Lopes

[beehive's dodgy pint]

I don't understand, beehive. Where else would he have been intending his backheel to go but to Kolarov?

If you look at the angle and the way he backheeled it I don't think he meant to get it through the defenders legs. I do like a back heel myself and the odd cheeky flick and Lopes's just did not look 100% accurate in my eyes. Fair do's to the lad for trying and I'm glad it came off but as a conosieur of a backheel it was only a 7/10 for me!!

I would say it was one of the most intentional & precise backheels I've ever seen. It can't be proven that he meant it to go through the bloke's legs, but it's very very obvious he meant it to go to Kolarov; he clearly sees Kolarov making the run, knows exactly where he is going, puts the ball perfectly in his path & follows it with his eyes as it happens.

I'm 90% the nutmeg is deliberate as well, because Lopez looks over his shoulder to see the direction the defender is moving, before the ball arrives, so he knows where the bloke will be.

Of course it's possible the ball can hit the defender, but he tried it & it worked & it was, without question, absolutlely fucking brilliant.

Intentional to get the ball to Kolarov - agreed.
Intentional to get it through the defenders legs - no way.

Put it this way if that had been Silva or Nasri I think they would have chosen another option to the backheel given the players around and the runs being made. This is due to them being aware of the defender behind and calculating the risks of the backheel hitting him and not arriving at kolarov's feet. It was brilliant the way it came off and it shows us the lad has skill, I just still feel there was a good degree of luck to get it through to Kolarov.

[Bridge'srightfoot]

For anyone who's seen this guy play in the EDS, what type of player is he? Is he a dribbler, like Nasri who'll take on players and run at them or is he more of a Silva who's likely to thread through passes and dictate games?
I know it's very early to tell or make judgements but excited to see a youngster come through none the less.

[ant london]

For anyone who's seen this guy play in the EDS, what type of player is he? Is he a dribbler, like Nasri who'll take on players and run at them or is he more of a Silva who's likely to thread through passes and dictate games? I know it's very early to tell or make judgements but excited to see a youngster come through none the less.

From every eds highlights package I've seen he seems to have more of an eye for a goal and is happy to shoot than either of the above

[twosips]

He reminds me a load of Pedro or Alexis Sanchez. Direct, pacy attacker with excellent technique who will score you 15 goals a season from the flanks. Nowt wrong with that!

[Hazy2]

For anyone who's seen this guy play in the EDS, what type of player is he? Is he a dribbler, like Nasri who'll take on players and run at them or is he more of a Silva who's likely to thread through passes and dictate games? I know it's very early to tell or make judgements but excited to see a youngster come through none the less.

From every eds highlights package I've seen he seems to have more of an eye for a goal and is happy to shoot than either of the above

He has a look of being past EDS now, No rushing him he just has the look of a real player, a loan to Swansea type team could be to his and our benefit.

[DoomMerchant]

I don't understand, beehive. Where else would he have been intending his backheel to go but to Kolarov?

If you look at the angle and the way he backheeled it I don't think he meant to get it through the defenders legs. I do like a back heel myself and the odd cheeky flick and Lopes's just did not look 100% accurate in my eyes. Fair do's to the lad for trying and I'm glad it came off but as a conosieur of a backheel it was only a 7/10 for me!!

I would say it was one of the most intentional & precise backheels I've ever seen. It can't be proven that he meant it to go through the bloke's legs, but it's very very obvious he meant it to go to Kolarov; he clearly sees Kolarov making the run, knows exactly where he is going, puts the ball perfectly in his path & follows it with his eyes as it happens.

I'm 90% the nutmeg is deliberate as well, because Lopez looks over his shoulder to see the direction the defender is moving, before the ball arrives, so he knows where the bloke will be.

Of course it's possible the ball can hit the defender, but he tried it & it worked & it was, without question, absolutlely fucking brilliant.

Intentional to get the ball to Kolarov - agreed.
Intentional to get it through the defenders legs - no way.

Put it this way if that had been Silva or Nasri I think they would have chosen another option to the backheel given the players around and the runs being made. This is due to them being aware of the defender behind and calculating the risks of the backheel hitting him and not arriving at kolarov's feet. It was brilliant the way it came off and it shows us the lad has skill, I just still feel there was a good degree of luck to get it through to Kolarov.

why shit all over a beautiful moment like that was? You are the definition of a buzzkill.

Go for a walk and enjoy something, please.

[Dameerto]

Over excited & made pretty much all the wrong decisions, passing when he should run/shoot, running/shooting when he should pass etc, & playing generally like he was English, but of course he then nutmegged a bloke with a backheel.

Nobody else has done anything better.

You know he has real quality Ted but last night also showed how young he is and how he will take time to take to playing at the top level.There was a scaredness about his brief performance as shown when he had the ball nicked off him when he dallied wondering what to do.Then later on came the backheel to show a level of confidence and ability.

He needs as many opportunities as possible from the bench to make him feel more a part of the set up and gradually we will see a quality player for the future but he is not one of those to come blazing onto the scene.

That bit where he had the ball nicked off him reminded me of the game where Silva and Yaya both made their league debuts for us (if I'm remembering correctly) - I could practically see them both thinking 'what the fucl?' at their lack of time on the ball. (It's worth giving Lopes credit for running back and regaining possession after losing the ball by the way).

[Socrates]

Over excited & made pretty much all the wrong decisions, passing when he should run/shoot, running/shooting when he should pass etc, & playing generally like he was English, but of course he then nutmegged a bloke with a backheel.

