SHA Small Heath Alliance

Really don't want to start a pile on, were playing well we need the whole squad, maybe not match fit but does something look really off with him? After the Ipswich game i thought we'd signed the best full back in the league, he looked strong quick, offered a threat going forwards and looked strong against a top team. Last few times he has played looked unfit, struggling to run, lacking any defensive awareness, do we think he is struggling with the system or lack of game time?

Like someone else pointed out on another thread, could be he's still in the injury-recovery-injury cycle. I thought he was excellent last night, but tired visibly after about 50 mins. He'll get there.

Up to around 60 ish minutes I thought he was good last night. Played that Iwata role very well and ran his socks off.

He was absolutely bollocksed from that point though, said last night but shows just how fit Iwata is.

Thought he looked alright last night trying to replicate the Iwata style RB which isnt easy

doesn't look fit tho and that seems to have been the case since he arrived.

We ask a lot of our full backs in this system as well so it’s natural they will tire after an hour so.

You dont want to start a pile on, but use phrases like 'no defensive awareness at all' and 'Struggling to run'. Did you miss the part in the first half when he easily won a foot race over 80 yards to stop the guy going clean through?

That RB role is where we take the most risk and BOS was asked to play the same role Iwata has been playing, which means the right hand side is always susceptible to the counter attack. Just like Iwata v WBA, we gave up a few chances down that side.

I think a combination of fitness and then newness to the role didn't help him but I think he done fine.

Can only think of one time he got caught out last night but I think it was more due to the nature of the role he's being asked to do rather than anything he done specifically. Made some great tackles in the second half as well.

He did look uncomfortable at times and wasn't quite where he should be when we had the ball but he's still learning that role. Once he's back up to fitness and played there more often then I think he'll be good there although it's Iwata's role now

Am I in a minority of thinking he played well last night?

Nikola Zigic

Am I in a minority of thinking he played well last night?

Don't think so - just about everyone on here has said he was excellent or at least fine.

crikey, very touchy, too many beers last night?

MidlandsNumberOne

crikey, very touchy, too many beers last night?

FWIW, I thought your post was a perfectly sensible observation to make.

Am I in a minority of thinking he played well last night?

No you’re not

i thought he struggled tbf, got away with one with beadle making a great save and got caught ball watching for the goal, really want it to work from him because like i said he looked very good start of the season and has attributes to be a top full back lets hope he can find that form again

I thought he played alright but made a couple of errors in ball watching rather than marking the winger but I'd give him a solid 7 out of 10

He did well.

He's not played for weeks & then come in & run his balls out for an hour.

Of course he will tire.

The plan all season was to rotate him & Laird through the games doing 60 minute stints with hard-running & then rotate between them to manage load & keep intensity up.