De Jong

[Dax777]

Once again, De Jong is excellent what he does. The slow build-up is not his fault - there are two other spots in midfield taken by two players who are supposed to offer things going forward. Therefore, in any functioning top team, one of those spots would normally be taken by someone very inventive or creative.

I am with you here, even though we haven't broached the topic yet :)

Makelele was exactly the same, he offered very little outside of what he did -break up play, win the ball, give it to someone more creative - and he was eventually celebrated around the world after being quite unappreciated for some years.

Finally!!! You touched on it. The highlighted part is what De Jong doesn't do. No question he breaks up play (even if he does it less often than he gets credit for), no question he wins the ball (even if he doesn't do it at a higher rate than the often slated Barry), but what he often fails to do is give it to someone more creative. Well if we are being technical, he does give it to someone more creative a lot, Kompany!!! But shaite, that was not who most have in mind when we want to attack. Barry, Yaya, and Silva are often starved of the ball, because De Jong gives it too often back to the CD's. And this is when there is no pressure. Today was even good, because Kompany knowing the Kyivites were more interested in holding a lead, made a conscious choice to get up field more. But on days when it is an even game, and De Jong does this, Komps has no choice but to go back to Hart :(

De Jong is the closest thing to Makelele in the Premier League now. The problem and solution are very, very simple. Add someone like Wesley Sneijder or a talented alternative and we have lift-off. De Jong protects the back four and breaks up play regularly, feeds the ball to either the ingenius Sneijder type or the Yaya Toure type who sits fairly deep with De Jong but contributes more going forward.

Perhaps! But that is not the issue is it? And as for the problem and solution. You are right, we could get someone like Sneidjer and bench Toure, or get someone like Montolivo and Bench Barry.
Or we could get someone like Busquet/Xabi Alonso with vision of his own, and bench De Jong. Someone taler who could win more challenges in the air. Someone faster who could get to more balls without having to slide tackle for a yellow card, or someone who could pick out other midfielders with utmost ease, and not have them track all the way back into our half so often. See!! There are many ways to fix the problem, and they all should be on the table. The problem here is that most love De Jong so much and want to take that option off the table.

With all that said, De Jong is more skillful than he gets credit for. Did anyone see those little turns he did tonight that drew a couple of pretty nasty fouls on him? And his forward balls are surprisingly direct and often go between two opposing players to a target like Silva so he in fact could potentially do more than just add insurance for our back four (which not-so-coincidental always looks less shaky when he is in front of them).

This is what makes a ot of his decisions quite annoying! It is not as if he is like Lescott who genuinely has no ball skill in his bone. De Jong was an AM for crying out loud. He played Right wing, support striker and AM long before he became this new age limited DM. Just watch when he actually tries to pass forward, it is crisp and on point. He just chooses not to try!!! :(

Statistically speaking we get better results with him in the team than without him, which is probably a better argument for his inclusion than any other I could make.

Are we?

 

[Balti]

NDJ in not creative midfielder shocker

 

[Dax777]

NDJ in not creative midfielder shocker

Again! Nice try, but no one asked that he becomes Silva. You guys make it seem like there are only 2 points between mostly passing it back, and being a creative genius.

It is a sorry argument to say the least! Inler, Assamoah, Benrahmi, Essien, Song, Tiote, Huddlestone, Felliani. Research them! None of them are defense splitting SIlva's.

 

[salfordblues]

Will anyone from the anti De Jong brigade answer this question:

What do you make of the direct correlation between the games in which De Jong plays and the number of games which we win.

Also, what do you make of the correlation between the number of games when De jong is missing and the number of games we lose (everton H, United A are two examples)

 

[oakiecokie]

Such a stupid post, have you took note when he has been injured and not in the team? What a fucking difference it makes when hes in the team?
Gives his all, win's countless number of balls back a game, fantastic at intercepting/tackling
First name on the team sheet.. jesus

Apart from he wins less tackles than Barry, makes less interceptions.

Very poor today.

Fuck me heres a novelty !!
Sabster saying Nige is crap !!!

 

[DD]

Will anyone from the anti De Jong brigade answer this question:

What do you make of the direct correlation between the games in which De Jong plays and the number of games which we win.

Also, what do you make of the correlation between the number of games when De jong is missing and the number of games we lose (everton H, United A are two examples)

You will have to give me the stats here. I don't think there is a massive difference either way.

I do think, and have done for a long while, as many on here will testify, that when he wins the ball, he totally ruins the chance of a quick attack by either knocking it 45 degrees backwards or by pondering too much before a pass forwards.

I was watching TV the other day about a bloke called George Mallory. There is debate about whether he was the first to climb Everest or not. As Edmund Hillary counteracted. "it makes no difference whether he made it or not, it doesn't count unless he made it back". That's De Jong for me. He does the first bit perfectly, yet the second bit's failure means that the first bit might as well never have happened.

He's a limited player that the real big clubs in this world, Barca, Real, dare I say it, United, Chelsea, Inter etc would never touch with a barge pole.

 

[oakiecokie]

Will anyone from the anti De Jong brigade answer this question:

What do you make of the direct correlation between the games in which De Jong plays and the number of games which we win.

Also, what do you make of the correlation between the number of games when De jong is missing and the number of games we lose (everton H, United A are two examples)

You will have to give me the stats here. I don't think there is a massive difference either way.

I do think, and have done for a long while, as many on here will testify, that when he wins the ball, he totally ruins the chance of a quick attack by either knocking it 45 degrees backwards or by pondering too much before a pass forwards.

I was watching TV the other day about a bloke called George Mallory. There is debate about whether he was the first to climb Everest or not. As Edmund Hillary counteracted. "it makes no difference whether he made it or not, it doesn't count unless he made it back". That's De Jong for me. He does the first bit perfectly, yet the second bit's failure means that the first bit might as well never have happened.

He's a limited player that the real big clubs in this world, Barca, Real, dare I say it, United, Chelsea, Inter etc would never touch with a barge pole.[/quote]

Good !!
In that case long may he stay at Eastlands !!

 

[Freestyler]

Before we blame de jong for our 'slow buildup play'

what other candidates do we have?

Barry - lead boots, it's like he's running in treacle, even i would fancy myself against him in a 100metre sprint.

Y.Toure - only quick when facing the direction he want's to go.

so there's our 2 main midfielder's who responsible and between them they can't do.

hence the reason we need a sneijder/gerrard/iniesta/lampard type midfielder.

Milner at the moment is the only replacement we can offer to our midfield, we miss MJ, he's exactly what were crying out for at the moment.

De Jong breaks up the play, dictates the play even when the opposition have the ball, just does just as much off the ball as he does on it if you watch carefully.

so what if de jong isn't super quick in attacks, that's not his job is it ffs.

 

[Ticket For Schalke]

This is why being at the matches ten·fold, guarentee that the ones who are claiming what a great player he is and how influential he is watch at the ground, ones who only claim he passes side ways watch on tele, De Jongs passing his improved greatly.

On a side note, there number 9 wouldnt go near the ball in the second half if nige was even 10 metres away, due to him giving him a few digs, you dont get to know this watching on the tele.

 

[persvenality cult]

Will anyone from the anti De Jong brigade answer this question:

What do you make of the direct correlation between the games in which De Jong plays and the number of games which we win.

Also, what do you make of the correlation between the number of games when De jong is missing and the number of games we lose (everton H, United A are two examples)

Wolves A, Poznan A, Kiev A

Think Arsenal H, Villa A, Sunderland A are the only games we've lost with him on the pitch.