Micah Richards

[10.Goater_Legend]

Who thinks that he will get back to what he was when he burst on to the scene in 2006?.

I over heard some City fans discussing his career to date and they said that when he burst on the scene people were just amazed by his physical power due to his age and that managers have now figuered out that's all his has to his game, however, I for one really did believe he had somthing special about him, with his last ditch tackling and speed but ever since he seemed to bulk up around 18 months ago he has lost a bit of pace meaning he isnt as good in the tackle and obviously can't make up for being out of position, which he is ALOT.

I'm really undecided on him myself, I would love to see him get back to where he was and he is 21 and learning his trade after all. It's just that he dosen't have the brain of a top class defender, he's always getting caught out of position and sucked in by forwards all the time.

I can see Hughes going into the January market for a top class RB which could see the end of Micah in the long run.

[DoomMerchant]

Titus Bramble is playing reasonably well these days. There remains hope that he's a serviceable defender for a side with ambition. is he a player who will make his mark on a top 4 side? i don't think so. Not unless someone finds out how he motivates himself. All the physical tools are there no question.

Bottom line is that Richards shouldn't be starting matches for us. He's so far removed from his towering performances under Sven for those precious few months when he seemed nearly invincible. We don't' even get a sniff of that today.

Altho if his goal hadn't been disallowed today, unfairly imho, then i would not be spouting off like a dickhead about him because likely we'd have gotten 3 pts. That's Hughes greatest dilemma...i feel our wins have masked some serious issues which he needs to get sorted defensively, and attitudinally.

Sixth place is nice given where we're coming from in years gone by...but it's somewhat ungratifying at the moment. it's essentially LAST place to me in some ways given our targets and ambition. If we fall below 6th we should be fuclin ashamed.

Someone needs to get punched in the dick today for today's performances...Richards might as well queue up for a bolo shot to the junk.

cheers

cheers

[Socrates]

On evidence so far, he is no worse than Lescott...

More important question, when is Nedum going to be back?

[shortagain]

I think he is worse than Lescott, many times last season, Dunne was dragged out of the middle trying to cover for Richards who was often out of position (2006 would have been able to recover). In many games this season either Toure or Lescott are being pulled away from their areas having to cover for Richards. His postional play is awful and his desire to get back and defend is non existent.

As long as he plays, we will win nothing unless he can be restored to his former fitness, which I doubt will ever happen as his attitude is all wrong.

Zab will be back Wednesday, but we should try SWP at wing back, his disire will get him through or switch Kolo and bring Vinnie in alongside Lescott

[Crossie]

Chess is the answer

[mcfc1632]

Just look ar the seconds leading up to the Zamora miss and that explains Richards all over

No football brain - goes to ground on the edge of the area - why???

Ineffectual as a tackler - something you need as a RB - and then you can add that he cannot cross, get past players - pass effectively etc - things that the CITY formation need from the fullbacks - and basically he has not got anywhere near the qualities for our 1st team

Then stands up and watches making no effort whatsoever to correct the mistake - the ball might be on its way to Zamora - but Richards does not know if there is gonna be a further play - rebound of Shay etc - and yet he does absolutely fuck all!!! this is not an isolated but oft repeated issue with Richards - along with trying to blame other players for his cock ups and I find it really fucking annoying

I think this demonstrates his attitude problems - get him the fuck out of the squad until he learns to earn his place through effort and performances in the reserves - he is a total liability

An will fans please stop harping on about his relatively short period a few years ago when he looked class - in 2009 that is irrelevant - much more relevant is how crap he has been for ages

[mcfc1632]

I think he is worse than Lescott, many times last season, Dunne was dragged out of the middle trying to cover for Richards who was often out of position (2006 would have been able to recover). In many games this season either Toure or Lescott are being pulled away from their areas having to cover for Richards. His postional play is awful and his desire to get back and defend is non existent.

As long as he plays, we will win nothing unless he can be restored to his former fitness, which I doubt will ever happen as his attitude is all wrong.

Zab will be back Wednesday, but we should try SWP at wing back, his disire will get him through or switch Kolo and bring Vinnie in alongside Lescott

People laughed at me pre-season when I said that I would play SWP before Richards at RB - pace - effort - attitude - can cross - can get past players - gets back into position quickly and can tackle - all right he is not gonna win much in the air but even in that respect he jumps better than most - and in all the other qualities he is way ahead of Richards

I would give it a go as back up Zab and get Maicon in Jan

[Fidel Castro]

Given up hope for him tbh. Sell him in January and bring in a proper footballer, not an athlete

[Bingo Lewis]

Yeah sell him.

[9secondlegend]

i think the only problem with micah is just his positional play.
he very rarely gets turned , bullied or beaten its just he he out of position all the fucking time.
i keep sticking up for him and saying maybe he should be loaned out but can you learn positional play or should it be natural for defenders. i dont know.

[Crossie]

Will we always have a boo boy??

