McAnuff- New captain

[The Real Sandhurst Royal]

Give the captaincy to Gorkss now, McAnuff is not a captain, he goes missing for long periods of the game and when he plays crap on the wing, he get moved to the centre of midfield when he should be subbed.

[Simon's Church]

What actual difference does it make if someone is captain? Surely it's just an armband. Certain players will either lead or they won't, I doubt being made captain will change that.

[grey_squirrel]

What actual difference does it make if someone is captain? Surely it's just an armband. Certain players will either lead or they won't, I doubt being made captain will change that.

It's more the psychological thing/aspect as (badly) experienced by Ian Botham and David Beckham (for examples). Just because you are the stellar ( ) performer, doesn't ever/often equate to you being the best leader on or off the pitch.

And Jobi is sufferring.

Give the captaincy to Gorkks. In a position where he can command the troops from all angles a la Ingi.

[Compo's Hat]

You never saw Parky or Murty go hiding when the chips were down.

[Sarah Star]

I don't think he goes missing though. He just gets moved to the middle.

[Friday's Legacy]

You never saw Parky or Murty go hiding when the chips were down.

but what can you do when you have responsibilities on the wing? for murty he could defend hard and bomb forward, we were a lot better with using our width then. for mcanuff there is very little football played out wide and when it was yesterday he looked good. kebe on the other hand wasn't. what ever happened to knocking the ball in front of his marker and sprinting for it?

back to the captaincy - if you take it away from mcanuff you may as well sell him in january because that's another head that drops. but i do agree strongly that gorkss needs to made captain, so what do you do?

personally i'd pull gorkss in the office and say that he is unofficially the captain, go out and organise and lead the team, thus not putting jobi's nose out of place.

[zummerset]

If it were me I would call them all into the office and ask them what they each personally intend to do about this run, let the players have a no holds barred meeting and come back to me with their suggestions.

I really wanted to shout and swear at them first but thats more as a fan that as MaccyD

[loyalroyal4life]

He is not a captain because he is not a natural leader, only thing is if he gets even shitter by stripping him of the band which i think is worth the risk as he cant get much worst at the moment!

Gorkss would be a good choice

[moonwalklikebas]

When i went to the Cardiff game last season, in cardiff i felt Jobi was the best player on the field by a country mile. His work rate was sensational, he was taking players both on the inside and the out and scored a terrific goal. All of what i have just said was to see in a handful of games. This season it is even worse.

He is the captain of the side and when he looses the ball he just drops his head and strolls or calmly jogs back. What does that show to the other players????

'If my captain cant be bothered to put a shift in why should I?'

His passing this year is woeful, his dribbling is predictible and his management on the field is a evident as shane long (non existent)


also, you never see him talking, never shouting at his team or giving them a pat on the back.

The only person i have seen talking this season so far is Pearce and Karacan. Karacan who is always jeering on the team and where i sit i always hear Pearce shouting at Jobi to track back and get in front of his man on throw-ins. Should the captain really be getting told to do this??

IMO he needs to be dropped for a little while, maybe one or two games and see from there. At the minute he indispensable in Brians eyes and i don't know why.
Just because he is captain, that doesnt mean he cant be subbed off. For example, if Rooney is having a bad game for UTD Sir alex will bring him off. Wayne will sulk but watch him come back the next week and score a couple of goals. Brian needs to stop be 'Mr nice guy' as every one keeps calling him and grab some balls to make changes. Otherwise the likes of JOBI, LEDGE, KEBE AND GRIFF will just continue to stroll through this season knowing they have a concrete place in the starting 11.

Im saying as Captains go and as players go he isnt fit to be either.

If he spent more time concentrating on his team and his own performance instead of fiddling with his armband every 5 seconds he might improve.

[Friday's Legacy]

this has all be covered elsewhere numerous times.

in his defence the wingers are often being cut out by these long hopeless balls.

however, everywhere jobi has played they have all said how he often goes missing in games and is anoter, like kebe, one good game in five performer.

personally i like him, but he could be so much better.

[moonwalklikebas]

Drop him and kebe. Bring in Hal and Obita and watch 2 players who really want to wear the shirt put there all into the team is what needs to happen.

[Ian Royal]

How do you expect a winger (same goes for Kebe, HRK & Obita) to get anywhere, when there is no movement inside him, he's marked by two to three players constantly, never receives the ball into space to run with, often in fact facing the wrong way, and half the time the ball is just punted over the top with no hope of being reached first.

Kebe will always look the best in these situations, because he's quicker and his close control is better and less predictable, so he can get away from a defender or two, but faced with a solid wall and less crossing ability, he won't produce much either, despite being more exciting looking.

Given the alternative to McAnuff as captain was/is Leigertwood, McAnuff is still the right man even if he isn't playing well, because Leigterwood seems to be trying to re-earn his nickname of Legsofwood.

[DOYLERSAROYALER]

How do you expect a winger (same goes for Kebe, HRK & Obita) to get anywhere, when there is no movement inside him, he's marked by two to three players constantly, never receives the ball into space to run with, often in fact facing the wrong way, and half the time the ball is just punted over the top with no hope of being reached first.

Kebe will always look the best in these situations, because he's quicker and his close control is better and less predictable, so he can get away from a defender or two, but faced with a solid wall and less crossing ability, he won't produce much either, despite being more exciting looking.

