Marcos Lopes

[BigOscar]

Spent the first 5 minutes after being brought on just running into trouble and getting tackled, but once he settled down and stopped trying so hard he looked like the only Lille player likely to do anything. Took good corners, nearly scored but for a good block and at least was willing to run at people. The whole Lille team looked like they'd given up by that point though, strolling around, not even trying to get back in the game.

I have to completely disagree with everything Neville said. He works incredibly hard off the ball, tracks back well and is always on the move, floating all over the pitch. He could make more runs into the box off the ball, but he seems happy enough to hang back to run with the ball from deep or wait outside the box waiting for pullbacks. Also, he clearly does have an eye for an incisive pass, he's constantly trying to slip people in and usually has a great weight on his passes, I'd say that was one of the major assets of his game. To suggest he isn't dynamic is very odd, I can't see how you could think that? It's probably one of the first words I'd use to describe him, especially when he picks th ball up from deep and starts running at people.

For me, the thing he needs to work on most is being more authoritative, demanding the ball from people like Silva does and being the hub of the attack. Other than that he just needs to sharpen up his decision making and calm down a bit. He still looks like he's a bit to keen to impress, but that's to be expected at his point, especially with a manager who seems so keen to drop him.

I'm saying that because in the last few games for Lille, all of the other players have worked harder off the ball than Lopes. It's pretty clear what I said, not that he can't run at people (he is excellent at it) but that he needs to put in more effort when he doesn't have the ball & move around more. I am not saying he can't pass the ball, I'm saying he is not at all on the level of a Silva when it comes to playing a through ball, & even if he was, he hasn't been doing that for Lille. He has been getting caught on the ball a fair bit & some of his passing has not been great.

He has been unusually immobile at times compared to what I would expect from him.

You are now doing with Lopes, exaclty what you do with Rekik. You are describing what you THINK his assets are, rather than being thuthful about what he is actually producing, on the pitch, right now.

I am watching him carefully & weighing up what he is actually producing on the pitch so far this season & where he needs to improve, not what I saw him do last year in the reserves. That is now gone. We are looking to what happens next.

So we should ignore the hours and hours of football we've seen from him and declare that he isn't going to make it because he's a lazy stroller, based on two hours of football based across about 6 sub appearances? In almost every single appearance he's made for Lille so far, he has been brought on and clearly told to play a free role and try and make something happen in attack. He's been brought on to try and inject some attacking intent to what has been a dreadfully defensive side, so I doubt he's being told to track back. And he has done that, every time he's come on he's looked like the man to potentially change things with his directness. Yes, he has been tackled more often that you'd like and tried to force a few incisive passes that aren't on, but that's clearly because he's trying to force things and impress. All the Lille fans seem pretty keen on him and see him as their main potential difference maker. I think most people watching him realise that he's too keen to impress and he'll settle down when he settles in and knows his place in the team.

You are the one doing to Lopes what you've done to Rekik, as in being a miserable git who only looks for the faults in our youngsters, for reasons that aren't altogether clear. Saying his passing is not at Silva's level is just a bizarre criticism. His dribbling isn't at Messi's level yet either and his heading isn't even close to John Terry's. Are you honestly expecting our young players to have as good passing and vision as the most incisive passer in world football? If you are then it might explain why you are so critical of our young players.

I don't know why I bother responding to you tbh, you've clearly decided it's your job to be the forums pessimist, who's job is to ensure that no one gets excited about any of our young players or their future prospects. I know exactly what you are going to say anyway. I'm sure you'll repsond with your default "I thought the forum was for people to honestly say how bad our players actually are" bollocks that you usually do. Anyhow, untill the forum adds an ignore function, I guess I'll just have to work harder at skipping over your negative shite.

 

[Chi-town blues]

I just got to catch the last 10 mins or so. How many minutes did he get? I hope he gets enough playing time and develop .

He only played the last 15 minutes, he got brought on as soon as Porto killed off the tie with their second goal.

So I didn't miss much .By that time his team had already raised their hands.Gutted for him... wish he had buried that shot.

 

[Chi-town blues]

Spent the first 5 minutes after being brought on just running into trouble and getting tackled, but once he settled down and stopped trying so hard he looked like the only Lille player likely to do anything. Took good corners, nearly scored but for a good block and at least was willing to run at people. The whole Lille team looked like they'd given up by that point though, strolling around, not even trying to get back in the game.

I have to completely disagree with everything Neville said. He works incredibly hard off the ball, tracks back well and is always on the move, floating all over the pitch. He could make more runs into the box off the ball, but he seems happy enough to hang back to run with the ball from deep or wait outside the box waiting for pullbacks. Also, he clearly does have an eye for an incisive pass, he's constantly trying to slip people in and usually has a great weight on his passes, I'd say that was one of the major assets of his game. To suggest he isn't dynamic is very odd, I can't see how you could think that? It's probably one of the first words I'd use to describe him, especially when he picks th ball up from deep and starts running at people.

