Ayozé Pérez (now playing for Villarreal)

[Lush Vlad]

His work off the ball is good imo (as in when the opps have it). The only time he looks dangerous is when he makes an interception high up the pitch. 

 

Yep.  Which is why I think he remains in the team.  What other options do we realistically have at 10?  Diame?  Shelvey?  Push Merino out of a position he's played so well in?

 

Perez works much harder this season than I ever remember him doing in the past.  Just a shame that the quality and the decision making when in possession seems to be lacking. 

[AyeDubbleYoo]

His work off the ball is good imo (as in when the opps have it). The only time he looks dangerous is when he makes an interception high up the pitch. 

 

That's the main reason he's in the team I guess.

[Karjala]

Frustrating to think Perez is our best (and almost only option) for that number 10 role. Simply not good enough.

[Away Day Gadgie]

I said in the match thread that i'd be happy to perservere with Perez at number 10, mainly because of the fact we don't have a better option.  On the plus side though i feel like he is making some improvements - he seems to be getting smarter at finding pockets of space, his workrate has improved massively, and i've noticed quite a few occasions in the last few weeks where he's shown improved strength and determination.  Unfortunately he hasn't been able to add an end product to these attributes, he either seems to take too long to make a decision or his final pass/shot is crap.

 

Hopefully he'll get a couple of goals in the next few weeks which will boost his confidence and we might have a canny player on our hands.  I know that sounds a bit optimistic but i really don't see Rafa changing much while we have such little options.  The best thing we can do is get behind the lad.

[TaylorJ_01]

His work off the ball is good

 

Would rather he was good on the ball

[themanupstairs]

Wonder what has happened to the Ayoze we first saw burst into the team. Wonder what has happened to the clever flicks and sharp turns. He has improved physically, but seems to have regressed mentally and to some extent, technically.

[Disco]

Don't really think he's changed much, we're just more aware, and less accepting, of his limitations now than we were.

[Zero]

Perez is a very interesting case.  In a way, he disappointed lots of people here as we all believed that he has huge talent and should improve significantly by time, which was not the case on the pitch. That's one of the reason why he has played so many games and still learning his trade - sometimes great, sometimes frustrating, lots of ups and downs.  He is still far from the finished article.

 

However, what people ignored, or only very few mentioned, is the direction he is heading to.  In the past he was extremely weak, great technique and vision and unable to hold up the ball, doesn't have the power to strike the ball, and mainly takes on the defender when he is fully accelerated and use his quick feet to get pass the defender.  He didn't have enough stamina to sustain 90 mins.  He always get muscled out.  He is so weak that he always get into good position but unable to materialise.

 

What he is doing now is completely different.  He is strong enough to hold off lots of the challenges. He has enough stamina to run for 90 mins.  His strike power has improved massively.  And he doesn't seem to get slower too - the turn he did yesterday is pure class, great first touch, quick turn, great acceleration to take on the defender, and poor final execution.  We don't have any player who can do this, not even Merino or Atsu, in the middle of the pitch.  The only draw back I noticed is just his quick feet seems to become slower than before.

 

Yes, ultimately it's the final ball that matters most, and Perez is still very frustrating in this area.  However you shouldn't ignore the improvements he makes on other areas.  Not every player, especially technique based, can changed and developed his body like what Perez did, and this allows Perez to be able to do a lot of stuff that normal players are unable to do even in EPL.  That's what we have invested, and Perez obviously is heading to the right direction.  We just need to, and we have to be patient.  A classy no.10 is coming from our own hands, and we witnessing the process.

[The College Dropout]

His work off the ball is good

 

Would rather he was good on the ball

Yes me too. Next.

 

Wonder what has happened to the Ayoze we first saw burst into the team. Wonder what has happened to the clever flicks and sharp turns. He has improved physically, but seems to have regressed mentally and to some extent, technically.

 

Played further up the pitch. Couple touches then shoot. Now he's deeper, doing a lot more running and donkey work. Further away from goal. It's a long time since all those second tier Spanish goals and his confidence isn't the same in the final third.

[Guest dabe]

Don't really think he's changed much, we're just more aware, and less accepting, of his limitations now than we were.

 

Yup. He's physically developed somewhat over the past couple of years and is better at hold up play but he always has gone for low % technical skill moves, sometimes they work but invariably they'll fail and make him look a bit shit, we used to be impressed when it came off for him. Additionally he's never been and never will be quick/pacy, he makes space with a first step move or some kind of flick, which makes him look one paced and turgid over time when those skills aren't working much.

