Only Fools and Horses Draft R1 - P-nut vs Mustard

[Šjor Bepo]

vs

Team P-nut

Classic 442 with overlapping full backs and flying wingers, and 2 CMs capable of running a midfield with only 2 in there.


Team Cat Mustard

Why I'll Win:

 

[Šjor Bepo]

@P-Nut @Pat_Mustard good luck

 

[Šjor Bepo]

Mustard got butchered through the draft but a nice team in the end though p-nut built an absolute beauty so reckon even the best stepover that drafts has ever seen will probably not be enough

 

[harms]

Neville's video

 

[harms]

That's a midfield battle for the ages (and Ruben Loftus-Cheek). I may end up voting for @P-Nut simply because his "sheep" is a good player, but that's a close one.

 

[P-Nut]

That's a midfield battle for the ages (and Ruben Loftus-Cheek). I may end up voting for @P-Nut simply because his "sheep" is a good player, but that's a close one.

I'm guessing this is at TAA?

Reason I targeted him from the first round of that sheep draft was already having Beckham for him to overlap, in the same way Neville used to overlap him. Just this time you've got a much better crosser which means he can't just be ignored. Plus with Becks workrate it covers for some of TAA defensive issues.

 

[Šjor Bepo]

I'm guessing this is at TAA?

Reason I targeted him from the first round of that sheep draft was already having Beckham for him to overlap, in the same way Neville used to overlap him. Just this time you've got a much better crosser which means he can't just be ignored. Plus with Becks workrate it covers for some of TAA defensive issues.

maybe a mind playing tricks on me because of current season where Trent barely overlaps so would be interesting to see/find how much of the actual overlap was he making before or was it a recent change.

 

[harms]

I'm guessing this is at TAA?

Reason I targeted him from the first round of that sheep draft was already having Beckham for him to overlap, in the same way Neville used to overlap him. Just this time you've got a much better crosser which means he can't just be ignored. Plus with Becks workrate it covers for some of TAA defensive issues.

Yeah, he's pretty much as good as it gets when you look at that sheep pool. Maybe a player who was more defensive on the spectrum would've fitted in better (TAA's crosses are his main strength by far and he gets tons of opportunities – unlike Neville, who was great as an alternative option) – but you can't get a perfect team from the start.

 

[Gio]

Only the 6 players who can produce a wicked cross into the box @P-Nut

 

[Šjor Bepo]

which was the year where rooney's heading drastically improved? was it 09 or 11, either way, think p-nut missed a trick there as he doesnt really need the beast version anyways.

 

[Zlatan 7]

I like both these teams

 

[GodShaveTheQueen]

Good teams. Shit team sheet graphics.

 

[harms]

which was the year where rooney's heading drastically improved? was it 09 or 11, either way, think p-nut missed a trick there as he doesnt really need the beast version anyways.

2009/10

 

[P-Nut]

maybe a mind playing tricks on me because of current season where Trent barely overlaps so would be interesting to see/find how much of the actual overlap was he making before or was it a recent change.

I think it's more the fact Salah is never actually put wide, so when TAA pushes forward he's not necessarily overlapping. Which in fairness makes his assist numbers from last season even more impressive, given he usually had both the full back and winger on his side with Salah floating around the middle.

Only the 6 players who can produce a wicked cross into the box @P-Nut

My initial aim was to build aa Stoke type side, given I was gifted the British pool I thought traditional get it whipped in to the big man would be a good way to go.

which was the year where rooney's heading drastically improved? was it 09 or 11, either way, think p-nut missed a trick there as he doesnt really need the beast version anyways.

I actually did completely forget about his heading season, but I wanted the maniac running all over the pitch anyway given he's basically got a free role here to do as he pleases with a solid structure around him, that would probably function just fine even if he wasn't there.

 

[Synco]

Two very nice teams, and maybe a draw for me.

What's unusual is Waddle at LW in a 4-3-3 - @Pat_Mustard, do you reckon that's a good use for him in a modern setup, or is it just a compromise to get the sheep in?

(I actually liked Loftus-Cheek at Chelsea when he was fit, btw.)

