Deadbat
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2022/23 SUFC SEASON REVIEW / SCHOOL REPORT
Defenders
Chris Basham Pleased he got a new deal and felt for his service and the fact he can play a range of positions and a fantastic pro too. He was out of the team under Slav but got his place back under Hecky and we saw some great throwback Bash type showings. He was great in some of the run-in games and I saw no reason why he would not start this season despite his advancing years – only a few nagging injuries would stop that. The Ahmedhodzic signing was a bit left field but clearly United had wanted him for a while and Bash was not going to be around forever.
Pre-season showed that the Bosnian player was clearly a real talent and he was picked ahead of Bash. The season started and I think Basham had an injury too but Ahmedhodzic played after his suspension elapsed and thrilled the Blades crowd. It was clear he was going to the starter at right centre back. Basham would still be used and needed of course and so it proved. Anel had a few injuries, illnesses and tendency to get booked meant Bash would still play plenty of games. He started at Luton and Swansea in a draw and a win but then had a run of 6 games where we lost three and drew three with Anel out and he struggled a bit and maybe age looked like it was catching up with him. He played better at West Brom, Bristol City and Cardiff in three away wins. He was back on the bench when the league games returned but did play and was fine at Millwall in the cup. He had a bit of a nightmare at Wrexham (as the whole defence did) but was better in the replay. He was given another league start at Millwall but again the entire side had a bad day before he had a great chance to score at Blackburn (and breaking a 4-year scoring drought) but made a mess of it after a great run in another game where the defence was exposed badly a times. He played much better in the much-needed win at Reading.
Thought he was excellent in the Spurs game and this was maybe his best game of the season but then Anel was back in for much of the run in and was only used off the bench. Great to see him get time on the field at Wembley and in the West Brom game where he could be part of the celebrations and then started against Preston and got an assist. Did struggle badly at Huddersfield with pace and had you wondering how much we could actually use him against the pace/power of the top league? Did finish the season well though with a more typical Bash type performance and an assist at Birmingham.
A great veteran to have around though even if he will not play too much probably. Not sure we will see that much of him next season but great that at 35 (this summer) he is still contributing. For the first time in his career, he has started to pick up a few injuries and I would be concerned if he used much moving forward as does not maybe have the energy and running power he did. He will be 36 next summer and expect he will move on and maybe have a few more years somewhere else (maybe closer to his beloved North East where he has admitted he will settle after his career end) but what a career he has had here. He represents everything that is good about United and the last period of our journey. He will have been here 10 years and played close to 400 games you would think – making him one of our longest serving players. He deserves all the credit he gets for his work ethic, professionalism and always seems to play with a smile on his face. Be a sad day when he departs the club but will deserve a testimonial of some sort (surely, we can still put such a game on for someone like him and get all the former Blades back that were part of the journey up the leagues?).
Grade B- (Last season B-)
John Egan Seems to have been at the Lane a lot longer than the 5 seasons he has and a player we definitely take for granted I fell. Yes, he does make mistakes and can be susceptible to pace/the ball over the top, he should score more goals and gets daft red cards at times – but for the most part he is as solid and reliable as you will get at the top end of the Champ and maybe even lower Prem. Decent in the air, better with his feet than many give him credit for, decent reader of the game and for the most part pretty reliable – outside of odd disciplinary discretion as discussed. He is almost always available too in terms of playing and with us having so many injuries, this is a big positive and something again overlooked at times. He is just a steady, consistent pro that most weeks is a 7/10. He is not that flashy, nor is he going to run out of defence or play passes that split other teams open but he is competent on the ball and can play well with different players. We forget that the centre backs have changed quite a bit around him since those first two seasons he was here with Robinson, Clark, Ampadu, Jagielka, Bryan, Basham, Gordon, Ahmedhodzic, Stevens, Norrington Davies to name the ones off the top of my head who have featured in these positions alongside him.
