The deal with Skrtel
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Refs react to this kind of media coverage. They know they can make an example of the player and get media backing for doing so. It's pretty much inevitable the next one will 'do' him for it. As Modo says, you could punish plenty of other players for the same sort of thing, but Skrtel really is so astonishingly blatant he's practically asking to be penalised. Ultimately it's cowardice on his part - if you're a good defender there's really no way you'd act as he does, not even looking at the ball coming in. We've got a veritable army of 'video analysts' fer chrissakes, the coaches must see how poor it is, they really need to get him to cut it out.
Yes, this is what scares me, refs watching this and deciding to personally make sure that Skrtel doesn't get away with it again. But it works both ways, I mean Suarez would still have trouble getting pens if the media didn't highlight how often he actually gets fouled.
Skrtel has always had a really frustrating tendency to be so engrossed in the physical battle with his opponent that he doesn't seem to be aware where the ball is. A couple of years ago when he was tussling with Carlton Cole well before the ball arrived from a long punt, got outmuscled, and subsequently left Cole free to put it in the back of the net past a stationary Reina.
You do love exaggerating.
Trying his best to give a penalty away.
Yeah I'm sure that's his aim.
Skrtel learned from the best of them. 🙂 Carra got away with a lot of shirt pulling and mugging, but he didn't always make it to the screen. This usually gets lost in Carra's heroics, but he was a master of the tricks. Of course, you're kind of toying with fire with that, but somehow these guys have been able to elude punishment most of the time, which makes me think the refs basically just ignore things because he probably knows the exact opposite happens on the other end. Now and then, they'll give a penalty though just to make an impression that they know the rules.
But aye, Skrtel should really cut out some of that shit. The question though is whether he can still defend setpieces without resorting to these tricks. I'm sure the coaching staff are well aware of the things he does and perhaps they're playing the odds as well.
But aye, Skrtel should really cut out some of that shit. The question though is whether he can still defend setpieces without resorting to these tricks. I'm sure the coaching staff are well aware of the things he does and perhaps they're playing the odds as well.
R
RedZeppelin III
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i said in one of the other threads that Skrtel just isn't my type of defender . I'm not saying he hasn't played well or i am right in wanting to replace him long term , i just don't trust him and never feel too safe with him back there . I prefer my defenders to know when to dive in , when to stand up etc but he only has one mode - kamikaze . He doesn't look at the ball half the time , he follows the man and it seems he sometimes guesses where the ball is or will be .
But it does work more often than not and is the style of many defenders out there now . I think Carragher and Neville were talking about it a few months ago and how it's a style british fans aren't sure of but probably have to accept .
Still , long term , i'd happily sign another fuck off defender who will go in there and actually lead .
But it does work more often than not and is the style of many defenders out there now . I think Carragher and Neville were talking about it a few months ago and how it's a style british fans aren't sure of but probably have to accept .
Still , long term , i'd happily sign another fuck off defender who will go in there and actually lead .
If there is a ball in the air, Skrtel is fouling his opponent. He is highlighted for it because he's clumsy and too obvious and has no interest in playing for the ball. He's not engaged in a physical battle in an attempt to get better position and attack the ball, he's focused on stopping his opponent from doing what he wants to do.
He's not good with his head defensively, and he's a central defender, and it's a significant part of why he'll never be good enough in my opinion, despite his terrific attitude, and all that.
He's not good with his head defensively, and he's a central defender, and it's a significant part of why he'll never be good enough in my opinion, despite his terrific attitude, and all that.
Spurs shouldn't have sold Caulker ... He's a good young CB, who's only going to get better. He'll be playing for a top 6 contender if Cardiff get relegated.
Some of this thread is a little short on perspective IMHO. Skrtel certainly still has rough edges, but he's 4th overall in Morse's MOTM table with 2 MOTM wins of his own. This is not to say we shouldn't try and improve if we can, both by working on Skrtel's game and by keeping our eyes open for a better option from elsewhere, but I have a hunch that finding better for sensible money would turn out to be more difficult than some of you think.
I agree with some of that JJ. One of Agger and Skrtel will certainly leave next summer. I'd sell Agger imho.
Despite some flaws he's a better defender than Agger. They're both on pretty big wages but Agger can leave imho.
Sakho is a definite starter for me.
Despite some flaws he's a better defender than Agger. They're both on pretty big wages but Agger can leave imho.
Sakho is a definite starter for me.
I'd sell both Agger and Skrtel in the summer to be honest. Neither fill me with confidence or are of a consistently high level for a team that intends to be challenging for the league.
R
RedZeppelin III
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it is a bit strange that a number of managers haven't been able to educate him at this stage , or at least he hasn't been able to remember what he learnt under the likes of Clarke
I agree about Sakho at the moment, but (a) things can change and (b) we need competition for the left-sided CB slot, which Agger provides. Similarly with Skrtel, if he does go we'll need someone else in addition to Toure for right-sided CB. I'm not sure either Agger or Skrtel would be easy to replace with the right quality at the right price.
This is it, though I don't really agree that he's not taking it a bit too far. The first incident where he got a block on the ball with his foot, I thought it was six of one, half a dozen of the other, he put pressure on and there was a bit of shirt pulling between the two, but nothing out of the ordinary.
The second incident though was stupid, I agree that it's standard stuff where you do what you can to stop the opponent, I don't really agree he should just be ball watching either - which is what alot of people said, he was right to be watching the player and making sure his man didn't get away (as opposed to Kelly ending up in no mans land for the goal), but he's taking some of the physical nature of this to the extreme. Commentators are noticing and it won't be long before refs are looking out for it.
Sakho bothers me a bit with his control. He seems to have a Djimi-style need to take two touches just to control a ball. He's very strong and powerful, a fine tackler, so don't get me wrong, I like him, but the number of times he seems to get a straightforward pass only to get it caught under his foot or on the wrong foot is a bit strange. Hopefully he's just settling in to the pace of the game but he doesn't seem that assured. My long term bet for CB is Ilori, he's absolute class in terms of pace, poise and technique. So I agree with Mark, with a monster like Sakho next to him, with the desired improvement, that would be a fascinating combination.
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