Trade CJ in January

I still havent signed for ITVN, but I'm gonna weigh in on Collins John's recent and past performances...

Why? Because it doesnt take a rocket scientist to read the tea leaves if you've been following sports for 40 years. {Dontcha love mixed metaphors?} Just as it doesnt take much brains to figger out why Cookie has started CJ... it's one last chance, folks!!

Wouldnt surprise me a bit if CC has been eying around the league for a good young striker who might be a better fit with HH, while he's looking for a suitable club who would be interested in taking a chance with CJ.

Never fear... when he goes into another club, he'll get a flurry of chances in the beginning and a few brilliant goals but he'll soon become himself, again.
And if he's lucky it will slowly dawn on him what he has to do... just as in Jeff Cunningham finally getting it at RSL.

Of course, just as JC in Columbus there will always be fans that rue CJ's loss and moan that he never should have been dumped.

This, I know, is dull and repetitive on my part.. been saying this for over a year now... but that doesnt make it wrong.

 

Let 'em moan. I'm with you, give CJ his walking papers.

 

After the 7 games and no goals so far I would agree. Let's see if he does anything by Jan. then CC will have an easier decision.

 

It's amazing... on the offal, as I write, there are still those ignoring what they can see in favor of statistics.. ie, number of starts.

Sorry... but cant say they know their footy!

 

OK, he is in a bad run, but I've watched Saha go through barron patches, seen some fairly poor strikes who did not warrent a place on a Sunday pub team play. Collins John is not one of them, he is classy. He can finish.

He has an ego and feels he is better than he has shown. He is lasy and does not work hard enough for the team. Again that is no reason to get rid of him. When Boa first played for us he ran with his head down and round in circles, anyone could have said "get rid of him" but he was quality and Tigana coached him to run with his head up.

So what do we do with CJ. He needs to put in effort for the team. Saha use to be the first line of defence, Johns needs to make life difficult for the oppsing defenders and chase balls down.

When he is not scoring his contribution has to be in other ways. He played the same last season, but he scored so we forgave him.

He does not attact enough attension and so does not open spaces for other players, again this is because he is lasy, but he is also learning his trade. This is where players like HH and Brian Mc come in, they need to be on at him that a goal score cannot stand an paoch like the good old days, they have to work their bits off. The coaching staff must also take stick because the material is there. Zak Knight - so far - has played well and concentrated this season because the backroom staff have worked hard on him and he is maturing in his own right. I belive CJ can be an asset, but he needs to work hard for his team mates and listen carefully to people who have done it.

 

Re: RE: Trade CJ in January

This right here sums up why I do NOT feel Chris Coleman is the man fo the job at Fulham. In his almost four seasons at Fulham how many players have gotten better while at Fulham? I can't think of many, if any.

No one is coming through the youth ranks and the players we buy seem to get here and never get better.

That being said, you are right that Collins John needs to be coached, but do you really think Cookie and Keano don't know that? I feel these two have no clue when it comes to coaching and developing talent. That is absolutely essential for a small money club like Fulham. With that, unless there is a change in the managerial staff, which I do not think will happen anytime soon, CJ will remain the player he has been for quite some time.

 

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I don't really want to slate Cookie as he is a top bloke, and a good man manager. However Kean is one of the reasons Van Dar Sar left, they had an argument on tactics and goalkeeping that saw VDS dropped. I can't remember Kean's credentials but he does not come with much pedigree.

Tigana was a fantastic coach, he played Knight in midfield in the reseves because and told him that it was not good being a defender if you did not know what to do with the ball once you won it.

 

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I am sorry but being a top bloke and a good man are not good enough credentials in my book to be a manager. I know Coleman's history with the club and I know with the limited funds he has not done a bad job, but as mentioned before, the players are not improving and Collins John is a perfect example.

Perhaps you can pin this one Steve Kean, but the bottom line is that if a coach or a player are not getting it done, the responsibility for that rests squarely on the shoulders of the manager. If Keano can't coach CJ, maybe it is time for someone else to give it a try or else CJ might never reach his full potential at Fulham.

 

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I don't disagree with moving for a better coach, although Cookie is loyal to Kean, so I think one out all out.

