Hatem Ben Arfa

[Dave]

Nolan has been dreadful in all three games, especially yesterday. If it is true that Hughton has told Ben Arfa he can have the free role as the playmaker, Nolan would have to be the one sacrificed and he could have no complaints on current form.

 

Current form that sees him having two goals from three games? I'm definitely of the opinion that he's not really good enough but you can't argue with his record so far considering he's basically playing as a forward.

 

I didn't see the game yesterday but it sounds like he could have had at least two goals. If he wasn't getting into the positions to miss I'd be far more critical.

[Guest Rey Mysterio]

Nolan has been dreadful in all three games, especially yesterday. If it is true that Hughton has told Ben Arfa he can have the free role as the playmaker, Nolan would have to be the one sacrificed and he could have no complaints on current form.

 

Current form that sees him having two goals from three games? I'm definitely of the opinion that he's not really good enough but you can't argue with his record so far considering he's basically playing as a forward.

 

He fucked up the first goal and was lucky to get a second chance. The second fell to him stood still 6 yards out.  If there was a half decent striker up there with Carroll yesterday we should have really had 3 or 4.

[Dave]

The goals weren't good enough. Righto.

[TRon]

I'm surprised about the amount of stick Nolan gets tbh.

 

Try imagining him in a top team and see how it would work. Imagine Arsenal or Man U for example with Nolan instead of Fabregas or Rooney.

 

We're not Manchester United or Arsenal.

 

But in terms of football it's where we want to go isn't it? How would you get there with a player like Nolan in your first 11? Fast passing football needs players who can move from point A to B...err...fast.

[Mick]

 

He f***ed up the first goal and was lucky to get a second chance. The second fell to him stood still 6 yards out.  If there was a half decent striker up there with Carroll yesterday we should have really had 3 or 4.

 

I had an excellent view of him in the first half against Villa and the number of through balls he failed to reach was unbelievable.

[Doug]

Nolan has been dreadful in all three games, especially yesterday. If it is true that Hughton has told Ben Arfa he can have the free role as the playmaker, Nolan would have to be the one sacrificed and he could have no complaints on current form.

It has to be done. Do this and also replace Smith with the other new signing and we may be able to put out a team that takes the game to the opposition and dominates possesion for the first time in years.

[madras]

I'm surprised about the amount of stick Nolan gets tbh.

 

Try imagining him in a top team and see how it would work. Imagine Arsenal or Man U for example with Nolan instead of Fabregas or Rooney.

 

We're not Manchester United or Arsenal.

 

But in terms of football it's where we want to go isn't it? How would you get there with a player like Nolan in your first 11? Fast passing football needs players who can move from point A to B...err...fast.

and perch,colo,williamson,smith,barton,routledge,jonas,harper...none of them really up to man utd/arsenal standard.

[Memphis]

We have to crawl before we walk.  Whether you like the guy or not, he's scored goals and been in goalscoring positions.  On that form, it's hard to drop him.  We can't just sign one highly-touted creative player and go from Smith/Barton/Nolan to Xavi/Iniesta/Messi - there's got to be a middle ground. 

 

The style will adapt and Nolan will probably slide out of the starting XI.  But he's also key to team unity/spirit, etc. Dropping him is a delicate situation potentially, especially if you're replacing him with a moody Frenchman.

[madras]

 

He f***ed up the first goal and was lucky to get a second chance. The second fell to him stood still 6 yards out.  If there was a half decent striker up there with Carroll yesterday we should have really had 3 or 4.

 

I had an excellent view of him in the first half against Villa and the number of through balls he failed to reach was unbelievable.

i had this debate in the pub after and after watching again it just looks that way with bellamy like speed needed to get some of them. he's not the answer, he certainly needs replaced but the stick he gets from many is pathetic and largely built on myth.

[Guest Rey Mysterio]

The goals weren't good enough. Righto.

 

Rooney scores a penalty yesterday, does that make him in good form?

 

If a player has a shot and it goes in off another players arse, does that make him in good form because he's scored a goal off his arse?

[TRon]

I'm surprised about the amount of stick Nolan gets tbh.

 

Try imagining him in a top team and see how it would work. Imagine Arsenal or Man U for example with Nolan instead of Fabregas or Rooney.

 

We're not Manchester United or Arsenal.

 

But in terms of football it's where we want to go isn't it? How would you get there with a player like Nolan in your first 11? Fast passing football needs players who can move from point A to B...err...fast.

and perch,colo,williamson,smith,barton,routledge,jonas,harper...none of them really up to man utd/arsenal standard.