 

[GodShaveTheQueen]

Almost nothing between the teams but am a sucker for a well built 4-4-2. Pnut wins my vote.

 

[2mufc0]

which was the year where rooney's heading drastically improved? was it 09 or 11, either way, think p-nut missed a trick there as he doesnt really need the beast version anyways.

It was the year after Ronaldo left, Rooney was pretty good in the air.

 

[Gio]

Two very nice teams, and maybe a draw for me.

What's unusual is Waddle at LW in a 4-3-3 - @Pat_Mustard, do you reckon that's a good use for him in a modern setup, or is it just a compromise to get the sheep in?

(I actually liked Loftus-Cheek at Chelsea when he was fit, btw.)

Given the overall shape and attributes of the team, Waddle at LW fits quite well in my book. Firstly Phil Neville isn't going to offer much of an overlap, and Beckham would cancel out any forward runs in any case. Secondly, nor is Schweinsteiger going to stretch the play and he is more inclined to punch the ball out wide to Waddle early. Thirdly, Kluivert would enjoy the crossing based service he'd get from Waddle in that position, being quite impressive in the air. And finally his trickery would tie Trent up in knots. So quite a few reasons to break with the convention of the inverted winger in the modern 4-3-3.

 

[Synco]

Given the overall shape and attributes of the team, Waddle at LW fits quite well in my book. Firstly Phil Neville isn't going to offer much of an overlap, and Beckham would cancel out any forward runs in any case. Secondly, nor is Schweinsteiger going to stretch the play and he is more inclined to punch the ball out wide to Waddle early. Thirdly, Kluivert would enjoy the crossing based service he'd get from Waddle in that position, being quite impressive in the air. And finally his trickery would tie Trent up in knots. So quite a few reasons to break with the convention of the inverted winger in the modern 4-3-3.

Cheers, now that I read your reply I realize I had confused Waddle with Hoddle

All makes perfect sense now (except my question).

 

[Zlatan 7]

Cheers, now that I read your reply I realize I had confused Waddle with Hoddle

All makes perfect sense now (except my question).

Easily done

 

[Pat_Mustard]

Given the overall shape and attributes of the team, Waddle at LW fits quite well in my book. Firstly Phil Neville isn't going to offer much of an overlap, and Beckham would cancel out any forward runs in any case. Secondly, nor is Schweinsteiger going to stretch the play and he is more inclined to punch the ball out wide to Waddle early. Thirdly, Kluivert would enjoy the crossing based service he'd get from Waddle in that position, being quite impressive in the air. And finally his trickery would tie Trent up in knots. So quite a few reasons to break with the convention of the inverted winger in the modern 4-3-3.

Two very nice teams, and maybe a draw for me.

What's unusual is Waddle at LW in a 4-3-3 - @Pat_Mustard, do you reckon that's a good use for him in a modern setup, or is it just a compromise to get the sheep in?

(I actually liked Loftus-Cheek at Chelsea when he was fit, btw.)

I know you just got your Diamond Lights musical superstars mixed up Synco but Gio nailed the rationale for Waddle on the LW nonetheless. I had planned to use him on the right wing but when Robben became available late it was a no-brainer to pick him and play him where he hit his peak.

Just musing randomly about Waddle now but it's quite impressive that he transformed his right foot from being useless into a real weapon. One-footed players seem to be a slight bugbear of his:

I was completely left-footed until I was about 23. It’s then that I started playing on the right-hand side and people knew I’d cut onto my left so I worked on my right in the gym. Twenty minutes a day for a couple of months is all it takes for a professional improve his weaker foot. It makes me laugh that England are crying out for a left-footed player and the guys trying to get that role can’t just practice for 20 minutes a day on their left.

Some nice right-footed goals:



Young Waddle, young Beardsley and old Keegan has to be one of the better attacks assembled in lower-division football, unsurprisingly winning Newcastle promotion to the top flight. Keegan's back-to-goal play was so good, even on the verge of retirement. Some gorgeous football here:


It seems inexplicable in retrospect that Waddle was only given 149 minutes on the pitch for England in total after WC 90 when he was still at his peak, winning titles for Marseille and impressing in Europe, then winning the FWA Player of the Year award in his first season back in England. It was evidently controversial at the time too:

Spoiler

THEY had better win, or the booing won't stop at John Barnes this time. The continued omission of Chris Waddle from England's World Cup squad has baffled just about everyone - the Dutch included - and Graham Taylor will go to Wembley on Wednesday week as the classic hostage to fortune.

