Stones & Dias Partnership

[nijinsky]

It's all about Stones, whoever he plays with he makes them look better.

Agreed When you see him alongside Slab you see the absolute gulf in class.
In fact seeing him in the WC, you realise how lucky we are. If only he cold stay fit

 

[TFC]

This is my preferred partnership too, its one of my favourite drums to bang. We are blessed though to have such depth at centre half and not one of those lads deserves to play a backup role, so I can see why Pep rotates so much.

 

[LongsightM13]

I'm not sure Dias is as good on the ball or as quick as the others. He is pressed alot more than the others in my opinion because of his technical ability.

But the best and most aggressive natural defender of the bunch, best in the air and also the best leader and organiser. We have a great mix back there now

 

[asahartford1]

But the best and most aggressive natural defender of the bunch, best in the air and also the best leader and organiser. We have a great mix back there now

It is a shame that Stones doesn't seem to be a vocal leader.
He has improved and that was from a reasonably high level when he joined, reaching his peak , hope he can stay fit for the majority of this season.

 

[LongsightM13]

It is a shame that Stones doesn't seem to be a vocal leader.
He has improved and that was from a reasonably high level when he joined, reaching his peak , hope he can stay fit for the majority of this season.

He has all the tools except the bit between his ears that sometimes lets him down. Hopefully that will come as he is maturing into his peak years

 

[Lovebitesandeveryfing]

But the best and most aggressive natural defender of the bunch, best in the air and also the best leader and organiser. We have a great mix back there now

He's not as fast as Stones, but he's a better reader of the game when he's at his best, so he doesn't need to be. In my opinion, naturally.
Agreed about him being the natural leader, out of the four (five?) of them.

 

[KS55]

This is my preferred partnership too, its one of my favourite drums to bang. We are blessed though to have such depth at centre half and not one of those lads deserves to play a backup role, so I can see why Pep rotates so much.

The rotation in the first half of the season owed a lot to injury and a crowded schedule. After the WC, we need to establish a preferred pairing and create some stability.

 

[LongsightM13]

The rotation in the first half of the season owed a lot to injury and a crowded schedule. After the WC, we need to establish a preferred pairing and create some stability.

We have always rotated depending on opposition, form, fitness etc tbf and we haven’t done too bad

 

[KS55]

We have always rotated depending on opposition, form, fitness etc tbf and we haven’t done too bad

Yes, I wasn’t suggesting something set in stone but rather all other things being equal, what will be the preferred pairing in crunch matches.
CB is an area where you can fiddle too much.

 

[LongsightM13]

Yes, I wasn’t suggesting something set in stone but rather all other things being equal, what will be the preferred pairing in crunch matches.
CB is an area where you can fiddle too much.

If we had a CL final tomorrow I’d go Dias and Laporte but then Ake has been great this season and Stonesy does seem to finally be maturing. And Akanji has done little wrong either
No club in the world has the options we do in that position
Yet the balance and the right players for the right opponent is key.
The Brentford game was one where Pep sadly got it all wrong (sacrilege to some on here but it remains true), Akanji should have been RB to mark their pace on the left and Stones at CB for the better aerial ability. Their first goal doesn’t happen if that was the case
The return of Walker, even though he has clearly lost a yard, will improve us massively. Our defence without him has been noticeably poorer
Walker will be a huge ask to replace