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You can't separate off aspects of ability and downplay them as though they are not important. All players at this level need to be, at the very least, good at their main function and competant at their peripheral functions, otherwise their weaknesses will always hold them, and the team, back.
Take Mata for example. Technically very good, eye for goal, creative, and in the right team he would be devastating. However he is also slow, weak and can't pressure the possession. That will always hurt us, and is why Lingard, who is technically inferior can be more effective. Valencia also; strong, quick and disciplined, his technical lopsidedness will always hold him back. Players can only ever be as good as their weakest link, unless they are in a team that totally mitigates it. No one needs Smalling to be Glenn Hoddle, but teams play all over the park these days, it's not get it and hoof it anymore. Why do you think everyone rates Stones, is it because of his defending prowess? No it's because they see him developing into a complete footballer who can also defend. Smalling has improved, but align his horrible technique on the ball with his perpensity towards the odd wtf moment, and he falls short of the standard we should be aspiring to. |
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it's a nice way to look at the season to say we would have won the double 3 times in a row and the league 5 times on the trot but for his suspension... doesn't change the fact that we were bang average at times and very erratic in the 1st half of that season, hence why blackburn were ahead of us with 2 games in hand at the end of january and had easily out-scored us. we nearly pulled it back because blackburn's arses went. no doubt that would have happened with eric in the side, but it's also true that with him available we had a good run of 6 league wins in october/november and apart from that only won 2 league games on the trot once. |
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