[Albion] The Elephant in the room

[Javeaseagull]

I think Dunky will fight for his place. A man who has shown so much determination in his career so far is not, imo, going to give up now. it would be arrogant to assume he was first name on the sheet but I fully expect him to lead out the team for the first game of the new season. Unless Saudi come calling!

 

[Sarisbury Seagull]

I guess it isn't in the sense that at things stand he is currently the team and club captain. While that remains the case I think he'll be first choice when fit.

If this were to change in the summer then that would be writing on the wall for sure. But I don't see it. Who caould be captained instead? Welbeck is in the same age category

You can be club captain and not a regular.

If Dunk is the first name on our team sheet come August I’ll be very worried about the season ahead.

 

[Nobby Cybergoat]

You can be club captain and not a regular.

If Dunk is the first name on our team sheet come August I’ll be very worried about the season ahead.

The player and manager have done enough to earn more faith than you're giving them

 

[Lady Whistledown]

How many more threads like this do we need?

Search results for query: dunk#

Indeed. An elephant in the room is something really obvious that nobody wants to talk about. When I saw the thread title, I assumed it was going to be about some sort of massive Albion taboo subject and went straight for it in very clickbaity fashion.

And then I opened it and found it was yet another thread about how much longer Lewis Dunk has at a high level

 

[Tom Hark Preston Park]

The player and manager have done enough to earn more faith than you're giving them

All we can ask is that any decision is not based on sentiment for the player but on what is most beneficial for the team's overall performance and the small margins that make the difference. Same as with any other player really

 

[WATFORD zero]

And this right here is my point. He has been fit. To those "Muppets" who think I am calling for him to quit, or writing him off, or not paying him the respect he deserves. Of course, I am not, but how does the club and player handle the situation when a homegrown legend and long-term Captain is no longer (as it would appear to be the case) an immediate start.

And this where I would disagree. I don't think he has been fit for a while, but we had no fit centre backs so he has been playing whilst carrying injuries. As soon as we had availability he was rested to allow those injuries to heal which, at 33, do take longer. He'll still be a very important player next season.

 

[Nobby Cybergoat]

All we can ask is that any decision is not based on sentiment for the player but on what is most beneficial for the team's overall performance and the small margins that make the difference. Same as with any other player really

And any suggestion that it wouldn't be is ridiculous. Hurzeler (or RDZ before him) clearly doesn't play Dunk out of sentiment. Why would he?

Hurzeler like any PL manager would shoot his granny for a 1% increase in the chance of getting a PL point. And when Dunk is fit, he plays him. That tells me what I need to know.

 

[JBizzle]

And this where I would disagree. I don't think he has been fit for a while, but we had no fit centre backs so he has been playing whilst carrying injuries. As soon as we had availability he was rested to allow those injuries to heal which, at 33, do take longer. He'll still be a very important player next season.

He hasn't been fully fit since before the last Euros, in my opinion. Going away that summer, although great for him, may well have had a detrimental effect on his fitness this season. He was struggling before the Euros in terms of form and has struggled for fitness since. It's interesting though, he's never been quick, but he's always been a good reader of the game, I think his fitness has made positioning and movement much harder.

My fervent hope is that he get s a proper rest this summer, followed by a solid, undisrupted pre-season and what we'll get back is a fitter version of the 2024-25 Dunk.

 

[Tom Hark Preston Park]

And any suggestion that it wouldn't be is ridiculous. Hurzeler (or RDZ before him) clearly doesn't play Dunk out of sentiment. Why would he?

Hurzeler like any PL manager would shoot his granny for a 1% increase in the chance of getting a PL point. And when Dunk is fit, he plays him. That tells me what I need to know.

Do hope that's the case. But would take a manager with RDZ-size Big Balls to bin off the club captain in his first season in a new league etc. This coming season however...

 

[SAC]

It's a fair question from the OP, even if there are other similar threads.

If he has one year left on his contract, I imagine that he will see the season out mostly from the bench. I can't see other clubs matching his £80k a week wages elsewhere so he's unlikely to leave. He could have enough money to retire after this but may feel that he can prove himself with either a Championship club or whoever is promoted from the Championship at the end of next season.

 

[Lady Whistledown]

Now that I've realised there aren't any actual elephants to discuss, I will chuck in my two cents, which is that Dunk has always been the sort of player who needs a run of games to be at his best. Every time he starts afresh, it takes him a while to get back up to speed, so the older he gets and the more susceptible he naturally becomes to injuries, the harder it is for him to have a consistent run of form, so others keep their place in the team at his expense and so it becomes a bit of a cycle.

It's like having a classic car that you keep in the garage most of the year and only take out for a spin on sunny summer days- say a 1972 E-Type Jag with 75,000 miles on the clock*. When you open the garage doors in May and dust it off, the first few miles are going to be a bit clunky until all the parts get working smoothly again, but once it gets going on the open road, you're reminded of what a lovely car it is.

Just don't be surprised when it's overtaken by a 2024 Nissan Juke.




*alright, perhaps in this case, more of a Series 2 Land Rover Defender

 

[Weststander]

He was last seen playing non league.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kemy_Agustien

 

[BLOCK F]

And any suggestion that it wouldn't be is ridiculous. Hurzeler (or RDZ before him) clearly doesn't play Dunk out of sentiment. Why would he?

Hurzeler like any PL manager would shoot his granny for a 1% increase in the chance of getting a PL point. And when Dunk is fit, he plays him. That tells me what I need to know.

Generally I agree, but unless my ageing memory is playing tricks on me, I can recall an occasion during the season when Fab ditched Webbo with undue haste and reinstated Dunky. Can’t exactly remember what happened, but I don’t think it went particularly well.

 

[Nobby Cybergoat]

Generally I agree, but unless my ageing memory is playing tricks on me, I can recall an occasion during the season when Fab ditched Webbo with undue haste and reinstated Dunky. Can’t exactly remember what happened, but I don’t think it went particularly well.

A couple of occasions Dunk walked back in after injury when the understudy had performed.

This kind of backs up my point. The manager wants him in the team for everything he brings and is prepared to drop a performing player to do it.

Dunk is far from finished at this club.

 

[Tom Hark Preston Park]

How do you try to play high line football with Dunk (and Webster) as your last line of defence? Simple answer is you can't. You'll be found out every time. Not that it needs much finding out

 

[Shropshire Seagull]

Van Hecke, Boscagli, Dunk and Webster for sure - but like everyone else on this thread (so far) no mention of Igor, who was also doing well before injury.
One other consideration, which would favour Dunk staying, is the possibility that FH might want to move more towards a three at the back system. 5 CBs for 3 places would seem about right.

 

[nicko31]

I think Dunky will fight for his place. A man who has shown so much determination in his career so far is not, imo, going to give up now. it would be arrogant to assume he was first name on the sheet but I fully expect him to lead out the team for the first game of the new season. Unless Saudi come calling!

Would Dunky honestly go to Saudi?

 

[AZ Gull]

Anyone know how long he has left on his existing contract?

....

He is contracted until June 2026 (no idea if the club has an option on top of that).

 

[Invicta]

Well worth his place in the squad. There is still more to come from Lewis.

 

[dazzer6666]

Well worth his place in the squad. There is still more to come from Lewis.

This. Wasn’t fit for much of the season so hardly surprising his form suffered at times. Won’t be going anywhere