thoughts on de jong?

[vbr]

We absolutely must get 3 points against Stoke on Saturday so we can our way back to West Ham, Wigan and Everton. If we keep up these results there's no reason we can't finish above 9th this year.

 

[kiran111]

He had a solid game considering he aint entirely match fit.
CTID x

 

[blue 1992]

he wasn't bad imo. he can only get better.

 

[goat boy]

spot on. i'm sure there's idiots on here who think we'd win everything with 11 robinhos.

To be fair I think the op is about 10yr old with he's comments, lets not be to harsh.

To be fair I thought the OP was saying he had struggled to reach many conclusions!

To my mind, that Zabaleta/ De Jong midfield pairing will become invaluable, in the short term. As stated the fella is very short of match fitness, could well have been surprised by the pace of the game, and for all his apparent confidence, you'd forgive for him a touch of nerves on his full debut.

One critique- neither Zab nor Nige is particurlalry tall. So sure enough, they didn't win that many headers. Perhaps Hughes should be asked to consider having a momentary Zabba/ Vinny swap for the purposes of opposition goal kicks, especially if they have an obvious target player in the middle of the pitch.

 

[Kinky Dribbler]

Perhaps, but I can't think of many attacking midfielders with a great amount of height.. only Fellaini springs to mind.. I don't think it'll be too much of a problem. De Jong has got great spring on him too.

 

[Gelsons Dad]

52 passes. 85% accurate. 1 shot. Not bad for a debut in my view.

 

[bluezi]

I thought he played well, got stuck in a few tackles and missed 1 or 2, but i can see that he needs to get up to match fitness, should be a major player soon. Agreed, put some of it down to nerves also.
not sure if hell play full 90 at stoke..?

 

[TFC]

Like the lad said himself, he likes to play the game simply, win the ball & give it to the flair players. Solid debut in which he did just that for the most part.

You could tell he isn't 100% match fit, but once he is, he will become invaluable in our midfield, which has the potential to become one of the best in the business.

:)

 

[Ric]

He'll be a great asset for the club. Decent debut last night, albeit against a poor Newcastle side. Once he settles into his new surroundings, and gets match fit, he'll be an integral part of our team. Exactly the type of player we need, and looks like he has a winning mentality. Thought he was shit hot in the Euros last year.

 

[1.618034]

Im amazed at some of these posts, I thought he was quality.

And that muppet who said for £18m you expected more - go have a word with yourself sunshine. I find the fact people are trying to justify his price tag after 70 mins of football just laughable.

He's a holding midfielder, he's not an exciting player so im not so sure what some of you want from him. He did fade, hasnt played in three months, but he always wanted the ball, always gave an option to the defence and his tackling was quality. Made one mistake in the 2nd half but recovered it well.

He will be a quality signing.

Spot on with all of that... Some people are never satisfied!

He's the type of player who will come into his own in the big games, as he'll snuff out opposition attacks and really help in protecting the centre halves and linking the play in midfield...

What was most notable last night was how well we kept and played the ball around at the back, admittedly against a v. poor bar-codes 'attack', but it's something, in fact the major thing we've been missing this season... When we had Dunne and Richards in there the ball's been like a hot-potato which has led to either Dunne, Richards or Hart resorting to a long hoof up field, to no one in particular... I don't remember too much of that last night!

Just wait until Alan Hansen's eulogising about him when we play one of the top 5... I can hear him on MOTD now... "Greet player, what he gives you is strength, composure and bite..."

I think we got a glimpse of the future last night, with de Jong and Zab in midfield with one being replaced by Elano (or A N Other?) when we need a bit more going forward, Richards back at RB where he's far more comfortable (although his forward play still needs more work, defensively he is really solid and very little gets past him) and Vinnie at centre half and as Captain.

Also Bridge is a vast improvement on any left back we've had since Willie feckin' Donachie, which makes £12M look like a right bargain (IMO), so I'll forgive him the error that led to their goal for now, and once we can choose between Hart and probably Given in goal that just leaves the left sided CB slot that's still up for grabs... Onuoha's looked solid there in the last couple of games, but I'm not sure he's the final answer, but only time will tell whether Hughes agrees on that one eh?

I was very encouraged by last night even though we made it too close for comfort in the end... Newcastle really were there for the taking and if Elano had started I think we'd have won by 3 or 4, but last night was more about bedding de Jong and the new formation in and getting the result. With him and Zab in the team we may score less goals but we'll also concede far less which again in the big games is going to be more important.

We gained ground on everyone except West Ham last night so I really do think 7th is nailed on and if Cahill's out for Everton, then 6th is looking very doable... Only 9 points behind with the Pompey game in hand, which being on a free Saturday isn't going to compromise us with an extra mid-week game.

Onwards... Upwards!

Bump!