- Oct 19, 2004
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I think you get your favourites and your bete noires - we all do a bit - and your interpretation of player's performances show that you're looking through that lense.
That isn't to say that what you point out isn't the case, lot's of times, but if the same critical approach were taken to every player, or lack of criticism in some cases, then we could paint anyone in the same way as you do Dawson, Walker, Kaboul or Dawson.
Again that isn't to say there isn't a degree of truth in what you say, and also that often you've swam against the tide and got more of the truth - imo - than the people who don't engage their critical faculties at all and just go with the flow. But it is to say that about that truth, my opinion is that you sometimes construct an elaborate exaggeration, something which at it's heart is based on a truth, but in its entirety is a misrepresentation of how things really are.
In other words you're an iconoclast, but in being so - and maybe in the course of having to so often defend opposite positions - your view on certain players seems to veer to the opposite extreme.
But surely that is the problem with having strong opinions on very emotive subjects isn't it. If many times being opposite positions to the consensus then they will often appear more extreme than they actually are. It is only if they ultimately prove to be very wrong that it becomes a problem surely.
Perhaps if we analyse the question SB raised in this match: Why was Ekotto marked 6 and Walker 5 ?
Simplified:
Both made poor judgements on a couple of occasions. We can toss those back and forth. Neither had shitloads to defend but neither defended impeccably. But Ekotto made 104 passes in that game. Walker made 28. They are both full backs, both with similar players that night in front of them. That's 74 more times Ekotto helped us play football, retain the ball, build an attack etc etc. If nothing else there is a point mark right there IMO.
I explained that IMO, Walker really didn't contribute a whole lot that was overtly positive in that game. Whilst Ekotto made mistakes - which I mentioned - and didn't mention Walker's in my original post - he also saw more ball than any other player on our side, Walker less than any other player on our side bar Adebayor - who I gave an extra point than Walker because he was battling alone up front for the whole game.
Brutally extreme or brutally rational ?