Jeremy Doku

[St.Pauli support]

I'm a bit confused, as I see quite the opposite to a Pep player in available video footage and the written glorification of @Belgian Flash.

Pace, trickery and ball control on one side, no end product and not much interest to pass the ball om the other side. Then there is the doubtful injury history that was waved away a bit too easy for me.

And then there's the simple question why the next Messi(ah) is still at Rennes. I'm not convinced, but I admit the market is very tight for proper alternatives. I trust our scouting.

 

[JewelZee]

I am sorry, do you think city has 1 target in every position and if that doesn't go right they just give up? No, they keep a list in case something go wrong and have a number of alternatives. Of course city keep their options open in case something goes wrong, because football deals involve so many factors. You are just trying to move the goalposts because you made a wrong claim and don't want to admit it. In fact you are doubling down on the wrong claim and now claim he said "We might be moving on", which again, nowhere near.

I can't get worked up over this. I'm going to have to pull an Arthur Fonzarelli...

 

[Tugay One Cup]

I'm a bit confused, as I see quite the opposite to a Pep player in available video footage and the written glorification of @Belgian Flash.

Pace, trickery and ball control on one side, no end product and not much interest to pass the ball om the other side. Then there is the doubtful injury history that was waved away a bit too easy for me.

I get what what you're saying but every year we seem to get comments about players we're linked with saying that they don't look like a Pep player.

Plus, what would a compilation of those attributes even look like? A bunch of clips of a player putting their foot on the ball and playing a simple sideways pass during a counter attack in the 85th minute?

 

[JewelZee]

 

[Belgian Flash]

Quality post.

Couple of questions

1. Does he track back?

2. Can he do it on a cold, wet Wednesday night in December at Luton away?

1. He does. Being more of a wing midfielder/playmaker than a wing goalscoring forward, he also has defensive responsibilities for Rennes, but he is disciplined in fulfilling them. Helps out the fullback often but he doesn't have the defensive movement instinct and reaction time he has on offense, so he will get beat in half of the situations. I think its a concentration issue, he does what he has to but it feels like he doesn't have the same cognitive engagement and determination when he defends as when he attacks. I think its normal tbh. His feel and anticipation makes him a good pass interceptor though.

2. Is Luton the new Stoke? Don't worry, most nights in France are also cold and wet too. He does have off games but I'd say the times when he's really nullified are very few and far between. Sometimes defenses really focus on him so they overload the right wing and force him into backpasses. With all the threats City has I doubt this will happen, but this is where more tactical guidance would definitely be beneficial for him: how to move between the lines, roam more smartly and get open with short off the ball runs.

Looks full of tricks but just ends up either losing it or passing it backwards

When an option doesn't present itself he does pass it backward. But its very rare that he misses a clear passing option due to head down dribbling, so its most often a good decision to do that. Hes not going to force the issue if its a dead end, which IMO is a good trait.

Be aware though that these comps that appeared on Youtube since City locked in on him include clips from a few years back when he was a slightly different player. This one is probably the best one with most recent footage and displaying relevant actions:




Thank feck he isn't going to Barca!

 

[St.Pauli support]

I get what what you're saying but every year we seem to get comments about players we're linked with saying that they don't look like a Pep player.

Plus, what would a compilation of those attributes even look like? A bunch of clips of a player putting their foot on the ball and playing a simple sideways pass during a counter attack in the 85th minute?

I didn't say that about Kova, Gvardiol or Paquetá as there's an obvious difference.

You and me have enough experience to know that a nice pacey show pony without a precise cross or finish at the end of his trickery is quite useless and would Pep make mad.

Anyway, I'm just not convinced enough to jump on that party wagon. We'll see.

 

[Tugay One Cup]

I didn't say that about Kova, Gvardiol or Paquetá as there's an obvious difference.

You and me have enough experience to know that a nice pacey show pony without a precise cross or finish at the end of his trickery is quite useless and would Pep make mad.

Anyway, I'm just not convinced enough to jump on that party wagon. We'll see.

Yeah again I get that but none of those players you mentioned were wingers. What people want to see from wingers on YouTube is them skinning a fullback for ten minutes. Especially when the player in question is one of the best in the world at it.

I'm not expecting him to be the finished article or anything. He's 21 and has plenty of time to acclimatise to Pep's needs, the same way everyone else has to.

 

[OB1]

Whereas we haven't played with pace out wide since Sterling and Sane left though Foden is not slow pace remains a valuable attribute in football it makes some tactics such as a playing a high line against us much more difficult and it gives any player a bit of margin both going forward and if they have made an error covering back.
Someone with pace will always be more valuable than a player with a similar skill set but lacking in pace.

Foden can move quickly with the ball, in a way not many can. If this kid comes in, he and Phil could give defences headaches for years to come.

 

[Chi-town blues]

I'm a bit confused, as I see quite the opposite to a Pep player in available video footage and the written glorification of @Belgian Flash.

Pace, trickery and ball control on one side, no end product and not much interest to pass the ball om the other side. Then there is the doubtful injury history that was waved away a bit too easy for me.

And then there's the simple question why the next Messi(ah) is still at Rennes. I'm not convinced, but I admit the market is very tight for proper alternatives. I trust our scouting.

I see where you are coming from but I wonder how do you classify “pep‘s player ”? I see this cheap phrase thrown around a lot here but never really understood the logic behind it .Ex players under pep has different views and contradicts this very claim. So far we know pep gives freedom to players to express themselves especially inside the box . Pep like wingers to rub sideline paint on their boots and maintain each designated position and also pep loves player who demands ball and not shy away from it.As long as the player is talented , pep will work wonders but I can’t imagine txiki and co looking for that specific “pep player” like needle in hay stack.

 

[Cityfan]

1. He does. Being more of a wing midfielder/playmaker than a wing goalscoring forward, he also has defensive responsibilities for Rennes, but he is disciplined in fulfilling them. Helps out the fullback often but he doesn't have the defensive movement instinct and reaction time he has on offense, so he will get beat in half of the situations. I think its a concentration issue, he does what he has to but it feels like he doesn't have the same cognitive engagement and determination when he defends as when he attacks. I think its normal tbh. His feel and anticipation makes him a good pass interceptor though.

2. Is Luton the new Stoke? Don't worry, most nights in France are also cold and wet too. He does have off games but I'd say the times when he's really nullified are very few and far between. Sometimes defenses really focus on him so they overload the right wing and force him into backpasses. With all the threats City has I doubt this will happen, but this is where more tactical guidance would definitely be beneficial for him: how to move between the lines, roam more smartly and get open with short off the ball runs.


When an option doesn't present itself he does pass it backward. But its very rare that he misses a clear passing option due to head down dribbling, so its most often a good decision to do that. Hes not going to force the issue if its a dead end, which IMO is a good trait.

Be aware though that these comps that appeared on Youtube since City locked in on him include clips from a few years back when he was a slightly different player. This one is probably the best one with most recent footage and displaying relevant actions:




Thank feck he isn't going to Barca!

Two very interesting posts and thanks very much for taking the time to post them. Hope he comes and can show the attributes in the premier league / champions league you have seen in him elsewhere.