Poor midfield recruitment model

[LEGS]

My worry with Keita is can he play 90 minutes at the tempo we need ???

He gets subbed off often and at 26 which is young his engine seems half full to me.

I think we will keep him as he is a good player but I dont think we are getting value out of him.

He seems suited to a slower tempo he'd boss it in Italy/Spain we've seen this with other players before.

[Lee]

My worry with Keita is can he play 90 minutes at the tempo we need ???

He seems suited to a slower tempo he'd boss it in Italy/Spain we've seen this with other players before.

I'm hoping Dortmund will take him as part of a Bellingham deal

[teesred]

I'm hoping Dortmund will take him as part of a Bellingham deal

Decent shout that. Would probably be good for both parties.

[teesred]

I don't foresee Klopp or the analytics department giving up on Keita just yet.

The majority of his contribution, statistically speaking, has been great for the last year - just need to manage the fitness/injury side a bit better if it's possible in any way.

https://fbref.com/en/players/f25c8e3a/Naby-Keita

He's in the higher percentiles in almost all areas. He's a Data Analyst's dream and more of the recruitment/decisions in Football are influenced by that side of things than ever.

Whether or not we sort the fitness issues is the multi-million dollar question.

Great? That's a stretch, massively. It's been just about enough overall.
He hasn't had any games where he's bossed it, he's some games where hes been good, chipped in with valuable goals but "great" is not how I'd describe it personally.

[Insidious]

Great? That's a stretch, massively. It's been just about enough overall.
He hasn't had any games where he's bossed it, he's some games where hes been good, chipped in with valuable goals but "great" is not how I'd describe it personally.

It isn't. As I said -

The majority of his contribution, statistically speaking, has been great for the last year

He's in the 90th percentile (or higher) for many of the attributes that we'd want from a player in his role. He doesn't need to meet intangibles like "taking a game by the scruff of the neck" for example, provided he's consistently doing his job to a high percentage more often than not - which he is.

Think we may have to agree to disagree on this one. I'll certainly concede that we could always have more and that his injury record needs to improve.

[CCTV]

It isn't. As I said -



He's in the 90th percentile (or higher) for many of the attributes that we'd want from a player in his role. He doesn't need to meet intangibles like "taking a game by the scruff of the neck" for example, provided he's consistently doing his job to a high percentage more often than not - which he is.

Think we may have to agree to disagree on this one. I'll certainly concede that we could always have more and that his injury record needs to improve.

Intangibles ?
You could point to man of the match statistics and whilst some stats are not readily available to the public we can make claims that are examinable by simple memory.

I hope it works out for Naby but I think its fair to say he's a fair weather player.

When the team plays well he can play well.

When the team has struggled he's less of an influence and often a player culpable significantly in that struggle.

He's been subbed at halftime on occasions which is very rare for a senior player.

He rarely makes a big impact tackle in the way Milner does often, or settles the side down by taking possession and forcing others into the game. Jones did this v arsenal in the second leg taking the sting out of them.

[jozza800]

We're never going to see what he really can do if he can't string a proper run of games together.

[vin]

It isn't. As I said -



He's in the 90th percentile (or higher) for many of the attributes that we'd want from a player in his role. He doesn't need to meet intangibles like "taking a game by the scruff of the neck" for example, provided he's consistently doing his job to a high percentage more often than not - which he is.

Think we may have to agree to disagree on this one. I'll certainly concede that we could always have more and that his injury record needs to improve.

The tangible is that he is injury-prone. It's affected him since he joined (so much for the loan back where he got injury)

We really can't carry passengers given how structured we are with the wages etc

[miller0863]

Midfield in the first half was utterly awful again. We’ve recruited brilliantly at either end of the pitch, if we can now do the same in the middle of the park, we will start really hoovering up some trophies.
Bellingham first up, please and maybe Bissouma.

Out go Milner, Keita and either Jones (on loan) or Thiago (paying £200k a week for such a low return needs to stop).
Henderson has one more season at best as a starter, that also needs addressing.

[dicko1969]

As I understand it, we employ some sort of model and simulation in our recruitment process for all positions together with key skills the players need to have, well, whoever has devised the midfield model wants the sack

Midfielders being able to play No6 and No8 and offer/lend themselves to a fluid 3 should be a pre requisite

Midfielders having the type of passing ability necessary to release our forwards and full backs or find them in isolation should be a pre requisite - This has to include centre to forward left or right up and down passing and centre or advanced forward left or right up and down passing and right to forward left and advanced forward left passing and left to forward right and advanced forward right passing

All of that being the most effective passing to release our forwards and full backs or find them in isolation and to create opportunities to create chances through switching the play from a compressed area of play to a player on the opposite side in lots of space

The tactic of picking up all our players ahead of the ball and letting our No6 have it when our No6 hasn't got this type of passing or any notable ability with the ball to release players and hurt sides, making us go sideways or backwards or play easy balls barely going forwards to the full backs, all of it on the deck in front of the defending side really needs to be addressed and considered, too many sides have employed it too effectively too many times now, a fair few of those games we've won, but only just for this reason and it isn't coincidence, it's one of the best tactics to employ when sides know we'll have most of the ball and our No6 won't hurt them with it, force us to have to keep going back to him

Hendo and Milner (except for Millies age and frailty now) are our 2 best midfielders at playing Jurgens system, they we here before he arrived, the only midfielder we've brought in since Jurgen arrived who has been successful, although whos passing also fell a long way short of the required type and quality was Gini

ONE, one successful midfield signing in 6 years simply doesn't cut it, Fabinho has been a relatively successful signing, but he isn't as suited or complimentary to Jurgen's system of play as Hendo, Milner or Gini and his passing is even less suited to our other players abilities and limited than Gini's was and we do have issues with teams setting up to play off him or teams letting him have the ball, he's a good player for certain games, not for the system for me

Something is badly wrong with our midfield recruitment, it hasn't been nearly successful enough at all for a very long time, despite all the accolades our recruitment department has received

Edit: WITH the other obvious pre requisites, athleticism, strength, power, ability to control and keep the ball and be composed in tight areas with it, obviously ability to read the game and to play and understand how to play the pressing and counter pressing game

Have Barcelona replaced Messi with Messi ?