Leon still stropping out

[Simster]

But Coppell certainly didn't want him when we were trying to get rid of the useless waster, did he?

Spot on Steve. Says it all really.

 

[Schrödinger's Toad]

he was watching his goal-BY HIMSELF-with a bunch of the younger players taking the piss (behind his back) because nobody else wanted to be there with him. What part of that is difficult for you to understand? HE WAS ON HIS OWN.
...
I WAS there, it happened and spoke volumes of how popular he was with his peers. Even after he scored the PENALTY that took us up he was being ridiculed by the youth squad.

Yup, just as SCANDALOUS the third or fourth time around. What a villain, eh?

 

[Schrödinger's Toad]

Spot on Steve. Says it all really.

If "it all" is accepting that Leon isn't up to Premiership standard and/or that Reading have enough decent strikers, then yes, I guess it does.

And as for your previous post, it doesn't PROVE anything, but it suggests that Knight was the best of a bad bunch at this club, and selling him without having a replacement ready was a suicidal move. Still, plenty on here are quite happy to see us relegated bottom of the league just so long as our players are nice to their mothers and help old women cross the road ...

Personally I'd rather they were GOOD, but that's just my crazy preference ...

 

[Simster]

And as for your previous post, it doesn't PROVE anything, but it suggests that Knight was the best of a bad bunch at this club, and selling him without having a replacement ready was a suicidal mood.

I agree - I stand by my stance on Knight v McGhee. I think McGhee should have lined up a replacement before ditching the short arsed tosser

Still, plenty on here are quite happy to see us relegated bottom of the league just so long as our players are nice to their mothers and help old women cross the road ...

Personally I'd rather they were GOOD, but that's just my crazy preference ...

Well I'm not one of those. McGhee has properly f***ed up this season, no mistake about that. He's made mistake after mistake and failed to plan at every turn. But please - let's not pretend that Knight was any good at this level. He just hasn't done it at this level, even under the mangerial genius that is Steve Coppell. He was a disruptive influence, couldn't score, and now it seems to be all going wrong at Swansea, just as it did here and Sheff Wed before that.

 

[Pavilionaire]

I can only assume that McGhee's strategy pre-season was that Knight would be our main striker and score the 15-odd goals we'd need from him to help us stay up (if this was NOT the case I'd like to know how McGhee did expect us to survive).

We knew Knight was a hothead, and Saturday proved that McGhee can also be a hothead. Both parties were in the wrong, but McGhee should have brought in a decent striker last summer to give us options which, post-Knight, we haven't had.

 

[El Presidente]

Better still, why don't you go and follow him at his present club? That way, you can raise the average IQ of both sets of supporters.

That is an INSULT to the Jack Army, even if they have their sheep with them.

 

[Collar Feeler]

If McGhee knew how to handle Leon we would be MID table by now.

If Leon knew how to handle Leon we might be!

Maybe if he tried to act like an adult rather than an egotistical tosser with 'little man' syndrome and an overinflated opinion of himself he might have been a better player and helped us out of the hole we are now in.

Both he and McGhee are tossers, at least we got shot of one of them!

 

[sir danny cullip]

If Leon knew how to handle Leon we might be!

Maybe if he tried to act like an adult rather than an egotistical tosser with 'little man' syndrome and an overinflated opinion of himself he might have been a better player and helped us out of the hole we are now in.

So true, Leon Knight might be a quality footballer with the talent to go a long way but he seems to have a rather severe attitude problem.

 

[Theatre of Trees]

What I would be interested to see is those 27 (or so) goals he scored in first season, the break down of those scored in open play to penalties and how many in open play were scored whilst Coppell was here and how many were under McGhee.

Under Steve Coppell

Knight scored 8 in 12 games, all from open play. The two penalties we scored from were taken by Darius Henderson who I seem to recall snatched the ball from Knights hand to take it against Oldham.

Under Bob Booker

Scored 2 in 4 games 1 penalty. (Both goals in one game)

McGhee

Scored 15 in 27 games + 1 sub. 6 were penalties. The two games he missed were through suspension.


