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4 days in a row is probably a record. I was expecting a day off but at least it was a very gentle session this morning. Stuff was set up for 2 games of head tennis and not that much else so it was probably more about keeping all the players together than any real work today.
Mancini and Kidd out first and I got a wave from them both but not an invitation to go in and then the players came out in 1's and 2's. Just milling around kicking balls around before a physio got them all moving with a long jog finishing behind the fencing.The cameraderie sounded excellent as they were all in a large circle doing stretches led by the physio. Constant banter amongst them all with the most vocal from what i could hear being Ade, Vinnie and Bellers with a bit of Bellers thrown in.

Manicin had been setting mannequins up in a penalty area and when they came around he took the team for a little defensive work on corners/free kicks. Nothing with a ball but just talking with them and ensuring they all knew their positions.The rest were either doing head tennis or playing keep ball.After Manicini had finished a few went in and head tennis carried on. Ade was in a group of 4 with Boyata/Ibrahim and Cunningham which i thought was good as did Cunningham and I think Ibrahim when they won and danced around as if they had won a cup.

Mancini and Kidd were deep in conversation on the edge of the box it looked like considering all sorts of little moves and then Garrido and Bellers came over for some free kick shooting practice as the session basically ended. One of the physios was trying his luck in goal while the free kicks rained in and suffice to say he isn't the biggest for a keeper and struggled especially when Bellers hit one perfectly tsraight at him but with swerve.It looked like it nearly broke his hand and he didn't quite make the save.
When he then tried taking the free kicks he scored his 2nd one with Cunningham in goal and ran off doing the airplane celebration.

A gentle session just to keep them ticking over. Petrov was again working in a one to one but there was no sign of Richards or Ireland and of course Lescott who it seems might be worse than was thought. There was brief cameo from the Doc as he did some passing work with Silv but nothing too elaborate today to report on.

cheers doug, do you think the Doc will get a run out vs Brum?

will he be fit for the Derby?

Cheers Doug, top report as always.

The Man In Blue wrote:cheers doug, do you think the Doc will get a run out vs Brum?

will he be fit for the Derby?

He won't play v Brum but might be used as a secret weapon against the scum.

I forgot a special little session today where Mancini and Kidd spent some time working solely with NDJ. They had set up a few 5 a side nets and to start with NDJ was receiving passes and then passing the ball into one of the nets and then he was hitting a long ball into the box to Mancini who laid it back for him to run on and shoot.A few of the shots are still in orbit but he did start to get it right and slotted a few nice ones in.

Douglas Higginbottom wrote:I forgot a special little session today where Mancini and Kidd spent some time working solely with NDJ. They had set up a few 5 a side nets and to start with NDJ was receiving passes and then passing the ball into one of the nets and then he was hitting a long ball into the box to Mancini who laid it back for him to run on and shoot.A few of the shots are still in orbit but he did start to get it right and slotted a few nice ones in.

Never mind shooting at the nets.....They should have trained him to pass the fucking ball forwards instead of sideways and backwards.

carl_feedthegoat wrote:

Douglas Higginbottom wrote:I forgot a special little session today where Mancini and Kidd spent some time working solely with NDJ. They had set up a few 5 a side nets and to start with NDJ was receiving passes and then passing the ball into one of the nets and then he was hitting a long ball into the box to Mancini who laid it back for him to run on and shoot.A few of the shots are still in orbit but he did start to get it right and slotted a few nice ones in.

Never mind shooting at the nets.....They should have trained him to pass the fucking ball forwards instead of sideways and backwards.

True but if they've got him doing that it suggests they want him to do more going forward, which has to be a good thing & is a neccessary improvement needed in his game if he's to stay at the club for much longer imo.

Ted Hughes wrote:

carl_feedthegoat wrote:

Douglas Higginbottom wrote:I forgot a special little session today where Mancini and Kidd spent some time working solely with NDJ. They had set up a few 5 a side nets and to start with NDJ was receiving passes and then passing the ball into one of the nets and then he was hitting a long ball into the box to Mancini who laid it back for him to run on and shoot.A few of the shots are still in orbit but he did start to get it right and slotted a few nice ones in.

Never mind shooting at the nets.....They should have trained him to pass the fucking ball forwards instead of sideways and backwards.

True but if they've got him doing that it suggests they want him to do more going forward, which has to be a good thing & is a neccessary improvement needed in his game if he's to stay at the club for much longer imo.

Of course Ted and hitting the small net required accuracy and control for forward passes.

This is good. I believe the answer to any problems we may have is not going out and buying someone new. It is getting more out of what we have already got.

Douglas Higginbottom wrote:

Ted Hughes wrote:

carl_feedthegoat wrote:

Douglas Higginbottom wrote:I forgot a special little session today where Mancini and Kidd spent some time working solely with NDJ. They had set up a few 5 a side nets and to start with NDJ was receiving passes and then passing the ball into one of the nets and then he was hitting a long ball into the box to Mancini who laid it back for him to run on and shoot.A few of the shots are still in orbit but he did start to get it right and slotted a few nice ones in.