Given the alternative to McAnuff as captain was/is Leigertwood, McAnuff is still the right man even if he isn't playing well, because Leigterwood seems to be trying to re-earn his nickname of Legsofwood.

Leigertwood isnt the only option available ...Gorkss is the captain of his national team which suggests he has the right credentials for the job ...Leigertwood has enough on his plate proving he wasnt a 6 month wonder, but its down to McAnuff to prove to the manager hes the right persom for the job...personally I dont think he is ,and again he should concentrate on getting a consistent level of performance, before taking on the armband

[Man Friday]

McA was never captain material, and never will be. Big mistake by McD. He needs to admit it and change it pronto. Nothing to debate here, it's an obvious one. And yes, having a motivational captain IS important. If McD has anything about him he will change the captain within the next month if we don't pick up. (Gorkss - don't care if he is a new boy.)

[Cypry]

Got to say, until we conceded the first goal yesterday, I thought that there was some great link up play between Jobi and Mills - Mills was overlapping inside, creating some space, and Jobi was able to put several dangerous balls into the box - one shot/cross, that from my angle I thought was in...

In his defence, Jobi was quite plainly trying to gee the boys up after the first goal, but for whatever reason, from that point their collective heads dropped and any spark that was there was gone....

It's all very well, giving McAnuff a pasting, and saying he's a crap captain, but who else is there?

Feds? No, wait, I keep forgetting, he can't command his area, let alone a team, and needs to be replaced ASAP with McCarthy...
Pearce? Oh no, everyone's suddenly decided he's crap as well, despite have been paired with no fewer than three other CB options in just 5 games...
Gorkks? Captain on debut? An unlikely option...
Harte? Nope - most people seem to think he's past it and should lose his place in the side....
Griffin? - See Harte....
Kebe? Can't see him being any better than Jobi, and not going to help communication with the ref if he's still claiming not to speak English......
Leigertwood? Possibly, I guess the responsibility might get him moving again, but what would he offer that Jobi cannot?
Karacan? I'd suggest that he needs a touch more experience and can get a bit hot headed...
Any of the strikers? Not a chance, none of them hold a starting place for long enough....


I just can't see any other option from the current "preferred players"....


There is one possibility that might work, and that is Howard - personally I'd like to see him given an extended run in the side (rather than just the odd game here or there), either replacing Leigertwood in a 4-4-2, or my preference would be to drop him into the hole in a 4-2-3-1. He's got experience, and the creativity that we seem to lack - jut seems that every time McD has played him he's given him one game, or a spot on the bench and never given him a real chance to claim a regular start...

Perhaps something like this?

----------------------------------Feds----------------------------------
Cummings-----------Gorkks-------------Harte-----------------Mills
----------------Karacan--------------------Leigertwood--------------
Kebe---------------------------Howard-----------------------McAnuff
----------------------------------Hunt-----------------------------------

Bench: McCarthy, Gunnarsson, HRK, Manset, Le Fondre


To me that would make sense - both full backs are quick, and, between them and Gorkks, should be able to cover any lack of pace that Harte has - Harte can still offer a threat at set pieces, and penalties.
Plus, quicker full backs should help Kebe and McAnuff by having the ability to overlap (as mentioned, saw some of this from Mills yesterday)....
Hunt is probably the one I'm least sure about - if McAnuff and Kebe find more freedom, and Howard could provide some incisive through balls I might be tempted to put Le Fondre in there instead....I'm pretty sure he could finish if the rest of the team can create chances for him...

Guess this all depends on whether Howard would grab a chance to play (I'm guessing that the main reason he wants to leave is that he's not getting games), and whether Brian can overcome whatever it is that has stopped him for giving Howard a half decent crack in the starting XI....


Worst case, it gives us a plan B, Howard off for Manset/Le Fondre and back to a 4-4-2

[Big Foot]

FWIW McAnuff shouldn't even be in the first XI nevermind be captain right now

[moonwalklikebas]

+1

[Elmer Park]

I personally would not have chosen Jobi as Captain, can't think of anyone less suited, but Reading fans are making far too much of an issue of this. Him being Captain is not the reason why we are struggling. When Mills was Captain quite a few people on here didn't like his loud and demonstrative style of leadership. Are these the same people who are complaining Jobi is too quiet ?

On yesterday's showing we need more passion from all the players not just the Captain.

[rfc2001]

The captains armband is irrelevant he is playing shit!! He is performing the least out of everyone so far, except Griffin!! Drop him, he's not hungry at the moment!! He needs a shake up

[Royal Lady]

It does make me wonder whether the promise of being an ever present and the club captain was used as a carrot to keep Jobi - maybe he'd made noises that he was looking to go? I don't know - in fact, if THAT was the reason, we were stupid to make him captain - but I actually cannot see any other reason why he would be chosen as captain. I have NEVER seen him gee up the boys, shout instructions, lead by example. He should have been told he was Acting Captain - if he did a good for the first 5-10 games, he'd keep the arm band, if he didn't he'd be relinquishing it - and then it should have been given to Gorkss.

Our best ever captain in recent years has been Murty - even when his legs were giving up on him,his passion and his voice didn't. It's a pity we don't have anyone in his mould at the club anymore. He wasn't even Reading born and bred, but you got the impression he'd die for this club when he was playing.