I can scan over his stats this last season and look at the marks I gave him and there is a consistency with him that I cannot see for any other player (except maybe Ndiaye and Baldock). Others like Wes, Doyle, Anel and McBurnie have had spells of not being quite as consistent. I do not think I gave him under 6 for the first 2 months of the season and not sure I recall any glaring errors in games. United had some ups and downs but he was consistent. Yes, he has had a few ropey games like the Norwich home one (stupid penalty – but then was superb at Norwich) and then Luton he was not great at the Lane and the daft red card v Coventry but he has had some excellent games too marshalling the back line. Finished the season well with some strong games like Bristol City and West Brom at home where he was dominated and led from the back. Thought he was quite inspirational towards the end of the season. Another really likeable lad that when he has gone you will only then realise how important he is both on and off the field.
We have had one of the best defences all season inclusive of the greatest number of clean sheets and he is right at the centre of this.
Goals wise we would want more and the number of times he gets there and then heads over is frustrating beyond belief but got two late goals at QPR (vital point) and Wrexham – both with his feet! He also scored a header at Wigan. He should score more but does provide a threat and has set up some goals with headers too (Norwich home – Luton away – assisted McBurnie on both). Right in his peak at 30 years of age – I am not surprised some Premier League teams have been linked before but also not surprised they have not made the outlay as on the surface he maybe lacks the athleticism and pace over the ground but we have seen when we were up there before – he was fine.
Also forgotten sometimes is he is one of the internationals that goes and plays for his team and country seemingly every game and rarely is rested. He has captained them a few times too when Coleman has not played and scored a few goals (which was frustrating as he did not do that for us as much!).
Grade B+ (Last season B-)
Kieran Clark Seemed a sensible signing in the summer. We needed competition in the defence and he could play left centre back, in the middle and at a push left wing back/full back. He was experienced and despite some Newcastle fans saying he was not good enough (at least for the Premier League) he had been solid at this level before and just seemed a safe signing. The only issue is he was 32 when he signed and not played as much football in recent years. Despite Robinson’s improvements I felt he would get the start and so it proved but he was awful at Watford on opening day and got pulled apart by quicker players. He did improve hugely in the subsequent game against Millwall but then picked up a few nagging injuries.
We did not see him again until Bristol City away before he was on the bench for a couple before starting at Cardiff in the game before the World Cup and did ok – giving us some experience. He then had a run of games after the break and was solid enough, scoring in the game against Coventry on Boxing Day. He read the game well, did the basics and gave us some height too. However, he got another injury and ended up being a bit part player being mainly on the bench.
He then was not involved at all for ages and despite us having some defensive issues, he was nowhere to be seen. Hecky would say he was fit and then say he had some issues and you wondered if there were financial reasons why he was not being used as cynical as that is? Robinson was fine but we could have used him at times I felt as after a dodgy start to his United career he had been a useful lad to have around – when he was around. He did get back around though when the final games were played out and scored with a tap in against Cardiff. Very injury prone and in that sense a bit of a waste of a loan. When Khadra did not work out and then he is barely available – 50% of your loans have not been able to be called upon which is not ideal. As the season came to an end, we barely saw him and now at 33 you would think he will not be signed as he has not done enough or stayed fit to consider using wages on him - he is out of contract at Newcastle and expect he will turn up somewhere else in the Championship next season.
Grade C (Last season NA)
Anel Ahmedhodzic His signing really came out of the blue last summer as it did not seem an area, we were looking to strengthen with Bash resigning here. However, we had tried to sign him last January and clearly Jack Lester had tracked him from his days at Forest when he was a youngster with him there. He had been at Malmo after that but then went on loan to Bordeaux and marked Messi last season. Both these clubs had some financial issues so could not keep/re-sign and United swopped in – amid interest from Jon Dahl Tomasson at Blackburn too.
