elrony:
LMAOOO

Wetin person no go see for here?

John "Fukcing" Stones, a defender,really?

TheGoodJoe:


How many English defenders today do you know can hold the ball like Stones? Meanwhile, Stones is not up there with some of the best in the game today.

I wonder if you read the comment at all before commenting. I am talking of the poor abilities of English defenders and how Stones stands out from most of them when it comes to holding the ball. Yet, I do not rate Stones who is their best on the ball as good as other top quality defenders.

Understand before commenting.

elrony:


Bro I read and understood your analogy on Stones.
You were all about his ball playing ability, which is secondary for a defender.
And then saying the likes of Phil Jones is mediocre when compared to stones.

But truth is 50 Million Stones is a bang average player who can't do the basics of his position ; which is defending.

Ain't no way in the world he is near a fit Phil Jones in quality.

John Stones is an overhyped Otu, ask anybody and they'll tell you the same thing sir.

Shalom!

TheGoodJoe:


Like seriously, there is no coherency in that statement. I feel Stones is overhyped and expensive. I literally have dozens of defenders I place over Stones. Worse part is, among most of the popular defenders, he holds the ball better than them. That is my point. Most English defenders are bang average but play in big clubs and earn huge salaries.

While defenders far better than them earn less.

elrony:


Bros what is the primary function of a defender?

Of all the guys you put up in your initial post, Stones is the runt of the litter.

Stones is Crap!!!

elrony:


Bros what is the primary function of a defender?

Of all the guys you put up in your initial post, Stones is the runt of the litter.

Stones is Crap!!!

TheGoodJoe:
Casemiro produced a spectacular 30-yard volley after a clearance fell to him in the 54th minute of Madrid's win.

The 24-year-old said it was the type of strike he had been practicing.

"I've been practicing those kinds of shots a lot," Casemiro said, via Marca.

TheGoodJoe:


I am explaining what separates top quality defenders from the ordinary. Aside from blocking, intercepting and duels, exceptional defenders like Hummels, Boateng, Mascherano, Ramos, Bonucci, offer more. Not primary function.

I am in no way praising Stones. If you can get that bit, you will not keep saying Stones is crap. The more you do that, the more you validate my point.

zicky:
the point is there's no player in the world that don't practice or go tru drills but when you make it look as if just a selected few engage in training, that's where am in a fix

elrony:


So Stones is better than all his English counterparts?

Since your emphasis is now on "ball playing"
If I may ask!

TheGoodJoe:


Watched Jones drift into midfield lots of games and watched him play in defensive midfield. However, he is very limited and does not have footballing abilities close to the likes of other quality defenders. He is not close to even Bailly, Rojo and Blind. Let alone Vertonghen, Alderweireld or Vermaelen.

He is limited.

TheGoodJoe:


Now, you ask. That is what you should have done earlier.

My point is, English players can attain top status in their clubs because of the emphasis on just defending (primary function). They lack quality in other attributes. To explain it, which you must note, even a limited Stones possess these attributes (ball holding and playing) more than them.

So if a weak Stones can do this more than them, the English defenders ball playing attributes are weak but they remain as top players..

I hope you get my point. When you watch Pique, he has brilliant ball playing skills and defending skills. Same with Marquinos or Thiago Silva.

We can not say the same of English defenders. Take care.

PietroRico:
no need to push this. Your assertion that Jones cannot play in the high line is wrong.
You were also trying to say Jones abilities as a defender is not befitting of someone that should be playing at a top club, which is also wrong.
Again Jones Ball playing skills may not be at the level of those guys, but it's there and at an acceptable level. You don't get to play in midfield as a defender if you are useless on the ball.

Jones at 19 or so was man marking Ronaldo out of the game.
And lastly no Nigerian defender right now is at the level jones was as far as 3/4 years ago even.

Do not in your bid to patronize Nigerian defenders try to rub their superiors in the mud

PietroRico:

I haven't really seen this ekong guy so there's a limit to which I can argue against him

TheGoodJoe:


I was making an Illustration of the limited ability of English players. My remark was in reference to the repping of Championship defenders to our defenders. Most importantly, the discussion was about Ekong.

I believe from what I saw in games of Ekong that he is better than many defenders in the championship and I used the limited abilities in holding the ball of Jones and Smalling who still play for one of the biggest clubs in the World to illustrate this.

Jones and Smalling are very limited but they play for Manchester United. So are players who are worse than Ekong playing in clubs in the EPL and the Championship. This is due to the hinging on huff and puff football as the English way.

TheGoodJoe:


It seems you like Jones. Not a fan of his at all. Even before he joined Manchester United.

PietroRico:

I haven't really seen this ekong guy so there's a limit to which I can argue for or against him but if you are undulating between being shipped on loan to Norway by a Belgian club and failing to command a regular shirt, something has to be wrong somewhere.
Are majority of the defenders in the Belgian League better than championship defenders too?

goldfish80:


Thiago Ilorin's development have stunted over the past few years. His stock have so much fallen that Liverpool who bought him 7m sold him to Reading for 3.5m that's a 50% loss.
A 23 yr old who cannot make match day squad for his club, same club which have the likes of Ovie Ejiara, Danny Ward who at just 18, have made more first team appearances than your knight in shinning amour Ilori

Currently, he not better than any of our defenders. I've made it clear he's not on the same level with Omeruo, Ekong, Uche Agbo and Ndidi who are all within same age bracket as him. The gulf in class between these guys I've mentioned and Ilori is a chasm.
Even a much younger Awaziem have progressed more than Ilori.

His distant link to Nigeria even makes it more unrealistic, not impossible getting him capped.
His father is British Nigerian, while his mother is Portuguese. Please give this Ilori issue a rest.

TheGoodJoe:


We can judge the quality of talents by looking at some of the recent defensive talents of Belgium to England.

Kompany, Alderweireld, Vertonghen to Cahill, Jones and Smalling.

daveP:
I feel Draxler played a big big part. He just seem to dissect his marker every time the ball came his way. I'm glad at the roll Cavan played. He knew he would be marked so he just faked his role for Maria and Draxler to do justice.


All the teams with B in their start names would lose after this match tonight