Boy is this guy poor. Did he make one single pass to own players?

As a former fullback myself I actually feel really sorry for him.

When he’s not having to deal with acres of space and 2v1’s cause Enzo has gone so far up and Neto isn't quick enough to get back for support on counters, he has his manager trying to turn him into the next Joao Cancelo/Trent Alexander Arnold by having him in inverting into midfield.

Granted this doesn’t completely excuse poor passing or crossing but would be foolish to think it doesn’t have any impact. He was more than good enough as an overlapping fullback last season, ability like that doesn’t just disappear.

Square peg, round hole.

Manager is too rigid to play to anyones strengths.

Can't remember seeing a player misused so badly. He hasn't improved a bit in this new role asked of him, but Maresca keeps on throwing him out there to die.

.

If Maresca does stay, he should be the first one on the sale/loan list. Just can't play this system at all and is a major liability everywhere on the pitch and not just today.

Just shows how good he was last year that everybody is willing to keep him despite this season. He has been horrendous let’s be honest.

I’m glad everyone could see that it’s the system not the player.

Just now, Brigadeiro Mk II said:

If Maresca does stay, he should be the first one on the sale/loan list. Just can't play this system at all and is a major liability everywhere on the pitch and not just today.

No, let’s not.

I’ll be shocked if Maresca is still here by new year.

1 minute ago, dansubrosa said:

No, let’s not.

I’ll be shocked if Maresca is still here by new year.

That's why I mentioned the loan, because at the moment Maresca is our manager and can't see him being replaced now that 4th place and conference league has been achieved. I can see Gusto having a part to play for other managers, but for Maresca? Definitely not.

Had an absolute stinker last night but that’s on maresca, he’d be very quickly a regrettable sale if he does go. I get maresca wanting to protect James but if you have a right back the quality of gusto then alter the tactics to suit him or play Acheampong.

I understand Liverpool are signing Frimpong but Gusto replacing Trent in that role would easily be a Top 3 in the world. As an inverted whatever he’s supposed to be here, it’s essentially playing with 9 men (this assumes Jackson is also in the lineup)

Given how poor he's looked this season, I was surprised that he got called up to the French national team recently for the first time since October 2023 !

He wasn't even that good as a fullback under Pochetinno. I think there's some revisionism going on. He was.. ok. Nothing special. Couldn't really cross, or pass. Which he still can't, except now it's way more apparent cos he's being played as a DM.

18 minutes ago, Zeta said:

He wasn't even that good as a fullback under Pochetinno. I think there's some revisionism going on. He was.. ok. Nothing special. Couldn't really cross, or pass. Which he still can't, except now it's way more apparent cos he's being played as a DM.

He was a big reason why we didn't miss James as much so I don't really agree.

Still had his flaws mind you but overall he showed more than enough to be excited going into this season.

Acheampong is a better fit.

Just now, Sconnie Blue said:

Acheampong is a better fit.

^ This

With the diminutive Cucurella on the left side, you really need the right back to have some physical presence to balance it out. That's James or Josh for me, and Gusto trailing some way behind them. Acheampong seems quite the athlete to me, and has great ability to bring the ball forwards. Hope to see a lot more of him next season, either at RB or CB.

Looked so promising last year but probably been the worst player this season. Obviously doesn’t fit the system but that’s not the entire reason for his decline.

He got done a number of times last night whilst in a traditional right full position. He was in midfield when he gave away the goal but is that an excuse for a high level footballer misplacing a 5-10 yard pass. I wouldn’t like to see him sold yet, probably deserves a chance to redeem himself next year or worst case scenario a loan move.

On 10/01/2025 at 04:33, icecoolguy22 said:

The temptation of pure profits always out weighted everything. Considering Cucureall was awful on many occasions last season, and we picked below average players  in the squad, Hall could have easily stayed and played some parts of the season, if not exceeding.

We have to be realistic about our finances in the past couple of seasons. We've avoided being docked points (or worse) due to some massive artificial windfalls (selling parts of the club - hotels, the women's team- to other parts of the organisation). We've spent ridiculous amounts on players, and ultimately had no choice but to sell the likes of Hall, Maatsen and Gallagher to comply with the PL's profit and sustainability regulations. Without that 'pure profit' we'd have been in deep deep do-do.

Selling Hall (who I rate highly) and Maatsen (who is not a great defender) has left us very weak at LB. We've been very lucky with Cucurella's exceptional form and fitness, as there's no obvious cover for him. I do not consider Colwill or Badiashile as acceptable in the LB role. Veiga filled in a couple of times, and he looks to have potential, but a long-term injury to Cucurella would be a huge problem. Maybe Chilwell will get a recall. A loan at Palace did wonders for Chalobah's status in the squad.

Two appearances (one start) as a traditional overlapping full back for France in the Nations Cup games and surprise surprise he looks much more like the player we saw emerging last season.

Let's hope our hapless manager was watching the games and actually learned something !

On 09/06/2025 at 10:00, Sexyfootball said:

Two appearances (one start) as a traditional overlapping full back for France in the Nations Cup games and surprise surprise he looks much more like the player we saw emerging last season.

Let's hope our hapless manager was watching the games and actually learned something !

You optimist, you.

Gusto is living proof that Maresca can’t be an elite manager. An elite manager can adapt.

Maresca forcing Gusto into midfield is painful, the guy just can't play the role. Maresca absolutely refuses to move away from it though, it's madness. Gusto is doing my head in, but I can't help but feel sorry for him. It's like asking a RW to play CB. Amateur coaching.

7 hours ago, Scott Harris said:

Maresca forcing Gusto into midfield is painful, the guy just can't play the role. Maresca absolutely refuses to move away from it though, it's madness. Gusto is doing my head in, but I can't help but feel sorry for him. It's like asking a RW to play CB. Amateur coaching.

A good manager who needs to then use a different player that doesn't suit hus "system" would work around that, change the formation, make the system fit the players. Not this muppet though, his lack of flexibility and imagination is shocking.

Even taking away that he shouldn't be playing as an inverted RB, he's giving the ball away constantly, getting ran past and his touch is super heavy. There's only so much we can blame on him playing out of position.

7 hours ago, Scott Harris said:

Maresca forcing Gusto into midfield is painful, the guy just can't play the role. Maresca absolutely refuses to move away from it though, it's madness. Gusto is doing my head in, but I can't help but feel sorry for him. It's like asking a RW to play CB. Amateur coaching.

Yup. Remarkable how Gusto performs very well at RB for France. He's a shadow of what he was last season thanks to Maresca.