With and without Sharp starting

[Revolution]

With: W8 D0 L2

Without: W0 D2 L2

 

[Stretch]

Can't argue with those stats. I suspect Chris had his reasons for starting Leon tonight though, and to be fair it almost worked. He gave Williams a right old scrap and after he scored you could see the confidence coming back.

I still expect Billy to start v Wigan, but having Clarke off the mark is a huge boost.

 

[NotFallowfieldBlade]

Thought Clarke played well tonight , but sharp would have scored those chances If he’d have been on the end of em

 

[dc_blade]

Clarke was excellent tonight. He gives us something different and there are aspects of his game that are actually better than Sharp. But finishing is not one of them, especially not in the form Billy is in at the moment. I hope to see Billy back in the team on Saturday but I'm pleased to see Leon playing well again because we will need him as the season progresses.

 

[Kryten]

For me the Sharp/Clarke debate only outlines how good McG is and how well he's integrated into the squad!

However Clarke had a great game tonight there's no doubt about that and I am very happy for him that he bagged one tonight.

Great performance from the lads despite a few mistakes, proud of this team and wouldn't swap em for anyone...especially Duffy, hes the engine of this squad and a legend!

 

[Pollingtonblade]

Why not play all 3 on Saturday it’s ridiculous the chances we are creating but not scoring

 

[SwissBlade]

Can't argue with those stats.

Stats don't tell the whole story

 

[Champagneblade]

If Duffy is not doing it, like he wasn’t on Saturday, forget Woodburn, could we get away with playing McGoldrick just behind Sharp and Clarke?

I think this is a better option than what either Woodburn or Washington have shown so far.

 

[More Bladier than thou]

Maybe sharp hasn’t been sharp in training, hence starting on the bench. You have to trust Wilder will start the strongest team.

 

[west_yorks_blade]

Clarke did ok. But don’t agree that he had a great game.

If he had, we would have had a better return for our dominance and chances. At least one of his missed chances would have been tucked away by Billy.

 

[United Aren't Back.]

Clarke was excellent tonight. He gives us something different and there are aspects of his game that are actually better than Sharp. But finishing is not one of them, especially not in the form Billy is in at the moment. I hope to see Billy back in the team on Saturday but I'm pleased to see Leon playing well again because we will need him as the season progresses.

Finishing was one of them last season if tallies are looked at.
What other way is Clarke better than Sharp?

 

[WORKSOPBLADE]

If Duffy is not doing it, like he wasn’t on Saturday, forget Woodburn, could we get away with playing McGoldrick just behind Sharp and Clarke?

I think this is a better option than what either Woodburn or Washington have shown so far.

Exactly what I wanted via subs last night !

 

[wizadry]

Not starting Sharp is like Spurs not starting Kane, Man City not starting Aguero, Liverpool not starting Salah and all the teams in the land not starting the player that wins them games of football, it really can’t be put any simpler, it’s baffling.

 

[Stretch]

Stats don't tell the whole story

That's true but they give a good indicator. Billy won't be the only reason we won those games but he is the striker in real goal scoring form. Huge goal for Clarke last night though, really chuffed for him and hopefully he kicks on again.

 

[Nade]

If Duffy is not doing it, like he wasn’t on Saturday, forget Woodburn, could we get away with playing McGoldrick just behind Sharp and Clarke?

I think this is a better option than what either Woodburn or Washington have shown so far.

I'd be interested in seeing this.

 

[Bergen Blade]

Wilder seemed to suggest Sharp needed a rest. He wasn't involved a lot on Saturday, noticed he made just ten passes for the time he was on (went off after 65 mins), two after half time. I think that's partly expected, given his role as a goal poacher, but he's normally a bit more active. He was in a good position a few times, but didn't get the ball. Hopefully he'll bounce back soon.

 

[wizadry]

Wilder seemed to suggest Sharp needed a rest. He wasn't involved a lot on Saturday, noticed he made just ten passes for the time he was on (went off after 65 mins), two after half time. I think that's partly expected, given his role as a goal poacher, but he's normally a bit more active. He was in a good position a few times, but didn't get the ball. Hopefully he'll bounce back soon.

The performance of Billy on Saturday wasn’t his own doing, our players were reluctant to play the ball into him on a number of occasions and his frustration was there for all to see. He had very poor service.

 

[Bergen Blade]

The performance of Billy on Saturday wasn’t his own doing, our players were reluctant to play the ball into him on a number of occasions and his frustration was there for all to see. He had very poor service.

I also saw him taking up some good positions in the box, but there will be games where we are unable to put it on a plate for him. If that's how he plays and he scores one every two games it will mean a good record for him, but also that we will play half our games with a player rarely involved and also not scoring. I think he's capable of getting more involved, and maybe a little rest is all he needs.

I think it's a huge plus if we can get Clarke going again. There were occasions yesterday where he showed he's rusty and not quite up to speed, but he also gave them problems, was a physical presence, won some headers and made six shots and obviously scored. We need contributions from all four strikers and I think Wilder will be trying to keep all of them involved. If we'd just gone with McGoldrick and Sharp all the time, then maybe lost both, we could find ourselves left with two strikers lacking match fitness, confidence and real understanding with their teammates.

 

[Dkc]

Guys, when I get conused about spelling, I just build a mental picture of the Blades players at a rave. Leon is "loved up" and dancing strangely, while Billy is acting straight and a little bored. Leon,"e", Billy "no e". Just like the name of our stadium. There's no "Hall" nearby. However "All" our home games are played there. Simples.

 

[wizadry]

If Sharp needed a rest then don’t put him on the bench at all, which rather suggests to me that he didn’t need a rest.

He only played an hour on Saturday, not touching the ball much due to our players not passing it to him in great areas. It’s up to Billy to find the space and our players to find him in it, well the former happened but the latter didn’t.

In short, I reckon Billy would’ve been as fresh as a daisy last night, he was warming up ferociously in the second half for a good 20 minutes in total, it was truly baffling that he chose Coutts instead of him to come on last night.

 

[Gimli]

Guys, when I get conused about spelling, I just build a mental picture of the Blades players at a rave. Leon is "loved up" and dancing strangely, while Billy is acting straight and a little bored. Leon,"e", Billy "no e". Just like the name of our stadium. There's no "Hall" nearby. However "All" our home games are played there. Simples.

When I get confused about spelling I just remember that Clarke is spelt Clarke and Sharp is spelt Sharp.

Simples.

 

[dc_blade]

What other way is Clarke better than Sharp?

He's better in the air, his pressing is more effective, and his link-up play is significantly better, in my opinion.

 

[Addison]

With: W8 D0 L2

Without: W0 D2 L2

Not one for stats but you can't get away from the fact that when Sharp and Duffy both start we have a similar win ratio. We have been behind only once this season when they have both started that was at Derby. When they went off the scores were level. They didn't start in the first two games which ended in defeats and in the other two they were substituted when the scores were level. Duffy plays better when he has Sharp in front of him making runs forward. Sharp to start on Saturday for me.