First glance in pre-season we quickly saw we had signed a lad that was tall, agile and a real athlete but more than that so comfortable on the ball. He also did not mind a tackle clearly! Excited a lot of fands and media from the off. The snag of course was when it emerged, he could not play the first games due to a suspension carried off from the French league which United did not know about and tried to blame Malmo for not disclosing!
When he eventually played, he was superb in the first home game against Blackburn and this carried on with some hugely impressive showings – including his ability to get goals as he registered his first v Sunderland and then two more against Reading. He could get forward and like Bash in his prime, was like another attacker as he surged forward, capable of driving at defenders and/or beating men. He as solid defensively though and would not get pulled about. Tall but not huge in terms of physique but really strong as we saw in 50-50 challenges. He was one of the players who set the tone in an excellent start to the season. He regularly was getting or being nominated, for man of the match awards. The Sky pundits quickly earmarked him as one of the signings of the summer at this level and most were raving about him. It seemed a steal we had got him for 4 million and almost overnight after seeing a handful of games, you think we could have trebled our money at least!
We saw some flaws as he picked up some knocks (including an odd one where he was alleged to have got injured whilst away with his country Bosnia but Hecky and his national team manager had different accounts of what he had done and where he was!). He also did pick up bookings – lots of them and by the end of the season was a long way ahead of anyone else and had two suspensions. Some were deserved but some were just plain daft and sometimes his desire to get the ball or gamble saw him catch men and he conceded a few penalties in the same vein. He did have a spell out of the team around October and November and it was said he had contracted glandular fever which can take its toll out of players. After he was superb at home to Burnley, he then struggled at home to Rotherham and maybe it was taking its toll on him? He had a few patchier performances but was still good most games and we seemed to rarely lose when he did play.
After the World Cup, I felt his form did drop off and he had a number of games where he was ‘just’ average. Recall him getting ragged about a bit at Wrexham as we imploded second half and he tog caught out against Middlesbrough too. However, slowly he started to get back to the form he had showed and we saw more of the composed, ball playing centre back that made great blocks and tackles but used the ball so well too when coming out with it. He had a run of decent games and was fine in the cup semi-final and then another big goal and lovely volley in that West Brom game. Scored again v Preston to take his tally to 7 goals (6 in the league) all at the Lane and showed what a knack he has of reading the game, anticipating and his composure as a footballer.
Only 24, he seems a great lad (from the social media stuff United have done) with a great sense of humour and has fitted in brilliantly. You hope we can keep him moving forward but would not be surprised if other clubs are looking as, you do not get many defenders that defend, tackle, head it, cover across the back line, can play a few positions but is comfortable on the ball and can get forward and score/set up goals too! Got voted into the team of the year which was not a surprise as he looks the part in terms of his ability and the attributes I mentioned. Loses marks for the number of daft bookings he picked up and did have a chunk of time out of the team/dropped off for a period but overall, a superb debut season.
Grade B+ (Last season NA)
George Baldock, I wrote this time last season that despite him being superb against Forest at home and finishing the season, due to Bogle’s injury, that I expected Bogle to be the starter when he was fully fit as he had a really good season and offered us so much more going forward. We fast forward 12 months later and the opposite has happened. Granted Bogle was not fit to start the season and has had injuries, but so has Baldock. Now I think most Blades think we are a better side with Baldock at the right wing back position than Bogle. Baldock’s stats in terms of points/win possession are far better than Bogle. That is not to say both cannot have a role and hope Bogle can regain the form he had shown but I do have to give a great deal of credit to Baldock.
We had Freeman before and now Bogle and Baldock keeps proving how much he values the shirt. Whenever we have a rocky spell, he invariably gets put back in, if he was not already playing and we improve. His aggression, will to win and commitment are qualities as Blade we all love to see. Not quite sure how he has never had a red card though and gets booked a lot less than others (and maybe he should do!). Defensively he gets in good positions, rarely gets beat and stops crosses and is mostly tight to his man. He does the basics and just keeps his concentration. Boundless energy too he will get out and get forward and his fitness is excellent (granted missed some games due to various injuries this season) and is always an outlet/option when we are attacking – home and away.
