Jonathan David

[Obinna]

1 hour ago, Snowcrash said:

Ikone and Bamba aren't selfish players, per se.  That's just how they're wired. They don't see the game particularly well.  Every four or five games, they'll do some highlight reel stuff and then it's back to their ineffective iso game. Ikone has had a few call ups to the France team and I'm thinking to maintain his value, Lille can't keep him out of the starting 11 for too many games.

This is how I see it as well. Araujo sees the game better, but still not great. You get the most out of David when he's surrounded with players who can see the game. The problem at Gent was that his teammates saw his runs too late, or were not good enough to execute passes to him. At Lille I don't even think they see most of his runs to be honest.

I am really disappointed at how this move played out and I feel bad for David. I am surprised Lille moved for him to be honest. I trust they did their scouting, so why did they want a cerebral player to be surrounded with a bunch of non-cerebral players?

If Lille could get Morales and pair him with Yilmaz and play David in the hole, that would yield much better results. Change the shape and let David find the game in the pockets between the lines, rather than having him finish off the final actions. Then, have Bamba and Araujo on the wings (or Ikone if he is not sold). Let them do what they do best, take players on from the flanks. Let David feed Morales and Yilmaz. David will get his goals in the process. Build the team around David.

[Obinna]

And he does look overweight. I thought maybe he was putting on muscle. It wouldn't surprise me to learn that Lille wanted him to start bulking up to build strength as a target forward. David also said in an interview before that he doesn't like the weight room and that he'd rather be on the pitch. 

[SthMelbRed]

On 9/21/2020 at 6:00 PM, Mikmacdo said:

Apparently David was one of three players Liverpool was considering signing with Jota and Sarr. 

As a Liverpool supporter, I was really pleased with the signing of Diogo Jota. That was until I read the below excerpt in the Athletic today...

"The Athletic can reveal that Jonathan David joined Watford’s Ismaila Sarr on Liverpool’s shortlist for an attacker. Liverpool extensively scouted the Canada international but decided to focus their attention on Sarr and Jota instead. David moved from Gent to Lille for €30 million last month."

David at Liverpool, learning from Jurgen Klopp, would have been amazing.

[Mikmacdo]

2 hours ago, SthMelbRed said:

As a Liverpool supporter, I was really pleased with the signing of Diogo Jota. That was until I read the below excerpt in the Athletic today...

"The Athletic can reveal that Jonathan David joined Watford’s Ismaila Sarr on Liverpool’s shortlist for an attacker. Liverpool extensively scouted the Canada international but decided to focus their attention on Sarr and Jota instead. David moved from Gent to Lille for €30 million last month."

David at Liverpool, learning from Jurgen Klopp, would have been amazing.

maybe if he does well at lille his next move will be to liverpool. 

[Unnamed Trialist]

With these comments about David's teammates a lot of us are basically talking about the difference between being in France and one of the top 4 leagues.

And there's a difference in these details you see with so many players, the lack of quality decision making being the most important, guys who are very high level but not at the top. This summer only a dozen or so players from all of France transferred out into a top league club, and some of those were going from a youth program into youth squads in England, for example. Lille actually did the best with their sales of Osimhen and Magalhaes.

That said, David has not done anything that would clearly suggest he is over and above his teammates so far. In fact you could argue he is not even amongst the top half dozen of the starters. I'd give him time, at least until Christmas, to see if it is going to work out well (and if the team is getting results it may not matter much) but still, you can't be harping about those around him as if he were the standout. And it makes sense to me they should be thinking of another striker, since they probably do need some cover.

Edited September 22, 2020 by Unnamed Trialist

[Obinna]

9 minutes ago, Unnamed Trialist said:

With these comments about David's teammates a lot of us are basically talking about the difference between being in France and one of the top 4 leagues.

And there's a difference in these details you see with so many players, the lack of quality decision making being the most important, guys who are very high level but not at the top. This summer only a dozen or so players from all of France transferred out into a top league club, and some of those were going from a youth program into youth squads in England, for example. Lille actually did the best with their sales of Osimhen and Magalhaes.