The thing about the Sven season was, Richards was making last ditch tackles, but why was he making them?? Shouldnt he have been cutting out the ball earlier, or being positioned better to stop the need for a last ditcher?

Well and truely found out, it would take ALOT of hard work and development to ever play for England again, let alone survive our revolution. Another promising player bites the dust.

[Pretty Boy Lee]

Will we always have a boo boy??

The thing about the Sven season was, Richards was making last ditch tackles, but why was he making them?? Shouldnt he have been cutting out the ball earlier, or being positioned better to stop the need for a last ditcher?

Well and truely found out, it would take ALOT of hard work and development to ever play for England again, let alone survive our revolution. Another promising player bites the dust.

When we were picking on Caicedo whilst scoring goals I was asking that. This time however Micah is lagging so far behind everyone else that he sticks out like a sore thumb.

The difference between him and say Vass or Bridge last season, is that most did not jump to this conclusion lightly. Being a star from our academy almost everyone has been patient with him and really wanted him to get back to form, but it's just not happening.

[john@staustell]

i think the only problem with micah is just his positional play.
he very rarely gets turned , bullied or beaten its just he he out of position all the fucking time.
i keep sticking up for him and saying maybe he should be loaned out but can you learn positional play or should it be natural for defenders. i dont know.

Switching off mate, that's his main problem. Several times he was sent a reasonable pass from a midfielder but was asleep and let a Fulham player run onto it. Madness.

[paulh]

bloke who sits behind me is a big richards hater hes only researched opta stats which reveal richards is more effective! good players dont go bad overnight in my opinion he should be put on bench for time being - long term I think he can return the great player he once was and hes still young

[mcfc1632]

bloke who sits behind me is a big richards hater hes only researched opta stats which reveal richards is more effective! good players dont go bad overnight in my opinion he should be put on bench for time being - long term I think he can return the great player he once was and hes still young

I would hope you are right - but for me not the bench that is not the answer - he needs game time in a way that he can demonstrate improvement - but FFS not by costing the 1st team points

I would put him back in the reserves or loan him out in Jan - it also might give him some hunger if it was clear to him he has to earn his place through performances - he must be a debilitating / unsettling influence in a team - with the rest not knowing where his next mistake is going to happen

[10.Goater_Legend]

bloke who sits behind me is a big richards hater hes only researched opta stats which reveal richards is more effective! good players dont go bad overnight in my opinion he should be put on bench for time being - long term I think he can return the great player he once was and hes still young

I would hope you are right - but for me not the bench that is not the answer - he needs game time in a way that he can demonstrate improvement - but FFS not by costing the 1st team points

I would put him back in the reserves or loan him out in Jan - it also might give him some hunger if it was clear to him he has to earn his place through performances - he must be a debilitating / unsettling influence in a team - with the rest not knowing where his next mistake is going to happen

Agree mate, loaning him out would be a good option, we could then bring him back in next season for a "second chance" and if he's still bobbins we can fuck him off.

[Beeks]

Like i've always maintained...we need to fuck him off now!

[Citeh&Crew]

i think the only problem with micah is just his positional play.
he very rarely gets turned , bullied or beaten its just he he out of position all the fucking time.
i keep sticking up for him and saying maybe he should be loaned out but can you learn positional play or should it be natural for defenders. i dont know.

In my opinion, positional play is part taught, and part instinct. Just from personal experience.. when playing, I can look at the field from the back (if that's where I am playing) and tell where I need to be to cut off a pass, disrupt a forming play, or to make sure that the winger running down the sideline won't be able to get off an effectual cross. I can also do the simple thing when going forward, and keep close to midfield line so as to disrupt potential counter-attacks.

I dunno.. for me all of this is common sense. None of what I have mentioned seems like advanced tactics to me.. but maybe for Micah, it's just not clicking. Because time and again, he gets caught out-of-position (as has been mentioned 1000x already), and draws the compensating center-backs or midfielders out-of-position as a result.

I disagree with your assessment about Micah's ability to defend one-on-one. He "gets beat" more than he should; there are more than a few instances this season where I remember him not being able to contain a winger, and prevent a cross, or even from getting burned from a standstill. And for me, that's awful, when a defender has a forward cornered near the box, but the forward just burns said defender (i.e. Micah) with a move, or more often with superior quickness, and gets into the box with the ball at his feet.

I don't know if it's because he's "bulked up", or has been lazy with his training, or is just sluggish due to a terrible diet, but Micah is slooooowww with his lateral movement.

But hey.. Micah would be great in the NFL.

[Mase]

I'm finding it hard to keep defending Micah now :/

[dazby]

I'd just like to say that I don't know where I stand with Micah. He is a mancityfans legend. He is a true blue.

However, he is playing not to the best of his ability.

The big question for me is: Can the coaches work with him to get him back to his best?

Maybe Doug is best placed to answer this. Doug, your mission is to watch Micah. Report back in two weeks. This message will self destruct quicker than Bingo's fez will stay on his head.