Posted by Deeter_the_Pearls on December 28, 2023, 10:36 am, in reply to "Patterson"
He's getting better and better.
At least once a game he'll still expose his naivete (Grealish only needed one shoulder drop to leave him completely flat-footed on that single occasion). However, it's not long ago that he'd make those errors five or six times in a game.
He's gradually Mykolenkoing himself into dependability.
Dyche really needs to stick with him now and let him learn the game by playing the game and ignore any errors, as long as they're more isolated than not.
If we can somehow keep Branthwaite this summer, and the whole defensive squad stays fit, then the entire group along with Pickford - perhaps still including Godfrey but obviously not Young and sadly probably not Coleman - would benefit greatly from a solid pre-season all working together on the Plan A and Plan B systems of Dychery so that they can all slot in at a moment's notice even mid-match.
Be ideal also to get every level of the club playing to the same defensive instructions. Let's face it, Dyche is here to stay and we may as well let him develop the blueprint for the forseeable.
We haven't had defensive continuity for years now - probably since Moyes even - and it's gradually becoming the area that I've got the least concerns about.
I could never have imagined saying that this time last year.
on December 28, 2023, 10:36 am, in reply to "