The Mail Bag
Joseph Yobo
Comments (37)
With Jags out for the rest of the season, we're going to be seeing a bit more of Joseph Yobo. Can I just ask why there seems to be an air of negativity around having him in the centre-back berth?
I know he used to be prone to the odd clanger, just as Hibbert is prone to one bookable tackle per game, but I haven't seen any serious errors from him for quite a while. At least none that have directly cost us goals. I think he's quite a solid defender.
He has pace to burn, an attribute that's often helped him if he has made any mistakes, and, typical of an African, he throws his foot at anything that comes near him, much like Jags. I admit he has a tendancy to lump it forward but so does Jags and with no more luck than Yobo does when he punts it forward. Yobo was Moyes's first signing and I think it was money well spent.
Nick Harrison, Posted 29/04/2009 at 22:15:10
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Lyndon Lloyd
Yobo is prone to errors when he's not been playing regularly which is why he's had the odd off moment since he came back into the side. I've always been a big fan of his and I'm hoping that he'll be well in the groove by the time the cup final rolls around.
Agreed. Love Yobo, hate his occassional errors; it’s just that with him at the back the defense as a whole seems less confident than with Jags. That said, I think with a few games (and clean sheets), Yobo and the back 4 will be just as dominant as with Jags. Definitely one of Moyes’ best signings, in my opinion, and I think his presence in the squad is over looked far too often.
I think its more disappointment that the Jag will not be there, than negativity about the fact that big Joey will.
Dont worry, he’s a popular member of the squad and come the day every Evertonian will be cheering him on
Dont worry, he’s a popular member of the squad and come the day every Evertonian will be cheering him on
He’s as good as the other two centre halfs, though Jags has raised the bar this season.
I think the most unfortunate thing for Yobo stepping into the breach as it were, is that his sometimes erroneous form is being compared to that of Jagielka’s! That said, I don’t think many Blue’s fans would complain having him in the side between now and the Final. Let’s also not forget that Jagielka has brought his form from last season and has used it as a benchmark!!
There’s a few good Nigerians out there, and our lad can captain their national team. Our third choice centre back? If we had this luxury in every position, well, which team would you put out?
The biggest fear must be any injury to our players over the next 4 games. Without either Joleon or Joe, who would play at the back? Jack?
The biggest fear must be any injury to our players over the next 4 games. Without either Joleon or Joe, who would play at the back? Jack?
Yobo’s problem is he’s not Jags!!!
One quick question, does Yobo actually make any more errors than Jags, Lescott or any of our other defenders?
My mate made a very good point to me the other day. The Evertonians that are moaning about Yobo now that Jagielkas out, are probably the same Evertonians that were moaning when we were losing him to the African Cup Of Nations for weeks on end! How Fickle we are....
In the funny way that football works, we may find that, although Yobo is not quite as good a footballer as Jagielka or Lescott, his freshness, pace & greater athleticism may prove invaluable at Wembley.
Joseph Yobo is the best defender since Dave Watson. Jagielka’s had a good season, like Lescott did last season. Consistency-wise Yobo is our best defender and is under appreciated and under-rated. I keep reading Arsenal are going for him at the end of the season and that its an ’open secret’ in London. I hope we keep him for the foreseeable future.
I agree with Alex. We need to keep Yobo, top class central defenders are worth their weight in gold & replacing him would be a real problem.
If Joey believed in himself a bit more he’d be a far better player. Jags is no better than him at all just has more confidence by consistently putting in commanding performances marked with plenty of verbal support for his fellow defenders. Joey might do well to try and have an impact that way. Joleon’s even quieter!
Sorry, can I just pick up on something here: "and, typical of an African, he throws his foot at anything that comes near him".
WTF?!? What, exactly, is "typical of an African"?
Casual, unintended racism? Jesus wept.
WTF?!? What, exactly, is "typical of an African"?
Casual, unintended racism? Jesus wept.
Yobo is a top class player and has been a great servent to Everton.
Yobo is quick, very very strong, tall and wins headers in the box time and ime again.
Jags has been great this season, and Moyes being true to his word, when a player is in the team and in form he stays in the team.
However Jags makes errors (If that was Yobo at Villa you would never hear the end of it) and also, Jags is not totally reliable on deep long balls (i.e. vs Arsenal). Yobo on the other hand is 99% reliable in this department.
I prefer Yobo, think he is better than both Lescott and Jags when all at their best. The only difference is Yobo is Nigerian and the other 2 English. Its not a racist thing, its just how the media give more attention to the English, Fans want to see their teams players playing for their country, and they can relate more easily to them (i.e. Jags is a good honest bloke from manchester who happens to be a great football player).
