Downing - that left midfielder....

[Rocksuperstar]

I disagree. And I guess we'll see once Lee's fit.

Who is then? Judging by past performances, experience, overall skill and general consistency?

 

[Evolution]

Lee is so average...I really don't know why some of you rate him so highly. Yes sometimes he has a good game but it's rare. He stands of attacking wingers WAY to much and allows the cross in 90% of the time. He's passing is distinctly average and he always comes in on his right foot when attacking. He's not exactly the worlds strongest and can easily get knocked off the ball and he's delivery ain't great either.

Why the Lee worship ?? :duh:

 

[Rocksuperstar]

Lee is so average...I really don't know why some of you rate him so highly. Yes sometimes he has a good game but it's rare. He stands of attacking wingers WAY to much and allows the cross in 90% of the time. He's passing is distinctly average and he always comes in on his right foot when attacking. He's not exactly the worlds strongest and can easily get knocked off the ball and he's delivery ain't great either.

Why the Lee worship ?? :duh:

Because almost every one of the reasons you dislike Lee is, in my opinion, wrong but i can't be arsed to type, again, why Lee is so under appreciated and ask what it is you guys all want from our wingbacks - seems no matter how well they play, for how long, some of you will still furiously refuse to believe that they are any good.

And why the Lee worship? Well if you can't work that out then i'd wonder if you are actually even a Spurs fan... Look at the shirt he's wearing and how hard he works, that might give you a clue :up:

L10 - yeah, true, but i figure Wendy is more trying to get to see what the hype around Bale is all about - as you said, only had him available three times so whenever he's fit Wendy chucks him out there.

Bale is a sore point for me anyway as i'm a firm believer that anyone of his age shouldn't even be thinking of the first team, let alone playing in it - he's too young to be risking at this level - he gets an injury now it could affect the rest of his life. I'd rather he played in the ressies til he was maybe 20-22 then perhaps I wouldn't feel like the kid's putting his health on the line each time he plays...

 

[SpurSince57]

You may well be right, L10, but I really wouldn't like to predict what Juande will do.

You could argue that Saturday's line-up and bench was just very smart thinking. I was a bit surprised, to say the least, that neither Rocha nor Kaboul was on the bench, but then it clicked that if Woody or Daws needed to be replaced we had the option of Chimbonda or the Hudd to take over and Lee or O'Hara to come on. We therefore had more flexibility, which seems to be what Juande is looking for.

I wouldn't rule too much in or too much out.

 

[dj_stu]

i'd have downing if he was relatively cheap. ie, around the £5m mark but we're never gonna get him for that

to be honest, he lacks pace and can't really beat a man. he's like a poor man's beckham without the outstanding work-rate

i don't think play him ahead of steed at the moment, nor bale when he's fit again... would he really want to join spurs as a rotation player?

too much money for not enough reward imo

 

[SpurSince57]

On the other hand, Woody hadn't been that impressive for Boro this term, and what once seemed like an extremely promising squad has gone downhill fast. Downing's still only 23, don't forget, and is exactly the type of player that would thrive under Ramos. But if Boro want ridiculous money, as seems to be the case, then no deal.

 

[Evolution]

And why the Lee worship? Well if you can't work that out then i'd wonder if you are actually even a Spurs fan... Look at the shirt he's wearing and how hard he works, that might give you a clue :up:

Ridiculous comment. If you don't agree with my opinion then thats cool Rocksuperstar. Forums are all about opinions, but to then question my loyality as a yid because my opinion differs from yours is plain stupid :bang:

I don't question Lee's work-rate or his loyality. Infact I would give him 10 out of 10 on both those points. I do however question his ability to defend in the EPL and in MY OPINION, there may be better options in that position

 

[Rocksuperstar]

who then?

Bale = injured for the season, two lightweight right now, too young.
BAE = who?
Gilberto = no-one can say either way
Lee = played in the EPL for best part of 3 terms now, was part of one of the (3rd?) meanest defences in the prem for two of them seasons. This third season he's been playing with the knowledge of having no recognised cover, being both effective and consistent.

That's the only recognised LB's we have in our squad, so

O'Hara = great backup if required, but is far, far more effective up in midfield.
Chimbonda = did a good job when asked to fill in there, but then again everyone was doing a great job that day. Even so, his passing and overall attitude make me wonder why he's still here when, unless it's a big game, he can't be f*cked to make the effort.
Teemu = Warrior.

