Pre-Season 2018/19 - vs Victory

Rufer came on for Dura in the second half. Had a nice run but spoiled it with a bad pass on the end of it. Looked OK while on, but the level of opposition was not great.

If Yoo gets signed he's not going to be ready to go. We're gambling on him recovering form. What would soothe nerves is a Van Persie to United type signing. Yoo getting signed would be with an eye to him training and adjusting, and starting to get it right after the season has started.

If Yoo isn't impressing against this level of opposition, I don't want him.

Maybe the coach is seeing something in training that makes him think Yoo will come right. Or there's no one else on the way who's likely to be any better, so Rudan is trying to make the best of what he's got. 

I heard Watson has lost some weight : )

Surely there are some better local strikers. Sanni Issa from Manukau United scored 19 goals in 18 appearances. Worth a look at least

I know we arent as rich as the Sydney and Melbourne teams but seriously, if Yoo is our guy then we have zero ambition. Steven Taylor was a brilliant signing, Kurto might turn out to be pretty decent too. But every other team has recruited way better midfield and attacking players (with the exception of the mariners). Take a look at the notable attacking players that play for the other teams - 

Sydney: la Fondre, Ninkovic, De Jong; 

Victory: Toivonen, Barbarouses, Honda, Troisi; 

City: Fornaroli, Berenguer, Vidosic; 

WSW: Riera, Baumjohann, Bonevacia;

Adelaide: Goodwin, Diawara, Halloran;

Newcastle: Vargas, O'donovan, Petratos;

I could go on but that's already 6 teams, and isn't a top 6 finish our absolute bottom line for this season? And if our front 3 is Burns, Yoo and Krishna then I worry. If both Yoo and Burns turn out to be invisible for most of the season then it's gonna be a long and frustrating season for us as fans and for Krishna carrying the team

williams could be well be a hidden gem!

Roughly this formation and personnel is what I would love to see given some time to work.

I thought him Nichols looked solid in the intrasquad game. I’m glad we have at least those two.

It all depends on how he has developed whilst overseas... regardless we need a good striker and a top midfielder. The depth is still not there.

Remember Krishna took time to develop.

If Rudan likes him, ok. Just don't want to see him start if he's not ready. And if Singhs mate de Jong isn't good enough and someone under done is starting 

Also we've got the best de Jong in the league would be a great song

The question is why haven't they been by now 

Half of them don’t want to trial cough West’s cough 

Exactly.

The Korean fella is 30. I think he's already 'developed'.

He's Nigerian so would have to be an import and TBH he's been around a while and if he was going to get picked up by an a-league side he would have done so by now

Interesting that locals are expected to trial (take time off work, club , family commitments etc) when coaches should have been able to see what they do (Howieson for example). Just because one below average player is keen to come from Sweden that shouldn't be the bar.

Yeah it's crazy that sometimes you have to make sacrifices to make it in professional sport eh

Get real this is NZ football they shouldnt have to trial it should just be given to them if they want it.That the way it worked in junior football isnt it.Got to pump them up..

Rudan has said it's not just about what they can do on the field. Their training, professionalism, commitment, and how they behave in the changing rooms plays a big part.

A trial for some of these younger guys is a great opportunity to put their best selves forward. But they haven't taken it. If they can't be bothered to prove themselves, I don't want them in a nix shirt.

Fixed....... oh wait

Here is my summary. I saw all 90 mins plus. Kopy was excellent for most of the game, controlling midfield with adept positioning and sound distribution.  He went quiet for a little bit as the team adapted to changes. Our Korean may have his critics, but he worked hard and put pressure on the defence as they tried to play out, causing three or four turnovers. McPeake was outstanding for the opposition. Without his impressive saves it could have been 5 or 6 nil. Paul Ifill still has it. The flicks, runs and control were not, however, able to create much against Taylor and Fox. The latter is just getting better with every game.

Total raised from Wellington Phoenix vs. Capital Football Select XI game held at Weka Park yesterday..... $6601.70
A big THANK YOU to all those involved in making it happen.

