Correct me if i am wrong but it was his quick pass from defense that released Lamela who squared to Chadli to set up Kane for the goal against Leicester?
He does like to release the ball forward quickly and precisely from defense. Obviously this is a risky game but fits with the fast transitions that Poch wants, catching the opposition out of position and creating better chances.
Like many others I do think he has grown into the team and looked good with Jan back there..at least we're now getting a consistent center half pairing. I do still worry about out defence though, for me watching us we are so square as a back four! The amount of times strikers get in between the two in the middle and we don't have the full back tucked round. Still a hell of a lot of work to be done defensively
I do not rate him at the moment and Verts is not exactly been the best defender in the world either. I think if it wasn't for Lloris we would have the worst GD in the league.
I'm not saying he will not come good but at the moment i just see too many mistakes. He is making mistakes Kaboul was getting slaughtered for.
I was listening to the latest edition of TheGame podcast from The Times this week.
The French football journalist Julien Laurens was very scathing of Fazio's performance vs Man utd and made a few other observations.
Listen here (I think from around 30 mins, near the start of the 'Quick Hits' section): http://feeds.soundcloud.com/stream/183601977-the-game-podcast-everton-overpaid-for-romelu-lukaku.mp3
I'd be interested to hear what those who went to the game/watched it live think about his comments.
I was listening to the latest edition of TheGame podcast from The Times this week.
The French football journalist Julien Laurens was very scathing of Fazio's performance vs Man utd and made a few other observations.
Listen here (I think from around 30 mins, near the start of the 'Quick Hits' section): http://feeds.soundcloud.com/stream/183601977-the-game-podcast-everton-overpaid-for-romelu-lukaku.mp3
I'd be interested to hear what those who went to the game/watched it live think about his comments.
Correct link: https://soundcloud.com/the-game-podcast/everton-overpaid-for-romelu-lukaku
So Julien Laurens thought he was a liability, another of the participants thought he did well. No real details about what he thought Fazio did wrong, just that he was a liability and that Vertonghen and Pochettino apparently looked like they didn't understand what was going on and that it was Fazio's fault. A mention that we played a high line, which puzzled me.
No real analysis in those comments. I really don't understand what they thought made Fazio a liability in that game. Absolutely no comments about positioning or the players around him.
No idea who Julien Laurens is, is he at all rated for his tactical insight?
Totally at fault for their second goal yesterday no denying that but other than that didn't think he put a foot wrong.
dont mind him being at fault at all to be honest...even though its a team game the fact remains that he was looking to play in a certain type of philosophy
i would rather he did that then destabilize our team development by constantly hoofing the ball when under any level of pressure
Spot on affy! Couldn't agree more.
Yes it's an error, but not one he's making frequently and not one he's alone in making.
We played through their pressure quite frequently accepting some risk every time we did so. We looked very good doing so and hopefully we'll continue to improve in that aspect as we go forward. Against United we struggled a lot more with that.
TBF he is making one or two bad errors in every game and the fact is that most haven't been punished. He needs to cut them out.
He was good against United but RVP had chance after chance as he peeled off him or Verts, so to say he was up there with Lloris is incorrect. There are too many errors that he is making right now, BUT unlike Kaboul he doesn't come across as shaky and weak to boot so he should be starting every single match if possible. He is improving but he needs to work on not allowing strikers (RVP, Bony, Ulloa etc) to lose him as easily as they can.
The losing the ball in bad areas is an issue but one that hopefully will be addressed a lot easier. He has been solid lately and it's nice to have some reliability and consistency at the back. Can't wait to see the back of Kaboul.
Also Vertonghen has been excellent lately and is so far ahead of Fazio in terms of ability and performance.
He's so crucial to us defensively. Wins EVERYTHING in the air. The amount of times Chel53a, even Utd tried to play the ball over our defenders and Fazio was there to win everything. Imagine if we still had Kaboul at the back. Fazio ****es all over him in the air and on the ball. One thing I liked was when Ramires was through, he decided to force him wide and just knock him off balance instead of sliding in and potentially conceding a corner. He done it at Swansea too, he knew he wouldnt beat Bony for pace so just kept showing him out wide.
Vertonghen has improved BECAUSE of him. I personally think defensively, Fazio is ahead of him, Vertonghen is a better footballer though.
This, this, this .. said it numerous times in this thread and others.
If you look at a lot of the games where we have been smashed in the last 2-3 years, it has come from the opposition using the ball over the top to a runner that usually left us in a 1:1 situation.
Problem for Fazio (from a fan perspective), is most people just see him winning a header, they are not seeing the play he is cutting out, it's a proactive step vs. reactive.
Regardless of opinion, a back 2 that loses 1 game in 15, needs to continue playing.
Also Vertonghen has been excellent lately and is so far ahead of Fazio in terms of ability and performance.
TBF he is making one or two bad errors in every game and the fact is that most haven't been punished. He needs to cut them out.
He was good against United but RVP had chance after chance as he peeled off him or Verts, so to say he was up there with Lloris is incorrect. There are too many errors that he is making right now, BUT unlike Kaboul he doesn't come across as shaky and weak to boot so he should be starting every single match if possible. He is improving but he needs to work on not allowing strikers (RVP, Bony, Ulloa etc) to lose him as easily as they can.
The losing the ball in bad areas is an issue but one that hopefully will be addressed a lot easier. He has been solid lately and it's nice to have some reliability and consistency at the back. Can't wait to see the back of Kaboul.
Also Vertonghen has been excellent lately and is so far ahead of Fazio in terms of ability and performance.