That's just about it, so out of all of them, you can honestly say that there is a better option among them than Lee? :|

And you asked me what's with the Lee worship, i answered - if me answering your question and at the same time slipping in MY OPINION causes you to feel you need to smash your face against the wall then i'm sorry, i didn't realise you had that much on your plate :shrug:

 

[jj87]

If Lee was first choice he would be playing. But he's not. 'Go figure'.

 

[Yid-ol]

Lee can defend though, and has shown that he can on alot of occasions, infact most of the last 2 seasons he has defended with no help from midfield ahead of him, msotly being outnumbers 2-1 and still managing to do well 9not amazing, but who would with 2-1's most the time) there are better players out there at LB, but none we can really get... Lee is the best option we have just now, and even when Bale is fit i would say Lee gets ahead! no idea what Gilberto is like though :shrug:

 

[Evolution]

No Rocksuperstar m8. Your opinion regarding this thread/topic is no probem and your ofcourse, entitled to them. I just don't think you should question someones loyality to the club because there view does not coincide with your own :roll:

Quote:
Originally Posted by Rocksuperstar
Come off it, Lee is by far the number one choice for left back - if you had to pick our strongest team then there's no doubt he'd our left back

^^ That is what I was disagreeing with m8.

 

[Rocksuperstar]

No Rocksuperstar m8. Your opinion regarding this thread/topic is no probem and your ofcourse, entitled to them. I just don't think you should question someones loyality to the club because there view does not coincide with your own :roll:

Quote:
Originally Posted by Rocksuperstar
Come off it, Lee is by far the number one choice for left back - if you had to pick our strongest team then there's no doubt he'd our left back

^^ That is what I was disagreeing with m8.

then, as i did in the last post, ask again - who is our first choice left back, if Lee isn't? :shrug:

If you think Bale is, after three appearances, then i think you're putting too much expectation on a lad who is only barely old enough to sign his own paperwork at the hospital. He's also a very hot prospect who i would much prefer to see in three years time pounding up and down the wing, rather than for six months before he's crocked beyond repair as his young bones won't form properly now. It's a catch 22 for the club, but sensible heads surely can see why pushing him to reach that level now is just a bit risky.

Other than him, i explained the reasons above...

To bring it back towards the topic though, Downing doesn't appear to have that tendancy to cut inside that Malbranque has, so doesn't leave that left side as exposed i would imagine, but O'Hara is cementing his place in the side and, with someone so left footed as that, and someone as apparently intelligent as he is, that would compliment Lee's style really well.

My vote would likely be O'hara and Lee to the left, Steed to the middle.

Downing missed the boat, he got too fussy 18 months ago.

 

[Andy]

i honestly think Bale will be the LB for us next season, Lee and Gilberto will share the role for the rest of this,
Lee works really hard but it think he has a small problem of not knowing what to do with the ball when it get to his feet in the attacking side of his game, (Not slating the guy just my opinion here) he seems to not be able to read people's runs or movement and take the simpler backwards to the centre half or central midfielder when in posession, I can't remember the last time i saw him try a through ball to a striker but i can remember plenty of times we have been on the attack and the ball has arrived at his feet only for him to play it backwards,
I guess Chimbonda has done the same thing alot this season too,
Maybe it's not the full back fault but the movement off the ball of our midfielders and forwards at times?

 

[Legend10]

Lee can defend though, and has shown that he can on alot of occasions, infact most of the last 2 seasons he has defended with no help from midfield ahead of him, msotly being outnumbers 2-1 and still managing to do well 9not amazing, but who would with 2-1's most the time) there are better players out there at LB, but none we can really get... Lee is the best option we have just now, and even when Bale is fit i would say Lee gets ahead! no idea what Gilberto is like though :shrug:

can't agree with this.

The LB position in the last couple of seasons has enjoyed more protection from the player in front than the RB position has.

Lenny is pretty much an out and out winger and has played the majority of his football on the right. He has offered some protection to his FB but not a great deal although this is changing rapidly under Ramos.

Our left sided midfiled player has usually been Steed, TT or Davids although all have tucked in to a degree they all have far stronger defensive games than Lennon does. When we haven't had possesion all of these 3 have quickly got themselves into position to assist the LB. Our width on this side may have affected our attacking options but it certainly hasn't affected our defending on this side.

