At least Holebas cared. I wish we had more like him in the team now. I can still picture him in a game at Brighton, ripping off his gloves and flinging them down behind the goal in exasperation at his perceived ineptitude of his teammates.
Cared about what? The club? No. The fans? Not at all. His teammates? No. Himself? Maybe. And aside from half a season, he’d so often lose the ball, put his hands in the air/ fake injury and hardly bother chasing the ball back. And plenty of times, he was blaming his teammates and creating division for his own ineptitude. There’s some weird aura around Holebas, where many on here remember the short period he was genuinely good and forget the vast majority of the time where he was a genuine liability and one of our least liked players. I get being actually good for us for a short period of time is more than you can say about most of our current lot. But to prefer him to players who cared about the club and the fans and were consistently good is bonkers.
I'm sure Holebas didn't care about the club or the fans but he certainly cared about winning/not losing football games. Isn't that a good thing?
He was passionate, sulky and moody and that made him interesting. However that passion was often misdirected and he wasn’t that good. Remember Ake, primarily a CH, kept him out of the side for much of his first year.
If he cared so much about winning, he would have chased back more. He was just angry and thought whenever something bad happened it was everyone else's fault.
Him not chasing back only happened a couple of times throughout his time with us. Most of the time he was one of the most determined players on the pitch, and we've had very few players since who played with as much grit and spirit as him.
Ake is currently the starting LB at arguably the best team in the world. But Holebas was crap because Ake kept him out the side?
I didn’t say he was ****. It was 7 or 8 years ago and Ake was just a kid whose preferred position was CH.
It happened all the time. Holebas would lose the ball to a fair challenge and he’d then spend minutes feigning injury on the ground, arguing with the ref or his teammates, being totally uninterested in play or he’d kick out at another player. Leaving the rest of our team essentially playing with 10 men.
The deliberate handball that he did costing us a game seems to have been forgotten by the Cult of Holebas
Given that he’s gone on to be a starter at Man City, it’s probably fair to make the suggestion @LeedsOrn did, even if Ake was 20 at the time. Plus, I’d say 20-21 isn’t really a ‘kid’ anymore in football. More of an argument had be been 17/18 like Chalobah was and not played any senior football previous to joining.
The point that was being made was simply that Holebas was a very experienced LB signed from a good Italian side, and was unable to dislodge a young inexperienced loan from Chelsea who had primarily played as a CH up to that point.
Isn’t your behaviour here the exact behaviour you moan about it? Seriously, grow up. You’re making a situation where literally no one else made one. But I’m sure you’ll do a virtual throwing your hands up and claim you are clueless etc. An act as old as this forum.
Sorry I have no idea why you have posted this. Clearly it's imperative to put a smiley face after any tongue-in-cheek banter with you.
He's had injury issues which combined with his age probably isn't the greatest sign but I like Arias.
Love how the club just added this to the bottom of the squad list: Relating to other professionals on Watford’s books, Jorge Segura’s contract has been terminated, while Jaime Alvarado has joined Independiente Medellín on a permanent deal and Ober Almanza has completed a loan move to Deportivo Pereira until December 31, 2023.
Wow, amazing they've acknowledged these players even exists. Like spies coming in from the cold, they at last get recognition. There's probably a wall at London Colney with an anonymous star marking each failed foreign prospect who was on the books but never made it to an official announcement before leaving again.
Also @LeedsOrn To underline my knowledge and opinion on Shola Shoretire in the summer - I stated he shouldn't be under consideration for us (either as an attacking midfielder or any other type of forward), because he's: "crap, and nowhere near ready for us, probably not even for the Championship at all" ... Well lo and behold, in January he only went on loan to Bolton in League One (and so far has 0 goals and assists in 364 minutes). https://wfcforums.com/index.php?threads/transfer-talk-suggestions.54511/page-279#post-3166114
How odd. I’m genuinely confused as to why you have cited me and what argument this is in reference to. I just searched my posts with Shoretire in them and found one, in reference to Burnsy’s report of loose interest in which I enquired how much United youth football you watch and then highlighted that “I’m not keen on him either because he’s young and players rarely excel on their first loan.” But sure - you have been proven right yet again or whatever you’re trying to show. You got me.
If we’re dragging receipts for opinions expressed (or not even expressed) in the summer @lowerrous hows this one regarding Folarin Balogun, Ligue 1 top scorer... This re Balogun a) is further evidence of my point regarding Shoretire (that we shouldn’t have him as players rarely excel with their first loan) and b) shows the futility of dragging up past suggestions (although again I never suggested Shoretire and expressed opposition to us signing him). We all make good suggestions and bad suggestions. I’m confident that most of the suggestions I’ve made are good and that a lot of the players I’ve listed have gone on to excel and that I have a better record than many (I’d probably say the same for you) but fortunately for us all I rarely feel it is incumbent on me to prove myself right or others wrong.
