Johnny Cardoso

[Gutter Boy]

I believe a team can only allow forwards to blow hot and cold, your midfield must control game if they are off the whole team suffer.

But we're not talking about Biss being a starter any more. He (along with Bentancur) is the senior figure taking secondary minutes while Gray establishes himself in that position. Biss seems better in short bursts, rather than prolonged periods in the team, so that might actually get some of the best out of him.

For players to sub on at 70 minutes, and to play midweek games (if we have any next season), I'm not sure we'll find better than those two.

 

[Yiddo]

If we had a team that consistently got a 7 out of 10 we would easily be in the top 4 anything higher and we would be challenging for the league. This has been our problem for years, 1 game they are all 8’s the next they are struggling to get 5’s.

 

[K.D.D.D.D.Soc]

But we're not talking about Biss being a starter any more. He (along with Bentancur) is the senior figure taking secondary minutes while Gray establishes himself in that position. Biss seems better in short bursts, rather than prolonged periods in the team, so that might actually get some of the best out of him.

For players to sub on at 70 minutes, and to play midweek games (if we have any next season), I'm not sure we'll find better than those two.

I wasn't writing about individuals but a 5/10 for 70 mins is not what you want from midfield whoever it is.

 

[Raziel]

Some talk we might bring him in this month, it's actually one of the positions we're fairly well covered in but I expect Bissouma or Bentancur to go in the summer (probably Bissouma) so getting him acclimatized for a few months first so he can hit the ground running next season would be a good move. No idea if he's actually any good.

He's supposed to be very good off the ball (see data below), positional sense, strong engine. 183 appearances at 23

If it's true, he'd be a great fit for us. to the conversation in thread, Biss is very inconsistent, I'd say the combination of a more defensive minded midfielder who is better off the ball than our current group in a rotation with Bentancur (really good with ball) and Grey (learning) would be an interesting mix

 

[Bedfordspurs]

He's supposed to be very good off the ball (see data below), positional sense, strong engine. 183 appearances at 23

If it's true, he'd be a great fit for us. to the conversation in thread, Biss is very inconsistent, I'd say the combination of a more defensive minded midfielder who is better off the ball than our current group in a rotation with Bentancur (really good with ball) and Grey (learning) would be an interesting mix

View attachment 18415

Bissouma is great when he can see the whole picture
When play moves around him he hasn’t a clue what to do
Bentacur is better at dictating the tempo for me

 

[thfcsteff]

He's supposed to be very good off the ball (see data below), positional sense, strong engine. 183 appearances at 23

If it's true, he'd be a great fit for us. to the conversation in thread, Biss is very inconsistent, I'd say the combination of a more defensive minded midfielder who is better off the ball than our current group in a rotation with Bentancur (really good with ball) and Grey (learning) would be an interesting mix

View attachment 18415

I can only say that every time I have watched him he has been painfully average to my eye.

 

[Gutter Boy]

I can only say that every time I have watched him he has been painfully average to my eye.

I'm not sure we ever considered signing him. It sounded like we just wanted the sell-on % from their highest value player to compensate for them not being able to afford the Lo Celso fee.

 

[Chrissivad]

I can only say that every time I have watched him he has been painfully average to my eye.

Is that a step up from what we have just now?

 

[SpurMeUp]

But we're not talking about Biss being a starter any more. He (along with Bentancur) is the senior figure taking secondary minutes while Gray establishes himself in that position. Biss seems better in short bursts, rather than prolonged periods in the team, so that might actually get some of the best out of him.

For players to sub on at 70 minutes, and to play midweek games (if we have any next season), I'm not sure we'll find better than those two.

He is an excellent squad player. Could come on around 60mins and dominate. But he can’t do it week in and out. His concentration isn’t always there. But if he is used more infrequently he could be putting in 10 out of 10 performances.

 

[Raziel]

I can only say that every time I have watched him he has been painfully average to my eye.

Really not going to pretend I have a view, the data says defensively he's quite strong but I haven't seen enough myself.

Bit of an argument of if we really wanted him, we would have pulled the trigger as quickly as we did with Kinsky as we already have an option there.

 

[Bishop]

Sorry, no I meant scores out of 10. So a solid 6 out of 10 player, like say Hojbjerg. Or someone like Biss who can be brilliant, but equally can be awful.

For me, with the position being Gray's long term, I'd actually keep Bentancur and Biss, instead of bringing in more of a journeyman like Cardoso.

I get your principle but Hojberg equally had some pretty awful games. He was just as much guilty of blowing hot and cold as the rest of them.

 

[Chrissivad]

Really not going to pretend I have a view, the data says defensively he's quite strong but I haven't seen enough myself.

Bit of an argument of if we really wanted him, we would have pulled the trigger as quickly as we did with Kinsky as we already have an option there.