I would prefer Yobo but what a position to be in, having 3 top-clas central defenders. Even Man Utd have to play John O’Shea or Evans.
Jags has been great this season, and Moyes being true to his word, when a player is in the team and in form he stays in the team.
However Jags makes errors (If that was Yobo at Villa you would never hear the end of it) and also, Jags is not totally reliable on deep long balls (i.e. vs Arsenal). Yobo on the other hand is 99% reliable in this department.
I prefer Yobo, think he is better than both Lescott and Jags when all at their best. The only difference is Yobo is Nigerian and the other 2 English. Its not a racist thing, its just how the media give more attention to the English, Fans want to see their teams players playing for their country, and they can relate more easily to them (i.e. Jags is a good honest bloke from manchester who happens to be a great football player).
I would prefer Yobo but what a position to be in, having 3 top-clas central defenders. Even Man Utd have to play John O’Shea or Evans.
Yobo goes braindead on occassions but that can be the same for Lescott.
What Jags has got though is being more vocal, which Yobo will need when he has to marshal Hibbert and cover for his poor positioning!
Does Yobo actually communicate with Hibbert or Lescott during the game? It’s all about defending as a group which Jags commands well by being more vocal.
What Jags has got though is being more vocal, which Yobo will need when he has to marshal Hibbert and cover for his poor positioning!
Does Yobo actually communicate with Hibbert or Lescott during the game? It’s all about defending as a group which Jags commands well by being more vocal.
Sorry but I have to agree with Declan OShaughnessy. Why have the editors let through the ’typical of an African’ line?
I’m not one to be overly PC but surely the only possible interpretation of that line is that African players are typically lacking in intelligence so will throw their boot at anything no matter the situtation.
It might interest people to know that a friend of mine conducted some social research on football and racism and found that, particularly in the lower leagues, black players are over-represented amongst the less ’intelligent’ positions that favour physical attribute (e.g. centre back, wing) and under-represented in positions needing greater mental attributes (e.g. centre midfield). These trends start in youth teams and the implication is that coaches stereotype black players as physically gifted lumps.
I’m not one to be overly PC but surely the only possible interpretation of that line is that African players are typically lacking in intelligence so will throw their boot at anything no matter the situtation.
It might interest people to know that a friend of mine conducted some social research on football and racism and found that, particularly in the lower leagues, black players are over-represented amongst the less ’intelligent’ positions that favour physical attribute (e.g. centre back, wing) and under-represented in positions needing greater mental attributes (e.g. centre midfield). These trends start in youth teams and the implication is that coaches stereotype black players as physically gifted lumps.
Yobo has got all the attributes and has the ability to be a solid defender, but it is his consistency that lets him down. Does anyone remember the derby at Goodison? Yobo was the man supposed to be marking Torres and he switched off twice, he also could have easily cost us a goal at the weekend when he sliced a clearance straight to a Man City player about 10 yards out.
Don’t get me wrong Yobo is still a very good defender and would walk into most starting line ups in the premier league, but when comparing him with Jagielka there is only one winner from the performances he’s put in this season...Jagielka!
Don’t get me wrong Yobo is still a very good defender and would walk into most starting line ups in the premier league, but when comparing him with Jagielka there is only one winner from the performances he’s put in this season...Jagielka!
Good point, Declan.
What do you mean, Nick, when you say "and, typical of an African, he throws his foot at anything that comes near him".
What exactly is "typical of an African"?
What do you mean, Nick, when you say "and, typical of an African, he throws his foot at anything that comes near him".
What exactly is "typical of an African"?
I am not worried in the slightest, it used to be a case of who would partner Yobo, so in the space of less than a season he has not gone from a International Captain to liability.
He has dodgy moments but all the defence do, it just seems that we remember Yobo’s more than the others.
The one area in which he is miles better than JAds is in the air, as Fran states Jags is suseptible (sp) to the long ball over the top, whereas Yobo can header the ball further than any player I have watched.
As I stated, I am not worried, not bad having the Nigerian Captain as a back up is it?
He has dodgy moments but all the defence do, it just seems that we remember Yobo’s more than the others.
The one area in which he is miles better than JAds is in the air, as Fran states Jags is suseptible (sp) to the long ball over the top, whereas Yobo can header the ball further than any player I have watched.
As I stated, I am not worried, not bad having the Nigerian Captain as a back up is it?
No idea where this wave of pathos about Yobo has come from....I?ve seen the usual ?prone to a clanger?....ahem..but -so is Jags..
Yobo also tends to hoof it a lot less than Jags..which is always a good thing anyway.