Interestingly when Jol played Lennon the left for a short while and tucked the RM player in slightly nobody claimed that Chimbonda was suffering from a lack of protection in front of him or indeed that the LB now had the luxury of protection playing in front of him.

 

[jj87]

then, as i did in the last post, ask again - who is our first choice left back, if Lee isn't? :shrug:

If you think Bale is, after three appearances, then i think you're putting too much expectation on a lad who is only barely old enough to sign his own paperwork at the hospital. He's also a very hot prospect who i would much prefer to see in three years time pounding up and down the wing, rather than for six months before he's crocked beyond repair as his young bones won't form properly now. It's a catch 22 for the club, but sensible heads surely can see why pushing him to reach that level now is just a bit risky.

Other than him, i explained the reasons above...

He's played 12 times and would have been a regular in the side if he hadnt got injured. Age is irrelevant. If Lee was thought to be good enough by our manager, he would play. As it is, our current 'love to hate' player was even preferred on his wrong side for the last game. And thats without even mentioning Gilberto.

 

[Yid-ol]

can't agree with this.

The LB position in the last couple of seasons has enjoyed more protection from the player in front than the RB position has.

Lenny is pretty much an out and out winger and has played the majority of his football on the right. He has offered some protection to his FB but not a great deal although this is changing rapidly under Ramos.

Our left sided midfiled player has usually been Steed, TT or Davids although all have tucked in to a degree they all have far stronger defensive games than Lennon does. When we haven't had possesion all of these 3 have quickly got themselves into position to assist the LB. Our width on this side may have affected our attacking options but it certainly hasn't affected our defending on this side.

Interestingly when Jol played Lennon the left for a short while and tucked the RM player in slightly nobody claimed that Chimbonda was suffering from a lack of protection in front of him or indeed that the LB now had the luxury of protection playing in front of him.

TT and Davids did help, but untill this season when Steed has played LM he offerd hardly any suport for the LB, and alsays cut into midfield so left a huge gap for teams to attack down.

Lennon's defensive game has been poor, but has always done a job at helping, even with just his pace players know they wont get far passed him or chimbonda befor he is there again so even though Lennon isnt the best at defending, his pace still causes problemsfor the attackers

 

[Rocksuperstar]

Bale is weak and lightweight - he'll not be an effective LB for us, ever, as far as i'm concerned.

He'll make a half decent wing-back, can deliver a cross well too, but the fact that so many of you don't appear to count defending as part of a left backs priority leads me to wonder if i'm a bit too old fashioned then - seems Lee, with his experience in the EPL, the CL, going further in the WC than any current England player has, showing week in and week out why teams like Roma are poking their noses around, just ain't got what it takes to satisfy an over-expectant bunch of fans like us, eh?

Doesn't matter what we've got, we're fickle Spurs fans and the grass is always greener. :|

 

[jj87]

Bale is weak and lightweight - he'll not be an effective LB for us, ever, as far as i'm concerned.

I should have stopped reading here really.

Whatever, next season we'll see.

*kicks self for actually engaging in discussion in Spurs Chat*

 

[Rocksuperstar]

hahaha! i only put that as, despite all the arguments against, it seems perfectly reasonable for people to say that same thing about Lee, despite the half a bajillion reasons others and myself have given as to why that's incorrect.

Soon as i say it about a TEENAGER who has played barely a handful of games for our club and been injured in minor challenges on more than one occasion, then i'm mad...

then I'M THE MAD ONE! :rofl:

You guys and your drugs... get real.

 

[Evolution]

I've stated before that while I believe Lee can do a Job at LB. I honestly think that this area is a weak area. It seems to me that many opposing teams think this too as they constantly look to probe down that area. Especially long looping balls over. Lee doesn't handle them to well.

Do I see a solution right now? In all honesty in our current squad....YES!! Bale showed great promise before being injured and none of us have really seen allot of Gilberto to say one way or the other. For the now though I do think Chimbonda is a better defender then Lee and if I was Ramos, I would play Chimbo ahead of Lee until either Bale is fit or Gilberto is Match fit and ready to play. Need to see more of Gilberto tbh before I can fully answer that though.