*Official* Bolton v United Match Thread - Teams and Value

a team like united needs a special kind of keeper, though. tim howard is doing great at everton, ben foster looked good at watford and has been playing very well for birmingham as well but neither were what we needed.

we need a keeper who can maintain his concentration through an hour of doing £#%&! all and be ready to react when something finally does come his way. we need a keeper who can play with confidence with both feet and distribute intelligently and accurately. and we need a keeper who is able to deal with the pressure of being under the microscope non-stop, of playing in front of 75,000 people and of playing in european games away from home. and, of course, we need a keeper who will be able to command the respect of a bunch of internationals and tell them when they need to sort themselves out, when they're not doing what they should etc. it's a pretty hard combination to find in a young man tbph.

Originally Posted by borsuk

a team like united needs a special kind of keeper, though. tim howard is doing great at everton, ben foster looked good at watford and has been playing very well for birmingham as well but neither were what we needed.

we need a keeper who can maintain his concentration through an hour of doing £#%&! all and be ready to react when something finally does come his way. we need a keeper who can play with confidence with both feet and distribute intelligently and accurately. and we need a keeper who is able to deal with the pressure of being under the microscope non-stop, of playing in front of 75,000 people and of playing in european games away from home. and, of course, we need a keeper who will be able to command the respect of a bunch of internationals and tell them when they need to sort themselves out, when they're not doing what they should etc. it's a pretty hard combination to find in a young man tbph.

I do agree with all this, but I would also say that clubs like Madrid, Barca and Chelsea all set out the same kind of requirements from their keepers.

And those three clubs probably have the best keepers in Europe playing for them, all of whom started at a young age and will probably play for their respective clubs for well over a decade.

I do think someone like Buffon would be superb for United, but I do think our lack of success with young keepers is more to do with bad luck than anything else.

Tim Howard, for example, would have been just as disappointing at a club like Real Madrid than he was at United, and likewise, if we had Casillas at 19 then he'd still be playing for us now, IMO.

Rooney out of the Valencia game. Is this a titanic?

http://www.utdforum.com/forum/showth...54#post2172354

Originally Posted by Switching Off

Rooney out of the Valencia game. Is this a titanic?

http://www.utdforum.com/forum/showth...54#post2172354

ill let you know once i get rescued off this £#%&!ing lifeboat.

Originally Posted by rogieop

ill let you know once i get rescued off this £#%&!ing lifeboat.

This £#%&!ing water's freezing tbh.

Funnily enough....

Actress Gloria Stuart, who played an elderly shipwreck survivor in the film Titanic, has died at the age of 100.

The blonde actress appeared in several films during the 1930s, before retiring from acting in 1946.

Stuart resumed acting in later years and at 87 became the oldest actor ever to be nominated for an Oscar for her performance as Rose Calvert, a 101-year-old Titanic survivor.

Stuart died in her sleep in her Los Angeles home, her family said.


Titanic became the world's highest-grossing movie of all time in 1997, until the movie Avatar claimed the title in 2009.

Originally Posted by Switching Off

Funnily enough....

false

unlike some of ou i'm not an expert on the GK position

the qualities they need to do well at United are fairly self-evident though


it seems to me though that the main thing required by United is to get VDS' replacement lined up before his imminent departure is announced

the fact they are widely held to have been checking out GK's would seem to point to that announcement being not too far off

on the other hand VDS is looking as good as ever and it's hard to say there's a better keeper around right now, notwithstanding the goals conceded up to now this season

i suppose Ferguson may have been in Valencia simply to get a proper view of their shape and pattern of play the like of which is obviously unnavailable through the television

Originally Posted by Tumescent Throb

i suppose Ferguson may have been in Valencia simply to get a proper view of their shape and pattern of play the like of which is obviously unnavailable through the television

Eric Steele was with him, that's why everyone thinks there was more to it than just watching the opposition.

Originally Posted by Sandman

Eric Steele was with him, that's why everyone thinks there was more to it than just watching the opposition.

TBF, Throb doesn't read the media.

Sensible Throb, then

Originally Posted by Sandman

Eric Steele was with him, that's why everyone thinks there was more to it than just watching the opposition.

maybe they're watching him, but why wouldn't they be

again though, you can't get close to judging a keeper in the round via TV of course, especially his distribution or his organisation

Originally Posted by borsuk

we need a keeper who can maintain his concentration through an hour of doing £#%&! all and be ready to react when something finally does come his way. we need a keeper who can play with confidence with both feet and distribute intelligently and accurately. and we need a keeper who is able to deal with the pressure of being under the microscope non-stop, of playing in front of 75,000 people and of playing in european games away from home. and, of course, we need a keeper who will be able to command the respect of a bunch of internationals and tell them when they need to sort themselves out, when they're not doing what they should etc. it's a pretty hard combination to find in a young man tbph.

