The Mail Bag
Left back
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The biggest single problem that we have now is the fact that we only have one left back. This is particularly worrisome given Leighton Baines track record with injuries. I understand that the club probably figured Nuno Valente was no better a back than Pistone before him given both were old and seldom fit but we should have signed someone ...anyone.
A couple of inexpensive options that spring to mind are Michael Ball and Daniel Fox. Perhaps those signings would have made BK squirm too much but either would have been cheaper and better than Heitinga, our latest and most expensive right back/centre half/central midfiedler. Even after the season started we added one player to the squad who rather than being a leftie was a right back.
Now we have no less than SEVEN players who are either right backs or people that Moyes has chosen to believe are right backs at points in time (Heitinga, Hibbert, Coleman, Neill, Neville, Yobo and Jagielka) but we only have one inconsistent injury prone left back. Why? It's kind of a costly oversight isn't it?
Kieran Kinsella, Posted 28/10/2009 at 20:44:11
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He is injured too!!!!
Personally I think that having Neville in the squad as backup to Baines at left back is plenty sufficient - buying another player just to fill the squad on the off chance that both Neville and Baines are injured is overkill imo.
Obviously we’ve been very unluckly with injuries lately but there’s a limit to how much you want to spend money planning against losing players to injury — the more money you spend on backups, the less you have for first team regulars, hence Moyes’s preference for utility players. Even if we got some old crock like Nuno or Ball in on a free (and don’t get me wrong, I’ve got fond memories of both those players), we still have to pay them a decent slice of wages. Not worth it for me.
Lescott was our cover in this position, and loosing him so late in the transfer window has left us a little exposed, although it's far from the main area of concern.
Lucas Neill was bought in for cover across all the back line and is looking strong as cover at LB for Baines.
Incidentally, I wouldn’t say Baines was injury-prone... He’s only missed the last couple of games and held the position for the majority of last season.
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1 Posted 29/10/2009 at 09:45:59
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Apparently Bily can play there, and Neill, Hibbo and Coleman have all now played there. None of whom are out and out left backs, just more square pegs in round holes. If we manage to sign Adam Johnson he’s played there before, but even he’s a winger first and foremost.