Tripps is never likely adequately replace Walker defensively but give him time and he can deliver bonus dividends going forward. Watching the way Poch is moulding this team my conclusion is he places less importance on the defensive capabilities of his wingbacks, preferring to rely on a powerful back three, DM and CM and intensive high-pressing by his WBs, AMs and striker.
Right, thats one example and a good one, but can you honestly recollect many other times hes been soundly done defensively? My point wasnt to suggest that hes as good as Walker on defensive duties, but that he isnt the significant drop in quality that many suggest....
It's not so much mistakes, though that does come into it, it's things like positioning, speed of recovery, physical attributes, the ability to dominate clever opponents, success in the tackle, ball-retention under pressure etc. It's worth remembering that Walker was once much maligned on here by plenty including myself for his susceptibility to gaffes but over his last couple of seasons with us he made big improvements on that front, same for Davies this year, so given regular playing time no reason why Trippier cannot similar close the gap.
Maybe its better to take Walker out of the equation to get my point across better. For me he is dependable at defending, I havent seen him do much wrong at all defensively. I dont see him being targeted as a weaker full back vs Davies for example, and he is much better attacking.....
Good suggestion, besides for me we've lost a tanner and found a sixpence.
Tripper struggles at times one against one against quick wingers and also when there is quick combinations going on around him. Walker with his pace and physical strength was very difficut to beat one against one and also found it easier to keep up when the ball was passed arund quickly. He could also makes covering runs with his pace, of course.