Option isn't until the summer.
It seems a weird deal, that we could get 45% of a transfer if he goes somewhere else, but we have to match bids if they go above our £20m deal....

 

[P.D.]

He is an excellent squad player. Could come on around 60mins and dominate. But he can’t do it week in and out. His concentration isn’t always there. But if he is used more infrequently he could be putting in 10 out of 10 performances.

Not much point having an expensive squad filler who can only give a performance off the bench or every couple of weeks.

 

[Muttley]

About Bissouma's inconsistency

I think the whoscored website has a very comprehensive way of scoring players during a match. Bissouma has these average scores this season

PL 6.6
EL 6.8
LC 7.3 (1 game, 1 sub)

Only 2 games all season where his game fell below a 6, and even then it only went down to 5.7. It has been as high as 8.1 though.

However, it is mostly a very consistent score from a very consistent player. It is very similar to Bentancur, another very consistent player.

Bissouma is a massive reason our season hasn't imploded. I think we should stop expecting miracles and just appreciate that a lot of what he does isn't as noticeable as other players.

Cardosa looks quite similar actually when you look at his scores. A season average of 6.7. I couldn't tell you whether he is an upgrade on Biss but I have some doubts.

 

[SteveAWOL]

I can only say that every time I have watched him he has been painfully average to my eye.

Such a shame that Bentancur hasn’t been quite the same since the ACL surgery and Bissouma is probably too old to develop a high level of consistency but this lad’s figures in a less competitive league don’t inspire much confidence and sounds like he doesn’t pass the eye test either. Hopefully doesn’t turn out to be another of Levy’s wheeler-dealer signings.

 

[SpurMeUp]

About Bissouma's inconsistency

I think the whoscored website has a very comprehensive way of scoring players during a match. Bissouma has these average scores this season

PL 6.6
EL 6.8
LC 7.3 (1 game, 1 sub)

Only 2 games all season where his game fell below a 6, and even then it only went down to 5.7. It has been as high as 8.1 though.

However, it is mostly a very consistent score from a very consistent player. It is very similar to Bentancur, another very consistent player.

Bissouma is a massive reason our season hasn't imploded. I think we should stop expecting miracles and just appreciate that a lot of what he does isn't as noticeable as other players.

Cardosa looks quite similar actually when you look at his scores. A season average of 6.7. I couldn't tell you whether he is an upgrade on Biss but I have some doubts.

What was the rating against Chelsea when he gave away then and our lead?

 

[Muttley]

What was the rating against Chelsea when he gave away then and our lead?

It was the Chelsea and Pool games where he dipped below 6, at 5.9 and 5.7. Probably because for the rest of the time he was on the pitch he was doing OK. That penalty was frustrating.

The player we actually need to find more consistency from is Sarr. He has the lowest and the highest scores from our midfielders. You get the feeling that consistency is gradually coming into his game though.

 

[P.D.]

It was the Chelsea and Pool games where he dipped below 6, at 5.9 and 5.7. Probably because for the rest of the time he was on the pitch he was doing OK. That penalty was frustrating.

The player we actually need to find more consistency from is Sarr. He has the lowest and the highest scores from our midfielders. You get the feeling that consistency is gradually coming into his game though.

The problem is a 6.6 is actually low, we need someone in the middle who is more 7.5 levels to really progress as it's such a key position in our setup. Consider what Dembele or Wanyana would have been at their peak and that's what we need to aim for.

Agree on Sarr, I think he can also get 8-10 league goals a season as well.

 

[Muttley]

The problem is a 6.6 is actually low, we need someone in the middle who is more 7.5 levels to really progress as it's such a key position in our setup. Consider what Dembele or Wanyana would have been at their peak and that's what we need to aim for.

Agree on Sarr, I think he can also get 8-10 league goals a season as well.

Yeah, we absolutely do. Rodri hit 7.6 over 34 league games last season and sets the highest bar. Dembele also had a couple of seasons where he was up at those levels on the same rating system (WhoScored). Big Vic's 16/17 season was at 7.25.

Anything over 7 and I think we would notice a big difference with our own eyes. Just like Slot is with Gravenberch who is at 7.1 this season.

I just don't know where we find this midfielder (or two).

 

[P.D.]

Yeah, we absolutely do. Rodri hit 7.6 over 34 league games last season and sets the highest bar. Dembele also had a couple of seasons where he was up at those levels on the same rating system (WhoScored). Big Vic's 16/17 season was at 7.25.

Anything over 7 and I think we would notice a big difference with our own eyes. Just like Slot is with Gravenberch who is at 7.1 this season.

I just don't know where we find this midfielder (or two).

They're always in demand, I think Gray could get there in time. Looks a super all round footballer with great understanding of the game. We're more likely to develop someone into that role than buy them. Realistically Biss and Bents are what they are, decent players who can perform well but aren't quite at the top level and unlikely to get there at their ages.