If the time has come, who do you propose. Top coaches are not 10 a penny and Fulham is not a big draw, especially given the acrimonious split between Al-Fayed and Tigger and a minimal transfer kitty.

People like Alan Curbishly are about, but do we want him? Otherwise its looking at people who are out the game, Big Ron? George Graham? Nigel Worthington?

 

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Keep Coleman...we have 2 wins and 3 draws and are in a position to move into the top 7 over the next month. If instead we drop into the bottom 5, then start thinking about a change. I like the Cookie

 

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Keep CJ too...he has potential...just needs a goal to break the damn. In the meantime, use HH and B-Mac, and bring CJ on to nab a late goal if needs be.

 

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This thread is spinning a bit out of control. Let me rephrase my stance on this.....I do not want Coleman fired right now. He has done a good job thus far with all the injuries and such to have the team in the position they are in.

However, I do think the manager and his staff need to be re-evaluated after the season to see if their philosophies and their ways of doing things really work with the current set-up of this team. As mentioned earlier, I do not think Cookie and his staff do good work in developing players. That has to change and get better.

As for replacements, I am not even going to speculate on that as I do not think Cookie will be out of a job unless the team goes on a horrid run over the next two months.

 

RE: Re: RE: Trade CJ in January

True omsdogg, perhaps he just needs a seat on the bench to get his attention. That was from where he did his damage last season.

HH & McBadAss up front. CJ and The Runs off the bench.

More importantly, how do we sort out the middle??

Do we go more defensive with Volz on the right, Routledge on left? Or do we get down right offensive with Routledge on the right (Routledge to McBride has been a very nice hook-up) and, gulp, Radz on the left (who showed he can cross from over there against What-ford)?

What say you all?

 

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I've always liked Radz...even through the bad times which have been plenty. I think you have to go offensive with him on the left, and Rout on the right. We're just better as a team that way in my opinion. I love Boca and I love Volzey and jobs they have done filling in out of position, but to get goal scoring opportunities we need to play with more offensive skilled players...particulary if we are playing a bunch of games in which we are capable of getting 3 points. Also, CJ to the bench. He's got some goals in him that will help us this year, but HH and B-Mac just click together.

 

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If we are playing for a draw against the big boys, play defensively with Boca and Volzy in midfield. However, against teams like Watford, Charlton, Wigan and even Villa, I think we need to start attack-minded.

If we end up going down a goal with a defensive team we have a hard time scoring with that team in there. As we saw last night, the defensive minded approach did not do us anything offensively or defensively either for that matter. Once we brought in attack-minded players, our fortunes changed.

 

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i coach high school basketball...initially when i began, we did a terrible job of developing our players....mainly because of our lack of experience in teaching them the skills necessary....believe it or not, a lot of it was trial and error of finding what methods were best at helping their skill development. we weren't so good in the beginning...made the playoffs but would lose first round. Then we started getting better and better...our players developed more. We won back to back state championships and then barely lost in the quarterfinals, and then the semi-finals. so i've been doing it for 7 years, and over that time we've learned a lot about coaching and teaching. the only reason i bring this up is because Cookie is still young, and maybe he's experiencing a similar situation. I was 22 when i started coaching. Maybe Cookie just needs a couple of seasons experience....I must say I do believe Rosie is better, and I think Knight is better.

 

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agree 100%.

 

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It is not really possible to play for a draw for 90 minutes, you invite pressure and you will concede unless you are very lucky. You should always set up for a win or set up for a defeat without embaressment (I hope we never do). Coaching football at this level is not trial an error. Training at this level is not so much about technique as it is about thinking, strategy and choreographed movement (sorry about spellings).

I have played with some good players and I've made them look stupid as they pass the ball to where I should be, because they think more clearly than I do. Now I'm fat and loosing my hair I know where to go, I just can't get there quick enough. A good coach teaches 20 year olds where to be.

Rooney is a great play because he knows instinctivly the right places to be at the right time. Most fooballers are 27-28 before they get there.

Knight is a better play this season because he is in the right place at the right time more often, learning his trade. This is done by experience and by good coaching.

 

Let's wait until January. John wasn't even a starter last season. Maybe he's more of a super sub who can come through in the clutch. For now lets stick with Helguson and McBride and keep CJ on the bench and bring him in later in the match.