Yes, his crossing and attacking output is still not what it should be considering how much of the ball he gets and the fantastic positions he gets in, but he has assisted and scored this season. His individual goal at Cardiff won the game. I scan over my ratings (not saying they are all right!) and he is another that gets 6-7/10 nearly every single week with few outliers higher or lower. You just know what you are going to go. Like a few others, Egan, Norwood, Sharp – just good pros that you need to have in a promotion chasing side.
After we had that drop off, Baldock was put back in (had some injuries) and we became instantly more solid and competitive in things we did and he set such a good example with his no nonsense play and desire to win the battle. He was superb in some of the home games to close the season and that second half v West Brom was completely inspirational winning tackles, bursting forward and showing such desire – that makes him such a favourite. He soaked up the scenes at the end and one who is rapidly becoming part of the folklore of this remarkable spell for the club and another that will never be forgotten for what he has accomplished.
I look at some of the other players that amble around at clubs – some may have more talent than Baldock – but I actually would not swap him for many in his position at this level. He might not have the flair and offensive output of others but we do not concede many goals rarely get carved open (yes had spells this season where teams went through us but it probably not a co-incident that he was not always starting these games we conceded 3’s?) Showed he can do a job on the left side too and just someone who rarely lets the side down. You need players like him to be successful at this level.
Also, now a regular with Greece and hoping this has enhanced his game and confidence that he is very much a very good Championship (and even Premier League wing back – he did ok their last time). Has another year on his contract but decent athlete who runs all day and I would be looking to tie him down to a new deal as at 30, he is right in his prime. I hope Bogle can improve the weak areas of his game and stay fitter and be more consistent as undoubtedly there is a player there that can do things that Baldock cannot do but at the moment I have no issue with Baldock starting the next campaign here and see other positions as being much more of a priority short term.
Grade B+ (Last season C)
Defenders
Chris Basham Pleased he got a new deal and felt for his service and the fact he can play a range of positions and a fantastic pro too. He was out of the team under Slav but got his place back under Hecky and we saw some great throwback Bash type showings. He was great in some of the run-in games and I saw no reason why he would not start this season despite his advancing years – only a few nagging injuries would stop that. The Ahmedhodzic signing was a bit left field but clearly United had wanted him for a while and Bash was not going to be around forever.
Pre-season showed that the Bosnian player was clearly a real talent and he was picked ahead of Bash. The season started and I think Basham had an injury too but Ahmedhodzic played after his suspension elapsed and thrilled the Blades crowd. It was clear he was going to the starter at right centre back. Basham would still be used and needed of course and so it proved. Anel had a few injuries, illnesses and tendency to get booked meant Bash would still play plenty of games. He started at Luton and Swansea in a draw and a win but then had a run of 6 games where we lost three and drew three with Anel out and he struggled a bit and maybe age looked like it was catching up with him. He played better at West Brom, Bristol City and Cardiff in three away wins. He was back on the bench when the league games returned but did play and was fine at Millwall in the cup. He had a bit of a nightmare at Wrexham (as the whole defence did) but was better in the replay. He was given another league start at Millwall but again the entire side had a bad day before he had a great chance to score at Blackburn (and breaking a 4-year scoring drought) but made a mess of it after a great run in another game where the defence was exposed badly a times. He played much better in the much-needed win at Reading.
Thought he was excellent in the Spurs game and this was maybe his best game of the season but then Anel was back in for much of the run in and was only used off the bench. Great to see him get time on the field at Wembley and in the West Brom game where he could be part of the celebrations and then started against Preston and got an assist. Did struggle badly at Huddersfield with pace and had you wondering how much we could actually use him against the pace/power of the top league? Did finish the season well though with a more typical Bash type performance and an assist at Birmingham.
