Re: Close Season Football Chat : Thu Jul 22, 2010 8:06 pm  

Dan Gosling has me a bit happier than the James Perch signing.

Re: Close Season Football Chat : Thu Jul 22, 2010 8:17 pm  

GCM1980 wrote:

I keep reading that Joe Cole is injury prone. But lets be honest, barring one major injury the season before last, how injury prone is he, really?

I don't think the problem is that he's injury prone, the problem last season was that even months after he came back he was still massively unfit and not up to the pace. If he came on at 70 minutes by the 80th minute he'd be as knackared as the players who'd played the full game. That didn't get much better as the season progressed last season and you've got to wonder why that was the case.

He's got a bit of a raw deal on here since he signed for Liverpool.

I've been against Cole for ages now. I wished for him to move to Liverpool (or Citeh) as I feel he's past it. There's no change of opinion now he's signed for the scousers from me.

He'll have a big impact there. Whether he's value for money or not is a different matter, but I believe he'll be a success.

I think if he can overcome the concerns over his fitness and stay injury free then he could be a success under Hodgson. But judging by what I saw last season I don't just think he will. But I've been wrong before. Malouda looked dreadful for a few seasons when he first came to England and I would have never thought he could progress as he did. Who'd have thought that Forlan would manage to do more in the last World Cup than Ronaldo, Messi, Rooney and Drogba combined?

Re: Close Season Football Chat : Thu Jul 22, 2010 8:54 pm  

Apparently in 7 seasons at Chelsea Cole averaged 17 starts a season.

Admittedly not being good enough for Chelsea nowadays doesn't mean he isn't good enough for Liverpool, but why some people are getting so excited about his signing is beyond me.

Six or seven years ago I thought Cole would become a top player, now I don't think he had the football brain, maybe I am being unfair on him, maybe he stunted because Mourinho (rightly judging by results) preferred an organised system he had to fit into rather than flourish with more freedom, but I find it highly unlikely he's suddenly going to blossom into the class of player some think he is.

Re: Close Season Football Chat : Thu Jul 22, 2010 9:06 pm  

Asim wrote:

Apparently in 7 seasons at Chelsea Cole averaged 17 starts a season.

Admittedly not being good enough for Chelsea nowadays doesn't mean he isn't good enough for Liverpool, but why some people are getting so excited about his signing is beyond me.

Six or seven years ago I thought Cole would become a top player, now I don't think he had the football brain, maybe I am being unfair on him, maybe he stunted because Mourinho (rightly judging by results) preferred an organised system he had to fit into rather than flourish with more freedom, but I find it highly unlikely he's suddenly going to blossom into the class of player some think he is.

I'm not that excited at all, he's potentially a very good player, but I want a lot more to come in in order for me to get excited, whilst it's generally the media who are getting excited, 'cause most Liverpool fans I know have been split on him.

As for his lack of brain, well, I wouldn't call him a dumb player, whilst you wouldn't exactly call the majority of premier league sides 'clever', would you? Whilst Cole has a pretty good record in big games, so I think his lack of discipline won't affect us too much.

Re: Close Season Football Chat : Thu Jul 22, 2010 9:13 pm  

Robbie Rotten wrote:

I wouldn't call him a dumb player...

After a few weeks of pointless stepovers you will.

Re: Close Season Football Chat : Thu Jul 22, 2010 9:16 pm  

Robbie Rotten wrote:

I'm not that excited at all, he's potentially a very good player, but I want a lot more to come in in order for me to get excited, whilst it's generally the media who are getting excited, 'cause most Liverpool fans I know have been split on him.

As for his lack of brain, well, I wouldn't call him a dumb player, whilst you wouldn't exactly call the majority of premier league sides 'clever', would you? Whilst Cole has a pretty good record in big games, so I think his lack of discipline won't affect us too much.

Admittedly my opinions on this transfer are probably partly being formed by the fact I spend a lot of my time at work having to listen to a couple of Liverpool fans who seem to think you've signed a cross of Maradona and Pele at their finest, with a bit of Cruyff thrown in for good measure.

Re: Close Season Football Chat : Thu Jul 22, 2010 9:23 pm  

Lord God Jose Mourinho wrote:

After a few weeks of pointless stepovers you will.

Benayoun was deemed by many as a 'clever little player', when he would often do daft pieces of skill when the simple pass was on. Cole does have some brains, he has decent vision with his passing and is decent at crossing and short passing. A dumb player is Babel, a consistent wrong decision maker, I don't think Cole is anywhere near as bad as Babel.

Re: Close Season Football Chat : Thu Jul 22, 2010 9:39 pm  

Lord God Jose Mourinho wrote:

I don't think the problem is that he's injury prone, the problem last season was that even months after he came back he was still massively unfit and not up to the pace. If he came on at 70 minutes by the 80th minute he'd be as knackared as the players who'd played the full game. That didn't get much better as the season progressed last season and you've got to wonder why that was the case.

I think that's more accurate yes. But there's a few people on this thread and elsewhere that have claimed he's injury prone, which simply isn't true IMO.

Re: Close Season Football Chat : Thu Jul 22, 2010 10:14 pm  

Asim wrote:

Apparently in 7 seasons at Chelsea Cole averaged 17 starts a season.

Admittedly not being good enough for Chelsea nowadays doesn't mean he isn't good enough for Liverpool, but why some people are getting so excited about his signing is beyond me.

Because they finished 7th and have fook all to cling onto until this?

Every season they make one signing and they all go over the top claiming all is great, until December gets here and they are struggling to reach fourth.

Re: Close Season Football Chat : Thu Jul 22, 2010 10:40 pm  

GCM1980 wrote:

I think that's more accurate yes. But there's a few people on this thread and elsewhere that have claimed he's injury prone, which simply isn't true IMO.

Hasn't he had 3 reasonably long term injuries in the last 4 seasons?