The Voice - Match preview #10: Bradford City vs Newport County Monday 7th October 2024 8:00pm

After he scored I couldn't believe how how far and from how high he slid into the corner on his knees! I was thinking don't do it Jamie. Think of your knees.

 

Statement of the year that one and there's definitely been some good contenders.

 

Oh that's right up there. Won't forget that one in a hurry. Like the talk of 'apart from score what does he do'?

 

I think the points were slightly high as I don't actually think we played well enough to throw 8s and 9s out but the overall assessment was very fair and accurate.

Oh, apart from Odour. He was the worst player in the pitch by a stretch. I'm amazed he wasn't dragged off earlier and had he been I don't actually think we'd have conceded as we wrestled back control after the changes.

 

He was absolutely shocking. Usually he keeps the ball quite well but couldn't hang onto it at all last night.

 

Oduor or Kav, both absolutely useless. Kav had 18 touches last night, 11 were first time passes, just 1 went forward. Just one touch in the box too. No idea what's happened to him over the summer but he looks so off it it's unreal.

Odour, I have no idea what he is trying to achieve in football. Is he a winger? A wing back? A centre mid? An attacking mid? He isn't good enough defensively to be a wing back, he doesn't commit a man or beat a man enough to be a winger. He cant carry the ball well enough either to play in midfield. He has no end product at all to play up the pitch. I wouldn't even call him a jack of all trades, certainly a master of none.

 

I'm sad about Odour because he's got all the skills and tricks and ball control, but unfortunately he doesn't do the basics right. Seems to coast through games, and I know its his playing style, but he comes across very laid back and uncommitted. The problem is, as we've seen, Pointon doesn't start games well, but its a fantastic impact sub to bring off the bench for the last twenty five mins or so (think Villa's Duran for example). I was pleased to see Evans getting some game time, so it means he must be fitter than I thought. Perhaps he can pair with Smallwood until sixty minutes, and then we bring Bob on to clean up and tear into the tired oppo legs. Odours needs some time away from starting imo. As does Kav. As much as I endorse our players over loan players, Kavanagh hasn't done anything this season. Looks lost.

 

After a poor run of results, which i believe was caused by having to change formation, due to injuries. Last night was a vast improvement.
We still had some iffy moments and the marking for their goal was shocking.
We have still got a way to go and last night was workmanlike rather than quality on the whole.
The three real bits of quality brought three good goals.
Benn ,Walker, Byrne, Smallwood and Pointon for his wonderfull cameo , all played well.
Cook as usual got battered, but still found the net with a superb header. The push in his back second half that went unrewarded was crazy, how the ref thought it was not a foul is beyond me, he had awarded a freekick to Newport a few minutes earlier for a much lesser push by Dibate at our corner.
If this is our sticky patch and we are managing to cling onto the playoff spots, all well and good, hopefully we get over it soon and last night should be a real boost to confidence, for me this division this year is wide open.

 

Oduor skillset is of a wide left wingman. Don't ask him to think in the centre of the park or in play at left back, that's not him. Would be like asking Mark Marshall to play central midfield. It's why he looks lost in the centre, just like Pointon looks lost out wide on the touchline.

 

I actually think he's more suited to playing on the right. He doesn't really ever beat a man in the outside, he always comes inside and likes to drift across the defensive line looking for either a shot or a pass and in a similar way to how Pointon sometimes plays although Pointon can look very effective from the left too.

It's a very modern thing with players like Rashford, Mahrez and Salah doing it with great effect but now it seems every young winger wants to come inside and seek the glory of goals instead of putting in the hard graft of beating a man and unselfishly putting the ball into good areas for sometime else.

I think the biggest problem we have though is that neither of the two, nor Sarcevic or Pattison for that matter have been able to yet nail down that spot alongside Walker which is worrying because there's definitely talent in the quartet mentioned.

 

I think his best fit would be as a winger, but I don't know how effective he is as he is just so inconsistent. He lost the ball of was dispossessed on the ball 7 times last night looking at the data, we cant have that kind of ball retention in midfield if we want to progress. Although saying that's his best fit, when we went to a 442 he didn't play him left wing, when he's probably the better fit? Such a weird signing, especially on a 3 year deal with an option for a 4th.

 

I'm with you Andy, having made the decision to go down after my bloody COVID jab I was quite happy with the overall performance and result.
I thought Smallwood had a good game but needs a permanent partner to dictate from midfield, once again Cook does what he does best what a header although Townsend made a great effort could not keep it out.
When you have a striker at 6'9" he is always going to win a header of two so you have to make sure you try and cut the supply of crosses, we didn't and Hudlin had virtual free header, but we didn't collapse and Alexander who I have been critical of lately made the changes Pointon being the one that changed the pattern of playing linking up with Walker, as they say the rest is history, on to Tranmere where we have a resent record with the Dolly boys.

 

Can beat a man which no one else in the squad really has that ability. But that doesn't really fit in the way Alexander plays, we played better last night because our wing backs spent the majority of the game in the opposition half. Pointon suffered a similar fate when we went effectively 4-4-2, he has no role to play, same with Walker

 

Along with a number of other weird signings. I would like to listen to what Sharpe said last night, is there anywhere we can view that?

 

I don't really see him beating a man too often, I know L2 wingers are inconsistent but this lad seems so up and down more than most. It's an awkward one for Odour, if everyone's fit, I don't even know if he makes the bench if we play 352/532. He's playing CM at the min but I doubt he does if Pattison, Sarcevic and Adams were fit, as well as Pointon seemingly in line for a starting run. But he's not even half way through his contract yet, no sure where we go with Odour to get any value from the deal?

 

Doesn't look like Sky have released the interview online. Unless there's a replay available on sky of the broadcast if you have a package with that function, I'd say not so far? Kind of surprised the T&A haven't published a story on his interview yet, even just a copy and paste, as over half the fanbase will have missed it due to being in the stadium.

 

Players signed under a different manager. Some clearly don't fit, look how Jay Benn has pushed Halliday down the pecking order. Not necessarily that they are bad players, they just don't the fit the system being played.

 

Dunno if he's a bad player but under Hughes or GA, I've not really seen much that makes me think he'll make it. I say make it, he's 25 now, not like he's a kid. I don't think he's going to look for a move to a system that fits, probably be a utility guy until he is released.

A few of my mates are Leeds fans and used to pop down to U23/U21 games years back and when they found out we had Oduor they were amazed he's not kicked on yet. Said in the summer when we had a few that he was easily one of their best players 5 or 6 years back in their setup at LWB for a spell but never seemed to make that jump.

 

Just look at Jordon Ibe, now busking a gig in non league at 28. Played over a 100 games in the prem.

 

He has got something. There was one game last season, can't remember which, but he was almost unplayable. Then last night he looked like he had his boots on the wrong feet.