A great veteran to have around though even if he will not play too much probably. Not sure we will see that much of him next season but great that at 35 (this summer) he is still contributing. For the first time in his career, he has started to pick up a few injuries and I would be concerned if he used much moving forward as does not maybe have the energy and running power he did. He will be 36 next summer and expect he will move on and maybe have a few more years somewhere else (maybe closer to his beloved North East where he has admitted he will settle after his career end) but what a career he has had here. He represents everything that is good about United and the last period of our journey. He will have been here 10 years and played close to 400 games you would think – making him one of our longest serving players. He deserves all the credit he gets for his work ethic, professionalism and always seems to play with a smile on his face. Be a sad day when he departs the club but will deserve a testimonial of some sort (surely, we can still put such a game on for someone like him and get all the former Blades back that were part of the journey up the leagues?).
Grade B- (Last season B-)
John Egan Seems to have been at the Lane a lot longer than the 5 seasons he has and a player we definitely take for granted I fell. Yes, he does make mistakes and can be susceptible to pace/the ball over the top, he should score more goals and gets daft red cards at times – but for the most part he is as solid and reliable as you will get at the top end of the Champ and maybe even lower Prem. Decent in the air, better with his feet than many give him credit for, decent reader of the game and for the most part pretty reliable – outside of odd disciplinary discretion as discussed. He is almost always available too in terms of playing and with us having so many injuries, this is a big positive and something again overlooked at times. He is just a steady, consistent pro that most weeks is a 7/10. He is not that flashy, nor is he going to run out of defence or play passes that split other teams open but he is competent on the ball and can play well with different players. We forget that the centre backs have changed quite a bit around him since those first two seasons he was here with Robinson, Clark, Ampadu, Jagielka, Bryan, Basham, Gordon, Ahmedhodzic, Stevens, Norrington Davies to name the ones off the top of my head who have featured in these positions alongside him.
I can scan over his stats this last season and look at the marks I gave him and there is a consistency with him that I cannot see for any other player (except maybe Ndiaye and Baldock). Others like Wes, Doyle, Anel and McBurnie have had spells of not being quite as consistent. I do not think I gave him under 6 for the first 2 months of the season and not sure I recall any glaring errors in games. United had some ups and downs but he was consistent. Yes, he has had a few ropey games like the Norwich home one (stupid penalty – but then was superb at Norwich) and then Luton he was not great at the Lane and the daft red card v Coventry but he has had some excellent games too marshalling the back line. Finished the season well with some strong games like Bristol City and West Brom at home where he was dominated and led from the back. Thought he was quite inspirational towards the end of the season. Another really likeable lad that when he has gone you will only then realise how important he is both on and off the field.
We have had one of the best defences all season inclusive of the greatest number of clean sheets and he is right at the centre of this.
Goals wise we would want more and the number of times he gets there and then heads over is frustrating beyond belief but got two late goals at QPR (vital point) and Wrexham – both with his feet! He also scored a header at Wigan. He should score more but does provide a threat and has set up some goals with headers too (Norwich home – Luton away – assisted McBurnie on both). Right in his peak at 30 years of age – I am not surprised some Premier League teams have been linked before but also not surprised they have not made the outlay as on the surface he maybe lacks the athleticism and pace over the ground but we have seen when we were up there before – he was fine.
Also forgotten sometimes is he is one of the internationals that goes and plays for his team and country seemingly every game and rarely is rested. He has captained them a few times too when Coleman has not played and scored a few goals (which was frustrating as he did not do that for us as much!).
Grade B+ (Last season B-)
Kieran Clark Seemed a sensible signing in the summer. We needed competition in the defence and he could play left centre back, in the middle and at a push left wing back/full back. He was experienced and despite some Newcastle fans saying he was not good enough (at least for the Premier League) he had been solid at this level before and just seemed a safe signing. The only issue is he was 32 when he signed and not played as much football in recent years. Despite Robinson’s improvements I felt he would get the start and so it proved but he was awful at Watford on opening day and got pulled apart by quicker players. He did improve hugely in the subsequent game against Millwall but then picked up a few nagging injuries.
