Joao Alves

[Abu Dhabi]

as in Jo..


So.. what has changed?
Why did he score a lot in the wrong time? Is going to be in the team ?

[french_tony]

Is a strange one, maybe he's got his head down now his Samba pals have left. Whatever it is he certainly looks a lot better. While in no way a world beater he's scoring goals in what has been a dismal pre-season.

I'd keep him in as our 25th man and 5th striker over RSC and see how he does until Jan. If he goes back to his past shitness bin him off then.

[TonyM]

It's cos Gollam is a coaching master I'm sure.

[Beeks]

Nothing has changed whatsoever and anyone thinking that just because he has been half arsed in a couple of meaningless friendlies warrants a place in the 25 is fucking deluded IMO

[Ted Hughes]

I think it depends on who goes. If it turns out we have a space in the 25 when deals are done, stick Jo in it. His attitude is much better so far & he does have talent. Imo it's not a coincedence that he's scored more goals than Ade pre season, because he's getting in the position to score them. The big problem with Jo is the ones he misses but that also goes for Adebayor.

I'll slag people to fuck if they don't try but Jo is having a go & I like to see it.

[dazby]

If I remember correctly he started well both here and at Everton.

I haven't seen any of the pre season games but I expect he's being played in the second striker role and not the front man. He did announce that in an interview before we signed him- and then played him as a front man.

[Sister of fu]

Nothing has changed whatsoever and anyone thinking that just because he has been half arsed in a couple of meaningless friendlies warrants a place in the 25 is fucking deluded IMO

To be fair to him though he did more in 20 mins yesterday than Ade did in 70mins. If Ade don't buck his ideas up he is going to find his arse parked on the bench esp if young Mario signs. As for Jo I think he comes into the squad at RSC expense. I would love the lad to turn it around and prove us all wrong but he has a long way to go before doing that.

[ant london]

I still am just finding it all quite bizarre and surreal that we are having this debate

I think credit has to go to Jo for (at long last) realizing that his career was properly heading down the shitter and trying to do something about it. Going from one of the hottest properties in soccer to having a transfer value of nil in the space of a couple of years must have been quite bamboozling to him and I was expecting it to be a terminal decline

It would be a very strange "comeback" but why not eh

[Kladze]

I've always thought Jo is a far better player than we've given him credit for. Play him in the striking role that suits him best and we might just see the best of him. He's neither a target man nor a fox in the box - just let him drift around facing the target and he's fine.

[irblinx]

Nothing has changed whatsoever and anyone thinking that just because he has been half arsed in a couple of meaningless friendlies warrants a place in the 25 is fucking deluded IMO

To be fair to him though he did more in 20 mins yesterday than Ade did in 70mins. If Ade don't buck his ideas up he is going to find his arse parked on the bench esp if young Mario signs. As for Jo I think he comes into the squad at RSC expense. I would love the lad to turn it around and prove us all wrong but he has a long way to go before doing that.

Spot on, he put a shift in yesterday and has been consistently scoring throughout preseason and I think he may well make the 25 at RSC's expense. At best he'll be sat on the bench a lot (especially if Mario arrives) but seems to be higher up Mancini's thinking than any of us expected.

[Beefymcfc]

In a way, I feel a little sorry for him, footballing wise of course. He came with a massive price tag and was only given about 6 starts before he started going backwards in the pecking order. I remember him starting the scoring in that infamous game against Pompey, and that was after he'd stuck a couple away in the UEFA Cup. He then had a few problems with Hughes after not turning up for training (on the lash of course) and he was soon overtaken by the likes of Benjani and Ched Evans (now, if your behind them 2 in the pecking order you know things are seriously fucked up). Then, off to Everton where he scored a couple in his 1st game and played as the loan striker, which as someone said, is not his prefered position.

Like someone said, if there's a spare in the 25 then he's got a shout as I think he's done a decent job in the games I've seen him in and you never know, the bad lad may come good.

[LookMumImOnMCF.net]

It's a few games in a few pre season nothing matches.

Let's not get carried away.

[john@staustell]

Transfer talk to Real Sociedad has cooled (on cost grounds).

Hope this helps!

:-)

[saulman]

I think that Hughes had a tendency to bring the worst out of our Brazillians.

Who knows, perhaps Elano, Robinho, and even Jo were decent players all along but it was Lesley's style that made them look lazy and shite.

[bluej]

I think that Hughes had a tendency to bring the worst out of our Brazillians.

Who knows, perhaps Elano, Robinho, and even Jo were decent players all along but it was Lesley's style that made them look lazy and shite.

Robinho, Everton away last season?

Still unconvinced about Jo, he looks clumsy with his first touch a lot of the time. However he certainly made more of an effort than Ade and looked more threatening.

[john@staustell]

I think that Hughes had a tendency to bring the worst out of our Brazillians.

Who knows, perhaps Elano, Robinho, and even Jo were decent players all along but it was Lesley's style that made them look lazy and shite.

Strangely enough Shaktar's manager also made Elano look lazy and shite, and left him out. Hence he was unsettled and got a move to City. I'm sure the Galatasaray manager is similarly challenged right now.

Robinho did himself. Shame really.

As for Jo he has a bizarre habit of scoring goals even though some of his intermediate play is still undoubtedly comical. But you can't knock the value of scoring goals. Maybe 'there's something about Jo'?

[carl_feedthegoat]

Nothing has changed whatsoever and anyone thinking that just because he has been half arsed in a couple of meaningless friendlies warrants a place in the 25 is fucking deluded IMO

Got to agree with this...Jo is not good enough for our squad of 25.

Get rid.

[Socrates]

Nothing has changed whatsoever and anyone thinking that just because he has been half arsed in a couple of meaningless friendlies warrants a place in the 25 is fucking deluded IMO

Got to agree with this...Jo is not good enough for our squad of 25.

Get rid.

Yeah give him away and get back Castillo...

[Beefymcfc]

Nothing has changed whatsoever and anyone thinking that just because he has been half arsed in a couple of meaningless friendlies warrants a place in the 25 is fucking deluded IMO

Got to agree with this...Jo is not good enough for our squad of 25.

Get rid.

Who to?

[Socrates]

I think that Hughes had a tendency to bring the worst out of our Brazillians.

Who knows, perhaps Elano, Robinho, and even Jo were decent players all along but it was Lesley's style that made them look lazy and shite.

Robinho, Everton away last season?

Still unconvinced about Jo, he looks clumsy with his first touch a lot of the time. However he certainly made more of an effort than Ade and looked more threatening.

Robinho had already been completely alienated by the time Mancini arrived, maybe he can come back with a clean slate. Hughes certainly managed to make the Brazilian contingent feel undervalued and unwanted. People forget that Jo was part of the 6-0 drubbing of Pompey and that we were getting good results with the 3 Brazilians, whatever they thought of their style and body language. Hughes didn't like them though and was quick to drop them. Yes, a different manager can get more out of them.