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Heart of Midlothian 2014-


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6 hours ago, JTS98 said:

Let's be honest, how often do you actually watch Hearts play 90 minutes?

That's the thing, though. Your problem is that you've spent too much time watching him and not enough looking objectively at what he does for you.

Ikpeazu is more pleasing to the eye than he really is. He's a deceptive player who appeals to your cognitive biases. When he's on the pitch, he gets noticed. He's big. He tramples over defenders (at least until they put in a successful tackle, when he turns into a delicate wee princess). He's impressive to look at. Commentators can't help themselves using words like 'brutality' when he's on the ball. He is enjoyable to watch. Scoring in a couple of derbies certainly doesn't hurt either. I'm sure if we were watching this season's Hearts week-in, week-out, we'd all console ourselves after those poor results by remembering that time Ikpeazu stomped over their centre backs and nearly scored, but didn't. He's likely the most visually appealing thing on the pitch.

But the numbers tell a different story. Last season, he scored the same number of league goals as Ryan Porteous, and one fewer than David Gray, both of whom had comparable amounts of match time (Uche had lengthy injury spells, but so did Ryan and David). This season so far, his score rate in the Premiership is roughly 1 goal every 4 or 5 games, same as last season. He doesn't actually score goals for you, and he's taking a team slot away from someone who would.

I mean, it's all entertainment at the end of the day, and Ikpeazu is fun to watch. He's definitely lining up to be a cult legend for you guys, but don't get carried away thinking he's actually any good, or that folks who don't need the post-match Jambo comfort blanket see him the same way you do.

 

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14 minutes ago, Aim Here said:

That's the thing, though. Your problem is that you've spent too much time watching him and not enough looking objectively at what he does for you.

Ikpeazu is more pleasing to the eye than he really is. He's a deceptive player who appeals to your cognitive biases. When he's on the pitch, he gets noticed. He's big. He tramples over defenders (at least until they put in a successful tackle, when he turns into a delicate wee princess). He's impressive to look at. Commentators can't help themselves using words like 'brutality' when he's on the ball. He is enjoyable to watch. Scoring in a couple of derbies certainly doesn't hurt either. I'm sure if we were watching this season's Hearts week-in, week-out, we'd all console ourselves after those poor results by remembering that time Ikpeazu stomped over their centre backs and nearly scored, but didn't. He's likely the most visually appealing thing on the pitch.

But the numbers tell a different story. Last season, he scored the same number of league goals as Ryan Porteous, and one fewer than David Gray, both of whom had comparable amounts of match time (Uche had lengthy injury spells, but so did Ryan and David). This season so far, his score rate in the Premiership is roughly 1 goal every 4 or 5 games, same as last season. He doesn't actually score goals for you, and he's taking a team slot away from someone who would.

I mean, it's all entertainment at the end of the day, and Ikpeazu is fun to watch. He's definitely lining up to be a cult legend for you guys, but don't get carried away thinking he's actually any good, or that folks who don't need the post-match Jambo comfort blanket see him the same way you do.

 

Interesting take that seeing a player play more actually hinders making a judgement...

And, as I mentioned before, I think the noticeability factor works against him. He's ungainly, he's unorthodox, he gives away fouls. His negatives are more noticeable than most players'.

Why are Hibs fans so fond of the phrase 'comfort blanket'?

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3 hours ago, Aim Here said:

That's the thing, though. Your problem is that you've spent too much time watching him and not enough looking objectively at what he does for you.

Ikpeazu is more pleasing to the eye than he really is. He's a deceptive player who appeals to your cognitive biases. When he's on the pitch, he gets noticed. He's big. He tramples over defenders (at least until they put in a successful tackle, when he turns into a delicate wee princess). He's impressive to look at. Commentators can't help themselves using words like 'brutality' when he's on the ball. He is enjoyable to watch. Scoring in a couple of derbies certainly doesn't hurt either. I'm sure if we were watching this season's Hearts week-in, week-out, we'd all console ourselves after those poor results by remembering that time Ikpeazu stomped over their centre backs and nearly scored, but didn't. He's likely the most visually appealing thing on the pitch.