— Kapiti Coast United (@wearekcu) September 2, 2018

Well that's a much different review.

Kopy- fine

Yoo - fit and hard-working on defensive press and may regain scoring touch. Important if we are guna score quick counter goals.

Also anyone adverse to signing Iffy for squad leadership and the odd goal off the bench with any suspensions or injuries?

Surly you jest  love Ifill ,but come on were we to resort to a signing like that you might as well just close the doors.

Nice to read some specific and positive comments on Kopa. Vs Bentleigh Greens he made lots of easy passes, lost a couple of 50/50 balls, won others, and made a couple of sweet long aerial passes. Got involved in some nice one-twos down the left. Seemed to lack fire and will-to-win (which Nichols and Lowry, for example, did show), and not very imaginative on attack. Suspect he has a mean long shot. He's no Bonevacia, but solid, safe on the ball and didn't make many mistakes.

Not a standout, perhaps not the kind of player who stands out. Interesting too that another game 'became disorganised' when he went off.

Hoping he will get more fired up as he settles in.

Also wondering if this McPeake has blinders every week.

Wana sign local players and he's the only one Rudes hasn't knocked back yet. Eh, mostly jest, but wouldn't mind seeing a couple of comeback cameos to be honest!

Interesting comments.  I did not rate him all that highly ahead of his arrival, as he seemed to be riding more on the reputation of the club than on his own track record.  I am prepared to hedge my bets and accept that his overall level of skill as an average Extraklasa player will be enough for him to be competitive in A-League. Your comments seem to confirm that ("solid, safe and did not make many mistakes"). However, I am worried to hear that he seemed to lack fire, and I hope that this is how he treats the preseason games and that he might come right for the season proper.  To consider him a good investment we would need him to be better than say Ridenton (who has become in my eyes a benchmark of a good local player), or perhaps a less error-prone Paracki.

Maybe Kopa is like Lia. They do all the things they get asked to do and rated by the coach but the average fans, like us, can't see the true quality. I always think about Kroos and Modric, Kroos maybe the better midfielder brain but much more boring to watch than a Modric running around and is a bit more 'hands on' with other players.

Maybe Kopa is like Lia. They do all the things they get asked to do and rated by the coach but the average fans, like us, can't see the true quality. I always think about Kroos and Modric, Kroos maybe the better midfielder brain but much more boring to watch than a Modric running around and is a bit more 'hands on' with other players.

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I reckon the Lia reference could possibly have hit the nail on the head.

Also, some players do genuinely struggle with pre-season games when their presence in the side is fairly secure.  I know I did in my amateur playing days. Two years ago Marco Rossi did not look all that great or interested in pre season.  Even worse last year.  Now we all know that Marco's commitment to the Phoenix only got to luke warm at best but we sure as heck noticed when he was not playing.  I suspect that Kopy could well be the same.  Pre-season wise I hasten to add, not commitment.

On another note.  Do we know what is planned next pre-season ?

Rossi had the ability but was "taking the piss". We never missed him  when he was not playing bacause he rarely performed. Why are we comparing with second rate players? 

If you want a bench mark then Reira is the player to compare with.

Riera's a good comparison but Rossi definitely was good in his first season, especially with his tactical awareness (something we missed last season)

I am with mrsmiis on this. Rossi made a difference in his first season, because after Siggy retired our back four were struggling.

Now I get the point that Whatever does not rate Rossi and that he prefers Riera as benchmark. But the real issue here is that Rossi was a visa player and Riera was not.  I am wary of a visa slot being taken up by a player whose commitment is not 100%.  Some visa players might come here and think they wouldn't need to try very hard in order to shine in our rather average comp.  They may however be caught by the relatively high speed of A-League. 

Of course Riera was an import, don't know why you have the impression that he wasn't?

 I thought he was a paramedic?

As in "his visa was for mending bones, not breaking them"

Does that help Doloras?