For me, the thing he needs to work on most is being more authoritative, demanding the ball from people like Silva does and being the hub of the attack. Other than that he just needs to sharpen up his decision making and calm down a bit. He still looks like he's a bit to keen to impress, but that's to be expected at his point, especially with a manager who seems so keen to drop him.

I'm saying that because in the last few games for Lille, all of the other players have worked harder off the ball than Lopes. It's pretty clear what I said, not that he can't run at people (he is excellent at it) but that he needs to put in more effort when he doesn't have the ball & move around more. I am not saying he can't pass the ball, I'm saying he is not at all on the level of a Silva when it comes to playing a through ball, & even if he was, he hasn't been doing that for Lille. He has been getting caught on the ball a fair bit & some of his passing has not been great.

He has been unusually immobile at times compared to what I would expect from him.

You are now doing with Lopes, exaclty what you do with Rekik. You are describing what you THINK his assets are, rather than being thuthful about what he is actually producing, on the pitch, right now.

I am watching him carefully & weighing up what he is actually producing on the pitch so far this season & where he needs to improve, not what I saw him do last year in the reserves. That is now gone. We are looking to what happens next.

So we should ignore the hours and hours of football we've seen from him and declare that he isn't going to make it because he's a lazy stroller, based on two hours of football based across about 6 sub appearances? In almost every single appearance he's made for Lille so far, he has been brought on and clearly told to play a free role and try and make something happen in attack. He's been brought on to try and inject some attacking intent to what has been a dreadfully defensive side, so I doubt he's being told to track back. And he has done that, every time he's come on he's looked like the man to potentially change things with his directness. Yes, he has been tackled more often that you'd like and tried to force a few incisive passes that aren't on, but that's clearly because he's trying to force things and impress. All the Lille fans seem pretty keen on him and see him as their main potential difference maker. I think most people watching him realise that he's too keen to impress and he'll settle down when he settles in and knows his place in the team.

You are the one doing to Lopes what you've done to Rekik, as in being a miserable git who only looks for the faults in our youngsters, for reasons that aren't altogether clear. Saying his passing is not at Silva's level is just a bizarre criticism. His dribbling isn't at Messi's level yet either and his heading isn't even close to John Terry's. Are you honestly expecting our young players to have as good passing and vision as the most incisive passer in world football? If you are then it might explain why you are so critical of our young players.

I don't know why I bother responding to you tbh, you've clearly decided it's your job to be the forums pessimist, who's job is to ensure that no one gets excited about any of our young players or their future prospects. I know exactly what you are going to say anyway. I'm sure you'll repsond with your default "I thought the forum was for people to honestly say how bad our players actually are" bollocks that you usually do. Anyhow, untill the forum adds an ignore function, I guess I'll just have to work harder at skipping over your negative shite.

Spot on .

 

[Neville Kneville]

I'm saying that because in the last few games for Lille, all of the other players have worked harder off the ball than Lopes. It's pretty clear what I said, not that he can't run at people (he is excellent at it) but that he needs to put in more effort when he doesn't have the ball & move around more. I am not saying he can't pass the ball, I'm saying he is not at all on the level of a Silva when it comes to playing a through ball, & even if he was, he hasn't been doing that for Lille. He has been getting caught on the ball a fair bit & some of his passing has not been great.

He has been unusually immobile at times compared to what I would expect from him.

You are now doing with Lopes, exaclty what you do with Rekik. You are describing what you THINK his assets are, rather than being thuthful about what he is actually producing, on the pitch, right now.

I am watching him carefully & weighing up what he is actually producing on the pitch so far this season & where he needs to improve, not what I saw him do last year in the reserves. That is now gone. We are looking to what happens next.

So we should ignore the hours and hours of football we've seen from him and declare that he isn't going to make it because he's a lazy stroller, based on two hours of football based across about 6 sub appearances? In almost every single appearance he's made for Lille so far, he has been brought on and clearly told to play a free role and try and make something happen in attack. He's been brought on to try and inject some attacking intent to what has been a dreadfully defensive side, so I doubt he's being told to track back. And he has done that, every time he's come on he's looked like the man to potentially change things with his directness. Yes, he has been tackled more often that you'd like and tried to force a few incisive passes that aren't on, but that's clearly because he's trying to force things and impress. All the Lille fans seem pretty keen on him and see him as their main potential difference maker. I think most people watching him realise that he's too keen to impress and he'll settle down when he settles in and knows his place in the team.