But the numbers tell a different story. Last season, he scored the same number of league goals as Ryan Porteous, and one fewer than David Gray, both of whom had comparable amounts of match time (Uche had lengthy injury spells, but so did Ryan and David). This season so far, his score rate in the Premiership is roughly 1 goal every 4 or 5 games, same as last season. He doesn't actually score goals for you, and he's taking a team slot away from someone who would.

I mean, it's all entertainment at the end of the day, and Ikpeazu is fun to watch. He's definitely lining up to be a cult legend for you guys, but don't get carried away thinking he's actually any good, or that folks who don't need the post-match Jambo comfort blanket see him the same way you do.

 

That's where your argument falls apart.

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3 hours ago, Aim Here said:

That's the thing, though. Your problem is that you've spent too much time watching him and not enough looking objectively at what he does for you.

Ikpeazu is more pleasing to the eye than he really is. He's a deceptive player who appeals to your cognitive biases. When he's on the pitch, he gets noticed. He's big. He tramples over defenders (at least until they put in a successful tackle, when he turns into a delicate wee princess). He's impressive to look at. Commentators can't help themselves using words like 'brutality' when he's on the ball. He is enjoyable to watch. Scoring in a couple of derbies certainly doesn't hurt either. I'm sure if we were watching this season's Hearts week-in, week-out, we'd all console ourselves after those poor results by remembering that time Ikpeazu stomped over their centre backs and nearly scored, but didn't. He's likely the most visually appealing thing on the pitch.

But the numbers tell a different story. Last season, he scored the same number of league goals as Ryan Porteous, and one fewer than David Gray, both of whom had comparable amounts of match time (Uche had lengthy injury spells, but so did Ryan and David). This season so far, his score rate in the Premiership is roughly 1 goal every 4 or 5 games, same as last season. He doesn't actually score goals for you, and he's taking a team slot away from someone who would.

I mean, it's all entertainment at the end of the day, and Ikpeazu is fun to watch. He's definitely lining up to be a cult legend for you guys, but don't get carried away thinking he's actually any good, or that folks who don't need the post-match Jambo comfort blanket see him the same way you do.

 

Some fkn comfort blanket though. Num-num, num-num.

 

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Didn't think my post was in any way controversial, tbh. It's no as if I was homering a bunch of jobbers. The international players I mentioned are regular international players. The good players I mentioned would start regularly for most teams in the league. If folk (I'M LOOKING AT YOU @itzdrk) want to kid on that a lad who ladled one past Manuel Neuer from 80 yards out is a huddy, or that Craig Halkett couldn't displace 90% of the donkey centre backs in the league then I'm no sure what to say. 

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See when it comes to Ikpeazu, why is it always "league goals" that are mentioned? Do cups in Scotland not count? He has 13 in about 28 competitive starts.  

He is on occasion brilliant and on occasion awful.  This type of inconsistency is why he's in Scotland and he has for a large spell been our only fit forward which is why he's played through the poorer periods.

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8 minutes ago, Tony Wonder said:

See when it comes to Ikpeazu, why is it always "league goals" that are mentioned? Do cups in Scotland not count? He has 13 in about 28 competitive starts.  

Hes got 10 goals from 43 games. Half of those were in the Cup, in games against Partick, Inverness and Cowdenbeath.

If, for some reason, you take out games he was subbed on in, then hes at 9 goals in 34 starts.

Edited by RandomGuy.
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4 minutes ago, RandomGuy. said:

Hes got 10 goals from 43 games. Half of those were in the Cup, in games against Partick, Inverness and Cowdenbeath.

If, for some reason, you take out games he was subbed on in, then hes at 9 goals in 34 starts.

Is that comparable to most strikers in the league though? No c**t is saying he's 2004 Adriano, just that he's more than good enough to play in the Scottish Premiership.

