Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall

[VLC86]

I feel bad for him, he tries and he cares but if we want to stay in this league then he cannot be a guaranteed starter like he has been for 18 months.

 

That said, if the other options are Ndidi or Soumare then I can understand why he is.

[sacreblueits442]

12 hours ago, cityfanlee23 said:

I'd say he's a late sub at best at the moment, I like his engine and his enthusiasm but he is playing as a CM with only 1 foot and seemingly doesn't yet have the vision needed for such a crucial position. He can come on late a kick people when we need to hold onto a result.

...I think we could have him in a three in the midfield and he can do a job. He has vision but that would not be at the forefront of what we need from him!!!

  Played in a three with Ndid as the destroyer, Tielemans as the creator and KDH as the metronome  then we have a balanced midfield. 

 With three further forward being, Barnes, Tete and Nacho as the false 9, we have a balanced team that can easily churn out the results and performances that we need for the rest of the season.

 Maddison not being mentioned, is due to the #8 either being himself or Tielemans. 

[sacreblueits442]

10 hours ago, funkyrobot said:

Do you think Praet is ineffective and invisible?

...yes, and no doubt so does he!!!

He would be a much better player if he could bring his personality out on the pitch as he quietly gets on with the job without authority.  He was touted to be better than Tielemans when he arrived, and only one of them has shown any kind of will to impose himself on a game.

 

 

[funkyrobot]

16 minutes ago, sacreblueits442 said:

...yes, and no doubt so does he!!!

He would be a much better player if he could bring his personality out on the pitch as he quietly gets on with the job without authority.  He was touted to be better than Tielemans when he arrived, and only one of them has shown any kind of will to impose himself on a game.

 

 

Doesn’t that contradict your post that bemoaned the ‘sheep ganging up on the next unfortunate? You called out criticism for KDH, Ndidi, Amartey etc but you are happy to be critical of Praet. 

[funkyrobot]

1 hour ago, LCFCJohn said:

So I was thinking starting 11. So of the names you have highlighted;

 

Faes - would imagine he’d leave and go abroad. If h me stays he would start with Souttar.

 

Barnes - will definitely be off if relegated. He won’t be playing his trade in the championship.

Iheanacho - would imagine he’d get premier league offers or abroad. Too good to play in the championship.

 

Daka - similar to Nacho. I have more confident he would stay to be fair. If not he’d go back abroad. Can’t see him going to the Prem.

 

Castagne - has been linked with moves back to Italy which I’d imagine he would do rather than stay in the championship.

 

Praet - see Castagne

 

JJ/Ricardo - hard to call due to injuries. 
 

Ward - don’t think we’d offload but he’d be behind Iverson so didn’t get a mention when I was wondering on starting players.

 

Ndidi - literally no idea. I think he’d probably leave personally.

 

The under 23’s likes Alves/Braybrooke and Marcal would be bench/squad.

 

Edit - so the names I mentioned are who I see as definitely likely to stay of relegated as there as massive question marks over the rest.

This too good to play in The Championship is a phallacy, there are plenty of Premier League players that have to take the step down, particularly when they have been in part responsible for the relegation. Also, as we’ve seen over the past few seasons at this club, just because a player might want to leave, it doesn’t mean he can! The majority of the players listed are under contract and will still be at the KP at the beginning of next season.

 

 

 

[sacreblueits442]

15 minutes ago, funkyrobot said:

Doesn’t that contradict your post that bemoaned the ‘sheep ganging up on the next unfortunate? You called out criticism for KDH, Ndidi, Amartey etc but you are happy to be critical of Praet. 

.. I  suspect you have responded to the wrong post in this instance!!!

 I am in noway lambasting Praet in any shape or form,  just suggesting that he should show more authority on the pitch and stop hiding his talent.

 The post I suspect you believed you were responding to, is a post that I endorsed.

[moore_94]

12 hours ago, funkyrobot said:

Being a standout player at a mid table side in The Championship is great but the achievements and aspirations of the club is a factor. He didn’t get in The Championship team of the season that year. The midfielders that did were Buendia and Olise. Are you seriously suggesting KDH is at their levels? Look, I like KDH and being POTS at Luton is a great achievement - That being said, I just haven’t honestly seen enough to be confident that he is the solution either as a guaranteed Premier League starter in a club that has higher aspirations than being near the bottom of the table or as a starter in a Championship midfield that will definitely get us promoted. 

Neither of which were actually centre mids, Buendia that season was a right winger and Olise was a right winger / 10.

 

He was still the highest rated actual centre mid in the league, not just at Luton.

 

I watched a lot of him at Luton, and even though he is struggling for us now he has still played well for us before so I still think he would be great for us in the Championship.

Edited 16 April 2023 by moore_94

[funkyrobot]

1 hour ago, moore_94 said:

Neither of which were actually centre mids, Buendia that season was a right winger and Olise was a right winger / 10.

 

He was still the highest rated actual centre mid in the league, not just at Luton.

