Comments on: Player ratings v Manchester United

By: Colin

Colin — Mon, 04 Jan 2010 23:34:53 +0000

TSS – just to say, good articles as always. I don’t always agree with your views, but you manage a great forum for discussion on all things LUFC. Keep up the good work.

Casper was definitely an 8 though : )

By: Colin

Colin — Mon, 04 Jan 2010 23:30:14 +0000

Even now there are still some Beckford bashers – “not sure he’s worth a 10 etc etc.”
There were 5 strikers on that pitch – Rooney, Berbatov, Owen, Becchio and Beckford. Rooney and Berbatov = £60m and the international caps gained by Owen, Rooney & Berbatov is massive. Yet only one striker stood out and only one striker did their job, ie. score a goal. That was Beckford.

So what are the Beckford bashers saying?? Are you saying that internationals like Wes Brown and Kuszczak are useless? Brown has 21 caps for England and Beckford turned him inside out all game long.

Beckford deserved his 10.

Sorry to have to bring stats into it but Beckford has scored 35% of Leeds’ league goals and 31% across all competitions.
Now let’s say Leeds need 40 points from 23 games to win the league, and we let Beckford go (which would please Namo no end as Beckford “goes missing in games”), we’re going to need to get a seriously good striker because there’s absolutely no way Becchio, Grella, Kandol, Enoch etc. can step up to match the goals record we have with Beckford in the side.

Everyone knows Newcastle are in for him – top of the CCC, and Newcastle unlike some Leeds fans know that if he joins them, they’ve got the CCC title and that if he can score against Man Utd at Old Trafford against a defence full of internationals, then he’ll score for them in the Prem next season also.

It amazes me that there are still some idiotholes who still want to have a pop at Beckford. If he does leave it will be a sad day for Leeds but I’ll laugh my socks off when those same Beckford bashers start moaning instead about Becchio and Grella etc. not scoring enough and how Leeds are not working hard enough, when the results start to dry up.

If Grayson is a magician, then he’s got one more trick he still needs to pull off and that’s keeping Beckford on the Leeds roster when the transfer window shuts.

By: Dje

Dje — Mon, 04 Jan 2010 19:56:33 +0000

I think it depends on whether you are giving scores out of ten for skill or for effort. Skill, by and large, is a consistent feature for a player, but effort is far more marginal. I think Andy Hughes is the case here, outclassed in skill (and pace) by Wellbeck and Valencia but utterly faultless in his efforts when pitted against superior players. I don’t think Hughes could have had a better game, even though he struggled more than any other player in our team yesterday.

I agree that some of our lads yesterday weren’t as skillful as the ones we had under O’Leary (I’m too young to have ever seen anything of the Revie Era), but they were faultless in their effort. If, a decade or so ago, Kewell, Viduka and Co. had redistributed their marks for high skills to those for higher effort, then I don’t think we’d be making such an exception of the lads’ unbelievable result against the scum in the first place. Skillful players not putting in the effort is the capital offense for most fans.

By: TSS

TSS — Mon, 04 Jan 2010 19:39:36 +0000

I do like Casper. When he first came to Leeds he was a legend with his shot-stopping, but has received critisim for his dodgy kicks and set-plays, which does create some nervy moments.

As I said to start with, it was a tough one because of Crowe saving him, but he did well otherwise. Made some fantastic saves. MOT

By: LUFC

LUFC — Mon, 04 Jan 2010 19:36:25 +0000

Good man.

He deserves it after all the boo-boys complaining every time one of his kicks is slightly dodgy. He’s a natural on the big stage, kept us in it vs Donny for a while.

By: Old Billy White

Old Billy White — Mon, 04 Jan 2010 19:21:40 +0000

Everyone contributed to the win, I don’t think I could give anyone a 10 but I think the team as a whole (including the Manager) deserve and rate a 10. Lots of really good performances, but for me the big difference was we were a team who ran and fought for each other. Rooney apart they couldn’t match our effort and desire, and I also think we out played them.

By: Silverback

Silverback — Mon, 04 Jan 2010 18:26:56 +0000

Always tricky to allot marks to players and I’m of the opinion that a 10 score should be so rare for ANY player that it’s practicaly unattainable – otherwise you’re saying there is no room for improvement.
In that case most of our players should be rated in the 7-8 category. Admittedly I only saw the game on Tv (well online on the internet as I’m in the US now) so would not have seen movement and effort off the ball but apart from the goal and a few good moments, I didn’t see anything from Becks to rate a 10 either. Maybe 7.5.
Anyway, it’s all subjective and maybe I’m cynical because I’ve been spoiled by seeing the Revie team at its height and even O’Leary’s lads too, but this crop of players, although good enough to get us out of this division, are well short of 9′s and 10′s.
IMHO.

By: TSS

TSS — Mon, 04 Jan 2010 18:20:53 +0000

Ok, I caved into pressure and changed Casper to 8.

By: LUFC

LUFC — Mon, 04 Jan 2010 18:10:52 +0000

Casper deserves more than 7 though, I’m pretty sure that from memory he did get some contact with the Rooney shot, slowing it down enough for Crowe to get back. He made some great saves, one from Wellbeck where he spread himself superbly, and did very well to divert the Rooney volley away.

Hughes should probably be an 8 as well – first half was slightly patchy, but he had Valencia in his pocket for most of the 2nd half, and the number of times he cut out the crossfield ball was amazing.

Still, who cares?

By: TSS

TSS — Mon, 04 Jan 2010 17:58:39 +0000

I watched the game at Old Trafford and have watched it twice since courtesy of Sky+ and still think Howson was the best player on the pitch. He fought for everything and was integral to the win.