We did not see him again until Bristol City away before he was on the bench for a couple before starting at Cardiff in the game before the World Cup and did ok – giving us some experience. He then had a run of games after the break and was solid enough, scoring in the game against Coventry on Boxing Day. He read the game well, did the basics and gave us some height too. However, he got another injury and ended up being a bit part player being mainly on the bench.
He then was not involved at all for ages and despite us having some defensive issues, he was nowhere to be seen. Hecky would say he was fit and then say he had some issues and you wondered if there were financial reasons why he was not being used as cynical as that is? Robinson was fine but we could have used him at times I felt as after a dodgy start to his United career he had been a useful lad to have around – when he was around. He did get back around though when the final games were played out and scored with a tap in against Cardiff. Very injury prone and in that sense a bit of a waste of a loan. When Khadra did not work out and then he is barely available – 50% of your loans have not been able to be called upon which is not ideal. As the season came to an end, we barely saw him and now at 33 you would think he will not be signed as he has not done enough or stayed fit to consider using wages on him - he is out of contract at Newcastle and expect he will turn up somewhere else in the Championship next season.
Grade C (Last season NA)
Anel Ahmedhodzic His signing really came out of the blue last summer as it did not seem an area, we were looking to strengthen with Bash resigning here. However, we had tried to sign him last January and clearly Jack Lester had tracked him from his days at Forest when he was a youngster with him there. He had been at Malmo after that but then went on loan to Bordeaux and marked Messi last season. Both these clubs had some financial issues so could not keep/re-sign and United swopped in – amid interest from Jon Dahl Tomasson at Blackburn too.
First glance in pre-season we quickly saw we had signed a lad that was tall, agile and a real athlete but more than that so comfortable on the ball. He also did not mind a tackle clearly! Excited a lot of fands and media from the off. The snag of course was when it emerged, he could not play the first games due to a suspension carried off from the French league which United did not know about and tried to blame Malmo for not disclosing!
When he eventually played, he was superb in the first home game against Blackburn and this carried on with some hugely impressive showings – including his ability to get goals as he registered his first v Sunderland and then two more against Reading. He could get forward and like Bash in his prime, was like another attacker as he surged forward, capable of driving at defenders and/or beating men. He as solid defensively though and would not get pulled about. Tall but not huge in terms of physique but really strong as we saw in 50-50 challenges. He was one of the players who set the tone in an excellent start to the season. He regularly was getting or being nominated, for man of the match awards. The Sky pundits quickly earmarked him as one of the signings of the summer at this level and most were raving about him. It seemed a steal we had got him for 4 million and almost overnight after seeing a handful of games, you think we could have trebled our money at least!
We saw some flaws as he picked up some knocks (including an odd one where he was alleged to have got injured whilst away with his country Bosnia but Hecky and his national team manager had different accounts of what he had done and where he was!). He also did pick up bookings – lots of them and by the end of the season was a long way ahead of anyone else and had two suspensions. Some were deserved but some were just plain daft and sometimes his desire to get the ball or gamble saw him catch men and he conceded a few penalties in the same vein. He did have a spell out of the team around October and November and it was said he had contracted glandular fever which can take its toll out of players. After he was superb at home to Burnley, he then struggled at home to Rotherham and maybe it was taking its toll on him? He had a few patchier performances but was still good most games and we seemed to rarely lose when he did play.
After the World Cup, I felt his form did drop off and he had a number of games where he was ‘just’ average. Recall him getting ragged about a bit at Wrexham as we imploded second half and he tog caught out against Middlesbrough too. However, slowly he started to get back to the form he had showed and we saw more of the composed, ball playing centre back that made great blocks and tackles but used the ball so well too when coming out with it. He had a run of decent games and was fine in the cup semi-final and then another big goal and lovely volley in that West Brom game. Scored again v Preston to take his tally to 7 goals (6 in the league) all at the Lane and showed what a knack he has of reading the game, anticipating and his composure as a footballer.
