Also wanted to mention that I think that our inconsistency is the legacy of constantly changing manager/backroom staff, training methods, turnover of players etc etc. You know most managers want to get rid of the previous managers players so they can call the team "their own". We all know that if he could have Poch would have bought half the Southampton team with him.
-
Dear Guest, Please note that adult content is not permitted on this forum. We have had our Google ads disabled at times due to some posts that were found from some time ago. Please do not post adult content and if you see any already on the forum, please report the post so that we can deal with it. Adult content is allowed in the glory hole - you will have to request permission to access it. Thanks, scara
Andros Townsend
- Thread starter Jordinho
- Start date
Armchair Expert
Vedran Corluka
I think Townsend needs time. He's obviously in a bit of a rut and you can see the pressure he is under both in his face and in his performances. I think its actually counterproductive for him that Lamela is injured at the moment as Townsend's form isn't good enough to warrant a staring place. Very difficult for a fringe player out of form when he is thrust into it, knowing he is playing for his future.
Now more than ever I'm sure Poch would be aiming to work on his confidence, work him back into contention slowly and let him earn his place through merit.
TBF to Andros, even though its obvious his confidence is shattered he keeps going and keeps trying, never shying away from engaging the defender. Its a bit of a shame that he looks like he is playing with the world on his shoulders, because when confident its obvious that he is capable of coming in off the wing and getting decent efforts on goal. He seems to thrive on confidence so much its unreal.
I'm willing to give him time. You don't invest 12 - 14 years in a player without giving them every chance to succeed.
Now more than ever I'm sure Poch would be aiming to work on his confidence, work him back into contention slowly and let him earn his place through merit.
TBF to Andros, even though its obvious his confidence is shattered he keeps going and keeps trying, never shying away from engaging the defender. Its a bit of a shame that he looks like he is playing with the world on his shoulders, because when confident its obvious that he is capable of coming in off the wing and getting decent efforts on goal. He seems to thrive on confidence so much its unreal.
I'm willing to give him time. You don't invest 12 - 14 years in a player without giving them every chance to succeed.
Gutter Boy
Tim Sherwood
For me Townsend has potential (he's raw, but the attributes are all there) and a commitment to self-improvement. Lennon has been coasting for nearly a decade.
Whilst the performances of Townsend and Lamela have me tearing my hair out, they are both pretty young and they work hard. With a good coach in Poch, they should be able to improve and do a decent job for us. In the case of Townsend, it might be as a squad player rather than a starter, but I think the squad should be fleshed out with players who came through our academy, assuming they are up to it.
Gilzeantoscore
Justin Edinburgh
For coaches to improve a player, there has to be something there for them to work on. There is nothing there in Townsend I'm afraid.
Gutter Boy
Tim Sherwood
Of course there is. He's quick, skilful, direct, completely ambidextrous, determined and hardworking.
The only things he lacks are better decision-making and, at the moment, a bit of confidence.
Whiffler
Jermaine Jenas
Pretty much this.
I've always liked him, but he has had some really naff performances, culminating with his worse that I've seen at Palärse.
I'd like to see him on the left, with in-match switches to confuse the opposition. Effectively I see him & Chadli providing the left wing - albeit that Nacer has the better claim at present.
The issue is that he has yet to show any kind of improvement in decision-making whatsoever. In fact, Poch has removed one of the options by clearly telling him not to shoot and he still gets it wrong.
If it was a weight problem rather than a mental one we'd all have been saying "ship him out, he's clearly not dedicated enough to fix the problem".
parklane1
Tony Galvin
This for me as well, nearly 70 games for the first team and he has the same problems as when he first came into the side.
I dont think he does, he doesnt shoot anywhere near like he used to and actually plays at least a couple of good disguised passes that created chances for whoever is overlapping each game. Still a lot of improvement required of course...
parklane1
Tony Galvin
Head down and run, turn back on himself when is not needed, never gets his head up and looks for players running into space, I agree he may not be shooting as much but he is still doing the rest. 70 games and he is still ( more or less) the same player with the same faults.
tynesidespur
Terry Yorath
He's also very eloquent on TV which makes me think he could well improve by using his brains on the pitch.
Just cant agree, he was awaful against Palace but in the main the last month or two Ive seen just enough subtle things that show he is learning. That doesn't mean he will make it here, but because of his attitude Id be prepared to give him longer as he does have some of the raw attributes required....
Last edited:
parklane1
Tony Galvin
Well I guess we will have to agree to disagree, do not get me wrong I really hope he turns in to a very good player for us, but after 70 games I would have hoped he would be showing ( learning) much more. We live in hope but I just do not think he will.
Game intelligence and off field intelligence are not quite interchangeable
I' afraid after the amount of games he has had there is no sign of improvement. Also a few posters keep referring to his pace but I have never seen him beat anyone for pace. I've seen him left trailing when someone nicks the ball off of him which happens most games he plays in. Its the reason he always cuts inside cos he cant get by a defender with pace. And also why he shoots off target mainly because he has not got the speed to give him a yard of space to get a clear shot on goal
Gutter Boy
Tim Sherwood
Yeah - it's Jenas (smart bloke, completely unintelligent footballer) vs Gascoigne (genius footballing brain, mental age of a toddler).
Yeah maybe Im being too optimistic, but all Im saying is I see small improvements and hope if he continues to make small steps by next season he could be a player worth keeping...
parklane1
Tony Galvin
Lets hope so.