Inevitably, Taylor's decision to soldier on without the best player in the country was the subject of protracted debate yesterday, when the manager made public his selection for the Netherlands' visit on 28 April.

Any strategy which favours continuity over individual excellence will never be easy to defend, and few critics were won over by an explanation which revolved around the desire to keep faith with the players who have won their last three games. Not when the opposition were as poor as San Marino and Turkey, and certainly not when the latest squad shows five changes to that chosen for Izmir, two weeks ago.

Missing from that party are Tony Dorigo, David Batty and Paul Warhurst, who have all been injured, Alan Smith, who is dropped, along with Nigel Martyn, the third goalkeeper, deemed surplus to requirements at home. In come Earl Barrett, Nigel Winterburn, Trevor Steven and Teddy Sheringham.

Under normal circumstances, attention would focus on Sheringham, the Tottenham striker, who is the one newcomer with no previous experience. This time, though, there will be more interest in one man who has not been picked than in the 22 who have.

Waddle is, by common consent, the most effective provider in the Premier League. Dennis Bergkamp, the Netherlands' own man of the moment, expressed astonishment at his absence. How could Taylor justify spurning an experienced international at the peak of his form while retaining John Barnes and Nigel Clough, who are enduring the worst seasons of their respective careers?

He gave it a good try. An hour's verbiage boiled down to the fact that, if he had Waddle in the squad, he would feel compelled to play him, and in order to do that he would have to amend his tactics, which he was not prepared to do.


Taylor shied away from comparisons, but was grateful for the suggestion that it would be difficult to accommodate Waddle and Paul Gascoigne - two playmakers - in the same side. It was wrong, he insisted, to talk in terms of Barnes keeping his old rival out of the team. Barnes played on the left, Waddle the right. They were not in direct competition.


What Taylor actually said was: 'I understand the calls for Chris to come into the squad but, having given it a great deal of thought, I came to the conclusion that I should stick with the boys who have produced our last four World Cup results.


'I feel that if I brought Chris back into the squad for this game, I would have to play him, and to play him I would have to rearrange the team, which I don't really want to do. I don't think that would be fair after what this squad has done over the last four or five months.'

Unconvincing. Form rather than fairness should be the overriding criterion. England's 22 should be the best 22 available. Sheringham and Les Ferdinand had forced their way in by playing well. Waddle, playing better than anyone, deserves a place.


Taylor would not have it. 'I know all about Chris. I didn't know about Les Ferdinand and I don't know about Teddy Sheringham. I want to find out about them.'
If it came down to a straight choice between Waddle and Gascoigne as playmaker, there was a good case for dropping Gascoigne, whose last two performances for England have been poor, and whose form for Lazio of late has seen him substituted time and again. No chance. Taylor said: 'I've been watching Chris since the start of the season, not just in the last two weeks. People made a lot of the fact that I saw him play at Oldham, but I saw him at Manchester City, at home to Tottenham and at Aston Villa as well. I feel I have a good picture of Chris Waddle this season.'


The audience remained sceptical. Was there a personality clash, wondered the newspaper which last year had Waddle accusing Taylor of setting back England's development by five years? That little 'misunderstanding' had been resolved to mutual satisfaction, the manager said. 'When Chris returned from Marseille, I went out of my way to go and see Chris and say to him: 'If you've got anything to complain about, tell me to my face. Don't let's be reading about these things in the papers.' If there was any clearing up to be done, it was done a long time ago.'


Glenn Hoddle, undervalued in the Eighties, was an obvious analogy, and one Taylor did nothing to contradict. 'There will always be somebody not in the England team who people think should be,' he said. 'Invariably it will be a skilful player. I don't see the situation as anything new. If Chris was in, it would be somebody else.'


Under what circumstances would he have Waddle back? 'I would do it if I felt Chris could come in and add something to the team without it losing anything. Those circumstances can arise.'


