Before he arrived at West Ham as a 22-year-old in the summer of 2019, Albian Ajeti had a steady progression from promising youth at St Gallen to scoring in the Champions League for Basel and leading the line for Switzerland in European Championship qualification. 31 goals from 52 league appearances across his final two seasons in Switzerland is the form that attracts EPL clubs.
We have seen better players than Albian suffer at the wrong club, so there’s every reason to believe West Ham fans have no idea what his genuine talents are (I felt a bit the same about Ismailia Soro until recently), but damage has been done to his repute, as well as his sharpness.
If you wanted to go somewhere in the summer of 2020 to repair your confidence and to enjoy your football again, Celtic Park did not turn out to be a wise choice. Celtic quickly descended into crisis where even idolised Odsonne Edouard found form from previous seasons illusive.
With Odsonne in the final 18 months of his contract and zero chance of him extending, one of the tasks for the remainder of the season should be to repair what’s necessary for Albian and return him to his peak for the summer.
It has been decades since we have had as many games ahead without a genuine chance of winning the league. These games now have a different purpose with preparing the squad for next season a top requirement. Albian should play as many games as possible.
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Get them match fit
2 podia in a row
here we go
10 in a row
Same applies to Barkas, Paul67.
He need to play to prepare us for next season, if somebody could please inform NL !
someone should be preparing NL for next season
by making him unemployed now
Agree Paul67….time to play those with a purpose.
Albian strikes me as a penalty box striker, very different to Eddie, so getting the best out of him requires a system that works to his strengths.
That requires full backs with better crossing, a relationship with a striker who plays close to him and attacking midfielders who need to improve their decision-making beyond shooting on sight or walking through a crowded penalty box.
All coachable therfore unlikely to see light of day until May 2021.
HH
Bhoy from the Boyne,
Have you seen the clip of Barkas against Milan earlier this season? Empty stadium so very loud and in perfect english, after conceding a goal, he screams:
“Just clear the effin ball…”
I feel for him. Defence a shambles.
HH
It has been decades since we have had as many games ahead without a genuine chance of winning the league. These games now have a different purpose with preparing the squad for next season a top requirement.
same applies to manager and his coaching staff , is EH still available ,get them in now to prepare his team for next season as Lenny and his inherited coaching staff will not/should not be here.
HS
A red card or two and penalties against will happen in the remaining games of the season once the league has been won, or all but won.
These things “even out over the season”, and all that.
CQN WORD OF THE DAY – IMPORTANT UPDATE
Despite pleas, cajoling, veiled threats and, as a last resort, “sending the boys round” VFR has refused to resume his position as Word of the Day Master so I am, for one day only, stepping in to his position.
Today’s word is inspired by unmitigated exposure to the Scottish Football Press and Media which I have endured.
oleaginous
/ˌəʊlɪˈadʒɪnəs/
Learn to pronounce
adjective
1.
rich in, covered with, or producing oil; oily.
2.
exaggeratedly and distastefully complimentary; obsequious.
I will leave you to compile your own list of worthy recipients of this adjective. You may find it difficult to confine your list to one page.
p.s. when the “boys” saw VFR they returned home very tamely.
I agree with the idea, and it’s not restricted to Ajeti, but the manager’s priority will be to repair his shattered reputation in the games that remain, and I’m afraid that doesn’t extend to giving game time for those needing to find improvement or test themselves against the standard.
It’s a measure of our calamitous performance from top to bottom that we’re having this discussion on the 4th of February, with more than a third of the league season remaining to be played.
Agreed Paul67 . The remainder of the season should be about preparing not only Ajeti , but a whole functioning team/squad under appropriate management , to ensure that Sevco don’t add to their one in a row . I we don’t achieve that , it shouldn’t be for the want of trying or preparation .
Unlike this disastrous season .
Big Wavy @ 12:10pm
I agree with you on Barkas.
Somebody posted comparison stats between Barkas (UCL 18/19) v’s Forster (EL 19/20).
His stats hold up well.
Probably more to this story that we may ever know.
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Barkas must play for the same reasons
Bhoy from the Boyne,
Lennon wanted FF. The club delivered Barkas.
He’s never really bought into him since.
HH
Is Neil Lennon currently thinking of next season ? Is he planning for next season ?
Or is his priority his remaining few weeks/months at the club where he’ll seek to finish as strongly as possible to repair whatever is left of his reputation?
Welsh, Ajeti, Mickey and Taylor should be getting game time.
Planning for next season would be better served by the appointment of a new permanent manager.
Agree about Barkas . Bain is not the answer , he was hesitant at Rugby park despite clearing the header which almost crossed the line . My concern about Barkas is that he also seems a bit ‘low key’ , but we need to see if that improves with games (and a half decent defence in front of him).
