Steve Bruce would say, "If he is, then it must be a bloody stupid question" but the guy hasn't become a bad player since Christmas. He certainly will not be staying at Wigan, that's for sure! He and Bruce seem to get on as well as Bush and Bin Laden and his no show after this week's international is surely the final nail in his Wigan coffin. Will any of the big boys want him? I doubt it now. His goals have dried up and he has a bad boy reputation into the bargain. As toxic as a take away meal in Cairo some will say.
But the fact is, the guy can play a bit. He is big, strong, can head the ball and, when his tail is up, can hit the back of the net. I liked what I saw before he fell out with Bruce and I fancy Zola would have the man management skills to make him feel special and loved. So, if he is available at a price in the region of £5m, I would say he was worth the gamble.
Zaki is a perfect example of what happens when a striker loses confidence. Would you boo him for it?
ReplyDelete...As Cole got booed? As Boa Morte gets booed?
And while we're on the latter subject, would you not agree that LBM was one of the best players on the field against Sunderland? Passion, intensity. Yes, he's lost his confidence shooting. I think he's shown enormous class in the face of all these calls for blood, and I can't wait 'til he scores one. I think they should keep him.
Check out my match report - Two colts and an Old Nag. I give Luis full credit for his contribution. For the record, I have never booed a West Ham player, though I came close when Bowyer joined us - because he was a racist thug, allegedly.
ReplyDeletevery well written pierre
ReplyDeletefirst of all, in response to pierre, i can count the amount of good games boa morte has had for us on one hand. and, as i'm not from norwich, that equates to less than, or equal to, 5.
ReplyDeletethat's £1m he has cost us per per good game he has had - plus the stupid wages he is getting paid. the stupid wages that mean he is quite happy to see out his time here, and that nobody else will want to buy him.
ok, so he had a fairly decent game against sunderland. he has very little pace, he has very little skill, he has a tendancy to make the wrong decisions and generally has no class about him at alol. so what if he runs around like a madman for 90mins, i would run more and be more like a madman if you gave me a chance to play for west ham - but it wouldn't warrant a £5m price tag and however much he is earning per week.
as for Zaki........why on earth would we want to pay for someone who has a blatant attitude problem, ego the size of boa morte's ass and whose "goals have dried up"?
we may as well sign mido... but i don't hear anyone calling for that.
signing him would only upset the ship - and quite a content ship it is right now. see this season out, ashton will be back and there's your big target man stiker problem sorted (for a few games at least!)
Boa Morte has no pace? Christ, that's one of the few things he has got. He had a good game Saturday, played a perfectly weighted pass for our first goal and generally made a significant contribution. Certainly roughed up Richardson enough to throw him completely off his game. You cannot fault his commitment nor his heart. Credit where it is due, and right now it is due.
ReplyDeleteHe is incredibly frustrating (a la Wanchope), no he isn't worth five mill, and probably not the wages he is on but those things are down to the club and not him. I think there is a good squad player in there somewhere and a little bit of confidence - and some recognition from the fans - might just bring it out.
With you on Zaki, though, he's too disruptive. One of the strengths inculcated into the squad by Zola and Clarke is the sense of unity and togetherness (particularly now the little Welsh shit has gone) and I fear Zaki, good though he is, would be too much of a risk.
Which means we'll probably end up buying him.
if you was going to bring someone off the bench to add pace to the team, who would it be?
ReplyDeleteThe first person who springs to mind is not LBM. It's Savio, Stanislas, Dyer, Sears...those players have pace.
As far as I'm concerned, he only looks quick cos he's playing alongside Tristan/DDM!
I won't disagree that he had a pretty decent game against Sunderland, but let's not forget all the frustrations of the last few years with him - there's no smoke without fire, and I still am of the opinion that he just isn't good enough.
Maybe a good battling option to defend a lead late on in a game, or in games against Wigan/Bolton/Blackburn where footballing ability goes out the window and it becomes about how physical you can be in a challenge!
The replies sum up why Zaki would be available at a knock down price. Remember Di Canio?
ReplyDeleteyou cannot compare zaki to di canio
ReplyDeletejust cos he's available at a cut down price does not make him comparable to di canio, or even any good. as far as i care, he has had a little bit of an ok season, proving himself occasionally and has a stinking 'im bigger than the club attitude' - not about that at all, he can clear off
I wasn't comparing them as players freddy but as bad boys who can be bought at knock down prices because they are seen as damaged goods. I would back Zola to turn Zaki around.
ReplyDeleteZaki hasn't overly impressed me and his attitude seems to have got distinctly worse since getting a lot of early season praise. How many of his goal were via penalties? I personally think our dressing room is nicely balanced, a fact borne out by our over-achievment this season (allowing for our injuries). I personally think players like Zaki are part of our games problems and I'm surprised that you would even think ask the question about him, tbh.
ReplyDeleteI'm not sure Den, a lot happened very quickly for the guy. He arrived and in time he was being linked with Man Utd, City, Milan etcetera. It went to the guy's head but it would go to mine if I was playing at Wigan. Shearer purred about him and, bore that he is on MOTD, I think he knows a bit about forwards. In Shearer's words, "He has it all". That's some reference!
ReplyDeleteI'm not saying he isn't a good player and definatly a decent target man but I am questioning the utter contempt he has shown the club which gave him his opportunity in the 'promised land' of the Premiership. Why would he do any different to us. A simple phone call to the manager is the LEAST Wigan should have had. He got his agent to phone in sick for him ffs! That kind of Billy Big Bollox attitude has no place in a side with young players who are at an important stage of their development. I'll stick by my 'avoid' opinion. P.S. Do you know what his 'goals from open play as a percentage of his teams goals' is compared with Carlton Cole?
ReplyDeleteNo idea Den, but I'm thinking of him alongside Carlton - both mobile and imposing physically. We coped with Bellyache, Zaki can't be any worse!
ReplyDeleteLOL, maybe your right. On a different note, I'd like to sign this lad HULK from Porto. That would be an INCREDIBLE signing...
ReplyDeleteLOL The obvious ones are the best ones! Personally I think he needs more experience before we buy him, he's a bit too green for my liking!
ReplyDelete