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Just now, JamieThomas said:

Is that comparable to most strikers in the league though? No c**t is saying he's 2004 Adriano, just that he's more than good enough to play in the Scottish Premiership.

I'll be fucked if I'm checking that, tbh. Just me but I'd be expecting Hearts first choice striker to be bagging double figures every season, your continual inability to get that, Lafferty aside, constantly confuses me.

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1 minute ago, RandomGuy. said:

I'll be fucked if I'm checking that, tbh. Just me but I'd be expecting Hearts first choice striker to be bagging double figures every season, your continual inability to get that, Lafferty aside, constantly confuses me.

Confused the f**k out of me since we punted Scott Crabbe for Alan Preston tbf. 

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52 minutes ago, Tony Wonder said:

See when it comes to Ikpeazu, why is it always "league goals" that are mentioned? Do cups in Scotland not count? He has 13 in about 28 competitive starts.  

He is on occasion brilliant and on occasion awful.  This type of inconsistency is why he's in Scotland and he has for a large spell been our only fit forward which is why he's played through the poorer periods.

Believe it or not, it is actually easier to score against the lower-league teams you come up against in cup matches. None of Uche's cup goals have been against Premiership sides.

Ikpeazu scored about a goal a game against lower-league teams last season. He scores about a goal every 5 games against Premiership teams. This season, he's scored no cup goals at all - but then nearly half his time on the pitch in the league cup has been against top-tier opposition. The difference is stark. He'd be a good fit for a championship side - which is maybe why you should hang onto him for next season.

Likewise, we ignored Christian Doidge's cup and pre-season friendly goals when calling him a useless goal virgin for the same reason, but he seems to be pupating into an unstoppable goal machine, so we're muting the criticism for a bit.

Edited by Aim Here
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1 hour ago, RandomGuy. said:

I'll be fucked if I'm checking that, tbh. Just me but I'd be expecting Hearts first choice striker to be bagging double figures every season, your continual inability to get that, Lafferty aside, constantly confuses me.

Steven Naismith is our first choice striker. He got 14 last season in 27 games.  So double figures.

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1 minute ago, Tony Wonder said:

Don't really get the debate tbh. 

One of your overexcitable comrades listed him as a player who'd be a sure-fire regular first-team starter for the vast bulk of other Premiership teams, rather than your more realistic assessment of his capabilities. I don't think he meant it as bait, but we had to take a bite anyways...

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Uche chat aside, it's quite clear that the biggest thing for us is getting our better defensively-minded players back in the side. Souttar, Halkett and Haring are being badly missed. The standard of goal we lost against Killie and St Mirren was just amateurish and there's no point banging on about Uche or Naismith when we're chucking in goals as cheaply as that.

I think we'll see an improvement once (if) we get them back in the team. Our defending is appalling.

I've never been a big fan of Berra, to be honest. Even first time around I thought he was over-rated. Obviously tough to come through in the era after Pressley and Webster, against whom most Hearts defenders would be judged harshly, but I've always thought him prone to poor positioning, poor decision-making and always liable to give the ball away at inopportune moments. A big brave laddie who gives you everything, yes, but I don't think he's ever been a very good player.

Smith is a funny one. Again, I don't think he's very good. I don't like his lack of willingness to run onto a pass. This means a pass to Smith often kills any momentum in a forward move. When we had Mitchell on the other flank this was particularly noticeable. A move down the left had zip about it, a move down the right ended when the ball went to Smith. He's clearly not the best player in the world, but then neither is he as bad as some try to make out. He's a Robbie Neilson figure for me, in that he'll do fine when the defence around him is sorted.

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It's radio silence from Tynecastle, while the Jambos still seem unable to lure some unemployed German bloke to Gorgie? What could possibly be holding this deal up? Is he playing you off against rivals like Leyton Orient and Falkirk in a bidding war for his services? Is Ann Budge unable to put the unspent half of those mystery man millions to good use?

Also it's amusing to see that, true to the stereotype, it's a broadsheet golfing correspondent who's apparently the one sports journalist ITK on the latest Hearts news...

 

 

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