Never mind shooting at the nets.....They should have trained him to pass the fucking ball forwards instead of sideways and backwards.

True but if they've got him doing that it suggests they want him to do more going forward, which has to be a good thing & is a neccessary improvement needed in his game if he's to stay at the club for much longer imo.

Of course Ted and hitting the small net required accuracy and control for forward passes.

This is excellent news.
Once again it is a great boon to have these reports Doug.. i think you should get an award at some point for all your efforts.

carl_feedthegoat wrote:

Douglas Higginbottom wrote:I forgot a special little session today where Mancini and Kidd spent some time working solely with NDJ. They had set up a few 5 a side nets and to start with NDJ was receiving passes and then passing the ball into one of the nets and then he was hitting a long ball into the box to Mancini who laid it back for him to run on and shoot.A few of the shots are still in orbit but he did start to get it right and slotted a few nice ones in.

Never mind shooting at the nets.....They should have trained him to pass the fucking ball forwards instead of sideways and backwards.

De Jong is a defensive Midfielder, though. He breaks up opposition play and tries not to lose possession of the ball. It's not in his remit to always try and pass the ball forwards. Just be disciplined and hold steady.

Interesting to see him on shooting practice! How he could've done with that before the chance at Fulham.

Good to hear about the positive banter. So much of our success will be about self confidence and trust. If they feel at ease with each other, they are slightly more likely to develop the kind of instinctive finding of space and position the truly great sides have. They will take more risks, attack with verve and flair. It's what Carlos and Ade were designed for.

btajim wrote:

carl_feedthegoat wrote:

Douglas Higginbottom wrote:I forgot a special little session today where Mancini and Kidd spent some time working solely with NDJ. They had set up a few 5 a side nets and to start with NDJ was receiving passes and then passing the ball into one of the nets and then he was hitting a long ball into the box to Mancini who laid it back for him to run on and shoot.A few of the shots are still in orbit but he did start to get it right and slotted a few nice ones in.

Never mind shooting at the nets.....They should have trained him to pass the fucking ball forwards instead of sideways and backwards.

De Jong is a defensive Midfielder, though. He breaks up opposition play and tries not to lose possession of the ball. It's not in his remit to always try and pass the ball forwards. Just be disciplined and hold steady.

Interesting to see him on shooting practice! How he could've done with that before the chance at Fulham.

surely your not suggesting he should not try to improve his game play for what would ultimately benefit the team. Nearly everyone has identified that he stifles the forward play.. and if he is the ball retriever then he is the one who can start things off when he gets it.

Apart from that tbh mate you sound a bit like you think all the players should have fixed positions and roles, when all the evidence is that teams are looking for players to be flexible, multi faceted. If the modern strikers are being trained to defend high up the pitch i dont see why the DMs should not be also trained to start off the attack, makes perfect sense imo.

brite blu sky wrote:surely your not suggesting he should not try to improve his game play for what would ultimately benefit the team. Nearly everyone has identified that he stifles the forward play.. and if he is the ball retriever then he is the one who can start things off when he gets it.

Apart from that tbh mate you sound a bit like you think all the players should have fixed positions and roles, when all the evidence is that teams are looking for players to be flexible, multi faceted. If the modern strikers are being trained to defend high up the pitch i dont see why the DMs should not be also trained to start off the attack, makes perfect sense imo.

No - I'm not suggesting that De Jong should be discouraged from improving his play in any way, shape or form. I just don't think he should be taken out of his comfort zone when he's been incredibly effective at doing his job in key Matches this season. It's not worth experimenting with him in two very important Matches (possibly make or break) in the mould of Man Ure Home and Arsenal Away because he'll surely start in both and be expected to replicate performances from earlier this season.

As long as De Jong is stifling the rhythm of the opposition sides and not giving the ball away when he makes a pass then I'm not bothered at the moment. Let us experiment with him when things are a little easier. He can be replaced with a better version should he not be able to advance with some of the other players - but I've no problem with them trying to see what else he can do. I'd just rather he's not encouraged to knock it forward when there's a strong likelihood that he'll give the ball away. Just leave him until the end of the season so he's no liability.

btajim wrote:

brite blu sky wrote:surely your not suggesting he should not try to improve his game play for what would ultimately benefit the team. Nearly everyone has identified that he stifles the forward play.. and if he is the ball retriever then he is the one who can start things off when he gets it.

Apart from that tbh mate you sound a bit like you think all the players should have fixed positions and roles, when all the evidence is that teams are looking for players to be flexible, multi faceted. If the modern strikers are being trained to defend high up the pitch i dont see why the DMs should not be also trained to start off the attack, makes perfect sense imo.