 

I watched a lot of him at Luton, and even though he is struggling for us now he has still played well for us before so I still think he would be great for us in the Championship.

I don’t get where you are getting these figures from. I don’t disagree that he was a standout player for Luton but he wasn’t the best midfielder in the division. I listed Buendia and Olise as they are both showing more quality in The Prem I could also have added Mowatt and Skipp. Both CM’s and both got into Championship teams of the season that year. If he was regarded as the best as you suggest, why wasn’t he in the teams? 

[HarryDee8]

End of the day the best players should play, not based on their location. If he has a run of good games, then play him.

 

Luckily I think Dean Smith isn't into loyalties and will play those that deserve a spot

[Claridge]

2 hours ago, sacreblueits442 said:

...I think we could have him in a three in the midfield and he can do a job. He has vision but that would not be at the forefront of what we need from him!!!

  Played in a three with Ndid as the destroyer, Tielemans as the creator and KDH as the metronome  then we have a balanced midfield. 

 With three further forward being, Barnes, Tete and Nacho as the false 9, we have a balanced team that can easily churn out the results and performances that we need for the rest of the season.

 Maddison not being mentioned, is due to the #8 either being himself or Tielemans. 

Ndidi as the destroyer, not sure he could destroy a unbalanced Jenga tower. Absolute rubbish for at least 2 years

[funkyrobot]

1 hour ago, sacreblueits442 said:

.. I  suspect you have responded to the wrong post in this instance!!!

 I am in noway lambasting Praet in any shape or form,  just suggesting that he should show more authority on the pitch and stop hiding his talent.

 The post I suspect you believed you were responding to, is a post that I endorsed.

Yeh sorry. I thought you were the OP as you responded to the question I asked of him! For what it’s worth - Praet is an experienced Belgian international and for me, based on KDH’s ongoing poor form it should be a no brainer to start Praet ahead of him. 

[An Sionnach]

Just now, funkyrobot said:

Yeh sorry. I thought you were the OP as you responded to the question I asked of him! For what it’s worth - Praet is an experienced Belgian international and for me, based on KDH’s ongoing poor form it should be a no brainer to start Praet ahead of him. 

Dennis is pretty reliable but KDH is a left sided player so they are not totally interchangeable. However Smith is likely to rejigg the midfield so it may happen.

[cityfanlee23]

3 hours ago, sacreblueits442 said:

...I think we could have him in a three in the midfield and he can do a job. He has vision but that would not be at the forefront of what we need from him!!!

  Played in a three with Ndid as the destroyer, Tielemans as the creator and KDH as the metronome  then we have a balanced midfield. 

 With three further forward being, Barnes, Tete and Nacho as the false 9, we have a balanced team that can easily churn out the results and performances that we need for the rest of the season.

 Maddison not being mentioned, is due to the #8 either being himself or Tielemans. 

I mean I can see where you're coming from, but when I say vision for KDH I mainly mean spacial awareness, the problem for me is that he seems to have absolutely no idea who's around him, and because he refuses to use his right foot, he often turns himself into trouble and ends up making a hospital pass like his pass to Ndidi yesterday, for me a CM needs to have incredible spacial awareness and that ability to always be glancing and understanding where everyone around you is. I just feel like he doesn't have that at all, and it often ends up with him getting himself into trouble needlessly. But if he can build on that then he may have a future here, i'd personally prefer to see him as a CDM that protects the back 4 and only has to really look forwards.

[sacreblueits442]

2 minutes ago, cityfanlee23 said:

I mean I can see where you're coming from, but when I say vision for KDH I mainly mean spacial awareness, the problem for me is that he seems to have absolutely no idea who's around him, and because he refuses to use his right foot, he often turns himself into trouble and ends up making a hospital pass like his pass to Ndidi yesterday, for me a CM needs to have incredible spacial awareness and that ability to always be glancing and understanding where everyone around you is. I just feel like he doesn't have that at all, and it often ends up with him getting himself into trouble needlessly. But if he can build on that then he may have a future here, i'd personally prefer to see him as a CDM that protects the back 4 and only has to really look forwards.

...interestingly he excelled further up the pitch whilst on loan!!!

 Seemed to be in a #10 role where he was dynamic and was a totally different person.

  It just goes to show how a players personality can change depending on who they are surrounded by. I do suspect that we may have an environment where it is difficult to get your true self to come to the fore, as the people around you have such big personalities. 

 In the Pearson days it was pretty much are they good enough, could they work in the style we wish to play and the last thing, can they fit into the existing group.

 I wonder how many players we did not bring in, as we did not view their character to be something that would gel with what we already had at the club.

 

[SafewayFox]

One thing for sure is that KDH whether he’s jaded, confidence is shot or just a bit average (most likely a combination of all three) for his own sake could do with a bit of time out of the starting 11.

[funkyrobot]

10 hours ago, An Sionnach said:

Dennis is pretty reliable but KDH is a left sided player so they are not totally interchangeable. However Smith is likely to rejigg the midfield so it may happen.