That said, David has not done anything that would clearly suggest he is over and above his teammates so far. In fact you could argue he is not even amongst the top half dozen of the starters. I'd give him time, at least until Christmas, to see if it is going to work out well (and if the team is getting results it may not matter much) but still, you can't be harping about those around him as if he were the standout. And it makes sense to me they should be thinking of another striker, since they probably do need some cover.

For me David is roughly the same as his teammates when it comes to skill on the ball, but it is his off the ball movement and the way he sees the game that is a cut above everyone else. So far this goes unnoticed, but at least his run created space for the Bamba goal against Rennes. 

I am slightly more positive things will come together after reading some of the comments about the last game (I missed the second half and the first half I saw him touch the ball maybe twice).

[cronaldo7]

30 mins in against Nantes and so far, very much of the same that we’ve seen this season from Lille. No one connecting, no rhythm and lots of individualism.

Jo has still been looking pretty ineffective (but so has the entire team). He had one very nice through-ball to Yilmaz but that’s about it. Lacking confidence and rhythm overall. Very much hoping something changes.  

[Canuckistan2019]

Burak yilmaz is actually terrible. Worst player for David to play upfront with. Always gets caught offside and always kills any sort of counter attack

[cronaldo7]

Nvm, looked like David’s goal but it was an OG

Edited September 25, 2020 by cronaldo7

[Canuckistan2019]

Finally he scores

[red card]

officially own goal

[Lansdude]

Lol, can't catch a break. Araujo looks lights out, hopefully they can strike up a productive partnership...

[El Diego]

David has not been very good. Tough match to watch tbh.

Lol at Burak Yilmaz asking for a handball on the goal as it is in the net.

[dyslexic nam]

If folks know these games are coming up, maybe flag it in the thread ahead of time.  I don’t check OS that often now that CPL is done.     

[dyslexic nam]

So he hasn’t been great - but did he cause the OG?

[El Diego]

Looked up Ludovic Blas, the number 10 for Nantes, as he has caught my. Wikipedia says he is of Martiniquas descent...

[El Diego]

Just now, dyslexic nam said:

So he hasn’t been great - but did he cause the OG?

Sort of. He fed Araujo, whose strike was saved. Rebound was crossed in front of goal, David got the slightest touch but not toward goal and it hit the defender right behind him and went in. He honestly should have finished it himself.

[dyslexic nam]

Just now, El Diego said:

Sort of. He fed Araujo, whose strike was saved. Rebound was crossed in front of goal, David got the slightest touch but not toward goal and it hit the defender right behind him and went in. He honestly should have finished it himself.

Ah, so not as positive as I was hoping.  

[red card]

David started and almost ended play sequence.

Edited September 25, 2020 by red card

[red card]

 

[Gian-Luca]

1 minute ago, dyslexic nam said:

So he hasn’t been great - but did he cause the OG?

Just saw the highlights - yes, he did. He also set up the play to begin with. In the half time interview he says he touched it but that the defender did more than him, but he seems to think he scored. It wasn''t the greatest pass to him as it was someone blasted past him from a close distance.

[Unnamed Trialist]

1 minute ago, dyslexic nam said:

If folks know these games are coming up, maybe flag it in the thread ahead of time.  I don’t check OS that often now that CPL is done.     

I was watching some assinine game show while fixing some stuff for work, flipped channels, and saw it, click, just started. One Soccer does give heads up for all these matches, just have to follow them on social media.

Agree with most of what is being said, with all the lack of connection and individualism, but even so, they dominate their rivals, and seem to be a team that should really be getting more goals than they do. I also find David frustrating, even his movement off the ball as he seems to be asked to stay high in the target spot, and insist he's not fully fit yet. But even then, in this league, at this level, they should be comfortably in the top 6-8.

Think that ball hit Jonathan before it did the defender, so shouldn't be an own goal. As they were about to interview him coming off at the half my transmission went to some sentimental bit about Luis Suarez and Messi.

[dyslexic nam]

Credited or not, I suspect he will be happy to be involved in the goal like that. 

[sebdeserio]

Hope it gives him a bit of swagger for the second half even though it won't count as his.

[Unnamed Trialist]

It's past 9 my time in Europe, but most of you guys are at work, isn't that right?

Been thinking a lot about the dynamics of Bull*shit Jobs lately, where Graeber talks about how many of us really do have short working weeks, and fill the rest of the official work schedule with things like, well, this.