He will do fine... the problems for me, will be in the middle ? but then again I suppose that puts more pressure on the centre-halves...
Yobo also tends to hoof it a lot less than Jags..which is always a good thing anyway.
He will do fine... the problems for me, will be in the middle ? but then again I suppose that puts more pressure on the centre-halves...
Maybe the "typical of an African" quote was meant as they are strong and not scared to go into rough challenges with anybody. That's how I seen it as it meaning, and I?m sure the editors did too. Mole hill and moutain come to mind.
I have to agree with Alex above, that although Jagielka has clearly been our player of the season, I still believe Yobo is the best defender at the club.
It’s a massive blow to lose Jags for the final, especially as he seems to be becoming an almost talismanic presence at the back recently, but we’re fortunate that this was virtually the only position on the pitch where we could afford another injury.
When it comes to comparing player’s performances, who’s to say that Yobo’s pace wouldn’t have allowed him to get back and stop Robinho getting his shot away on Saturday? The Brazilian left Jagielka for dead, but I’ve heard that Joey is actually the fastest guy at the club when it comes to a sprint...
You could pick incidents like this from any game, and speculate how a certain player would have handled the situation differently, but the fact is that Yobo is a class act, and we shouldn’t be downheartened about the Cup Final. Let’s just pray for an injury-free end to the league season...
It’s a massive blow to lose Jags for the final, especially as he seems to be becoming an almost talismanic presence at the back recently, but we’re fortunate that this was virtually the only position on the pitch where we could afford another injury.
When it comes to comparing player’s performances, who’s to say that Yobo’s pace wouldn’t have allowed him to get back and stop Robinho getting his shot away on Saturday? The Brazilian left Jagielka for dead, but I’ve heard that Joey is actually the fastest guy at the club when it comes to a sprint...
You could pick incidents like this from any game, and speculate how a certain player would have handled the situation differently, but the fact is that Yobo is a class act, and we shouldn’t be downheartened about the Cup Final. Let’s just pray for an injury-free end to the league season...
I agree that Yobo is our best centre half. He is immense in that position having all the physical attributes you need, pace, strength, heading and is good in the tackle. Mentally I think he has improved beyong recognition. I think Jags has come on leaps and bounds, but he’s not as "natural" as Yobo and does not hold his position as well.
As the team has got better and Yobo has matured we’ve seen less and less of him crusading forward trying to play killer balls that often didn’t come off. He’s the most traditionally english of all of our centre halves, and I don’t think he’s made any big mistakes in years.
For me you need one centre half who is the natural organiser, who sits deepest and reads play then sweeps up. Whereas the other coes forward a bit more to link defence and midfield and also tries to cut out attacks. Yobo is the best of all of our defenders at the former and Lescott at the latter. For me Jagielka is a class, but should not be first choice.
Also, don’t forget Yobo has been captain for a good while for Nigeria now. He may not be the most vocal but don’t underestimate his leadership qualities. I’m glad that he’ll make the final and just hope he’s here for another 6 years.
As the team has got better and Yobo has matured we’ve seen less and less of him crusading forward trying to play killer balls that often didn’t come off. He’s the most traditionally english of all of our centre halves, and I don’t think he’s made any big mistakes in years.
For me you need one centre half who is the natural organiser, who sits deepest and reads play then sweeps up. Whereas the other coes forward a bit more to link defence and midfield and also tries to cut out attacks. Yobo is the best of all of our defenders at the former and Lescott at the latter. For me Jagielka is a class, but should not be first choice.
Also, don’t forget Yobo has been captain for a good while for Nigeria now. He may not be the most vocal but don’t underestimate his leadership qualities. I’m glad that he’ll make the final and just hope he’s here for another 6 years.
Yobo is a good, maybe even a great, centre half on his day. The problem is he is not a great communicator and he loses concentration. A lot of the time he bails himself out with his pace, but he is no Jagielka. Jags is proactive, senses the danger and gets himself in positions to stifle it.
Yobo reacts, and therein lies the problem. There are times when his pace won’t bail him out, especially against the best teams.
I just hope he has one of his better days in the final. Certainly, he is a better athlete than Jags, which could be useful against Drogba.
Yobo reacts, and therein lies the problem. There are times when his pace won’t bail him out, especially against the best teams.
I just hope he has one of his better days in the final. Certainly, he is a better athlete than Jags, which could be useful against Drogba.
I think we can count ourselves lucky, with bringing in someone of the calibre of joey yobo. he’s a good player, and he’ll get a good run out hopefully in the next few games then concentrate on the final.