Praet can play anywhere in midfield 

[Bob Hazels shorts]

20 hours ago, An Sionnach said:

Dennis is pretty reliable but KDH is a left sided player so they are not totally interchangeable. However Smith is likely to rejigg the midfield so it may happen.

Praet looked really comfortable when he had to cover LW for a part game due to HB injury

[Strokes]

He needs to go back to basics, when he first got in the team his energy was electric. He was so tenacious it made up for the odd bad touch or misplaced pass. He seems to lack that bite in his game now and it doesn’t cover his shortcomings. He also often seems to lack the fitness he had last season. 

[fazzyfox]

He does disrupt the opposition, get amongst them and does have a will to get forward however his passing has been letting him down to the point where it's a problem, the opposition have sussed that. With everyone fit and if we can get a tune out of Tete I'd revert to the old pre K DH midfield 3 of Wilf or Mendy, Tielemans, Maddison, with Barnes and Tete wide or Praet in for Tete. K DH can have a good role to play but when he seems to be rubberstamped permanently on the team sheet regardless of form it needs looking at again and having him as an option if he's playing well not a guaranteed start. I seem to remember Rodgers subbing him at half time (was it Man City at home) for not "protecting the ball well enough" and as well as ability it's an attitude of carelessness and sloppyness, he's not alone with that but it's what's costing us. There was a "pass" on Saturday to Kristiansen, just 15 yards or so that went behind him out for a throw and it was just hot potato time, giving up responsibility and dropping a team mate in it instead, then the infield ball to Wilf for the second goal, no assessment of risk, even if the pass makes it he's surrounded and it's Wilf not Pirlo. A more confident K DH in a more settled time is a decent option to have around but I just can't stand to see shirts handed out week after week regardless of form (cough...Vardy), reminds me of Mason Mounts run in the England starting line up 

[spacemunky]

Loan spell at Notts County would sort him out.

[LVFox]

At his best KDH is a really good presser and dribbler and actually shows the technical ability to offer a decent goal threat too.

 

At his worst (which has been this season), he's sloppy on the ball and terrible at keeping defensive shape.

 

The guy has needed a rest for about a year now. He'll never be a star midfielder but he's a great option. 

[daddylonglegs]

On 16/04/2023 at 09:11, Costock_Fox said:

I feel bad for him, he tries and he cares but if we want to stay in this league then he cannot be a guaranteed starter like he has been for 18 months.

 

That said, if the other options are Ndidi or Soumare then I can understand why he is.

The thing is these aren't the other options anymore. If 5 at the back is the way forward (As has been blatantly obvious for the last 18 months, with the personnel available for the large part), then we only need to play 2 central midfielders. 

 

Tielemans, Mendy, Praet, Ndidi should all be ahead of him. We can't afford KDH's lack of quality in the same way we can't afford Soumare's lack of running/effort.

 

It should be 2 of Youri, Mendy & Praet for the rest of the season. 

[lcfc_forever]

20 minutes ago, daddylonglegs said:

The thing is these aren't the other options anymore. If 5 at the back is the way forward (As has been blatantly obvious for the last 18 months, with the personnel available for the large part), then we only need to play 2 central midfielders. 

 

Tielemans, Mendy, Praet, Ndidi should all be ahead of him. We can't afford KDH's lack of quality in the same way we can't afford Soumare's lack of running/effort.

 

It should be 2 of Youri, Mendy & Praet for the rest of the season. 

Agree. If Barnes is fit, I'd like to see us go 3-4-3 in a similar set up to when we won 5-2 vs Man City (those were the days!).

 

Mendy and Tielemans in the midfield as the pivot, with Barnes, Ihenacho and Maddison upfront. 

[VLC86]

1 hour ago, daddylonglegs said:

The thing is these aren't the other options anymore. If 5 at the back is the way forward (As has been blatantly obvious for the last 18 months, with the personnel available for the large part), then we only need to play 2 central midfielders. 

 

Tielemans, Mendy, Praet, Ndidi should all be ahead of him. We can't afford KDH's lack of quality in the same way we can't afford Soumare's lack of running/effort.

 

It should be 2 of Youri, Mendy & Praet for the rest of the season. 

Yep, when I typed that Youri wasn’t showing any signs of being fit. I’m not 100% sure on Praet but he has more quality than KDH for sure, it’s whether his effort levels will tip the balance to him.

[An Sionnach]

1 hour ago, LVFox said:

At his best KDH is a really good presser and dribbler and actually shows the technical ability to offer a decent goal threat too.

 

At his worst (which has been this season), he's sloppy on the ball and terrible at keeping defensive shape.

 

The guy has needed a rest for about a year now. He'll never be a star midfielder but he's a great option. 

With Maddison, Tielemans and Praet probably leaving , while Ndidi is never coming back to previous levels , we will have no "star midfielder". Also given we have little money , we are going to have to be realistic so KDH is going to be very important over the next few years.