You are the one doing to Lopes what you've done to Rekik, as in being a miserable git who only looks for the faults in our youngsters, for reasons that aren't altogether clear. Saying his passing is not at Silva's level is just a bizarre criticism. His dribbling isn't at Messi's level yet either and his heading isn't even close to John Terry's. Are you honestly expecting our young players to have as good passing and vision as the most incisive passer in world football? If you are then it might explain why you are so critical of our young players.

I don't know why I bother responding to you tbh, you've clearly decided it's your job to be the forums pessimist, who's job is to ensure that no one gets excited about any of our young players or their future prospects. I know exactly what you are going to say anyway. I'm sure you'll repsond with your default "I thought the forum was for people to honestly say how bad our players actually are" bollocks that you usually do. Anyhow, untill the forum adds an ignore function, I guess I'll just have to work harder at skipping over your negative shite.

Spot on .

You can both fuck right off.

I am using Silva as an example of a player with a certain talent. No way would I expect Lopes to be at his level. We have kids at City who show signs of possibly being that kind of player. Lopes isn't one of them, he is a different kind of player. If you can't see that, you are even more of a clueless, myopic cheerleader than I thought you were.

I don't expect any young player to have a touch like Silva & I don't expect Rekik to be able to head the ball like John Terry. I expect he will need to become that kind of hard, good in the air, crafty player Terry is if he is to make it, as he is too small & far too slow to be a dominating player like Vince or Lescott. So far he shows no signs of becoming that player. He has nothing that most other clubs reserve team cbs don't have other than he is a bit better on the ball than some of them. Most of his rep, is made up, by people like you, who suck his dick on one thread, then viciously attack Boyata on another.

Lopes is a different matter altogether. He has everything to become a really top player. Pace, skill, a vicious shot, intelligence, a decent eye for a pass, the ability to score goals, cross, take free kicks both direct & delivered & the ABILITY to be a real grafter like Tevez as well.

Has he been doing the last bit for Lille ? NO HE FUCKING HASN'T. He's had some nice touches, set up one or two chances, took some nice free kicks & corners & one shot that was like a missile. But off the ball, HE IS CAPABLE OF MUCH BETTER.

I rate Lopes very highly & am commenting on improvements i believe he can make THIS SEASON, NOW, to get him into our first team squad for next season. If he doesn't do it & gets into the habit of coasting, rather than going full on,, I fear he may miss out at City as our standards are very high & we demand a lot.

I believe he can play for City & is the best player at Lille, suffering from playing next to poor quality players but I want to see him dominate the game, I want to see him work harder than them & get stuck in more as well as outclassing them at football. I want to see him take this chance & make the best out of it he possibly can. He can do it, he has everything he needs.

What he did in the reserves no longer matters. The reality of Lopes as a footballer is what he does from now on.

 

[JoeMercer'sWay]

It's August.

 

[twosips]

I think mistakes are likely, and to be understood, but i do think there's an element of truth in what Kneville's saying. I watched his game the other night, not the champs league one, and i found that he was hiding a little. Thought he needed to be a bit more proactive in seeking out ways to get himself involved. I'm putting it down to mass confusion and a little bit of nervousness but it is something he'll have to learn.

 

[JoeMercer'sWay]

I think mistakes are likely, and to be understood, but i do think there's an element of truth in what Kneville's saying. I watched his game the other night, not the champs league one, and i found that he was hiding a little. Thought he needed to be a bit more proactive in seeking out ways to get himself involved. I'm putting it down to mass confusion and a little bit of nervousness but it is something he'll have to learn.

Like I said, it's August, he still needs to settle in, find his feet in a new country and adjust to a whole manner of things, including likely different training styles, language, culture, the fact its his first loan etc. The reality is until the manager has the faith to put him in for longer spells and regularly from the start, he will perhaps struggle to quite stamp his authority on the side, but I've no doubt that over a season, because of his talent and generally solid attitude, that he'll begin to make an impression, whether it ends up being enough for us who knows, but I think we shouldn't get ahead of ourselves either way.

 

[Chi-town blues]

So we should ignore the hours and hours of football we've seen from him and declare that he isn't going to make it because he's a lazy stroller, based on two hours of football based across about 6 sub appearances? In almost every single appearance he's made for Lille so far, he has been brought on and clearly told to play a free role and try and make something happen in attack. He's been brought on to try and inject some attacking intent to what has been a dreadfully defensive side, so I doubt he's being told to track back. And he has done that, every time he's come on he's looked like the man to potentially change things with his directness. Yes, he has been tackled more often that you'd like and tried to force a few incisive passes that aren't on, but that's clearly because he's trying to force things and impress. All the Lille fans seem pretty keen on him and see him as their main potential difference maker. I think most people watching him realise that he's too keen to impress and he'll settle down when he settles in and knows his place in the team.

