose the ball often since it's a little less measured/controlled than our slower, probing style.

will it lose more possession than the longer, in the air style we use with best ?

 

I don't think we do lump it forward most of the time though. In fact, I would say we only begin to do that when we lose confidence, or when we (are presumably instructed by Pardew to) sit on a lead - which is when many of our problems begin.

[madras]

They've started up front together 3 times now and they've haven't shown any signs of developing a good partnership to me, and the lack of goals with them both in those roles speaks volumes. Nowt at Blackburn, nowt at City, and a lucky penalty at OT.

 

If we're going to play Ben Arfa up there we need someone to turn lose balls into possession, and that isn't Ba, never will be. Conversely, you simply can't drop Ba because he's the only natural goalscorer we have, apart from arguably Best. Ba also needs someone to play higher up the park than him to thrive as a goalscorer.

 

Keep perpetuating this 4-4-1-1 nonsense but it'll eventually cost us if we stick with it for too long. Square pegs don't fit in round holes.

the way go on you'd think best was a workaholic, he's not. he tends to win a lot in the air which leads to us going longer and higher instead of keeping possession. more of an issue is our old problem of a lack of getting forward from the midfield (rob lee style) to support the striker

 

Agree with you partly. Having a forward who is good in the air is a great excuse to pump it long, but I think that's

a) harsh on Best's contribution to the team

b) caused more by full-backs who aren't comfortable on the ball

 

Best is actually pretty vital for holding the ball up when the ball is played to his feet, and he encourages our often deep-lying midfielders forward very well. Ben Arfa has been pretty good at transitioning us from defence to attack too - though obviously using a much different style! Ben Arfa and Ba are improving together, and time may prove me wrong, but so far the best I've seen us play this season is with Best as a key component. He's very difficult to pick up for such a big guy and he pulls/stretches defences forward by dropping deep, and creates space for Ba/midfielders around him.

 

The temptation to knock it long is a problem, but can be addressed by transitioning Santon into the side IMO. Simpson is quite adept at knowing when it's good to knock it long IMO.

you also have to bare in mind the teams that the ben arfa/ba combo has played against.

 

Good point. Interesting to see how they fare against teams which sit deeper against us. Losing possession will be more costly in such circumstances I would imagine. I think the Ben Arfa/Ba partnership is more likely to lose the ball often since it's a little less measured/controlled than our slower, probing style.

will it lose more possession than the longer, in the air style we use with best ?

 

I don't think we do lump it forward most of the time though. In fact, I would say we only begin to do that when we lose confidence, or when we (are presumably instructed by Pardew to) sit on a lead - which is when many of our problems begin.

we don't do it most of the time but we do do it more when best is in the team. it's like saying with ben arfa in the team he dribbles till he loses it.

[Guest ykmkmdd]

more of an issue is our old problem of a lack of getting forward from the midfield (rob lee style) to support the striker

 

Agree with that, and think it's something Cabaye will be doing a lot more once he has the security of Tiote back to cover behind him (and when we're not playing the 2 best teams in the country away from home)