If you break the season into quarters

(games - appearances - goals - penalties)

12 - 12 - 8 - 0 (Tot Albion goals = 21)
11 - 10 - 10 - 3 (15)
12 - 10(1) - 4 - 2 (15)
11 - 11 - 3 - 2 (13)

1-12 = Coppell
13-16 = Booker
17-46 = McGhee

Break it into halves

23 - 22 - 18 - 3 (36)
23 - 21(1) - 7 - 4 (28)

To put it into context here is Zamora's record from our championship winning team

Break the season into quarters

12 - 12 - 6 - 2 (16)
11 - 11 - 9 - 1 (16)
12 - 10 - 7 - 2 (15)
11 - 8 - 6 - 1 (19)

then into halves

23 - 23 - 15 - 3 (32)
23 - 18 - 13 - 3 (34)


People will read what they like into statistics because it tends to mask other problems. Leon started the season like a house on fire and if he had continued that he would have broken or equalled Wardy's record which would have required something special that not even BZ could achieve. Strikers will always go through a fallow period when their form dips and they can't hit the proverbial arse with a banjo, but they then usually pick up somewhere along the line. In fact Leon's most productive spell was McGhees first 10 or so games in charge and then this was broken by suspension then he began the following match on the bench because MM decided to keep the same side for the next match. I remember MA doing the same thing with Zamora once too before anyone starts. Though this could be the first inkling of when things started going downhill. Food for thought.

 

[Richard Whiteley]

If McGhee knew how to handle Leon we would be MID table by now.

 

[Jim D]

Theatre of Trees - good analysis. I suspect that the reason for Leon scoring many fewer goals in the second half of the season was because teams had worked him out by then. The difference between him and BZ is that Bob could create chances on his own, but Leon always needed someone to set him up. This is also true of Leon's spell with Swansea - scoring at the start of his time (against a weak outfit) but drying-up later on.

In the Championship they had probably done their homework on him better and didn't let him have the space from the start. Also, refs now have him marked down as a diver. On that basis he'll probably struggle to score more than 10 in a season - even in League 1.

 

[Icy Gull]

Turner, Holloway, and McGhee found him disruptive but because he played well for Coppell for less than half a season it's obviously not Leon's fault. Is that right??

I see that Jackett doesn't pick this great player week in week out, and since his arrival Swansea have dropped down the table. Not sure I follow the reasoning of all those who continue to defend him and suggest he would have helped us climb the table.

 

[34064 Fighter Command]

With some of his goals we may not have been going down!!!!!!!!!!

What goals ? He'd only managed five in half a season.

 

[34064 Fighter Command]

You can have the way you play changed.

Coppel knew how to handle him and more importantly how to use him.

Hence his goals dried up from open play when McGhee took over.

So it's got nothing to do with Championship defenders being a different class from League One defenders then ?

 

[Uncle Buck]

Theatre of Trees - good analysis. I suspect that the reason for Leon scoring many fewer goals in the second half of the season was because teams had worked him out by then. The difference between him and BZ is that Bob could create chances on his own, but Leon always needed someone to set him up. This is also true of Leon's spell with Swansea - scoring at the start of his time (against a weak outfit) but drying-up later on.

In the Championship they had probably done their homework on him better and didn't let him have the space from the start. Also, refs now have him marked down as a diver. On that basis he'll probably struggle to score more than 10 in a season - even in League 1.

I think there was an element of teams working him out and that the style of play under McGhee changed and the system was not so focused around Knight meaning he was not going to be as effective.

 

[Uncle Buck]

So what the f*** does that prove. Oh yeah, we didn't score many when Knight was here, and we still we don't score many.

Leon Knight's attitude was gash and he has failed to fulfill his potential whereever he's been. Only Steve Coppell - one of the best managers in the game IMO - has got anything out of him throughout his whole career. It's a shame that the likes of you and Morris (who yet again is talking like a total cretin) can't admit you are wrong on this one.

Constructive.

 

[Albion Dan]

Its hardly unconstructive.

 

[Uncle Buck]

Of course.

 

[Icy Gull]

Of course.

Is it the questioning your ability to admit you may be wrong the bit you don't like? The rest of the post seems pretty much a reasonable statement from someone who doesn't like the way Leon conducts himself most of the time.

 

[Brighton Breezy]

Of course Leon's attitude could have been better. I do not think there is anyone on here who would suggest otherwise.

All I am saying is he was made into a scapegoat by McGhee (see Kuipers, McCammon, Reid et al) and that we would be better off with someone of his talent in the squad.