Didn't watch the game - so can't be as brutal as I would usually be. Cracking winning goal coupled with an unbelievable miss. 

10 minutes ago, nonotnowjim said:

Didn't watch the game - so can't be as brutal as I would usually be. Cracking winning goal coupled with an unbelievable miss. 

 

Never change Ponyboy.

Wildly unpredictable player, but that was a cracking strike.

 

Edited December 16, 20241 yr by Jezz

Raising a glass of UKR vodka to Jim tonight. If he gets 20 league goals this season (not Jim), i'll happily donate 1 quid per goal as my budget dictates to this yard. 

Im only gonna offer this about Jackson's performance today, if we play to his strengths, we get goals. I know he's hit or miss, but I love a trier and this lad runs himself into the ground, even when the ball bounces off his shin or his 50 pence head and the trauma he inflicted upon us and himself trying to in trying to play the ball in the second half with his bonce giving away a free kick, or the left foot chance crime scene.. he kept going, he is relentless. I dip my hat to that. Look at Chuna, Isak, he's on a par but different. 

I love wacko. he's nuts... brilliant in a different way to Costa. he's doing the bizz and I'll put up with the horror shows because eventually we're going to get something pretty consistent and cool from him and we're on a great little run he has been part of and finding the back of the net. Lets. I'll judge him and his carachter when we go through a bad run of form. 

Really want Cole out wide right with Noni, Jackson up top and Nkunku behind, I think Nkunku got so much to give this side, proper intelligent busy number 10 behind Jackson. Palmer doesnt yet have that fabregas pass inside a centre half, That's what Jackson needs, Palmer we'd be overloading on the pitch on right hand side. Sancho, Mydryk, Neto - Neto sharing left with Sancho. 

Jacksons goals have helped in part put us where we are and wow - who'd have thought it. 

 

If we had not won the game I would be moaning about him. But despite the bad miss, fair play to him, he took his goal well and that ultimately proved to be the winner that got us the 3 points and he was unlucky with another chance, so no complaints from me.

  

7 hours ago, Jezz said:

Wildly unpredictable player, but that was a cracking strike.

 

Last season that’s in the top tier of the stands.

He’s improving game by games and shows his character that his head doesn’t drop he keeps going and going. 

Frustrating at times but he’s ours striker and I love him !!!

It's just typical he scored - I really didn't think he would. The miss from the six yard box was horrific, but he did have some good efforts in there too (the volley, header and curling effort outside the box were all decent IMO). I'm glad he got that goal and kept at it, and delighted we got the win.

All the other home teams lost yesterday and that was very much on my mind particularly in the last few minutes... 

I'm happy he scored.

Watching the game again, I feel he was letting the misses get to him, especially that open goal. But he didn't stop, and that's what I like about him.

He then goes and scores a harder chance than the all the ones before...lol

Wacko!

 

I think Jackson may well have scored that 'sitter' had Sancho's pass not first come off the foot of the defender which slightly altered the pace and direction of the ball in the split second Jackson had to see it and react. 

I'm not a fan of the phrase 'he had to score', especially when it's preceded by, "a brilliant save by the keeper there.", which has applied on quite a number of occasions when Jackson has failed to score a 'nailed on' goal. Oh, he's had some howlers, but his general play, and the fact that he is always there where it matters, and gets those shots off, is encouraging in a new young player.

My glass is half full, not half empty when I think about Jackson as a striker. I'm pretty sure he will make us proud now that we have a team that is looking comfortable in its own skin, and no longer looks like a team of foals trying to gallop on ice. 

Edited December 17, 20241 yr by TheBeard

Jackson gets too much stick. He drives us all a little mad with the misses and immaturity, but he never stops trying, making runs, creating space, shooting and working for the team. 

Has he shown improvement with the number of offsides? Seems lower. 

Anyway, this is an impressive stat. Fair play 

 

On 15/12/2024 at 22:16, axman2526 said:

Yeah a total enigma.

Has a place here no doubt for me, bit as the first choice striker? Big doubts on that one.

Who would you rather have though? Doesn’t he have the 3rd best conversion rate in the PL? He is also on course for a 20 league goal season. I don’t think he was ever a problem, the issue fans won’t acknowledge is our wingers are unproductive. 

Look around Europe and there is actually a scarcity of top No 9s. Lewandowski is still starting for Barca at 35yrs old, which wouldn’t be the case if the quality was out there. Outside an ageing Kane, and an enigmatic Halaand, Isak is probably the best of a bad bunch of No 9 in world football. Gyokeres who seems to be hyped up as the next big thing is a hell of a gamble for any team.

 

14 minutes ago, ducavis said:

Who would you rather have though? Doesn’t he have the 3rd best conversion rate in the PL? He is also on course for a 20 league goal season. I don’t think he was ever a problem, the issue fans won’t acknowledge is our wingers are unproductive. 

Look around Europe and there is actually a scarcity of top No 9s. Lewandowski is still starting for Barca at 35yrs old, which wouldn’t be the case if the quality was out there. Outside an ageing Kane, and an enigmatic Halaand, Isak is probably the best of a bad bunch of No 9 in world football. Gyokeres who seems to be hyped up as the next big thing is a hell of a gamble for any team.

 

I have doubts on him, does not mean he could not prove me wrong. Wouldn't be the first, nor the last.

The list of proven world class strikers is very short, as you have highlighted. 

Jhon Duran is one to keep an eye on, seems an all around striker, could become a top level one.