Taylor's tactical reasoning is sound. Waddle and Gascoigne both need to be at the hub of things to be effective, and two chiefs for 11 indians would seem to be excessive. Logic, however, dictates that if Waddle is not in the 11 he should certainly be in the 16 - let alone the 22. The real answer probably lies in the manager's intention to create his own team, to which end he has pensioned off the Bobby Robson inheritance, bit by bit.


Waddle is not the only casualty. Similar calls for the reinstatement of Peter Beardsley have gone unheeded, Paul Parker has lost out to Barrett and Mark Hateley is forgotten, despite a prolific season with Rangers. Of yesterday's four promotions, only Winterburn has a realistic chance of playing, Arsenal's left-back owing the chance of a first appearance in the starting line-up, at Andy Sinton's expense, to the injuries which again removed Stuart Pearce and Tony Dorigo from contention. Sheringham, like the unlucky Warhurst last time, is in because he is 'hot', and Taylor wants to 'have a look at him' at close quarters.


Waddle is even hotter, but in his case 160 miles would seem to be close enough.

Some anecdotes that deepened my affection for him even further:

“I once had a penalty shootout with Rudi Voller to decide who had the best mullet,” proclaims Chris Waddle proudly. “I won and was awarded Mullet of the Year.” For a player who won a hat-trick of league titles in France with Marseille and was voted Footballer of the Year while with Sheffield Wednesday in 1993, this barnet-related victory seems to draw a disproportionate amount of joy. This may, of course, be because the success vindicated the twin infamies of his career; namely haircuts and penalties. Plus it involved a shootout victory against a German.

'He said, "Will you do a song with me? It's an African-European rap". I said "That sounds awful, I'm a serious singer, you never heard of Diamond Lights?" Anyway, I agreed. We recorded the video and they dressed me as John Steed from The Avengers, wearing a bowler hat and a brolly and dancing! The video came on TV one night, oh my God! It got to No 1 in Albania! I said to him before Euro '92, "Stuart Pearce is harder than you". So what does he do? Headbutts Pearcey when France played England!'

A Brazil defender signed at same time as me. We drove to training together. We had no common language. I'm thinking, "This will be a long three miles". All of a sudden he says, "Kevin Keegan". I think for a second and say, "Pele". He goes, "Gary Lineker". I go, "Jairzinho". This goes on all the way to training. We get back in the car after and it starts again. "Bryan Robson". So I say, "Rivellino". "Glenn Hoddle". "Tostao". We did this for three days! He's got a restaurant in Lisbon now. I saw him a few years ago. I just said, "Jairzinho", and we couldn't stop laughing.

 

[Pat_Mustard]

And well-deserved win @P-Nut ! Outcome was never in doubt hence my particularly half-arsed excuse for a write-up and no show for the match thread.

 

[Zlatan 7]

I know you just got your Diamond Lights musical superstars mixed up Synco but Gio nailed the rationale for Waddle on the LW nonetheless. I had planned to use him on the right wing but when Robben became available late it was a no-brainer to pick him and play him where he hit his peak.

Just musing randomly about Waddle now but it's quite impressive that he transformed his right foot from being useless into a real weapon. One-footed players seem to be a slight bugbear of his:



Some nice right-footed goals:



Young Waddle, young Beardsley and old Keegan has to be one of the better attacks assembled in lower-division football, unsurprisingly winning Newcastle promotion to the top flight. Keegan's back-to-goal play was so good, even on the verge of retirement. Some gorgeous football here:


It seems inexplicable in retrospect that Waddle was only given 149 minutes on the pitch for England in total after WC 90 when he was still at his peak, winning titles for Marseille and impressing in Europe, then winning the FWA Player of the Year award in his first season back in England. It was evidently controversial at the time too:



Some anecdotes that deepened my affection for him even further:

Brilliant quotes at the bottom

 

[P-Nut]

And well-deserved win @P-Nut ! Outcome was never in doubt hence my particularly half-arsed excuse for a write-up and no show for the match thread.

Yeah you got shafted in the drafting phase. Couple of better players rather than the sheep's etc and it'd be a close as feck game