| Att The Res 16:25 - Sep 20 with 3854 views | STID2017 |
With regards to a comment you made about Mesa saying in your opinion he seemed "hot-headed and confrontational "
Serious question - how did you rate Chico Flores when he played for us ?
If ever a player was hot-headed and confrontational it was him, yet many rated him and continue to rate him, with quite a few wanting him back at the club, in spite the fact he's done the square root of nothing worthwhile since he left.
At least Chico had a good run of games to allow us fans to decide on his ability and attitude.
People writing Mesa off after seeing so little of him is just plain crazy. |  |
| |  |
| Att The Res on 12:38 - Sep 21 with 809 views | 34dfgdf54 |
| Att The Res on 11:03 - Sep 21 by MoscowJack |
I think Mesa was too slow on the ball and needed to get fitter. I don't think he was fit coming here and missed the hard yards in pre-season with us.
If I could see him getting caught too many times on the ball, so could PC. If I could see him a few yards out of position on numerous occasions, because of fitness, effort or discipline, so could PC.
THIS is why I think he's been pushed down the pecking order.
I also understand Res' point about his introduction to the squad. I have no idea whether it's true or not, but we could make a reasonable assumption based on the way he behaved on the pitch. Nobody likes the new boy being the know-it-all, whether that's on a football pitch or in an office. If he had the pedigree of Xavi, it might be different, but he hasn't.
I watched him really closely in pre-season and in games he's been involved in. He's definitely improved, but I still think the biggest difference between him and Leon (apart from Mesa's better range of passing) is that Leon looks for the ball more and creates more triangles. There were too many gaps in front of defence against Reading when we had the ball. For example, Naughton looks considerably better when Leon's around as Leon ALWAYS comes for the short ball. Mesa doesn't always do that as he prefers to take it off the centre halves.
I think Mesa might start this weekend, but can't see Carroll or Clucas being dropped mainly because they seem to be two of PC's favourites. Time will tell, I suppose. |
There it is sports fans, the "he's not Leon" posts I have been waiting so long for. [Post edited 21 Sep 2017 14:55]
|  | | |
| Att The Res on 14:03 - Sep 21 with 748 views | LeonWasGod |
Reading though. If he can replicate in the PL then we're on to something. |  | | |
| Att The Res on 14:22 - Sep 21 with 732 views | icecoldjack |
| Att The Res on 12:38 - Sep 21 by 34dfgdf54 |
There it is sports fans, the "he's not Leon" posts I have been waiting so long for. [Post edited 21 Sep 2017 14:55]
|
The Irony is that it took Leon years before he became the wizard in the middle we all know and love .
If Mesa gets given time to grow and know his team mates then the automatic triangles become easy, just think how settled our line up was up until just a few years ago.
Rangel,Ash,Routs,Dyer,Monk,Tate and Leon with other players easily slotting in through the years, the passing core had remained the same for a long time, even new players like Fedde and Ki have been here about 4/5 yrs .
Give Mesa a chance and he will do well, there was clearly a reason not to play him but the flip side of that is there was clearly a reason not to play lLeon last season too, apparently . Maybe clement has a blind spot for certain types of player ? anyway, it's all good problems to have for the manager . |  | | |
| Att The Res on 16:41 - Sep 21 with 684 views | Brynmill_Jack |
| Att The Res on 14:22 - Sep 21 by icecoldjack |
The Irony is that it took Leon years before he became the wizard in the middle we all know and love .
If Mesa gets given time to grow and know his team mates then the automatic triangles become easy, just think how settled our line up was up until just a few years ago.
Rangel,Ash,Routs,Dyer,Monk,Tate and Leon with other players easily slotting in through the years, the passing core had remained the same for a long time, even new players like Fedde and Ki have been here about 4/5 yrs .
Give Mesa a chance and he will do well, there was clearly a reason not to play him but the flip side of that is there was clearly a reason not to play lLeon last season too, apparently . Maybe clement has a blind spot for certain types of player ? anyway, it's all good problems to have for the manager . |
The point about him not playing Leon for a long time last year is a very pertinent one. Perhaps Clement doesn't want a Xavi type |  |
| Each time I go to Bedd - au........................ |
| |
| Att The Res on 19:17 - Sep 21 with 639 views | MoscowJack |
| Att The Res on 11:36 - Sep 21 by TheResurrection |
What?? No chance. No way..
