Pablo Maffeo - 2016/2017 Performances

[bondsman]

I think he should start Saturday. It's his spot to lose now imo. Love zab but his legs have gone and sagna can't be fit. I think this kid will seize the opportunity if it's given to him

 

[blueonblue]

My only regret is he aint the left back we so desperately need, an while it may be a little early in his progress to play every week he could rotate in quite easily.
He had Rashford in his f*cking pocket an had the better of Pogba more times than not, nice to see Pep running on to him first because the kid deserved to be singled out for the MOTM.

 

[super_city_si]

He was superb tonight.

 

[Jack74]

Really impressed with him , hope he gets a run of games .

 

[Armaan]

Did reasonably well against the worlds best player in rashford so he should have no problems dealing with Messi Neymar Suarez, put him in the team!

 

[Ricster]

Savage performance. Would love to see him up against some lower end Prem teams this season. Did not look out of place tonight and if he was on the other team we would be hearing his name until the weekend

 

[twosips]

Delighted for him tonight. This was the Maffeo that a fair few of us had watched excel for our u18s and EDS. A proper warrior, an excellent instinctive defender and typically Spanish with the ball. Very intelligent too positionally. He was, in my humble opinion, as good as Kelechi, if not better, in his respective role when they were regulars in the 18s and EDS together the season before last. He was the standout for me a couple of years ago when Vieira actually used him as a CB all season for the EDS, despite being 17 and only 5'7. He was always getting the best of big, tall strikers with his reading of the game and always coolly strolling into midfield and so on. Naturally Kelechi took the headlines as a striker.

As a RB he has an absolutely huge future. Mentally he's exceptional. It's his attitude that is most encouraging - he leads in the way Zaba does, giving his all in every game, and he's a shining example of why its worth giving our kids ago and trusting in their abilities. Yes, he was nervous on his full City debut agains Steaua, yet that's proof why we need to be patient. He's a kid, of course he'd be nervous stepping out at the Etihad for the first team. Any of us would! Now he's trained with the first team all season and got his debut out of the way the nerves have gone and he's settling in and showing what he's capable of. A few people genuinely don't think its possible in the modern era to integrate kids into big teams these days. That's absolutely tosh that we've grown to accept given the nonsense that Pellegrini and Mancini and other cowardly top level managers like Mourinho feed us. It can happen - it just takes faith, boldness and patience.

Pep, thankfully, knows that. Garcia, Adarabioyo, Gunn, Maffeo, Angelino - all these are clearly lined up to be slowly integrated (potentially) at least into the first team squad this season and they totally deserve it. Best thing is, they're the tip of the iceberg. We sometimes don't realise how much talent we're sat on as a fanbase. Performances like Maffeo's aren't unexpected. He is THAT good potentially - he, along with this teammates, proved it by getting to the FA Youth Cup final and being part of the Premier League International Cup side that won the tournament. I'm glad we've all seen what our kids can be capable of tonight. As a general rule of thumb, if you've got a team that reaches the FA Youth Cup Final, or wins the u18s title, then these kids, a fair chunk of them at least, have done enough to deserve a debut and a good look at least cos they've proven themselves to be some of the best in the country at their age. That was what Maffeo, Adarabioyo, Angelino, Kelechi etc did. They should get their chance, and they will hopefully. It's also what Chelsea should do given how crazily successful their academy teams have been domestically and in the UEFA Youth League. It's absolutely madness that it doesnt happen though. We've got it so, so wrong in this country- hopefully Pep knows this and we'll see a change.

Honestly think Maffeo may have helped changed the perception of youth integration for a fair few people tonight and i love that.

 

[Blueband Brother]

Certainly stood out today- composed on the ball, made some really clean tackles and did not look out of place. The most impressive thing Maffeo did today was towards the end of the match when he made that run into the box to get at the end of the free kick. That showed a lot of intangibles.

 

[BlueDeadHead]

He can be proud on his performance tonight. As for being a regular starter he needs to develope more.

I don't agree with this. We faced a full strength United team away and he showed he was up for it. I wouldn't necessarily start him in a CL final but he is ready for the premier league.

 

[jollylescott]

Delighted for him tonight. This was the Maffeo that a fair few of us had watched excel for our u18s and EDS. A proper warrior, an excellent instinctive defender and typically Spanish with the ball. Very intelligent too positionally. He was, in my humble opinion, as good as Kelechi, if not better, in his respective role when they were regulars in the 18s and EDS together the season before last. He was the standout for me a couple of years ago when Vieira actually used him as a CB all season for the EDS, despite being 17 and only 5'7. He was always getting the best of big, tall strikers with his reading of the game and always coolly strolling into midfield and so on. Naturally Kelechi took the headlines as a striker.

As a RB he has an absolutely huge future. Mentally he's exceptional. It's his attitude that is most encouraging - he leads in the way Zaba does, giving his all in every game, and he's a shining example of why its worth giving our kids ago and trusting in their abilities. Yes, he was nervous on his full City debut agains Steaua, yet that's proof why we need to be patient. He's a kid, of course he'd be nervous stepping out at the Etihad for the first team. Any of us would! Now he's trained with the first team all season and got his debut out of the way the nerves have gone and he's settling in and showing what he's capable of. A few people genuinely don't think its possible in the modern era to integrate kids into big teams these days. That's absolutely tosh that we've grown to accept given the nonsense that Pellegrini and Mancini and other cowardly top level managers like Mourinho feed us. It can happen - it just takes faith, boldness and patience.

Pep, thankfully, knows that. Garcia, Adarabioyo, Gunn, Maffeo, Angelino - all these are clearly lined up to be slowly integrated (potentially) at least into the first team squad this season and they totally deserve it. Best thing is, they're the tip of the iceberg. We sometimes don't realise how much talent we're sat on as a fanbase. Performances like Maffeo's aren't unexpected. He is THAT good potentially - he, along with this teammates, proved it by getting to the FA Youth Cup final and being part of the Premier League International Cup side that won the tournament. I'm glad we've all seen what our kids can be capable of tonight. As a general rule of thumb, if you've got a team that reaches the FA Youth Cup Final, or wins the u18s title, then these kids, a fair chunk of them at least, have done enough to deserve a debut and a good look at least cos they've proven themselves to be some of the best in the country at their age. That was what Maffeo, Adarabioyo, Angelino, Kelechi etc did. They should get their chance, and they will hopefully. It's also what Chelsea should do given how crazily successful their academy teams have been domestically and in the UEFA Youth League. It's absolutely madness that it doesnt happen though. We've got it so, so wrong in this country- hopefully Pep knows this and we'll see a change.

Honestly think Maffeo may have helped changed the perception of youth integration for a fair few people tonight and i love that.

Great post TS.