We also seem to be tracking Liam Delap, could he be another ex City grab that does a good job for us?

Our wingers are not Mane or Salah, but few are. I have hopes for Sancho and Madueke. I feel both can deliver more goals and assists as they develop. Sancho should have had one from Nico on Sunday.

Neto is the one who needs to up his goals and assists even more so, imo. He has more experience, is equally good one both wings and strong with both feet. I feel he should, and hopefully will be, the 3rd man when fans think of our best goal contributors, along with Palmer and Nico.

He is not elite at any part of the game. He misses some absolutely ridiculous chances.  He is a liability.

Fair play to him for reducing the offsides, yellow cards and increasing the number of meaningful goals he has scored. He has got some important ones lately and some really good, well taken goals. There has definitely been an improvement on the lowly lows he showed last season. 

But the opportunity costs are huge. Just imagine where we could go with a proper number 9, who could score, bring others into play, win a header, win a physical battle with a defender and regularly assist - instead of this passenger who is more often than not a hinderance to our team.

He is rubbish. We need better.

6 minutes ago, nonotnowjim said:

He is not elite at any part of the game. He misses some absolutely ridiculous chances.  He is a liability.

Fair play to him for reducing the offsides, yellow cards and increasing the number of meaningful goals he has scored. He has got some important ones lately and some really good, well taken goals. There has definitely been an improvement on the lowly lows he showed last season. 

But the opportunity costs are huge. Just imagine where we could go with a proper number 9, who could score, bring others into play, win a header, win a physical battle with a defender and regularly assist - instead of this passenger who is more often than not a hinderance to our team.

He is rubbish. We need better.

That was so bad it woke me up in my bed. Word of advice, try watching the match on the tele  instead of the radio..........😀

4 hours ago, nonotnowjim said:

He is not elite at any part of the game. He misses some absolutely ridiculous chances.  He is a liability.

Fair play to him for reducing the offsides, yellow cards and increasing the number of meaningful goals he has scored. He has got some important ones lately and some really good, well taken goals. There has definitely been an improvement on the lowly lows he showed last season. 

But the opportunity costs are huge. Just imagine where we could go with a proper number 9, who could score, bring others into play, win a header, win a physical battle with a defender and regularly assist - instead of this passenger who is more often than not a hinderance to our team.

He is rubbish. We need better.

They don’t exist in the market anymore, and if they did Arsenal, Liverpool, Utd, Madrid, Barca and even Bayern will be competing for him. The closest to that is Isak, and the margin isn’t that big to drop £100m for him and bench Jackson. We all need some perspective; he is 23 and still way off his peak.

 

7 hours ago, nonotnowjim said:

 

But the opportunity costs are huge. Just imagine where we could go with a proper number 9, who could score, bring others into play, win a header, win a physical battle with a defender and regularly assist - instead of this passenger who is more often than not a hinderance to our team.

 

 

6 hours ago, TheBeard said:

That was so bad it woke me up in my bed. Word of advice, try watching the match on the tele  instead of the radio..........😀

Especially the part in bold right...lol

In the last game I recall him helping out, like in all his games, but there was a nice sweet pass to palmer who then sends sancho on his way to a one on one with the gk, iirc. And that wasn't the only one during that game. 

He does a lot off the ball which we tend to miss as our focus is on the one with the ball. But if you watch the matches back and focus on jacko, he's always trying to create space for himself or for others. Cbs especially, which is his job tbf.

He's developing fine imo, they all are. There's a young grp there growing and learning together. Unlike other teams there is barely an age gap between these guys. I think we take that for granted too.

From the BBC match report:

"The Blues striker should have done better with a free header against the post"

Should've finished one of the two chances today.

This guy is not it.

He's done well to score the goals he has scored so far, but there are crucial parts to his game missing, like needing multiple chances before he scores a goal. I feel like if we had a Jhon Duran there today, he would have taken both of those chances.

Maresca needs to rotate more up front, I can't understand starting Jackson in every game when he has Nkunku. Maybe even Guiu can make an impact. We have other options, and just like with the wingers, Maresca should be rotating more.

Today was poor. 2 chances fluffed. Title winning strikers turns every chance into goals even if it was a lucky bounce

Top 4 strikers test the keepers even from  the sloppiest pass ever.

Don't post on social media, go back home, watch the game again, go to the gym and practice pitch and go train like mad

Aye today Jim is on the money. Nico was not good enough, he wasted two very, very good chances and in games like this you have to take those.

Cost us today and it’s so obvious we need an upgrade 

I'm not gonna kick off, but today showed why he just isn't the man to lead the line. A top striker wins us that game, in a game where chances are scarce we can't afford to watch Jackson convert 1 in every 10 good chances.

Everton away .. terrible weather .. poor ref (2 mins ffs) playing with 3 CBs cost us.. also felt we needed someone to test Pickford from distance .. 

plus both out wide men had very patchy games since they were in most cases double teamed against with no support from fullback ..

The fraud cost us top spot today. With a half decent player up top, we win the game. Inexcusable to miss from 5 yrds and miss the target with a point blank free header.

Oh - and before someone says something like "the ball was behind him" - stop and think! Are you really saying that a striker for Chelsea should not be able to score from 4-5 yrds out unless it is an absolutely perfect chance? Come on now...be reasonable. He simply MUST bury one, and probably both of the easy chances he fluffed today.

f**k off out of our club you joke of a player.

Edited December 22, 20241 yr by nonotnowjim