A happy No Non Sense new year! - Huddersfield (H) 02/01/16

[BWFC_Insane]

He can hold it up. Just not indefinitely while the bone idle midfield decide to turn up.

He never backs in and keeps the ball. I don't recall him holding the ball back to centre half very much at all. In fact I'd wager he never does. His first touch is so poor that it doesn't help.

But he just seems unwilling to be a target man and always tries poncey fancy flicks that never work.

[Jugs]

Neither are really that type. Pratley at his best is effective making runs from midfield behind the strikers. He works hard but doesn't fill the centre of midfield. I still don't really know what Vela is. Neither great on the ball nor a physical presence. There are large parts of games where you forget he is playing. Which is worrying for a midfield man.

I disagree with that, I think Vela's one of our more astute passers of the ball. Though it'd be interesting if DSB could pull up some stats on this?

EDIT: Though any stats could be skewed by the fact he's played most of his BWFC career at right back so far.

[BWFC_Insane]

Neither are really that type. Pratley at his best is effective making runs from midfield behind the strikers. He works hard but doesn't fill the centre of midfield. I still don't really know what Vela is. Neither great on the ball nor a physical presence. There are large parts of games where you forget he is playing. Which is worrying for a midfield man.

I disagree with that, I think Vela's one of our more astute passers of the ball. Though it'd be interesting if DSB could pull up some stats on this?

He's ok. I'd say Trotter is a better passer. Which puts some perspective there. He's certainly tidy at best. Not a Tony Kelly by any stretch.

[Andy Waller]

He can hold it up. Just not indefinitely while the bone idle midfield decide to turn up.

He never backs in and keeps the ball. I don't recall him holding the ball back to centre half very much at all. In fact I'd wager he never does. His first touch is so poor that it doesn't help.

But he just seems unwilling to be a target man and always tries poncey fancy flicks that never work.

He can't do that when the ball is leathered up at head height though can he?

In most cases, he's trying to hold one centreback and the other just wins the header too.

I agree he's not great, but I don't think he's helped out that much.

[Jugs]

Madine is good with the ball at his chest, but he rarely wins a header.

[Worthy4England]

Neither are really that type. Pratley at his best is effective making runs from midfield behind the strikers. He works hard but doesn't fill the centre of midfield. I still don't really know what Vela is. Neither great on the ball nor a physical presence. There are large parts of games where you forget he is playing. Which is worrying for a midfield man.

I disagree with that, I think Vela's one of our more astute passers of the ball. Though it'd be interesting if DSB could pull up some stats on this?

EDIT: Though any stats could be skewed by the fact he's played most of his BWFC career at right back so far.

78% passing accuracy, 69% in oppos half. Moxey is 68 and 61 for reference (another full back), Holding 66/57.

Mavies is 88 and 85, Danns 86 and 82...

(According to my Opta widget)

[StaffsTrotter]

after a bit of sunlight from the blackburn game and a fantastic opening 20-25 mins when we should have been a couple of goals to the good, the gloom and stench of relegation once again descends. We looked like two different sides. First 25 mins sharp, high energy and pressing, the remainder they retreated into a more passive, hiding approach and in those periods you feel sorry when anyone gets the ball, as all options disappear.

Thought Clough and Pratley were particularly terrible - the former is just too easily outmuscled and unless he scores regularly is a passenger; the latter may be an athlete of sorts but he's not a footballer, and he was one of those who you'd have thought was a banker performer in this league. Wellington probably takes an award for worst 20 min cameo. Clearly brought on to try and create something, he was simply a liability.

The only hope I'm hanging onto is the periods when we do look like a side and if we can score and see out a game. It will definitely be game over if those periods disappear.

[Jugs]

Neither are really that type. Pratley at his best is effective making runs from midfield behind the strikers. He works hard but doesn't fill the centre of midfield. I still don't really know what Vela is. Neither great on the ball nor a physical presence. There are large parts of games where you forget he is playing. Which is worrying for a midfield man.

I disagree with that, I think Vela's one of our more astute passers of the ball. Though it'd be interesting if DSB could pull up some stats on this?

EDIT: Though any stats could be skewed by the fact he's played most of his BWFC career at right back so far.

78% passing accuracy, 69% in oppos half. Moxey is 68 and 61 for reference (another full back), Holding 66/57.

Mavies is 88 and 85, Danns 86 and 82...

(According to my Opta widget)

Cheers man. Danns is surprisingly high.

[Bruce Rioja]

He can hold it up. Just not indefinitely while the bone idle midfield decide to turn up.

Can he? I need to see him with the fecking thing first. Agree with lack of midfield support though. Huddersfield's support yesterday would have been a joy to watch - if they weren't playing us!

[BWFC_Insane]

Neither are really that type. Pratley at his best is effective making runs from midfield behind the strikers. He works hard but doesn't fill the centre of midfield. I still don't really know what Vela is. Neither great on the ball nor a physical presence. There are large parts of games where you forget he is playing. Which is worrying for a midfield man.

I disagree with that, I think Vela's one of our more astute passers of the ball. Though it'd be interesting if DSB could pull up some stats on this?

