Rovers 1 Plymouth 0

[SCooperSomersaults]

:lol: Arnaud Mendy .... 1. Was he really that bad? The first few games he played for us, he was immense. A real beast in the midfield. He hasn't really kicked on since then though. I wasn't at the game so am just reading the reviews from you guys. 1 is a bit harsh on any player though, surely?!

All I've seen is Jenno's goal. He's a different class, and miles too good for us I'm afraid. Word on the street is the bullies from across the river are after him. If he can stay here til the end of the season I think we'll have done well. He could help us keep up easily, then progress his own career. One of the hottest prospect I've seen come through the ranks at Tranmere though, incredible talent.

 

[OneNightInGayParis]

He didn't have a good game and you're right, he hasn't kicked on from the early performances. However, he is certainly a presence in midfield and a score of "1" is well OTT. To my mind he is playing distinctly and consistently averagely and is on a 5/6. How long before you srart the "McLaren Back" campaign, NBDH ... because that would be the most likely other option?

 

[Boz]

I'd probably rate Mendy as a 4/5 on this performance, though as indicated in my earlier post, I think his performance may have been subdued by an early harsh yellow card for a mistimed tackle.

Disagree with ONIGP that our only other option would be to recall McLaren, though agree he would be worse than Arnaud. Joss is back after his ban, Blanchard can play midfield, though been a bit below par recently, Fraughan if you want a more attacking option, even Max Power worth a giving first team debut to before back-pass Paul puts on a white shirt again.

 

[Ian]

Yes, I think it's fair to say there are a lot more options in midfield before we start thinking about putting McLaren back in there, as Boz has highlighted above. He's not been missed.

 

[OneNightInGayParis]

Boz / Ian, I agree that there are a lot more options in midfield than McLaren as a "Plan B". Fraughan, in particular, has been woefully under-utilised this season - even given that fact that not every game may be suited to his style of play.

What I am less convinced of is that Les is as expansive a thinker as you guys. I am struggling tp think of occasions when one of our first choice midfielders has been unavailable and he has not chosen McLaren (when fit).

Very kindly put; his rating of McLaren does not seem entirely proportionate to the ability of the player!

 

[Rockford's Love Child]

:lol: Word on the street is the bullies from across the river are after him.

Please, please sell to him to anybody but one of those two !

I agree with Coops assessment of Jennings. Although our recent improvement has by no means been entirely down to Dale, there were certain games whcih could have panned out very differently if it hadn't been for his brilliance (MK Dons and Plymouth being two examples).

Just in terms of his own development, other than the obvious financial benefits, I don't think it makes any sense for him to move at this stage. Why spend another three years turning out for West Brom's reserves, or warming the bench when he could be continuing his education, and increasing his reputation with us ? Most of the young players who left us very early on (Simonsen, Thornton) didn't progress and paid for their impatience in the rest of their careers.

PJ may have other ideas however.......

 

[SCooperSomersaults]

As soon as a decent offer comes in, we all know he'll be off. The only bright spot could be a loan deal back to us as part of the deal to progress his development in first team football rather than in some reserve team somewhere. We shall see, City are in the line as well I hear.

 

[bring back the cowshed!]

As soon as a decent offer comes in, we all know he'll be off. The only bright spot could be a loan deal back to us as part of the deal to progress his development in first team football rather than in some reserve team somewhere. We shall see, City are in the line as well I hear.

The trouble is what you and I think is a decent offer will be way above what PJ would be willing to sell for. Personally, if it was my club, I'd wait till the end of the season. We'd get a full season out of him, he should progress and be worth a bit more in June. The only risk is long term injury (he will certainly be targeted by the bully boys), but you can insure against that.

I agree that playing in somebody's first team is the only way to develop. Other examples are Gareth Bale, who took a long time to fulfill his potential at Spurs (and was nearly sold a year ago) and Theo Walcott, who had massive potential at 16 but has developed little since joining Arsenal, where he spent too much time early on in the reserves. But the worst case was Steve Simonsen, who had a clause in the transfer agreement triggering extra payment if he played for Everton before a deadline. As a result, he'd lost his confidence before he played for their first team.

 

[Boz]

As soon as a decent offer comes in, we all know he'll be off. The only bright spot could be a loan deal back to us as part of the deal to progress his development in first team football rather than in some reserve team somewhere. We shall see, City are in the line as well I hear.

If Dale did go to City, at least it would be good for the club/PJs finances (delete as appropriate) as we'd get hard cash not payment in dribs and drabs. Their interest is also likely to raise the starting price for him. Apparently he was on the books at Liverpool once and had a trial with Everton, so were he to end up there, they'd be shelling out money for someone they could have got for free.

Agree that for his development it would be better if he stayed with Rovers until the end of the season, playing more league games. Whether that happens depends on the size of any offer coming in and the player and his agent.