Tony Andreu (4 Viewers)

[Bristol sky blue]

Andreu was widely regarded as a player who would make a significant difference on his return when he was out last year...
Anyone concerned that his apparent lack of fitness is actually a sign that he won't be anywhere near the player he could potentially be for us? Or is it still too early to judge?

I have only seen 2 games this season so far so really don't know. I would like to see Allessani given a game as the attacking midfielder behind JCH / Chaplin, think he could cause lots of problems for the opposition there...

 

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[eastwoodsdustman]

He’s got ability but can’t see how we fit him in.

 

[Sick Boy]

Considering he's been out a while, hopefully he will eventually regain full fitness. I'd love to Allessani and Jones in the same team, would scare most defences in this league!

 

[djr8369]

He’s got skill and vision but struggles to impose himself on games even though when he chases and harasses the opposition. I’ve argued previously that he isn’t a luxury player but now I’m not too sure. I don’t think he and Bayliss can play in the same team though.


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[clint van damme]

He’s got skill and vision but struggles to impose himself on games even though when he chases and harasses the opposition. I’ve argued previously that he isn’t a luxury player but now I’m not too sure. I don’t think he and Bayliss can play in the same team though.


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Wouldn't disagree with anything you've posted. The only thing I would say is he clearly isn't fit so would like to see how it works out with him once he is.

 

[Nick]

The fitness thing is worrying, I know he had a long term injury but he really stands out as struggling far too early in games.

I don't think he fits into our most effective systems and we try and mould everything around him.

So far he hasn't really controlled a game or done much, yeah he scored a great free kick but he hasn't been that effective otherwise.

 

[hill83]

Getting injured last year did us a favour. Doesn’t fit.

 

[Deleted member 5849]

Getting injured last year did us a favour. Doesn’t fit.

Hmmm, I'd say more it allowed Bayliss to come through, but now he's pretty much undroppable, there's no room for Andreu.

 

[Liquid Gold]

It's a nice problem to have though. Our problem is we clearly play better with 2 up front and Andreu is neither a striker or CM.

 

[hill83]

Hmmm, I'd say more it allowed Bayliss to come through, but now he's pretty much undroppable, there's no room for Andreu.

Yeah or that.

 

[fernandopartridge]

Played well at Gillingham. He needs better movement ahead of him, may work better with Chapin and Jones when he returns.

It's a nice problem to have, usually the masses on here moan about lack of plan B

 

[itsabuzzard]

Joe Cole's stint at City didn't amount to much more than one cracking free kick.

The fitness thing is worrying, I know he had a long term injury but he really stands out as struggling far too early in games.

I don't think he fits into our most effective systems and we try and mould everything around him.

So far he hasn't really controlled a game or done much, yeah he scored a great free kick but he hasn't been that effective otherwise.

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[Nick]

Joe Cole's stint at City didn't amount to much more than one cracking free kick.

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Trying to fit him in caused issues as well

 

[no_loyalty]

Not in the last two squads, a bit of a luxury player that maybe we could offload in January?

 

[Nick]

I just can't see where he fits. He isn't a striker and he isn't a midfielder who can sit in the middle like Doyle / Bayliss / Kelly etc.

 

[Covstu]

He reminds me of Fleck, divided fans opinion for a while until his last season when he managed to find a place to properly slot into. I think there is more to come from TA, he has the skill and can pick a pass which given our current striking successes we need that level of delivery. I just hope we don't direct everything to JJ like we did at the start of the season, you always need a Plan B when he is marked out of the game.

 

[SkyBlueCRJ]

I personally think his legs may have gone due to his injury. He didn't have pace by any means to begin with but it's clear his fitness is nowhere near the standards required at this level and from his few cameo's he's struggling to keep up with the speed of the game. Probably one of our highest earners given that he came straight from the Championship so I certainly would offload in Jan if the opportunity arises. Plus, as Nick says, he's effectively a square peg in a round hole so where does he fit?

 

[Liquid Gold]

He's the most number 10 player in the world and we don't play with a number 10. Unlucky for him but I think we wont see much of him and off in Jan.

 

[Winny the Bish]

He didn't stand out against Palace U23s on Monday. The commentators had no idea he was "playing down" and it showed. Was getting rings run around him by some of their younger midfielders and didn't dictate tempo like you'd expect.

 

[Mr Panda]

He's a victim of the system we play which is a real shame because I was really excited about finally getting to see him this season.

To play him effectively would mean dropping one striker and none of our forwards are complete enough to be played alone. Perhaps Bakayoko would be the most suitable candidate but you just cannot drop Chaplin and JCH right now. Any move to accommodate him will break down a successful system and I can only see him leaving in January or at the end of his contract. I would love to test the theory Portsmouth fans passed on to us that Chaplin can't play alone but can't see that happening in the league. He seems really tidy and retains possession well when the ball is played into his feet and that's something perhaps Andreu could work with.

If McNulty had stayed I would expect that we would have seen a lot more of him.

 

[Esoterica]

Needs a run of 10-15 games like all our other players coming back from such knee injuries but he's not going to get that now we've settled on a formation that he doesn't really fit and when the players that are ahead of him are all playing well.

