Writing McBurnie off after starting in 5 games

[Revolution]

If whoever plays up front puts in performances like the two starters gave yesterday we are probably going to get relegated. Not good enough. If they can do better, they will have to start doing so soon.

I do accept, however, that poor service is an issue.

 

[Sheff de party]

Hardly surprising when we give him zero service and play him alongside a guy out of position.

Both of these things were certainly true yesterday.

 

[Akinbiyi]

No one's writing him off, literally every Blade is hoping that he'll come good.

All anyone is saying is that he's not shown much and hasn't looked the part so far, which he hasn't, same for Robinson.

Just facts really.

Point 1) disagree. there’s a couple in particular who’d love to see him fail just to prove them right.
Point 2) also disagree. There isn’t a forward in the squad who’d have looked good with the service these 2 have had. The link between midfield and attack is non existent. It makes for a good defensive performance but leaves us bare bones in attack.

 

[Akinbiyi]

Would a change in strike partner improve his personal first touch. Macburnie issue is his strength, decision making and technical ability. None of them have anything to do with who he plays up front with.

I want it to work out but sadly I think we have wasted our money. He is too untidy to succeed at this level.

He’s very good technically. Just because he’s awkward does not mean he’s poor technically.

 

[Come from away]

Think McGoldrick is the missing piece in place of Robinson.

 

[LoughboroBlade]

Reckon we’re 1, maybe 2, losses away from someone starting a ‘Toxic Oli’ thread. The likely culprits are already prepping their keyboards.

 

[FTPE]

I hear Mousett has been in the 'fat club' that's why he hasn't been starting, but surely he must be fit enough by now.

 

[super_pig]

If McBurnie and Robinson were in our team from last season we wouldn’t even be having this conversation.

The reason they look so ineffective is because we aren’t playing to any of our strikers strengths. We haven’t got anyone to link the midfield to the attack and it makes us completely toothless up front. The two like for like subs yesterday absolutely proved this. They were the most ineffective substitutions Wilder could have made.

Subs are supposed to change games and there was an opportunity to bring a more attack minded player on in midfield to swing it in our favour. Instead we continued to hook balls down the line to strikers even smaller than those that were replaced and they were left feeding off scraps yet again.

Yesterday was easily our worst performance of the season, we looked boring, toothless and ineffective. A stark reminder of how Warnock used to set up away from home in the Prem

fraid so .. we could have salah and aguero up top and i don’t think they’d do much either.. it’s not like we are missing loads of sitters on a plate .. we aren’t creating anything, it’s very worrying tbh

 

[Large Mendonca]

Point 1) disagree. there’s a couple in particular who’d love to see him fail just to prove them right.
Point 2) also disagree. There isn’t a forward in the squad who’d have looked good with the service these 2 have had. The link between midfield and attack is non existent. It makes for a good defensive performance but leaves us bare bones in attack.

I agree and that's why it's important in our system of overlapping / overloads to get our wingbacks forward. Because Watford nullified that yesterday with getting 8 men behind the ball / matching us up with 5 at the back, it shows that our flat midfield 3 is ineffective in these circumstances. That final substitution of bringing on Freeman (i'd have swapped Lunny out) could have made the difference. For once i slightly disagree with Wilder in saying we were going for it until the end - i think we'd settled for the point in the final 15.

 

[Isaw Joeshaw]

"play Championship strikers and that's where we'll end up"

Er, isn't that quite unavoidable when 5 out of 6 strikers are from the Championship?

Yes , and isn't it the case that Pukkl , Abraham and Maupay were also playing in the Championship last season ?

They don't seem to be doing too bad . Could it be that they are having goal scoring chances created for them whereas McBurnie is not ?

Just a thought .

 

[Isaw Joeshaw]

Oh , and Billy Sharp is not being given the chance to do so ?

 

[Akinbiyi]

I agree and that's why it's important in our system of overlapping / overloads to get our wingbacks forward. Because Watford nullified that yesterday with getting 8 men behind the ball / matching us up with 5 at the back, it shows that our flat midfield 3 is ineffective in these circumstances. That final substitution of bringing on Freeman (i'd have swapped Lunny out) could have made the difference. For once i slightly disagree with Wilder in saying we were going for it until the end - i think we'd settled for the point in the final 15.

I think so too and can’t blame him, we’d have all (sane minded at least)) took a point at Watford. There’s no shame in that.

Game was crying out for Freeman and a change of shape in midfield if we really wanted to win

 

[RegBlade]

At the end of the day, service is being starved going in to our forwards. The only half chance I can remember of note yesterday was McBurnies decent knock down to Robinson for his volley straight at the keeper. Unless we go a goal down then we just don't get it up to the strikers or take enough risks going forward . Moose looks good for example but many of the games where he has come in as sub, or the start against Sunderland reserves...he may as well not have been involved because despite his pace, he cannot do it all on his own even though his pace is electric he loses the ball way too easy when he tries to do it all on his own. Didsy is the only attacker who has the skillset to make something almost out of nothing. But that's not a slight to the rest of them. No front 2 we select at the moment will look effective 75% of the time with our current hold our own tactic. That is not a dig at CW/AK at all. Just an observation when assessing how great/shit our strikers look right now. UTB

 

[robbiez666]

He needs to start concentrating on his job and not constantly having battles with defenders who are far more experienced at this level than him. He seems to have a running battle every game. He also needs a gym membership.

