David Silva

[gordondaviesmoustache]

It's amazing how much confidence we can get from seeing us turn up and play to our capabilities. I'd have written Wednesday off before yesterday but knowing how well this team can play when fully focused and at near full strength means there's always a chance.

I've got a good feeling about Wednesday fwiw (absolutely fuck all!)

 

[Phil1]

I've got a good feeling about Wednesday fwiw (absolutely fuck all!)

Just to have a good feeling is an improvement on how it's been recently.

 

[OB1]

I must have missed all this 'legwork' that KDB has put in this year. I've seen top quality deliveries from set pieces and I've seen some great crosses, magical assists and sublime finishes. The 'legwork' part though, I'm not so sure.

I think you will find that KDB's distance covered stats are among the best in the team: he runs 0.7km more than Dave per game. That doesn't prove he will adapt better to the work rate that Pep will want but it certainly does not indicate he won't. KDB is also younger and may have more in the tank.

The bottom line is that a lot of players will be asked testing questions by Pep's approach but we don't know how far Pep will adjust what he does to suit his new environment. We do know that the norm has been high levels of commitment and discipline, including positional discipline, so Dave is likely to have to adapt in a number of ways. Therefore, I don't think it is unreasonable to question whether Silva will adapt and prosper under Pep; what would be wrong, IMO, would be to think you know the answer. I'm very much 50:50 in terms of opinion on Dave and Yaya about whether they will stay / Pep will wan them. Both though remain ubder contract so if they choose to stay, I trust Pep will give them their chance and they will do what he demands.

 

[balotelli's back pocket]

Hart
Zaba Kompany Laporte Willems
Pogba Gundogan Silva
Kdb Aguero Sterling

 

[Phil1]

I think you will find that KDB's distance covered stats are among the best in the team: he runs 0.7km more than Dave per game. That doesn't prove he will adapt better to the work rate that Pep will want but it certainly does not indicate he won't. KDB is also younger and may have more in the tank.

The bottom line is that a lot of players will be asked testing questions by Pep's approach but we don't know how far Pep will adjust what he does to suit his new environment. We do know that the norm has been high levels of commitment and discipline, including positional discipline, so Dave is likely to have to adapt in a number of ways. Therefore, I don't think it is unreasonable to question whether Silva will adapt and prosper under Pep; what would be wrong, IMO, would be to think you know the answer. I'm very much 50:50 in terms of opinion on Dave and Yaya about whether they will stay / Pep will wan them. Both though remain ubder contract so if they choose to stay, I trust Pep will give them their chance and they will do what he demands.

I knew if anyone had the numbers it would be you! :-)
There's nothing wrong with any of what you've said.

 

[Benarbia]

He played well today because the burden of creativity was split. When it's just him he has struggled his season

 

[Scaring Europe to Death]

Granted, the two players you mention are more prolific goalscorers than Silva. That oversimplifies things hugely though.

Silva has a reputation is Spain for going into his shell when things things aren't going well. That remains his one weakness, and probably explains why he doesn't get as many goals as he should.
That's not to say that I don't rate him, or think that he's finished.

 

[Jack74]

no one can touch the one and only....

There was a better goal in that game , it was scored in first minute

 

[fatbloke]

Silva is one of the best players in world football. There's very few players who can come to play football in this country without any real pace or physical power and influence and dominate games like Merlin can, the only two I can think of recently are Bergkamp and Zola. Combine that with winning every domestic trophy and every international trophy you can possibly win and I think it shows just how good the little fella is. When he eventually retires or goes to play back home I don't think there's a genuine football fan in this country (rag and scouse scum excluded) who wouldn't give him a standing ovation in a similar fashion to what we did when Zola was leaving.

At 30 with his slight build and a game based on anything but explosiveness I don't think he's anywhere near finished yet, injury permitting.

 

[BillyShears]

I think you will find that KDB's distance covered stats are among the best in the team: he runs 0.7km more than Dave per game. That doesn't prove he will adapt better to the work rate that Pep will want but it certainly does not indicate he won't. KDB is also younger and may have more in the tank.

The bottom line is that a lot of players will be asked testing questions by Pep's approach but we don't know how far Pep will adjust what he does to suit his new environment. We do know that the norm has been high levels of commitment and discipline, including positional discipline, so Dave is likely to have to adapt in a number of ways. Therefore, I don't think it is unreasonable to question whether Silva will adapt and prosper under Pep; what would be wrong, IMO, would be to think you know the answer. I'm very much 50:50 in terms of opinion on Dave and Yaya about whether they will stay / Pep will wan them. Both though remain ubder contract so if they choose to stay, I trust Pep will give them their chance and they will do what he demands.

There's a quote that Soriano made recently about Pep liking a small squad with "established hierarchies". I think that's a very telling comment and will go some way to answering whether we'll keep a lot of the big names around as their star wanes a little.