 

Still, he's proven to be capable of 6-10 goals a season, in either the Premiership or Championship. If he can get that tally this season with 3+ assists; it's not a bad return. In an ideal world, we have a better player, but we don't.

[Zero]

Perez is a very interesting case.  In a way, he disappointed lots of people here as we all believed that he has huge talent and should improve significantly by time, which was not the case on the pitch. That's one of the reason why he has played so many games and still learning his trade - sometimes great, sometimes frustrating, lots of ups and downs.  He is still far from the finished article.

 

However, what people ignored, or only very few mentioned, is the direction he is heading to.  In the past he was extremely weak, great technique and vision and unable to hold up the ball, doesn't have the power to strike the ball, and mainly takes on the defender when he is fully accelerated and use his quick feet to get pass the defender.  He didn't have enough stamina to sustain 90 mins.  He always get muscled out.  He is so weak that he always get into good position but unable to materialise.

 

What he is doing now is completely different.  He is strong enough to hold off lots of the challenges. He has enough stamina to run for 90 mins.  His strike power has improved massively.  And he doesn't seem to get slower too - the turn he did yesterday is pure class, great first touch, quick turn, great acceleration to take on the defender, and poor final execution.  We don't have any player who can do this, not even Merino or Atsu, in the middle of the pitch.  The only draw back I noticed is just his quick feet seems to become slower than before.

 

Yes, ultimately it's the final ball that matters most, and Perez is still very frustrating in this area.  However you shouldn't ignore the improvements he makes on other areas.  Not every player, especially technique based, can changed and developed his body like what Perez did, and this allows Perez to be able to do a lot of stuff that normal players are unable to do even in EPL.  That's what we have invested, and Perez obviously is heading to the right direction.  We just need to, and we have to be patient.  A classy no.10 is coming from our own hands, and we witnessing the process.

 

This is not worth the strength though. He relied on having quick feet to beat people, he looks too heavy and cumbersome now. That is clearly not his natural weight. I don't think a ten needs to be physical, he's heading backwards. He was far better off at his original weight. Managers getting players to "bulk up" is one my pet hates in football

 

I think we have to observe more.  Perez changed a huge lot during 1 year time and there is chance that he didn't lost it but just adapting and trying something else.  A counter argument is that by having such tiny quick feet you are in fact harder to generate power on your foot and that's why Perez always end up weak as piss shot that offers no real threat to opponents.  His change in direction is obviously Rafa idea/order, and this actually explains why Perez was missing a lot last season - he was focusing on increasing his strength and changing his game. Do you trust Rafa then?

 

And re the quick feet - that's also one of the reason why Messi is ridiculous.  No one can generate such power like him despite dribbling like that.

[Zero]

My view is it is easy to do something  you are good at already, and easier to continue improving that department, but your ceiling would be lower and you will become a very limited footballer.  What I see is Perez is trying his f***ing best to develop in his all round game, which is a much harder route but with much higher ceiling.  It's very hard to learn something you ain't good at, and it takes time.  Rashford is similar.  Every Man Utd fans would tell you Rashford was s*** last year and always try something he isn't good at, and some even question Mourinho why persisting to play Rashford.  What we see this season is the answer, isn't it?

 

I am not saying you are wrong, I just think the final answer is yet to be known, and I hope people appreciate Perezs hard work and ambition behind.  It really, really takes a lot to make such a change.

[Darth Crooks]

I find the level of this criticism weird seeing as he was clearly a big part of our last 3 wins. Admittedly, Lascelles was a major factor.

[themanupstairs]

Perez is a very interesting case.  In a way, he disappointed lots of people here as we all believed that he has huge talent and should improve significantly by time, which was not the case on the pitch. That's one of the reason why he has played so many games and still learning his trade - sometimes great, sometimes frustrating, lots of ups and downs.  He is still far from the finished article.

 

However, what people ignored, or only very few mentioned, is the direction he is heading to.  In the past he was extremely weak, great technique and vision and unable to hold up the ball, doesn't have the power to strike the ball, and mainly takes on the defender when he is fully accelerated and use his quick feet to get pass the defender.  He didn't have enough stamina to sustain 90 mins.  He always get muscled out.  He is so weak that he always get into good position but unable to materialise.

 

What he is doing now is completely different.  He is strong enough to hold off lots of the challenges. He has enough stamina to run for 90 mins.  His strike power has improved massively.  And he doesn't seem to get slower too - the turn he did yesterday is pure class, great first touch, quick turn, great acceleration to take on the defender, and poor final execution.  We don't have any player who can do this, not even Merino or Atsu, in the middle of the pitch.  The only draw back I noticed is just his quick feet seems to become slower than before.

