09-10-2023, 03:44 PM
(09-10-2023, 08:35 AM)GhostfaceKillah Wrote: Pope is now a real problem. His form dipped at the back end of last season but he had the surgery hanging over him so I gave him a pass on the basis it was linked to that. I thought he was excellent in pre-season post surgery, and just assumed he was back to his best. This season though I think he has cost us big goals, I think his feet look slow, both with the ball at them (nothing new) but also when he is positioning himself to save a shot, something I don't remember seeing being a real problem last season. He has started to cost us big goals in important matches and I don't think it will have gone unnoticed with the coaching staff. His distrubition with the ball at his feet is the worst I have season from any keeper this season so we can't build properly from the back, and I have my heart in my mouth every time we pass backwards, even when he has loads of time, because I don't trust him sort his feet out quickly, or get enough height on his clearance not to pass it straight to an opposition player. His ability to play with the ball at his feet is utterly baffling for a professional footballer who will work on that in training every single day, He finds the touchline more than he finds a player, and when he does find a player when he goes long, it's usually not one of ours.
He played a massive part in getting us to where we are now and I really like the lad, who like you say Eeeeen, he is usually a good goalkeeper, but I do think a replacement next summer is going to be needed in order for us to push on.
I think so too.