 

[better days]

Andreu was widely regarded as a player who would make a significant difference on his return when he was out last year...
Anyone concerned that his apparent lack of fitness is actually a sign that he won't be anywhere near the player he could potentially be for us? Or is it still too early to judge?

I have only seen 2 games this season so far so really don't know. I would like to see Allessani given a game as the attacking midfielder behind JCH / Chaplin, think he could cause lots of problems for the opposition there...

I suspect Andreu was starting games before he was really ready. He's a decent player but really needed to be brought on as sub to allow him to gradually develop his fitness
Remember we didn't have Chaplin in the early games and even Bakayoko and Hiwula came in after the pre-season started so the manager probably didn't have much option but to throw Andreu in
Allassani is currently injured, he came back for treatment recently after making a great start at Ebbsfleet on loan
Interestingly I heard that Allassani is one of only two or three players who stay behind for extra training to try to improve themselves
That attitude goes a long way usually

 

[Earlsdon-Loyal-Blue]

He's the most number 10 player in the world and we don't play with a number 10. Unlucky for him but I think we wont see much of him and off in Jan.

Agreed. I think Andreu was signed at the start of last season when Robins looked set to go with his favoured 4-2-3-1 formation and then Andreu’s injury along with our lack of goals prompted Robins to go 4-4-2 (or 4-2-2-2, depending on how you look at it) which was far more effective and got us results... I personally don’t think Andreu fits into a 4-4-2 - he looks like an out and out number 10 and I don’t think we should change our formation to accommodate him.

 

[SlowerThanPlatt]

He played in the 23s on Monday and did really well. His attitude was good, sometimes you get first team players who give 50% and no one gains anything really

 

[covcity4life]

He's a good player. Surely this season has shown that every squad member will get their chance to shine at some point.

Patience. As long as team doing well we don't need to concern ourselves with individuals

 

[fernandopartridge]

Cov fans are mental, complain about selling players but are prepared to offload somebody returning from a long term injury because he hasn't had a perfect return. Also complain about a 'lack of plan B' but then want to sell players who might help offer an alternative way of playing should the need arise.

 

[Magwitch]

Can only fit into a 4-3-3 system imo with the way we are set up currently there’s only the two centre midfield spots for him, and there’s a number ahead of him for those spots. Unlucky really looks a good player but got that bad injury seems to affected his pace to be honest I think he is now surplus to requirements, I also think if we sign anyone in the window it will be in the midfield area pushing him further down the pecking order, as I said looks a good player but football can be a cruel game.

 

[BlueElephant]

Cov fans are mental, complain about selling players but are prepared to offload somebody returning from a long term injury because he hasn't had a perfect return. Also complain about a 'lack of plan B' but then want to sell players who might help offer an alternative way of playing should the need arise.

I disagree. He doesn't fit into our system and when we adapted our system at the start of the season to fit him in we didn't look very good.

I'd be more than happy to let him go in January.

 

[Ashdown]

We are nearing late October now, surely he should be fit by this point of the season ?! I've not been too impressed and we seem to play better without trying to work with him. Mind you it's taken all this time again for us start to see our best line up for the system. Long may it continue.

 

[SkyBlueCRJ]

Cov fans are mental, complain about selling players but are prepared to offload somebody returning from a long term injury because he hasn't had a perfect return. Also complain about a 'lack of plan B' but then want to sell players who might help offer an alternative way of playing should the need arise.

There's not having a 'perfect return' then there's looking as if you've never played football before. Granted his injury was severe but surely there's a point where you have to stop waiting for a player to get back to full fitness and realise he's probably just not the same player anymore....

 

[hill83]

Cov fans are mental, complain about selling players but are prepared to offload somebody returning from a long term injury because he hasn't had a perfect return. Also complain about a 'lack of plan B' but then want to sell players who might help offer an alternative way of playing should the need arise.

Usually I’d agree you you but in this case I’d argue that plan B, which incidentally began as plan A, was play shite.

 

[Gibbo]

Getting injured last year did us a favour. Doesn’t fit.

Never did. Not sure he fits in many teams' formation

 

[tommydazzle]

I meet with a mate who's a keen Norwich fan and we discuss all things Cov and Norwich and there's plenty of interesting overlap and history. (I even have a small claim to fame with some Norwich history but that's another story). He reckons Andreu is a headless chicken and most fans didn't rate him at all at Carrow Road. Obviously doesn't necessarily follow that the player will not shine at another club or that he is correct in his opinion.

 

[Sky Blue Harry H]

We do write players off quickly - Sterling, Baka, Hiwula, Burge....
He may take a while to get fitness back. True, he may not fit into our current system. With game time and fitness, most players with ability are an asset. Too early to write off for me - I haven't seen enough of him yet (or are we turning him into a new Beavon/Vincenti, as we are struggling for a scapegoat at the moment, 'cos they're all playing well!)

 

[Sky Blue Harry H]

I meet with a mate who's a keen Norwich fan and we discuss all things Cov and Norwich and there's plenty of interesting overlap and history. (I even have a small claim to fame with some Norwich history but that's another story). He reckons Andreu is a headless chicken and most fans didn't rate him at all at Carrow Road. Obviously doesn't necessarily follow that the player will not shine at another club or that he is correct in his opinion.

I'm going for you having had Delia Smith back in your University days?