Jack Colback (now a free agent)

[Guest neesy111]

I'll be more convinced on him when we need to play a team to break down and see how effective he is in that situation.

[Cronky]

I thought Colback-Anita-Sissoko looked a good combo which we should persist with.

 

I've never been a fan of Anita, but I thought he seemed to have found his role on Sunday. I've never felt that he and Tiote looked right together.

[Mole_Toonfan]

Well of course they don't, they are both DMs.

 

For me it should be Anita-Sissoko-De Jong MF with Cabella Riviere and someone else on the left.

 

It won't be though, it will be same as last season but Riviere for Remy, Colback for Anita, De Jong for Cabaye and Cabella for Gouffran if we are lucky.

 

So much  :anguish:

[Cronky]

Well of course they don't, they are both DMs.

 

For me it should be Anita-Sissoko-De Jong MF with Cabella Riviere and someone else on the left.

 

It won't be though, it will be same as last season but Riviere for Remy, Colback for Anita, De Jong for Cabaye and Cabella for Gouffran if we are lucky.

 

So much  :anguish:

 

Not yet a believer in our Jack, then.

 

I'll be interested to see how Pardew fits De Jong into the side. Assuming he keeps the same shape, he could make it a straight swap with Gouffy, or put him in midfield and push Sissoko further forward.

 

I haven't seen that much of De Jong, but I imagine he's better played centrally than out wide. In which case, he may be better off in midfield, assuming he can still get forward into shooting positions.

 

Putting it another way, if he's played in an attacking role, he'd be better as a second striker in a 4-4-2, rather than a wide attacker in a 4-3-3.

[Hanshithispantz]

Regardless of what combination of Sissoko/Anita/Tiote/Colback we play in central midfield, we're going to be lacking on creativity. So it's really an entirely pointless debate.

And this is exactly my point, and why the "he's better than that shit ex-Everton lad who never played anyway" has made no sense at all. We don't need Colback, we never have and we never will. Him being in the squad isn't a hindrance by any means other than the fact that by buying him meant we weren't signing anyone else, which free or not is a massive problem.

[Ryan_Taylor]

 

Well of course they don't, they are both DMs.

 

For me it should be Anita-Sissoko-De Jong MF with Cabella Riviere and someone else on the left.

 

It won't be though, it will be same as last season but Riviere for Remy, Colback for Anita, De Jong for Cabaye and Cabella for Gouffran if we are lucky.

 

So much  :anguish:

 

Not yet a believer in our Jack, then.

 

I'll be interested to see how Pardew fits De Jong into the side. Assuming he keeps the same shape, he could make it a straight swap with Gouffy, or put him in midfield and push Sissoko further forward.

 

I haven't seen that much of De Jong, but I imagine he's better played centrally than out wide. In which case, he may be better off in midfield, assuming he can still get forward into shooting positions.

 

Putting it another way, if he's played in an attacking role, he'd be better as a second striker in a 4-4-2, rather than a wide attacker in a 4-3-3.

 

Sissoko will go wide right (because he's a winger and stuff apparently...) and De Jong will play no 10

[Mole_Toonfan]

Well of course they don't, they are both DMs.

 

For me it should be Anita-Sissoko-De Jong MF with Cabella Riviere and someone else on the left.

 

It won't be though, it will be same as last season but Riviere for Remy, Colback for Anita, De Jong for Cabaye and Cabella for Gouffran if we are lucky.

 

So much  :anguish:

 

Not yet a believer in our Jack, then.

 

Nope. But more than anything else it's because I believe in each 3 positions we have better players IMO.

 

Anita and Tiote are better deep, Sissoko is a better B2B midfielder and De Jong is better as an advanced midfielder.

 

My opinion of course though.

 

[Zero]

Regardless of what combination of Sissoko/Anita/Tiote/Colback we play in central midfield, we're going to be lacking on creativity. So it's really an entirely pointless debate.

And this is exactly my point, and why the "he's better than that s*** ex-Everton lad who never played anyway" has made no sense at all. We don't need Colback, we never have and we never will. Him being in the squad isn't a hindrance by any means other than the fact that by buying him meant we weren't signing anyone else, which free or not is a massive problem.