Only 24, he seems a great lad (from the social media stuff United have done) with a great sense of humour and has fitted in brilliantly. You hope we can keep him moving forward but would not be surprised if other clubs are looking as, you do not get many defenders that defend, tackle, head it, cover across the back line, can play a few positions but is comfortable on the ball and can get forward and score/set up goals too! Got voted into the team of the year which was not a surprise as he looks the part in terms of his ability and the attributes I mentioned. Loses marks for the number of daft bookings he picked up and did have a chunk of time out of the team/dropped off for a period but overall, a superb debut season.
Grade B+ (Last season NA)
George Baldock, I wrote this time last season that despite him being superb against Forest at home and finishing the season, due to Bogle’s injury, that I expected Bogle to be the starter when he was fully fit as he had a really good season and offered us so much more going forward. We fast forward 12 months later and the opposite has happened. Granted Bogle was not fit to start the season and has had injuries, but so has Baldock. Now I think most Blades think we are a better side with Baldock at the right wing back position than Bogle. Baldock’s stats in terms of points/win possession are far better than Bogle. That is not to say both cannot have a role and hope Bogle can regain the form he had shown but I do have to give a great deal of credit to Baldock.
We had Freeman before and now Bogle and Baldock keeps proving how much he values the shirt. Whenever we have a rocky spell, he invariably gets put back in, if he was not already playing and we improve. His aggression, will to win and commitment are qualities as Blade we all love to see. Not quite sure how he has never had a red card though and gets booked a lot less than others (and maybe he should do!). Defensively he gets in good positions, rarely gets beat and stops crosses and is mostly tight to his man. He does the basics and just keeps his concentration. Boundless energy too he will get out and get forward and his fitness is excellent (granted missed some games due to various injuries this season) and is always an outlet/option when we are attacking – home and away.
Yes, his crossing and attacking output is still not what it should be considering how much of the ball he gets and the fantastic positions he gets in, but he has assisted and scored this season. His individual goal at Cardiff won the game. I scan over my ratings (not saying they are all right!) and he is another that gets 6-7/10 nearly every single week with few outliers higher or lower. You just know what you are going to go. Like a few others, Egan, Norwood, Sharp – just good pros that you need to have in a promotion chasing side.
After we had that drop off, Baldock was put back in (had some injuries) and we became instantly more solid and competitive in things we did and he set such a good example with his no nonsense play and desire to win the battle. He was superb in some of the home games to close the season and that second half v West Brom was completely inspirational winning tackles, bursting forward and showing such desire – that makes him such a favourite. He soaked up the scenes at the end and one who is rapidly becoming part of the folklore of this remarkable spell for the club and another that will never be forgotten for what he has accomplished.
I look at some of the other players that amble around at clubs – some may have more talent than Baldock – but I actually would not swap him for many in his position at this level. He might not have the flair and offensive output of others but we do not concede many goals rarely get carved open (yes had spells this season where teams went through us but it probably not a co-incident that he was not always starting these games we conceded 3’s?) Showed he can do a job on the left side too and just someone who rarely lets the side down. You need players like him to be successful at this level.
Also, now a regular with Greece and hoping this has enhanced his game and confidence that he is very much a very good Championship (and even Premier League wing back – he did ok their last time). Has another year on his contract but decent athlete who runs all day and I would be looking to tie him down to a new deal as at 30, he is right in his prime. I hope Bogle can improve the weak areas of his game and stay fitter and be more consistent as undoubtedly there is a player there that can do things that Baldock cannot do but at the moment I have no issue with Baldock starting the next campaign here and see other positions as being much more of a priority short term.
Grade B+ (Last season C)