Danny, I completely disagree. Yobo hardly has any lapses of concentration these days and any example you could point to are a good few years ago. I would argue that Jagielka, being not a natural centre half, is far more reactionary than Yobo. Yobo is the player i would rather have marking Drogba for his strength and heading ability. Yobo can head all day long, whilst this is far from Jagielka’s best attribute.
I think Jagielka is a fantastic player. However, consider every time you see his last ditch saving tackles, how many are brought on by simple mistakes made by either Jagielka himself or even Lescott. Yobo is the least error prone of our centre backs and just needs a run of games to get himself ready for the big day.
I think Jagielka is a fantastic player. However, consider every time you see his last ditch saving tackles, how many are brought on by simple mistakes made by either Jagielka himself or even Lescott. Yobo is the least error prone of our centre backs and just needs a run of games to get himself ready for the big day.
I think that on paper our best centre back pairing is Joe & Joleon, however when these two play together it all seems a bit quiet. Jags is a bit of a shouter and organises things a bit better than the others.
The point he was trying to make is quite a common footballing generalisation if you?d ever watched the african nations cup games you would see what he means.
It doesnt apply to everyone and it is a generalization just like the following..
Germans - Organised
Brazilians - skillfull, lazy (or a wax?)
English - brave, tecnically inept
Hispanic - tempermental etc etc.
Its not all true its just football speak, in now way do i think Nick was being racist.
It doesnt apply to everyone and it is a generalization just like the following..
Germans - Organised
Brazilians - skillfull, lazy (or a wax?)
English - brave, tecnically inept
Hispanic - tempermental etc etc.
Its not all true its just football speak, in now way do i think Nick was being racist.
Its refreshing to see so many positive comments about Yobo, even in the absense of Jags.
Bottom line is, we have three quality centre backs and one was going to be dissapointed on the day.
Now the decision has been made for Moyes, lets all get behind the 11.
COYBs.
Bottom line is, we have three quality centre backs and one was going to be dissapointed on the day.
Now the decision has been made for Moyes, lets all get behind the 11.
COYBs.
Joey Yobo is quality. Lezza is quality. Jags is quality. The three of them have given Moyesie his only selection headache this season.
Its probably only that Joey has been injured for spells this season that he has not been first choice. Remember how dodgy Lescott looked in the first few games this season?!
Once Joey gets his rhythm back with a few games he will be back to his imperious best.
I would like to think any perceived apathy is more in fact our fans’ empathy with Jags’ situation. I would not deny any of our players their chance to play in the cup final this season, but he more than most deserved a shot at it.
To his credit Joseph Yobo has publicly acknowledged that these are not the circumstances by which he would like to regain his place in the team.
Come 30th May there needs to be nothing but support for the lad as any negativity from the fans would be entirely counter-productive and detrimental to the team.
COYB
Its probably only that Joey has been injured for spells this season that he has not been first choice. Remember how dodgy Lescott looked in the first few games this season?!
Once Joey gets his rhythm back with a few games he will be back to his imperious best.
I would like to think any perceived apathy is more in fact our fans’ empathy with Jags’ situation. I would not deny any of our players their chance to play in the cup final this season, but he more than most deserved a shot at it.
To his credit Joseph Yobo has publicly acknowledged that these are not the circumstances by which he would like to regain his place in the team.
Come 30th May there needs to be nothing but support for the lad as any negativity from the fans would be entirely counter-productive and detrimental to the team.
COYB
Joseph Yobo is to centre halfs what David James is to goalkeeping. Generally top class with the odd lapse in concentration that could caus us problems.
With Jagielka, whilst he has been outstanding this season I was looking forward to next year to see if this has been a good player having the season of his life, or has he really raised the bar and pushed himself into genuine international contention. Let’s just hope Mr Capello doesn’t forget about him in World Cup year.
All in all, we are still in a good position defensive wise for the cup final.
With Jagielka, whilst he has been outstanding this season I was looking forward to next year to see if this has been a good player having the season of his life, or has he really raised the bar and pushed himself into genuine international contention. Let’s just hope Mr Capello doesn’t forget about him in World Cup year.
All in all, we are still in a good position defensive wise for the cup final.
Totally agree with JL Slap. Its a football generalisation. People need to learn to not be offended sometimes. It really is pathetic the amount of times you see people jumping up and down claiming someone has made a racist remark. Just as much as real racism should be combatted, people also need to learn to shut the fuck up :D
JL and Alex, what is the generalisation that is being made. As far as I can see it’s that African’s are generally too dim-witted to make sensible decisions about whether to throw their boot at the ball or not. There’s a substantial difference between suggesting that Brazilians have silky skills or Italians have organised defences and suggesting that African players aren’t that bright. The main difference being that whilst the former generatlisations are used to justify Man City paying inflated transfer fees, the suggestion that Africans were a bit primitive was used to justify slavery and the 150-odd years of overt discrimination that followed it.