 

Too early to tell. If he is really better than Tiote, we need him then.

[Guest]

Compare him with Cabaye, see how that works out

 

You'll be eating your words and having to add a new number 14 to your sig this season mark my words.

[Zero]

I can't get why compare Jack to Yohan. It should be Siems role isnt it? Colback seems  more like a replacement for Tiote and/or Anita to me.

[r0cafella]

I can't get why compare Jack to Yohan. It should be Siems role isnt it? Colback seems  more like a replacement for Tiote and/or Anita to me.

No cabaye played way more games at CM for us than he did AM

[ponsaelius]

Jack

 

First name basis already

[Cronky]

Jack

 

First name basis already

 

It'll be Wor Jack soon. Be prepared. 

[STM]

Its rare that any team has a fully fit squad anyway, so having competition in midfield for places is great. We have 4 good centre midfielders IMO, however none of them have what Cabaye had for us. Hopefully De Jong will add some guile to our team, to replace the goals and assists.

 

On Colback, he had an excellent game on Sunday, keep it up.

[Foluwashola]

I can't get why compare Jack to Yohan. It should be Siems role isnt it? Colback seems  more like a replacement for Tiote and/or Anita to me.

 

Colback is there to fulfil a completely different role. As you say, the creativity should come from elsewhere, i.e Cabella & De Jong.

[Theregulars]

I don't he is totally inept creatively. He made some useful runs and a few incisive passes, as well as whipping in some good free kicks and corners.

 

I think taking the blinkers off from the spacky behaviour in the derby, on the evidence of one game it's a good acquisition on a free.

[Guest firetotheworks]

I can't get why compare Jack to Yohan. It should be Siems role isnt it? Colback seems  more like a replacement for Tiote and/or Anita to me.

 

Colback is there to fulfil a completely different role. As you say, the creativity should come from elsewhere, i.e Cabella & De Jong.

 

Time will tell. My money is on him being Cabaye's replacement in Pardew's mind.

[Ryan_Taylor]

Takes a decent corner like. Can't remember the last player we had that could manage that. Nobby maybe? Clearly hasn't been versed it the way of the long willy yet.

[KaKa]

Really quite a relief that his set pieces are looking good for sure. If he's going to be a fixture then he needs to provide something for the team consistently.

[Guest neesy111]

Takes a decent corner like. Can't remember the last player we had that could manage that. Nobby maybe? Clearly hasn't been versed it the way of the long willy yet.

 

Barton?

[ponsaelius]

Barton's weren't even very good, just Carroll used to make something from them.

[LRD]

Barton's weren't even very good, just Carroll used to make something from them.

 

This. His floaters were made to look decent only by Carroll. Without him, they come at the most unimaginable slow pace ever.

[The College Dropout]

I don't know why he's been compared to Tiote anyway.

 

It was clear that Colback's best role was as a box to box. He was a lot worse deeper when Anita went off and he had to do that job.

 

Even if Colback proves himself to be as good as his defenders say it will be in the box to box role.

 

I wouldn't trust him over Tiote or Anita as the deepest midfielder.

Box to box player with no creativity or goal scoring threat.

 

I see his as an Anita alternative due to his lack of threat in the final third.

Agreed.

[Hughesy]

I don't necessarily have a problem with signing Colback on a free - he looked decent on Sunday and was better than I had expected.  However, my issue is that buying him has effectively stopped us actually fixing the problems we have in central midfield i.e. creativity and he is no better than Tiote, Anita or Sissoko in their preferred positions.

[AyeDubbleYoo]

I don't necessarily have a problem with signing Colback on a free - he looked decent on Sunday and was better than I had expected.  However, my issue is that buying him has effectively stopped us actually fixing the problems we have in central midfield i.e. creativity and he is no better than Tiote, Anita or Sissoko in their preferred positions.

 

We did get Cabella and De Jong TBF, you could argue we'll end up with more attacking threat than when we had Cabaye. Especially if Sissoko is allowed to play centrally.