Clucasade
First Teamer
I am still trying to recover from that game. It seemed so obvious that they were going to score, so obvious that we were going to lose because of the owners, there was supposed to be a negative atmosphere around the club, it seemed so obvious that we had no chance. Yet here we are, celebrating an unbeaten run that has seen us win two out of two.
Hats off to Potter, for somehow getting us into top condition and playing great football for the first half and bits of the second half. But also, hats off to every fan who sang their hearts out during the entire game. Even when McBurnie missed the penalty, fans chanted his name anyway to help give him his confidence back. There were even chants of Jenkins Out that filled the stadium at one point, but the support of the team always came first and it was absolutely beautiful. The point was made but the team still had the fans behind their back! Hats off to every single one of you. Here’s my ratings for the game.
Kristofer Nordfeldt: 5/10 - He was taking off very early on in the game, sadly. He didn’t have anything to do before then. I hope he recovers quickly from his injury.
Martin Olsson: 8/10 - A brilliant performance for the Swede. Was everwhere on the pitch at once, made some strong tackles while defending and was almost unstoppable going forward. Excited to see more from him in this form!
Joe Rodon: 7/10 - While everyone had concerns about who would replace Fede in the starting 11, Rodon stepped up and looked extremely comfortable and professional in defence. He was vital in keeping the clean sheet and I can’t wait to see whats in store for the young defender!
Mike Van Der Hoorn: 8/10 - Another outstanding performance from the Dutchman. By far our best player defensively, he cleared everything that was thrown at him and held the Captains armband with pride. He is turning out to be one of our best players in the squad.
Connor Roberts: 7/10 - A great showing for the young welshlad who worked extremely hard all game and never looked like stopping. Definitely starts over Naughton every day of the week on current form.
Jay Fulton: 6/10 - He scored a quality header to win us the game in the thirtieth minute. He looked more comfortable in this game than last week but still was invisible for a lot of the game. While I would say he does need replacing, he will still be a nice option moving forward.
Tom Carroll: 6/10 - Another game, another average performance, really. Didn’t show much the entire game yet did link up well in parts with the forward players. I think Fer would be a better option in his position.
Bersant Celina: 7/10 - He was our talisman going forward. Everything we did, it almost always went through him. He linked up well with everyone and I’m happy to see him flourish in this system. Set up McBurnie very nicely to score a second, which sadly was missed.
Barrie McKay: 8/10 - I still am in shock that he cost us only 500k. He was easily our best attacker today. His ability on the ball is unrivalled. He won us a penalty in the first ten minutes. Honestly, this guy is the real deal. Superb performance.
Joel Asoro: 8/10 - Looked very dangerous on the wing and showed his pace off to get past the Preston defence. He constantly pushed forward and was the one player who pushed forward the most during the game. A great assist for Fulton’s match winner. Deserves to start.
Oli McBurnie: 5/10 - Was unlucky today. Missed a penalty early on and missed several chances after that. He was very good at pressure during the game and I wouldn’t exactly give up on him yet. I hope he improves and gets more confidence for the next game.
Subs:
Erwin Mulder - 9/10
Matt Grimes - 7/10
Leroy Fer - 6/10
Preston - 7/10
Graham Potter - 9/10
My MOTM: Erwin Mulder
Best players this season:
1. Erwin Mulder: 9/10
2. Jefferson Montero: 9/10
3. Mike Van Der Hoorn: 8/10
4. Barrie McKay: 8/10
5. Yan Dhanda: 8/10
(This is very early on, so most of these will change as the season progresses)
Hats off to Potter, for somehow getting us into top condition and playing great football for the first half and bits of the second half. But also, hats off to every fan who sang their hearts out during the entire game. Even when McBurnie missed the penalty, fans chanted his name anyway to help give him his confidence back. There were even chants of Jenkins Out that filled the stadium at one point, but the support of the team always came first and it was absolutely beautiful. The point was made but the team still had the fans behind their back! Hats off to every single one of you. Here’s my ratings for the game.
Kristofer Nordfeldt: 5/10 - He was taking off very early on in the game, sadly. He didn’t have anything to do before then. I hope he recovers quickly from his injury.
Martin Olsson: 8/10 - A brilliant performance for the Swede. Was everwhere on the pitch at once, made some strong tackles while defending and was almost unstoppable going forward. Excited to see more from him in this form!
Joe Rodon: 7/10 - While everyone had concerns about who would replace Fede in the starting 11, Rodon stepped up and looked extremely comfortable and professional in defence. He was vital in keeping the clean sheet and I can’t wait to see whats in store for the young defender!
Mike Van Der Hoorn: 8/10 - Another outstanding performance from the Dutchman. By far our best player defensively, he cleared everything that was thrown at him and held the Captains armband with pride. He is turning out to be one of our best players in the squad.
Connor Roberts: 7/10 - A great showing for the young welshlad who worked extremely hard all game and never looked like stopping. Definitely starts over Naughton every day of the week on current form.
Jay Fulton: 6/10 - He scored a quality header to win us the game in the thirtieth minute. He looked more comfortable in this game than last week but still was invisible for a lot of the game. While I would say he does need replacing, he will still be a nice option moving forward.
Tom Carroll: 6/10 - Another game, another average performance, really. Didn’t show much the entire game yet did link up well in parts with the forward players. I think Fer would be a better option in his position.
Bersant Celina: 7/10 - He was our talisman going forward. Everything we did, it almost always went through him. He linked up well with everyone and I’m happy to see him flourish in this system. Set up McBurnie very nicely to score a second, which sadly was missed.
Barrie McKay: 8/10 - I still am in shock that he cost us only 500k. He was easily our best attacker today. His ability on the ball is unrivalled. He won us a penalty in the first ten minutes. Honestly, this guy is the real deal. Superb performance.
Joel Asoro: 8/10 - Looked very dangerous on the wing and showed his pace off to get past the Preston defence. He constantly pushed forward and was the one player who pushed forward the most during the game. A great assist for Fulton’s match winner. Deserves to start.
Oli McBurnie: 5/10 - Was unlucky today. Missed a penalty early on and missed several chances after that. He was very good at pressure during the game and I wouldn’t exactly give up on him yet. I hope he improves and gets more confidence for the next game.
Subs:
Erwin Mulder - 9/10
Matt Grimes - 7/10
Leroy Fer - 6/10
Preston - 7/10
Graham Potter - 9/10
My MOTM: Erwin Mulder
Best players this season:
1. Erwin Mulder: 9/10
2. Jefferson Montero: 9/10
3. Mike Van Der Hoorn: 8/10
4. Barrie McKay: 8/10
5. Yan Dhanda: 8/10
(This is very early on, so most of these will change as the season progresses)