 

No they aren't and to improve we'll have to upgrade on them as well if we want to progress. But IMO with all of those you CAN play fast pass and move football but with players like Nolan it becomes a lot harder. That's the reason I personally don't like him in the team, obviously a lot of other people feel differently.

[madras]

We have to crawl before we walk.  Whether you like the guy or not, he's scored goals and been in goalscoring positions.  On that form, it's hard to drop him.  We can't just sign one highly-touted creative player and go from Smith/Barton/Nolan to Xavi/Iniesta/Messi - there's got to be a middle ground. 

 

The style will adapt and Nolan will probably slide out of the starting XI.  But he's also key to team unity/spirit, etc. Dropping him is a delicate situation potentially, especially if you're replacing him with a moody Frenchman.

its easy to drop him if you believe you have a better option. what hughtons choice is, is to make a change or two for what should be one of the easier games ? will the changes make a win more or less likely, yes the personnel will be stronger but will they gel straight away ?

[Lenny]

The goals weren't good enough. Righto.

 

Rooney scores a penalty yesterday, does that make him in good form?

 

If a player has a shot and it goes in off another players arse, does that make him in good form because he's scored a goal off his arse?

 

But Nolan scored 2 goals, in open play, and has been getting into good positions on other occasions. I actually think he's probably the best finisher at the club. He's also been contributing to our play up top as well, he put a chance on a plate for Carroll yesterday.

 

Whether you like the guy or not, he's in good form in front of goal, and he will score a few goals which could be vital in this league.

 

No one is saying he's the answer long term, but you can surely see why Hughton would be reluctant to drop him.

[Mick]

i had this debate in the pub after and after watching again it just looks that way with bellamy like speed needed to get some of them. he's not the answer, he certainly needs replaced but the stick he gets from many is pathetic and largely built on myth.

 

What do you think is a myth?  It can't be his lack of pace because it's true, he's very slow. The only thing he's not slow at is when it comes to giving up a chase.  Don't get me wrong, he has a lot of good points, I just think we need somebody who gives the team more over 90 minutes.  I don't think we'll play many teams who defend as badly as Villa did against us so I can't see him having too many games like that where he grabs a couple of goals.  He got into some good positions yesterday and didn't score because the opposition weren't as weak as Villa were when they played us.

[Lenny]

i had this debate in the pub after and after watching again it just looks that way with bellamy like speed needed to get some of them. he's not the answer, he certainly needs replaced but the stick he gets from many is pathetic and largely built on myth.

 

What do you think is a myth?  It can't be his lack of pace because it's true, he's very slow. The only thing he's not slow at is when it comes to giving up a chase.  Don't get me wrong, he has a lot of good points, I just think we need somebody who gives the team more over 90 minutes.  I don't think we'll play many teams who defend as badly as Villa did against us so I can't see him having too many games like that where he grabs a couple of goals.  He got into some good positions yesterday and didn't score because the opposition weren't as weak as Villa were when they played us.

 

What has the opposition not being weak got to do with Nolan not scoring yesterday, there was no one around him for 2 of his chances and he nearly capitalized on errors for the others. Both volleys, one over and the other at the goal keeper were examples of him being better than the opposition at the time.

[Guest BooBoo]

Don't consider Nolan as a midfielder, he's a forward these days and in terms of getting goals for us, over the last 12 months he's been very, very effective.

 

Time to cut the bloke some slack, some folk just aren't happy without a pet scapegoat.

[madras]

i had this debate in the pub after and after watching again it just looks that way with bellamy like speed needed to get some of them. he's not the answer, he certainly needs replaced but the stick he gets from many is pathetic and largely built on myth.

 

What do you think is a myth?  It can't be his lack of pace because it's true, he's very slow. The only thing he's not slow at is when it comes to giving up a chase.  Don't get me wrong, he has a lot of good points, I just think we need somebody who gives the team more over 90 minutes.  I don't think we'll play many teams who defend as badly as Villa did against us so I can't see him having too many games like that where he grabs a couple of goals.  He got into some good positions yesterday and didn't score because the opposition weren't as weak as Villa were when they played us.

i dont think he's very slow, average paced i'd say and i've already said he needs replaced but to hear many on here he cant run, is 20stone and only scores when the ball bounces off his frame and offers nothing to the team in any way.