No - I'm not suggesting that De Jong should be discouraged from improving his play in any way, shape or form. I just don't think he should be taken out of his comfort zone when he's been incredibly effective at doing his job in key Matches this season. It's not worth experimenting with him in two very important Matches (possibly make or break) in the mould of Man Ure Home and Arsenal Away because he'll surely start in both and be expected to replicate performances from earlier this season.

As long as De Jong is stifling the rhythm of the opposition sides and not giving the ball away when he makes a pass then I'm not bothered at the moment. Let us experiment with him when things are a little easier. He can be replaced with a better version should he not be able to advance with some of the other players - but I've no problem with them trying to see what else he can do. I'd just rather he's not encouraged to knock it forward when there's a strong likelihood that he'll give the ball away. Just leave him until the end of the season so he's no liability.

i cant see him going over the top after one or two training sessions.. and besides he is a big lad and not daft, he wont do anything he isnt comfortable with im sure of it.
Also if you think about it, high level games a la v the rags, come down to just one or two small opportunities in the end.. and so Nige only has to find say one decent forward pass at the right moment when he can see he can do it and we may get a break.

Douglas Higginbottom wrote:

Ted Hughes wrote:

carl_feedthegoat wrote:

Douglas Higginbottom wrote:I forgot a special little session today where Mancini and Kidd spent some time working solely with NDJ. They had set up a few 5 a side nets and to start with NDJ was receiving passes and then passing the ball into one of the nets and then he was hitting a long ball into the box to Mancini who laid it back for him to run on and shoot.A few of the shots are still in orbit but he did start to get it right and slotted a few nice ones in.

Never mind shooting at the nets.....They should have trained him to pass the fucking ball forwards instead of sideways and backwards.

True but if they've got him doing that it suggests they want him to do more going forward, which has to be a good thing & is a neccessary improvement needed in his game if he's to stay at the club for much longer imo.

Of course Ted and hitting the small net required accuracy and control for forward passes.

Great, hopefully he's put it into practice in matches then.

brite blu sky wrote:i cant see him going over the top after one or two training sessions.. and besides he is a big lad and not daft, he wont do anything he isnt comfortable with im sure of it.
Also if you think about it, high level games a la v the rags, come down to just one or two small opportunities in the end.. and so Nige only has to find say one decent forward pass at the right moment when he can see he can do it and we may get a break.

They should always be trying to push the players and take them out of their comfort zones. It lazy training if they don't. It's apparent that De Jong and Barry aren't 100% in Central Midfield together so I'd also welcome some work with them. Two great players.

It may be blind optimism - but I think we can quite comfortably take the RAGs next Saturday.

btajim wrote:

brite blu sky wrote:i cant see him going over the top after one or two training sessions.. and besides he is a big lad and not daft, he wont do anything he isnt comfortable with im sure of it.
Also if you think about it, high level games a la v the rags, come down to just one or two small opportunities in the end.. and so Nige only has to find say one decent forward pass at the right moment when he can see he can do it and we may get a break.

They should always be trying to push the players and take them out of their comfort zones. It lazy training if they don't. It's apparent that De Jong and Barry aren't 100% in Central Midfield together so I'd also welcome some work with them. Two great players.

It may be blind optimism - but I think we can quite comfortably take the RAGs next Saturday.

i dont think it has to be blind optimism to think that.. if you look at the respective squads on paper.. well nuff said.

im also glad that Bob has had a couple of games under his belt against them, being new to the Prem is one of our achilles heel this season if we are honest, so at least he knows what he is in for, which helps as well.

brite blu sky wrote:

btajim wrote:

brite blu sky wrote:i cant see him going over the top after one or two training sessions.. and besides he is a big lad and not daft, he wont do anything he isnt comfortable with im sure of it.
Also if you think about it, high level games a la v the rags, come down to just one or two small opportunities in the end.. and so Nige only has to find say one decent forward pass at the right moment when he can see he can do it and we may get a break.

They should always be trying to push the players and take them out of their comfort zones. It lazy training if they don't. It's apparent that De Jong and Barry aren't 100% in Central Midfield together so I'd also welcome some work with them. Two great players.

It may be blind optimism - but I think we can quite comfortably take the RAGs next Saturday.

i dont think it has to be blind optimism to think that.. if you look at the respective squads on paper.. well nuff said.

im also glad that Bob has had a couple of games under his belt against them, being new to the Prem is one of our achilles heel this season if we are honest, so at least he knows what he is in for, which helps as well.

We can take the rags for certain but I am not sure about the word comfortably!

Douglas Higginbottom wrote:

The Man In Blue wrote:cheers doug, do you think the Doc will get a run out vs Brum?

will he be fit for the Derby?

He won't play v Brum but might be used as a secret weapon against the scum.

niece report again Doug,....mind my ignorance, but who the fucl is the Doc?