I’m not suggesting the original poster should be punished, simply that the editors should have removed that line.
I’m not suggesting the original poster should be punished, simply that the editors should have removed that line.
I?m certainly not "jumping up and down" claiming racism, I merely pointed out what I perceived to be a (casually, unintentionally) rascist comment and hoped the author would either retract it or clarify.
Let me explain, if you will, why the comment is rascist (in my opinion). Get out an atlas and have a look at Africa as a continent... got in front of you? Good. Pretty big, isn?t it? Very big in fact. Egypt, for example, is closer to London than it is to Cape Town. People from Algeria, for example, do not share a skin colour or an ethnic background with people from Nigeria, for example. They are different cultures, different ethnicites, different everything. Much more diverse, really, then Europeans.
But if I said a player who was tall and blond was typically "European" you?d probably think I was mad if the player was actually Spanish.
It?s the ignorance about what Africa is, and what it constitutes, that makes me perceive the original post as racist. Allied to that is the seemingly negative connotations of the comment, and it all rather disappoints me as an Everton fan. Africa as a continent is a European construct. All the negative labels applied to it are throwbacks to the days when Europeans sold Africans into slavery, and needed some way to dehumanize the process and the people involved.
What would happen if someone described "typical" Scousers as being dole-sponging, house-robbing, scumbags? That, after all, is a widely held generalisation, but is patently untrue, unfair and derogatory. But Africa is fair game?
Let me explain, if you will, why the comment is rascist (in my opinion). Get out an atlas and have a look at Africa as a continent... got in front of you? Good. Pretty big, isn?t it? Very big in fact. Egypt, for example, is closer to London than it is to Cape Town. People from Algeria, for example, do not share a skin colour or an ethnic background with people from Nigeria, for example. They are different cultures, different ethnicites, different everything. Much more diverse, really, then Europeans.
But if I said a player who was tall and blond was typically "European" you?d probably think I was mad if the player was actually Spanish.
It?s the ignorance about what Africa is, and what it constitutes, that makes me perceive the original post as racist. Allied to that is the seemingly negative connotations of the comment, and it all rather disappoints me as an Everton fan. Africa as a continent is a European construct. All the negative labels applied to it are throwbacks to the days when Europeans sold Africans into slavery, and needed some way to dehumanize the process and the people involved.
What would happen if someone described "typical" Scousers as being dole-sponging, house-robbing, scumbags? That, after all, is a widely held generalisation, but is patently untrue, unfair and derogatory. But Africa is fair game?
Declan and John, I think you are being a bit over-sensitive. The original post said that Yobo would throw his foot at anything (like Jags), and that this is typically african. I have no problem with this. This does not infer that Africans are stupid or dim-witted or any of the other innuendos people have claimed. It merely implies that they have a reputation for being rash in the tackle when it comes to football. This in itself is not racist.
If someone were to suggest that Jamie Carragher has a habit of pulling shirts and that this is typically Italian, is that racist? Does that imply that all Italians are dishonest and incapable of playing the game properly? No, of course it doesn?t. Let?s put the race card away boys...
Declan & John,
When you grow up playing football in 40 degree beaming sunshine in places like Africa the style of football has a certain laziness about it, simply because its not possible to be legging it round a pitch for 90 mins. Physically it is not possible. Its a stlye of play, not a reference to slavery, dim-wittedness or anything else.
People like you two seem it necessary to pipe up and point fingers at people you consider being racist for no other reason than to give the impression your being a good person and that YOU’RE not racist. Well neither am I, yet your pointing fingers and telling me I am.
African international football is much slower and it DOES have a lazy feel to it. (I have seen this with my own eye balls). Geogrpahic location is the reason (90 mins of strenuous exercise in baking heat), nothing to do with skin colour or nationality necessarily.
When you grow up playing football in 40 degree beaming sunshine in places like Africa the style of football has a certain laziness about it, simply because its not possible to be legging it round a pitch for 90 mins. Physically it is not possible. Its a stlye of play, not a reference to slavery, dim-wittedness or anything else.
People like you two seem it necessary to pipe up and point fingers at people you consider being racist for no other reason than to give the impression your being a good person and that YOU’RE not racist. Well neither am I, yet your pointing fingers and telling me I am.
African international football is much slower and it DOES have a lazy feel to it. (I have seen this with my own eye balls). Geogrpahic location is the reason (90 mins of strenuous exercise in baking heat), nothing to do with skin colour or nationality necessarily.
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