Nobody else has done anything better.

You know he has real quality Ted but last night also showed how young he is and how he will take time to take to playing at the top level.There was a scaredness about his brief performance as shown when he had the ball nicked off him when he dallied wondering what to do.Then later on came the backheel to show a level of confidence and ability.

He needs as many opportunities as possible from the bench to make him feel more a part of the set up and gradually we will see a quality player for the future but he is not one of those to come blazing onto the scene.

That bit where he had the ball nicked off him reminded me of the game where Silva and Yaya both made their league debuts for us (if I'm remembering correctly) - I could practically see them both thinking 'what the fucl?' at their lack of time on the ball. (It's worth giving Lopes credit for running back and regaining possession after losing the ball by the way).

Finally someone mentioned him reacting to losing the ball by going straight off to get it back. I enjoyed his performance, mistakes and all.

[City64]

Dont think Lopes will get a better opportunity to impress than the one he had last night tbh . A few moments of class mixed with moments of sheer averageness for me . He needs to make the very most of any opportunity he gets with the squad we have , time is on his side though.

[Blue Since 76]

That bit where he had the ball nicked off him reminded me of the game where Silva and Yaya both made their league debuts for us (if I'm remembering correctly) - I could practically see them both thinking 'what the fucl?' at their lack of time on the ball. (It's worth giving Lopes credit for running back and regaining possession after losing the ball by the way).

When he lost the ball, it was a 'wake up' moment. I was much more pleased with how quickly he got it back again.

Overall, looked very nervous and overdid a lot of things trying to get into the game. But winning the ball back and the back heel suggest he may have enough to make it. If the right loan move was available, I'd like to see him go somewhere for the rest of the season.

[Wonderwall]

That bit where he had the ball nicked off him reminded me of the game where Silva and Yaya both made their league debuts for us (if I'm remembering correctly) - I could practically see them both thinking 'what the fucl?' at their lack of time on the ball. (It's worth giving Lopes credit for running back and regaining possession after losing the ball by the way).

He has been here for a while and played in the EDS long enough to k ow the english game. Its even more frenetic in the EDS than the prem,

[Dameerto]

I'd like to see him get a few more bits and pieces of game time with us this season, maybe in the FA cup or other matches circumstances permitting. My gut instinct is that he's a quick learner.

[Dameerto]

That bit where he had the ball nicked off him reminded me of the game where Silva and Yaya both made their league debuts for us (if I'm remembering correctly) - I could practically see them both thinking 'what the fucl?' at their lack of time on the ball. (It's worth giving Lopes credit for running back and regaining possession after losing the ball by the way).

He has been here for a while and played in the EDS long enough to k ow the english game. Its even more frenetic in the EDS than the prem,

Fair point - am I right in thinking it was fairly soon after coming on that he lost the ball? (and recovered it)
At the risk of sounding like I'm trying to make up excuses for him I have heard a number of footballers talk about having to play themselves into matches after coming on as a sub.

[City64]

Lopes was also in goal scoring opportunities a couple of times againt a piss poor tired defence and lacked composure and confidence . Game time is vital for him but cant help feeling he wasted a golden opportunity of really grabbing the limelight last night.

[Ted Hughes]

I don't understand, beehive. Where else would he have been intending his backheel to go but to Kolarov?

If you look at the angle and the way he backheeled it I don't think he meant to get it through the defenders legs. I do like a back heel myself and the odd cheeky flick and Lopes's just did not look 100% accurate in my eyes. Fair do's to the lad for trying and I'm glad it came off but as a conosieur of a backheel it was only a 7/10 for me!!

I would say it was one of the most intentional & precise backheels I've ever seen. It can't be proven that he meant it to go through the bloke's legs, but it's very very obvious he meant it to go to Kolarov; he clearly sees Kolarov making the run, knows exactly where he is going, puts the ball perfectly in his path & follows it with his eyes as it happens.

I'm 90% the nutmeg is deliberate as well, because Lopez looks over his shoulder to see the direction the defender is moving, before the ball arrives, so he knows where the bloke will be.

Of course it's possible the ball can hit the defender, but he tried it & it worked & it was, without question, absolutlely fucking brilliant.

Intentional to get the ball to Kolarov - agreed.
Intentional to get it through the defenders legs - no way.

Put it this way if that had been Silva or Nasri I think they would have chosen another option to the backheel given the players around and the runs being made. This is due to them being aware of the defender behind and calculating the risks of the backheel hitting him and not arriving at kolarov's feet. It was brilliant the way it came off and it shows us the lad has skill, I just still feel there was a good degree of luck to get it through to Kolarov.

I'd stake my life on the fact that he knew there was a defender behind him, because he looks at him first. So knowing there is a defender behind him, he tries a backheel which 'accidentally' goes through his legs.

OR, knowing there is a defender behind him, he tries a backheel hoping it will go either past or through the defender's legs if he's not expecting it.

I'm going for option B.

Don't judge players on stuff you can do.

I saw Rodney Marsh using defenders like a wall, playing it off the legs of one, to get past the other. Of course it needs a fair bit of luck; if the bloke moves, it won't work & Rod looks a proper dick, which happened plenty. But if the defender happens to be in the right place....work of art. If you are 5 up, then you can try this shit.

[getdressedmctavish]

There's nothing wrong with shagging the over 60's