People remember Kiwior getting turned in the Champions League last year but they don’t seem to remember how much he stepped up at LB during that run-in, and how completely fucked we were if he hadn’t. There was a stretch where the only White/Kiwior cover on the bench was right-footed Cedric. - ThreadSky | a Reddit-style client for Bluesky

billycarpy.bsky.social • 15 days ago

People remember Kiwior getting turned in the Champions League last year but they don’t seem to remember how much he stepped up at LB during that run-in, and how completely fucked we were if he hadn’t. There was a stretch where the only White/Kiwior cover on the bench was right-footed Cedric.

Comments

sportsfan69.bsky.social•15 days ago

I lost a lot of respect for a lot of podcaster types who immediately turned on the dude and pretended like he didn't have a great season last year

alifakharany.bsky.social•15 days ago

I think he's been quite bad this year tbh, including yesterday

t00ge2.bsky.social•15 days ago

a lot of focus on his weaknesses but not a lot of focus on how, against everton, he nailed at least great two balls over the top that we wouldn't get from anyone else in the squad. it's about adapting, not asking him to be gabriel. last two matches were promising

tomoc.bsky.social•15 days ago

He suffers so much from ‘the guys he’s filling in for are top-five itw’ syndrome

andrewmcbrinn.bsky.social•15 days ago

Often the same with CBs filling in. Saw it with Cygan especially and formerly Keown. Really difficult to come into that position when it’s usually occupied by an established pairing.

inspiraytional.bsky.social•15 days ago

Cygan was craptacular to be fair, but we loved him all the same

andrewmcbrinn.bsky.social•15 days ago

Remember Cygan played 24 times during the Invincibles season, including 10 consecutive games when we conceded 4 goals. Decent passer too. His extreme baldness didn’t help his rep!!

inspiraytional.bsky.social•15 days ago

Very true, but the man does have a well known chant about how crap he was for a reason 😂 Immortalised as an Invincible, which fortunately for him keeps him away from having the same rep as the Mustafi’s and Squillaci’s of the world!

andrewmcbrinn.bsky.social•15 days ago

I never thought I’d be an apologist for Pascal Cygan 20 years after the fact! However I think he did fairly well for us and only made a couple of mistakes. Again, difficult when you’re coming in because of injury for the likes of Cashley, Sol and Kolo.

tomoc.bsky.social•15 days ago

1000% but I think it's just a squad player thing in general that people are bizarrely blind to. Like of course you can't have 23 players of equal quality, who all have equally developed relationships with the usual XI. Coming into an established side in any position probably has similar challenges

jonnysinger.bsky.social•15 days ago

I don't think most people are particularly anti-Kiwi. Just accepted that, last season, when it came to the really big games, he wasn't good enough. Back-ups rarely are.

Last night he was superb. That doesn't mean he was good last season in the big games. Hopefully he remains superb!

timi.on.computer•15 days ago

there was one game last season against Bayern where he made a mistake out of position against one of the best wingers in the world. his other bad game was Bournemouth this season where he was subbed off after coming on as a sub. he isn't Gabriel but there's been an overreaction to him.

jonnysinger.bsky.social•15 days ago

I think last season he had a promising period and tailed off badly. No doubt that hit his confidence, as well as ours (and the manager’s) in him.
I don’t think it’s wrong to point that out, and even if I’m delighted he’s now looking better again there’s still a worry that he slips again

dantwining.bsky.social•15 days ago

going into this tie, I've noticed a lot of people seem to be ruled by utmost fear of the worst possible outcome and lose all sense of rationality about the player. Coming up with galaxy brain stuff like moving the entire defence around just to avoid playing the one fit natural LCB in the squad

cartoonstevebould.bsky.social•15 days ago

Yeah, the attitude towards him is strangely negative. Normally the way he stepped in at LB would've earned him cult hero status, but he was actually good too! People act like Bayern (and City (a)) were 3pm kick offs.

ceruleansquid.bsky.social•15 days ago

I think people are just taking out their frustrations about this season's luck on him. In a just world, he would have played mostly as a sub and everyone would love him for closing out matches/giving MLS and Calafiori rest.

dantwining.bsky.social•15 days ago

seems a couple of high profile bad moments have made people write him off like he's the worst defender they've ever seen (we had half a decade of Mustafi ffs!)

I couldn't believe some of the stuff I was hearing about reshaping the entire defence just to not play him