True enough - VDS himself didn't even have those qualities when he was young, hence his difficulties at Juventus and even Fulham.

Whoever replaces VDS, there are a couple of things that he simply won't do as well. His handling on low shots around the body won't be as good - VDS is better at swallowing potentially tricky low shots than anybody in the world - and it's pretty unlikely anyone else will be as comfortable and clean a striker of a moving ball with either foot. VDS seems to hold the entire world in mild contempt, too, so I doubt anyone else will be as confident.

On the other hand, there are more explosive/agile goalkeepers out there, which comes in handy too.

I'm not sure how football history will remember VDS, but he's absurdly underrated. Not in the category of Schmeichel/Southall/Yahsin/Banks et al, but definitely in the next tier.

Originally Posted by Grimson

True enough - VDS himself didn't even have those qualities when he was young, hence his difficulties at Juventus and even Fulham.

Whoever replaces VDS, there are a couple of things that he simply won't do as well. His handling on low shots around the body won't be as good - VDS is better at swallowing potentially tricky low shots than anybody in the world - and it's pretty unlikely anyone else will be as comfortable and clean a striker of a moving ball with either foot. VDS seems to hold the entire world in mild contempt, too, so I doubt anyone else will be as confident.

On the other hand, there are more explosive/agile goalkeepers out there, which comes in handy too.

I'm not sure how football history will remember VDS, but he's absurdly underrated. Not in the category of Schmeichel/Southall/Yahsin/Banks et al, but definitely in the next tier.

I too noticed this Grimson when it comes to VDS. Those shots that make you nervy, in the wet especially, he doesnt spill many at all, and even when he does parry them he tends to parry them on purpose to a safe distance he can dive on the grenade comfortably before the nearest onrushing attacker.

Originally Posted by Grimson

True enough - VDS himself didn't even have those qualities when he was young, hence his difficulties at Juventus and even Fulham.

Whoever replaces VDS, there are a couple of things that he simply won't do as well. His handling on low shots around the body won't be as good - VDS is better at swallowing potentially tricky low shots than anybody in the world - and it's pretty unlikely anyone else will be as comfortable and clean a striker of a moving ball with either foot. VDS seems to hold the entire world in mild contempt, too, so I doubt anyone else will be as confident.

On the other hand, there are more explosive/agile goalkeepers out there, which comes in handy too.

I'm not sure how football history will remember VDS, but he's absurdly underrated. Not in the category of Schmeichel/Southall/Yahsin/Banks et al, but definitely in the next tier.

VDS has his flaws too. His positioning for free kicks sometimes is appalling. See the replay of gerrard's free kick for liverpool's second goal.

I don't think VDS is as good as buffon tbh

Originally Posted by rafabio

VDS has his flaws too. His positioning for free kicks sometimes is appalling. See the replay of gerrard's free kick for liverpool's second goal.

You're wrong about that, as you were in the matchday thread. The wall had one post, VDS had the other. That's how every keeper in the world handles free kicks. Fletcher moved out of the way and the ball went through the wall. Where would you expect the keeper to be standing.

Originally Posted by Grimson

You're wrong about that, as you were in the matchday thread. The wall had one post, VDS had the other. That's how every keeper in the world handles free kicks. Fletcher moved out of the way and the ball went through the wall. Where would you expect the keeper to be standing.

add to that how late hed have seen it as hed have been watching the top of the wall. He must have 'ffs'd' at that as he wouldnt have seen it until it bounced more or less.

Originally Posted by Stickman

add to that how late hed have seen it as hed have been watching the top of the wall. He must have 'ffs'd' at that as he wouldnt have seen it until it bounced more or less.

True. He's completely the other side of the goal, as he should have been - otherwise Gerrard has a direct shot at that side, unprotected by the wall.

If the ball goes through the wall the keeper will never see it and have no chance. It's bad enough when the ball goes over the wall - that's why people score from free kicks.

Originally Posted by Grimson

You're wrong about that, as you were in the matchday thread. The wall had the near post, VDS had the other. That's how every keeper in the world handles free kicks. Fletcher moved out of the way and the ball went through the wall. Where would you expect the keeper to be standing.

But he was too far off the centre. He was only a couple of yards off his right hand post. It was as if, he was inviting gerrard to go and try to bend it around the wall which is what he tried. There was no way VDS was saving the free kick as long as it was on target.

In fact if you see the replay again, gerrard could have bent it around the wall.





Neither is it the first time. I always feel he is very poor on his positioning and wall's too for free kicks since he joined united.

Originally Posted by Grimson

True. He's completely the other side of the goal, as he should have been - otherwise Gerrard has a direct shot at that side, unprotected by the wall.

If the ball goes through the wall the keeper will never see it and have no chance. It's bad enough when the ball goes over the wall - that's why people score from free kicks.

unprotected? he was on the side of the goal which was protected by the wall. That's why he was at fault. See the above pics.