You are the one doing to Lopes what you've done to Rekik, as in being a miserable git who only looks for the faults in our youngsters, for reasons that aren't altogether clear. Saying his passing is not at Silva's level is just a bizarre criticism. His dribbling isn't at Messi's level yet either and his heading isn't even close to John Terry's. Are you honestly expecting our young players to have as good passing and vision as the most incisive passer in world football? If you are then it might explain why you are so critical of our young players.

I don't know why I bother responding to you tbh, you've clearly decided it's your job to be the forums pessimist, who's job is to ensure that no one gets excited about any of our young players or their future prospects. I know exactly what you are going to say anyway. I'm sure you'll repsond with your default "I thought the forum was for people to honestly say how bad our players actually are" bollocks that you usually do. Anyhow, untill the forum adds an ignore function, I guess I'll just have to work harder at skipping over your negative shite.

Spot on .

You can both fuck right off.

I am using Silva as an example of a player with a certain talent. No way would I expect Lopes to be at his level. We have kids at City who show signs of possibly being that kind of player. Lopes isn't one of them, he is a different kind of player. If you can't see that, you are even more of a clueless, myopic cheerleader than I thought you were.

I don't expect any young player to have a touch like Silva & I don't expect Rekik to be able to head the ball like John Terry. I expect he will need to become that kind of hard, good in the air, crafty player Terry is if he is to make it, as he is too small & far too slow to be a dominating player like Vince or Lescott. So far he shows no signs of becoming that player. He has nothing that most other clubs reserve team cbs don't have other than he is a bit better on the ball than some of them. Most of his rep, is made up, by people like you, who suck his dick on one thread, then viciously attack Boyata on another.

Lopes is a different matter altogether. He has everything to become a really top player. Pace, skill, a vicious shot, intelligence, a decent eye for a pass, the ability to score goals, cross, take free kicks both direct & delivered & the ABILITY to be a real grafter like Tevez as well.

Has he been doing the last bit for Lille ? NO HE FUCKING HASN'T. .

Ok football God You need to stop RIGTH THERE!

 

[Neville Kneville]

I think mistakes are likely, and to be understood, but i do think there's an element of truth in what Kneville's saying. I watched his game the other night, not the champs league one, and i found that he was hiding a little. Thought he needed to be a bit more proactive in seeking out ways to get himself involved. I'm putting it down to mass confusion and a little bit of nervousness but it is something he'll have to learn.

Like I said, it's August, he still needs to settle in, find his feet in a new country and adjust to a whole manner of things, including likely different training styles, language, culture, the fact its his first loan etc. The reality is until the manager has the faith to put him in for longer spells and regularly from the start, he will perhaps struggle to quite stamp his authority on the side, but I've no doubt that over a season, because of his talent and generally solid attitude, that he'll begin to make an impression, whether it ends up being enough for us who knows, but I think we shouldn't get ahead of ourselves either way.

I just think he can put a bit more in, even if he doesn't quite perform as well as he would like, he has plenty of time to improve in that respect, but I don't like to see him jogging sometimes when some of his team mates are sprinting past him to cover or to get into attacking positions. One attack they had on a breakaway the other day & Lopes wasn't in camera shot when the ball was delivered. He should have been on the edge of the box. Then when it was cleared, players who were in front of him, ran past him. I'm not saying he goes missing every time, but in his current situation he wouldn't of matched up to Sterling for workrate, on Monday for example. He can do more.

 

[Neville Kneville]

Spot on .

You can both fuck right off.

I am using Silva as an example of a player with a certain talent. No way would I expect Lopes to be at his level. We have kids at City who show signs of possibly being that kind of player. Lopes isn't one of them, he is a different kind of player. If you can't see that, you are even more of a clueless, myopic cheerleader than I thought you were.

I don't expect any young player to have a touch like Silva & I don't expect Rekik to be able to head the ball like John Terry. I expect he will need to become that kind of hard, good in the air, crafty player Terry is if he is to make it, as he is too small & far too slow to be a dominating player like Vince or Lescott. So far he shows no signs of becoming that player. He has nothing that most other clubs reserve team cbs don't have other than he is a bit better on the ball than some of them. Most of his rep, is made up, by people like you, who suck his dick on one thread, then viciously attack Boyata on another.

Lopes is a different matter altogether. He has everything to become a really top player. Pace, skill, a vicious shot, intelligence, a decent eye for a pass, the ability to score goals, cross, take free kicks both direct & delivered & the ABILITY to be a real grafter like Tevez as well.

Has he been doing the last bit for Lille ? NO HE FUCKING HASN'T. .

Ok football God You need to stop RIGTH THERE!

If you want to disagree & tell me I'm wrong, & that you think he's a shining example of workrate, fine, argue with it, if you just want to stop me from having any opinion, just go and fuck yourself.

I think he can work harder than he is doing. I've seen him do it before, & I'm fucking well going to say so.

And learn to spell.