94 completed passes
95% completion rate.
He was on hand throughout.
I think Leon used to average 60 to 70 in a game in his heyday. |
I'm not saying that he didn't get the ball a lot and he definitely has an impressive pass-completion percentage, but I think he's further forward than Leon and certainly not trying to take the pressure off defenders in the way Leon does.
Maybe that's because Leon knows Fede and Naughton's weaknesses (panic with the ball at their feet at times) so helps them more but I did find myself thinking "where's Mesa?" a few times against Reading. He was either too central to offer a simple pass for the defender or was too far up the pitch and being marked.
By the way, 94 completed passes is superb, but it was against Reading's reserves. In comparison, Mesa has 36 passes (complete and incomplete) in his 70 mins against ManU. The truth lies somewhere in between, probably. I also thought Leon's passing per game average was much higher but you're right....low 60s on average in the Premier League (including home and away). It did go up to 70 for the Europa Cup though.
I do hope Mesa fulfills our hopes for him though. Although someone above mentioned the "well, he's not Leon" quote, it's a version of Leon that we've been searching for years because we've needed it. Whether that's a bigger version, a faster version or a version with a better passing range, I don't know, but the role that Leon's played for us was (and maybe still will be this season) instrumental in keeping us up.
My first instinct when I saw Mesa was "wow". Maybe he'll have to cut out some of the sexy passing that we first saw but he's still got the potential to be the heart of our midfield for years.....or until Everton come for him ;) |  |
| |
| Att The Res on 21:51 - Sep 21 with 589 views | 34dfgdf54 |
| Att The Res on 19:17 - Sep 21 by MoscowJack |
I'm not saying that he didn't get the ball a lot and he definitely has an impressive pass-completion percentage, but I think he's further forward than Leon and certainly not trying to take the pressure off defenders in the way Leon does.
Maybe that's because Leon knows Fede and Naughton's weaknesses (panic with the ball at their feet at times) so helps them more but I did find myself thinking "where's Mesa?" a few times against Reading. He was either too central to offer a simple pass for the defender or was too far up the pitch and being marked.
By the way, 94 completed passes is superb, but it was against Reading's reserves. In comparison, Mesa has 36 passes (complete and incomplete) in his 70 mins against ManU. The truth lies somewhere in between, probably. I also thought Leon's passing per game average was much higher but you're right....low 60s on average in the Premier League (including home and away). It did go up to 70 for the Europa Cup though.
I do hope Mesa fulfills our hopes for him though. Although someone above mentioned the "well, he's not Leon" quote, it's a version of Leon that we've been searching for years because we've needed it. Whether that's a bigger version, a faster version or a version with a better passing range, I don't know, but the role that Leon's played for us was (and maybe still will be this season) instrumental in keeping us up.
My first instinct when I saw Mesa was "wow". Maybe he'll have to cut out some of the sexy passing that we first saw but he's still got the potential to be the heart of our midfield for years.....or until Everton come for him ;) |
Reading were squeezing high up the pitch, sometimes with a flat front three while we were in possession deep in our half. It was a quite obvious game plan by Stam not to allow us the time to play out from the back, this makes his pass percentage and pass numbers all the more impressive imo.
You bring up his numbers against United, against arguably the best midfield in the league in his first competitive game in the Premier League. I think it's a bit harsh to compare, although I suppose you could argue it's over the top praising him up against limited opposition.
I think people need to realise we will not get another Leon Britton, definite once in a generation player for us. Mesa though, compared to the other midfielders is the only one who can even remotely fill that void (assuming Britts doesn't play much). I'm confident Mesa can bring other strengths to the table though. What impressed me about him other than his passing was his ability to snuff out counterattacks, I counted several times where he covered down the channel making important blocks from crosses etc.
I still get the feeling he's not going to get much game time here under PC though, so probably all irrelevant. Hopefully I'll be proved wrong. [Post edited 21 Sep 2017 21:53]
| | | |
| |
By continuing to use the site, you agree to our use of cookies and to abide by our Terms and Conditions.