 

Yes, ultimately it's the final ball that matters most, and Perez is still very frustrating in this area.  However you shouldn't ignore the improvements he makes on other areas.  Not every player, especially technique based, can changed and developed his body like what Perez did, and this allows Perez to be able to do a lot of stuff that normal players are unable to do even in EPL.  That's what we have invested, and Perez obviously is heading to the right direction.  We just need to, and we have to be patient.  A classy no.10 is coming from our own hands, and we witnessing the process.

 

This is not worth the strength though. He relied on having quick feet to beat people, he looks too heavy and cumbersome now. That is clearly not his natural weight. I don't think a ten needs to be physical, he's heading backwards. He was far better off at his original weight. Managers getting players to "bulk up" is one my pet hates in football

 

I get this feeling as well.

[themanupstairs]

I find the level of this criticism weird seeing as he was clearly a big part of our last 3 wins. Admittedly, Lascelles was a major factor.

 

It's not really criticism. His pressing and tireless running helped massively in the last 3 wins. But on days when those around him aren't on their game, we still need a level of awareness and performance from an attacking player who had previously shown that he is able to deliver.

[jimmymag]

I'd rather see Ritchie in place of Perez and play Murphy out wide.

[tmonkey]

Ayoze struggles to combine controlling a ball + maintaining his balance + being aware of what the defender is doing. It's like every time he gets the ball to feet he's in his own little mini game world where he's trying to get all three aspects going, but at least one of them at any one point is failing. On top of this he's really not skillful or quick enough to play the way/style that he's trying to play - a bit like that kid in your playground football side who believes he's alot better than he is so goes up front and keeps on trying to dribble past players every time he gets the ball (whilst failing).

 

The only positives to his game at the moment are that he's providing decent movement so is popping up in decent attacking positions, and that he's still trying to attack or take his man on no matter how many times he fails (i.e. he's not trying to hide and play it safe like a Colback type would). Everything else in his game is poor though, which renders the positives moot since he's either losing possession easily or shooting meekly.

[xLiaaamx]

He was better on the ball 2 years ago, no doubt. He's gone the way of Gutierrez and Gouffran, starting off decent on the ball but then becoming defensive and cumbersome in possesion.

[Kanj]

I actually still think he's a better striker than he is a #10. But regardless, he's the best we have in that position at the moment.

[Papavasiliou]

He was better on the ball 2 years ago, no doubt. He's gone the way of Gutierrez and Gouffran, starting off decent on the ball but then becoming defensive and cumbersome in possesion.

 

Definitely.

 

I remember him constantly riding challenges with the ball stuck to his feet during that first season.

 

He's gone from being able to keep the ball without knowing what to do with it, to knowing what to do but constantly losing it.

[Doug]

I think this lad is playing well and was particularly good at Brighton. Some of the criticism, not so much on here, is way over the top imo.

[Figures 1-0 Football]

Was genuinely surprised to see that he got 9 goals and 6 assists last year.

 

In comparison, Ritchie got 12 goals and 7 assists - a number (4?) of his would have been penalties and he played a lot more minutes.

 

Not sure what I'm really getting at, maybe Perez goes about his job quietly. His goals/assists are relatively good since he's been with us, but he never really seems to impress over the course or a full game.

[The College Dropout]

Was genuinely surprised to see that he got 9 goals and 6 assists last year.

 

In comparison, Ritchie got 12 goals and 7 assists - a number (4?) of his would have been penalties and he played a lot more minutes.

 

Not sure what I'm really getting at, maybe Perez goes about his job quietly. His goals/assists are relatively good since he's been with us, but he never really seems to impress over the course or a full game.

 

What's he on this season? Assists wise?

[joeyt]

1

[Guest]

Was genuinely surprised to see that he got 9 goals and 6 assists last year.

 

In comparison, Ritchie got 12 goals and 7 assists - a number (4?) of his would have been penalties and he played a lot more minutes.

 

Not sure what I'm really getting at, maybe Perez goes about his job quietly. His goals/assists are relatively good since he's been with us, but he never really seems to impress over the course or a full game.

 

Can't remember if it was in this or the Mitro thread, but using the stats on Whoscored I'm sure over half of his goals/assists came in the 12 or so games that he started behind Mitrovic. I'm sure it was Perez who played the pass through for his goal against West Ham too. Coincidence?