[Lenny]

Yep, he's definitely a striker these days.

[Cajun]

Nolan does fuck all but score but if he keeps scoring I really couldn't give a shit about the rest.

[Memphis]

We have to crawl before we walk.  Whether you like the guy or not, he's scored goals and been in goalscoring positions.  On that form, it's hard to drop him.  We can't just sign one highly-touted creative player and go from Smith/Barton/Nolan to Xavi/Iniesta/Messi - there's got to be a middle ground. 

 

The style will adapt and Nolan will probably slide out of the starting XI.  But he's also key to team unity/spirit, etc. Dropping him is a delicate situation potentially, especially if you're replacing him with a moody Frenchman.

its easy to drop him if you believe you have a better option. what hughtons choice is, is to make a change or two for what should be one of the easier games ? will the changes make a win more or less likely, yes the personnel will be stronger but will they gel straight away ?

 

Sure, Hughton will have to pick the right spot and the right method to integrate HBA into the squad.  But I hardly think that he's going to slot him in straight away in place of the team captain and a very vocal leader on and off the pitch, especially after we've made such a decent start to the season.  If anything, I can see him dropping Jonas and/or Routledge more so than Nolan.  Less of a risk, particularly with Routledge, of damaging morale and balance.

[Guest BooBoo]

Nolan does fuck all but score but if he keeps scoring I really couldn't give a shit about the rest.

 

Exactly the same as Oba who had his arse licked by many on here.

[TRon]

i had this debate in the pub after and after watching again it just looks that way with bellamy like speed needed to get some of them. he's not the answer, he certainly needs replaced but the stick he gets from many is pathetic and largely built on myth.

 

What do you think is a myth?  It can't be his lack of pace because it's true, he's very slow. The only thing he's not slow at is when it comes to giving up a chase.  Don't get me wrong, he has a lot of good points, I just think we need somebody who gives the team more over 90 minutes.  I don't think we'll play many teams who defend as badly as Villa did against us so I can't see him having too many games like that where he grabs a couple of goals.  He got into some good positions yesterday and didn't score because the opposition weren't as weak as Villa were when they played us.

i dont think he's very slow, average paced i'd say and i've already said he needs replaced but to hear many on here he cant run, is 20stone and only scores when the ball bounces off his frame and offers nothing to the team in any way.

 

Nolan is very slow. I will agree that he's got plenty of other qualities but he's far slower than average.

[madras]

what could be interesting could be if/when smith/nolan arent in the team as the folklore goes it was these two who,after the orient game wee the main instigators in dragging the team round. will the team spirit still be there.

 

i'd love to know what actually went on and what the team spirit amongst them is actually like.

[Mick]

 

What has the opposition not being weak got to do with Nolan not scoring yesterday, there was no one around him for 2 of his chances and he nearly capitalized on errors for the others. Both volleys, one over and the other at the goal keeper were examples of him being better than the opposition at the time.

 

The opposition being weak has a lot to do with his first goal against Villa, it was because the keeper put the ball straight back onto his head, the second was at the other end of the ground but he did well to get it.  I'm not saying that he's useless but for a lot of the game he isn't involved and we give up posession because good balls are played in for him and he can't reach them. 

[Guest malandro]

i had this debate in the pub after and after watching again it just looks that way with bellamy like speed needed to get some of them. he's not the answer, he certainly needs replaced but the stick he gets from many is pathetic and largely built on myth.

 

What do you think is a myth?  It can't be his lack of pace because it's true, he's very slow. The only thing he's not slow at is when it comes to giving up a chase.  Don't get me wrong, he has a lot of good points, I just think we need somebody who gives the team more over 90 minutes.  I don't think we'll play many teams who defend as badly as Villa did against us so I can't see him having too many games like that where he grabs a couple of goals.  He got into some good positions yesterday and didn't score because the opposition weren't as weak as Villa were when they played us.

i dont think he's very slow, average paced i'd say and i've already said he needs replaced but to hear many on here he cant run, is 20stone and only scores when the ball bounces off his frame and offers nothing to the team in any way.

 

Nolan is very slow. I will agree that he's got plenty of other qualities but he's far slower than average.

He reads the game well though - who was it that said the first yard is in the head?

 

If Arfa’s arrival sees Nolan drop deeper his lack of pace becomes a real issue. He’ll be too far behind play to be the goal threat he is now, and without the goals his contribution to the team isn’t very impressive. It’s a real test of Hughton’s judgement and authority.