Should read
“Remainder of the season should have a different management team”
Anything other just continues the negligence
Waste of time playing loan players, unless Kenny has a fee attached, give Welsh every game.
ajeti lacks mobility from what i can see
thats maybe just the way he is and no amount of fitness training will change that
the game now is about pace and strength
that seems to have passed us bye over the last few years
NOTTHEBUS on 4TH FEBRUARY 2021 12:18 PM
Barkas must play for the same reasons
—-
Excellent point.
Unfortunately Lennon has already confirmed that our £5 million keeper is getting eff all game time for the remainder of the season.
Forward planning…
Like I said, Lennon is not forward planning.
He knows he’s not here next season.
Expect a goal keeping weakness when we’re going into those CL qualifiers.
AN DUN , that is my main concern going forward .
Will Lennon be here next season.
Are we expected to renew season tickets with this uncertainty.
Paul.
Who do we trust in the task for next season preparation ? Lenny ????
Even if we did trust him, all the evidence tells us, we shouldn’t, what players will still be here ?
Let’s get real . We’re currently clueless and rudderless. From top to bottom.
“These games now have a different purpose with preparing the squad for next season a top requirement. Albian should play as many games as possible.”
———-
Would be significantly more value in getting in a new manager who could look at the players and assess what he needs for next season.
Or are we going to wait until ten minutes before the first CL qualifier? (that’s if we do make a change of course).
Ajeti looks like another of our random signings. No obvious role. But then we don’t even have a clear style of play.
Big changes needed all across the football department now. There was an opportunity for evolution after Brendan Rodgers left. That has long gone and the decline has been a huge failure from within.
The value of Edouard and others (see Ntcham!) will have dropped significantly due to poor coaching and no Champions League exposure.
Big challenges ahead but good decisions and appointments can get things back on track.
An Dun,
Watching Lennon’s statements his narrative is that he is a Celtic record-breaker. Not sure he thinks he has anything to prove. His limited ideas on solving the team’s problems will continue to be repeated, which seem to be high on psychology and low on systems, tactics and motivation.
They’ve responded when we won. They haven’t when we don’t.
Expect more incoherence, a few passages to enjoy, comedy defending and players under buses. More wins than not, a 2nd place (as Aberdeen and Hibs are muck), a massive gap with der hun and probably a limp SFA cup defence.
Strap in. Nothing is changing until the season is effectively over.
HH
I am gonna trust on Paul67’s previous leaders that NL is unlikely to be in situ next season.
I need to believe this too for my own sanity.
LETS ALL DO THE HUDDLE on 4TH FEBRUARY 2021 12:29 PM
ajeti lacks mobility from what i can see
thats maybe just the way he is and no amount of fitness training will change that
yep he looks like a fat barsteward..not to be fatist of course!. But then look at Dixie and BBJ both bears.
To a forward thinking manager who is def going to be about next season it would make sense to give the 11 who are going to be mainstay of next years bloody championship winning team as many games as possible together,to get them used to each other and to get a few fitter..but unfortunately our new manager(please)wont get that opprtunity and Lenny will
Pressed post to soon
Lenny will be looking for a bit of reputational preservation with a view to new job
!!BADA BING!! on 4TH FEBRUARY 2021 12:26 PM
‘Waste of time playing loan players’
###
Though if you refuse to play loan players now it makes it difficult to secure loan players in the future when you might need them.
Someone on here, apologies for not recalling exactly who, observed after the St Mirren debacle, that our opponents to a man all appeared to be in a far better physical condition than we were. Same could apply to Hibs and even Livingstone in recent games. Course they could be going overboard on the Espressos who knows, but our players all seem to be at, and how can I say this, varied levels of fitness. Ajeti being a case in point, but other unfit players are available. He may well have all the ability in the world, indeed he just scored his first goal since September, but we are in February and we are talking about getting him in ship shape for next season. Might be better focussing on when we are shipping Lenny out and getting a new management team in which is fit for purpose, which the present day Lennon-Kennedy axis most certainly is not.
BT from the last thread. I think I’ve worked it oot. 👍👍👍👍
Lennon wanted FF (didn’t we all) – FF told us no way
DREW1967
I hear St Rochs might be looking for a new manager
GENE
Would a better goalkeeper made any difference to this season.
I don’t think so
St Tams
I believe it would – but we’ll never know
I’d be amazed if barkas was here next season… Cut price deal back to Greece I’d imagine.. .. First of all…. second place has to be secured… Then the experiments can start…. Maybe even build a bit of confidence which is severely lacking….