Lone Striker wrote:Whilst Richards is not the best midfielder in the league he is streets ahead of Taundry in footballing terms.
:lol: :lol: So it was Richards and not Taundry who tried to take the game to Peterborough was it? It was Richards who you see having a shot blocked on the line in the highlights was it?
Lone Striker wrote:All of Taundry's football at a younger age was played at full back
So was Richards' - whats your point?
Lone Striker wrote:Richards does have ability and is always trying to be available to receive the ball and pass to a teammate
Thats because he stands still, and because he cant run, opposition teams dont find it hard to close him down. Being "able to pass to a teammate" qualifies a professional footballer as being a good player does it?!?!? Now I really have heard it all. You've been watching Walsall too long. :lol: :lol:
Lone Striker wrote:sometimes this is his downfall as he plays alongside players who do not always give him a simple option
Again, another excuse - "Richards looks crap because of the player playing alongside him" - he's had Mattis, Marshall, Lescott etc play alongside in in midfield, and he's never looked any good. Cue the next excuse.
Lone Striker wrote:Taundry would lump the ball forward this is clearly not something that Richards will do.
Comedy gold! :lol: :lol: You're telling me Richards never just lumps it forwards? Thats all he does most of the time!
Lone Striker wrote:Phil I suggest next time this happens just have a look and see what options are available, you may then start to realise that currently we do not have enough options and movement and this is not the fault of Richards.
Excuse no2!! So it's not Richard fault, it's the whole midfields fault that he's crap! Riiiiight!
I am quite capable of seeing what Richards does thank you very much. On Tuesday night, especially during the 2nd half, he sat further back that Taundry, presumably to allow Richards and his fantastic passing ability to control the game. However, all he did was stay very static in the middle of the park, didnt chase anything down, didnt play one defence splitting pass (AND KC, the pass in the highlights is NOT defence splitting, thats just a pass). There was even a point when Richards got hold of the ball about 25 yards out, passed it to Taundry (Richards momentum at this point took him further forward), Taundry played the ball back to where any decent midfielder would have run (as in a perfect one-two) and what did Richards do? He stopped.
If you’re going to play as a deep lying midfielder in the Carrick, Mikel, Huddlestone, Alonso role – then your role is as the midfield ‘sweeper’ in effect – you need to pick up the lose balls, play quick concise passes. When your team does not have possession you are the last line of defence before the defence, so you need to mark tightly, close down quickly and tackle hard. Richards cannot do any of this.
If you’re going to play as an attacking midfielder in say the Lampard, Gerrard or Scholes role, then you still need to chase and harry (like any midfielder) but you also need to be very mobile, you need to be able to bust a gut to keep up with attacks, you need to get ahead of your strikers when your strikers have come deep or wide to collect the ball, you need to be quite a nippy player, very alert, the kind of player that can get to the ball first. You don’t necessarily have to be the best tackler in the world, but you still need to chase down, mark and harry.
Lone Striker wrote:You are right he is not the quickest player in the world and does not throw himself into last ditch challenges
“Not the quickest in the world” … I’ve seen milk floats move quicker. The reason he never gets a yellow card or “throws himself in to last ditch challenges” is because he’s never, ever, presents a competitive element in a challenge – he’s weak in the challenge and slow.
