NUFC Player Ratings v Arsenal
By Wasim
March 22 2009
Steven Taylor was judged Man Of The Match for his performance against Arsenal yesterday, by Tyne-Talk's resident player rater Wasim4nufc, for the 2nd week running. Read on to see how the rest of the team faired......
Player ratings vs Arsenal
Steve Harper (6) - Did well in the 1st half, but was partly to blame for their 3rd goal.
Steven Taylor (8) - He was magnificent on defence and it was a big blow when he left the field injured. Hope it isn't to serious. He made some great blocks.
Fabricio Coloccini (5) - Made a huge mistake in the 1st half, and was lucky not to be punished. Things weren't helped when Bassong and Taylor went off, kind of leaving him exposed.
Sebastien Bassong (7) - Did well when on, hopefully his not too seriously injured, because he is an important factor if we are to survuve the drop.
Jose Enrique (7) - Another solid performance from him. He really has enhanced his reputation in the last 6 weeks or so.
Ryan Taylor (5.5) - His set pieces weren't great, and he lost the ball a lot. Didn't justify his inclusion unfortunately.
Nicky Butt (7) - He did well for the 1st hour, and kept breaking up Arsenal's attack. After that it was hard to stop the Gunners. A better performance though from Butt after a few bad games.
Kevin Nolan (6) - Didn't do too badly in the 1st half, but doesn't seem to be the player he once was, when at Bolton a few seasons ago.
Damien Duff (7) - He was involved in many of our best moves in the 1st half, and he played well overall.
Peter Lovenkrands (7.5) - He was very lively for me, and was worthy of starting ahead of Owen.
Obafemi Martins (7) - He worked hard and scored a good goal, through sheer persistence. Took a poor penalty though and how different things could have been if he scored that.
Substitutes
Michael Owen (5) - Had no impact when coming on. We did miss his predator instincts in front of goal though, as he could well have been the man to take some of the chances when we dominated the 1st half.
Habib Beye (6) - Great to see him back, but his positioning for the 2nd and 3rd Arsenal goals,could have been better. Not his fault though, as his not a centre back.
Shola Ameobi (5.5) - Should have done better with a late chance which could may be have made for a good finish.
Positives
* Our 1st half was brilliant.
* Our bench was stronger than usual.
Negatives
* Injuries to Bassong and Taylor.
* We in the relegation zone now.
* Our rivals won. (Stoke, Portsmouth).
Man of the Match: Steven Taylor
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Quote:Tyne-Talk
Nicky Butt (7) - He did well for the 1st hour, and kept breaking up Arsenal's attack. After that it was hard to stop the Gunners. A better performance though from Butt after a few bad games.
You got to be kidding me. Did we watch the same match? Butt gave the ball away a lot. He doesn't even know how to protect it. Was really soft.. added nothing. Absolutely useless. We had 10 players on the pitch. In addition, his set pieces were embarrasing.
Nolan & Butt can't play together or we are too defensive. We need an attacking midfielder but we don't have him. And Nolan seems to be possitive for the team. So Butt should never be played again imo.
We didn't have a SUPER player. But our best players were: Bassong & Duff (who played an awesome first half and should have been substituted for Jonas when he wasn't up to playing half good the way he did in 1st half). The other ones who also did it acceptably were: Harper, S. Taylor, Nolan & Martins (eventhough he missed a P.K, he is always dangerous and I want to have him on).
Things to bare in mind against Chelsea... but honestly I don't see a good result. Even if the injured players were all back & fit for that game.. I think none of them performes miracles.
Otherwise your ratings looks fairly accurate.
Wasim's Sport Blog
Toon4life
Duff only turned up for the first 45mins, likewise Nolan,
Should have been playing from the start. Disgrace!
Should have replaced Duff with Jonas for start of second half.
Why didnt Butt fill in for Taylor when he was off the pitch. Dont care if Management didnt tell him too, he should have just taken that responsiblity and moved back to fill the gap!! Taylor's face when they scored...
Quote:senyabtoon
yeah not playing jonas cost us dear as he is a great way to get the ball down field and get us out are own half by carring the ball long distance even if his delivery is not always up to scratch is better to be in the other teams half instead of letting them play in front of the 18 yard box
Quote:cappen
Butt & Duff seemed to run out of steam second half.
Should have replaced Duff with Jonas for start of second half.
Yeah I agree. We missed a trick by not using Jonas from the bench.
Wasim's Sport Blog
Toon4life
Excellent first 60