 

[Shoreham4Ever]

He's a poor first touch, doesn't win attacking headers, he's got no pace, looks like he is running through treacle, lightweight, creates no chances etc..... But yeah its the system. Most of the time yesterday when the ball was played to him he couldn't control it and lost it. He has to improve and if he does I will be the first to be pleased as punch. UTB

 

[FinchleyBlade]

Who is writing him off? Nobody is, but we allowed to have an opinion on a 20 million pound striker after several games, and so far he has been average to say the least.

 

[blade67]

We have 4 strikers who have come up from the Championship and 1 who is finally getting some decent premier league action after 2 years of warming the bench. I couldn't give a flying fuck how much these players cost us, I think we need to rotate them until we find a pair who can click for a bit, but I think we'll be seeing them rotate for most of the season. FWIW my view on the 5 is as follows


Sharp - looks the best finisher of the lot, a nuisance for defenders at any level due to his work rate and good movement. Not really physical either by height or pace though.

Mousset - strong, quick and should feel a bit unlucky not to have been given a start yet

Didsy - best technical footballer of the 5. Strong and hardworking as well but his Achilles heel is the number of chances he needs for a goal. Will play lot though if fit.

Robinson - quick and skilful but like he doesn't believe he' a premier league player ATM

McBurnie - can finish but is struggling as the focal point of attack ATM. Needs to go on the Billy Sharp how to be a nuisance training course.

I'd start Mouset and sharp in the next game, but I suspect Didsy might start

 

[Maidenhead]

Funny isn't it, that I watched the whole game in HD quality, with multi camera angles, on a 55" screen TV and generally thought we were terrible and that McBurnie looks like a £20m flop and Robinson looks lost, yet people who were actually at the game thought we played well in a 0-0 draw with club who are currently bottom of the PL!

That said, the scores McBurnie was getting on the player ratings suggest I'm not the only one to think that!

My Watford mate also thought we played well.

He was particularly impressed with Fleck and said that we're "by far the best of the promoted teams".

I suppose that he's allowed to be positive about us because he's not a Blade

 

[Maidenhead]

we always write off new players.. like i posted in the off season..
wilder gets new player x
x is crap
x is improving
x is brilliant
wilder is a genius

we’ve done it with
joc
stevens
egan
didsy
lunny

i’ve been guilty of it too (stevens)
they’ll come good.. we have an unusual system and it takes a bit of time for new players to bed in
i don’t think robbo is 100% in preseason he was rapid and that is nothing to do with the opposition

It takes time to settle in to a new job especially if you have to move house, uproot your family, and integrate into a new team. .

I should know that having had to do it several times during my life, and I don't see why it should be any different for footballers

 

[FallowfieldBlade]

No one's writing him off, literally every Blade is hoping that he'll come good.

All anyone is saying is that he's not shown much and hasn't looked the part so far, which he hasn't, same for Robinson.

Just facts really.

He’s looked very good when actually been passed the ball to feet actually ?

And he’s had two proper goal scoring chances and scored both one was ruled out

 

[mattbianco1]

Robinson, who is clearly a winger and not a striker

This

 

[Sean Thornton]

Who is writing him off? Nobody is, but we allowed to have an opinion on a 20 million pound striker after several games, and so far he has been average to say the least.

What do people mean by "not good enough" then?

 

[metalblade]

People need to forget McBurnie's price tag it is the whole team that isn't functioning as an attacking threat. McBurnie is the type of player who will come alive in the penalty box and if we as a team don't get quality balls in there then he will look poor. I dare say if Moose had cost £20m then fans would be slagging him of unmercifully too, unfortunately it is the small minded mentality of your average Unitedite any record signing has to be the new Ronaldo or Messi or they are shite. It is not really the fault of players bought for millions that Unitedites are unused to us spending huge (for us) fee's, maybe some would be happier if we were still shopping in the £500k market

 

[DronnieBlade]

UTB

 

[DronnieBlade]

Sharp n Dids for me.



UTB

 

[hidesbehindapseudonym]

McBurnie and Mousset please.

 

[Toronto Blade]

High balls into their box were always going to be tough to win against those 2 at the back 6'5 and 6'3 .We needed someone to attack through the middle on the ground.

 

[1066blade]

And to think we laughed at Wendy when they 'spunked' £10m on Rhodes?

Nuf said.

 

[WestSiberiaBlade]

People need to forget McBurnie's price tag it is the whole team that isn't functioning as an attacking threat.

Sure, at the end of the day, it's about the whole team. But can one/you just slag off a price tag of £20 for a player as irrelevant? That's a lot of money, even for a side having been promoted to the Premiership. The price tags are the way they are there for a reason.

 

[Tynemouth Blade]

Who is writing him off? Nobody is, but we allowed to have an opinion on a 20 million pound striker after several games, and so far he has been average to say the least.

I am!
He reminds me of Jon Stead, another striker we signed with high hopes but in the end finally found his level at Notts County!