EDIT: Though any stats could be skewed by the fact he's played most of his BWFC career at right back so far.

78% passing accuracy, 69% in oppos half. Moxey is 68 and 61 for reference (another full back), Holding 66/57.

Mavies is 88 and 85, Danns 86 and 82...

(According to my Opta widget)

Cheers man. Danns is surprisingly high.

Danns is what you would expect for a midfield player I'd wager.

One thing I will say is Freedman is being proven right about Vela. The lad simply isn't good enough. Perhaps as a right back he might be ok at this level. Anything more, he's cover at best in my view.

[Jugs]

I'm gonna keep on disagreeing because I rate Vela and I think it's unfortunate that he's spent most of his time at RB. I think he's a good player who will benefit us in the longer term if we can steady the ship and keep hold of him, especially if we get relegated.

[Bruce Rioja]

One thing I will say is Freedman is being proven right about Vela. The lad simply isn't good enough.

How is he any worse than anyone else? Outspoken and over opinionated gobshittery from you as ever. So glad you're back.

[BWFC_Insane]

One thing I will say is Freedman is being proven right about Vela. The lad simply isn't good enough.

How is he any worse than anyone else? Outspoken and over opinionated gobshittery from you as ever. So glad you're back.

Well for a starter as has been pointed out his passing is statistically far worse than Neil Danns. I could go on, but don't see the point.

He's looked better at right back than in midfield. Perhaps that is his position.

But certainly I don't see him being better than anyone else we've got in midfield which shows that he probably isn't the wunderkind he was being billed as.

[plymouth wanderer]

Neither are really that type. Pratley at his best is effective making runs from midfield behind the strikers. He works hard but doesn't fill the centre of midfield. I still don't really know what Vela is. Neither great on the ball nor a physical presence. There are large parts of games where you forget he is playing. Which is worrying for a midfield man.

I disagree with that, I think Vela's one of our more astute passers of the ball. Though it'd be interesting if DSB could pull up some stats on this?

EDIT: Though any stats could be skewed by the fact he's played most of his BWFC career at right back so far.

78% passing accuracy, 69% in oppos half. Moxey is 68 and 61 for reference (another full back), Holding 66/57.

Mavies is 88 and 85, Danns 86 and 82...

(According to my Opta widget)

What's Cloughs stats Worthy?

[Bruce Rioja]

But certainly I don't see him being better than anyone else we've got in midfield which shows that he probably isn't the wunderkind he was being billed as.

And I don't see him as being any worse than anyone else we've got in midfield, a midfield which includes players costing, or valued at millions. Who's billed him as a wonderkind, by the way?

[Prufrock]

One thing I will say is Freedman is being proven right about Vela. The lad simply isn't good enough.

How is he any worse than anyone else? Outspoken and over opinionated gobshittery from you as ever. So glad you're back.

Well for a starter as has been pointed out his passing is statistically far worse than Neil Danns. I could go on, but don't see the point.

He's looked better at right back than in midfield. Perhaps that is his position.

But certainly I don't see him being better than anyone else we've got in midfield which shows that he probably isn't the wunderkind he was being billed as.

His passing is somewhere between Danns' and Moxey's, which is hardly surprising given he's spent most of his time at full back.

[thebish]

But certainly I don't see him being better than anyone else we've got in midfield which shows that he probably isn't the wunderkind he was being billed as.

And I don't see him as being any worse than anyone else we've got in midfield, a midfield which includes players costing, or valued at millions. Who's billed him as a wonderkind, by the way?

bobo! (or - at least - as close to a wunderkind as we're likely to have grown!)

[StaffsTrotter]

But certainly I don't see him being better than anyone else we've got in midfield which shows that he probably isn't the wunderkind he was being billed as.

And I don't see him as being any worse than anyone else we've got in midfield, a midfield which includes players costing, or valued at millions. Who's billed him as a wonderkind, by the way?

in the right combo I think he'd be alright in a mcateer/ muamba type role. He's got reasonable legs to cover ground, can put his foot in and score the odd goal. Not helped one bit, playing with pratley or being seen as the RB filler

[Peter Thompson]

He's no McAteer or Muamba and IMO will never get to that level, but Vela is certainly no worse than any of the others, IMO he's over rated. He's had enough games now to show what he can do, but for me he is one of those players who just does enough - he never looks interested to me and coasts through games going through the motions, saying that so do most of the other players.

He may possibly have the ability to improve under a different manager but I personally don't see it, he looks like he has an attitude problem to me, and if Cardiff still want to offer us £450k for him I'd snap there hands off.

[Athers]

When I look at Vela and any criticism I wonder perhaps he suffers from not having an obvious attacking strength for a midfielder - he's not likely to magic up a defence splitting pass or score goals from midfield, nor is he a proper 'anchor' player, but he is likely to get about the pitch, put pressure on, keep things moving, sort of the Darren Fletcher type. These guys can have a role in a functioning side, but in a poor side like BWFC are, uphill battle I reckon.

(Mind you Xavi couldn't split a defence if Madine and Heskey were the ones trying to latch on to his passes)