Season 2015-16 Opinion Talking Points
Mo painting borough red

Our own Mo Besic is doing the business at Middlesbrough and they love him. Another Man of the Match award today. He should be doing it for us.
A combination of very bad luck and not enough faith in him has left him out-cast. At least his game time means we benefit with a new Besic next season... or we get good money for him. I'd prefer the player.
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Reader Comments (18)
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2 Posted 29/04/2018 at 22:42:39
3 Posted 29/04/2018 at 22:50:10
It is one thing playing well against Burton and another dominating Anders Herrera and Paul Pogba.
He may have found his level.
4 Posted 30/04/2018 at 06:59:36
5 Posted 30/04/2018 at 09:18:27
6 Posted 30/04/2018 at 09:56:39
Until going to Boro.
The championship is a step down but its certainly not easy; he has bossed it and been one of their best players in the recent push to a playoff place.
This is from the Middlesborough gazzette:
"The Bosnian schemer bossed the engine-room from the off and helped Boro seize control of the game and finally nail down a top six spot.
He glided about the middle third with balletic poise and took some sublime touches to create time and space for himself.
Besic looked every inch a Premier League player. He was faster, sharper and read the game better than anyone on the pitch.
He orchestrated Boro's attacking player, driving forward himself or picking out a delightful pass to change the direction and tempo of the game in a flash."
Doesn't it sound like we could use an all round midfielder like that?!
He's fast (rapid compared to Rooney and Schneiderlin), competitive and it seems like he can pass much better than we have seen. His passing accuracy is nearly 90% and he makes more key passes per match for Boro than any Everton player does for us. Only Siggurdsson gets anywhere close.
He's still only 25 and I think he deserves a real shot in pre-season to stake a claim. He's done better on loan than the likes of Dowell, Lookman etc and could add the dynamism we've been crying out for in the middle.
7 Posted 30/04/2018 at 10:26:10
The Besic situation has surely proved the power of the loan system, were a player has been given a chance and grabbed it with both hands. His return to our fold at least gives the club a pleasant headache, whether to retain him or sell him.
8 Posted 30/04/2018 at 14:31:57
I really like him, a lot. He has a personality with an edginess that gets in the opposition's faces and we don't have players, except James McCarthy and Jonjo who do that naturally.
Come on home Mo and COYB!
9 Posted 30/04/2018 at 14:31:58
I really like him, a lot. He has a personality with an edginess that gets in the opposition's faces and we don't have players, except James McCarthy and Jonjo who do that naturally.
Come on home Mo and COYB!
10 Posted 30/04/2018 at 14:57:19
He was anonymous and outplayed.
I don't think he is top half of the table premier league standard. I could see him doing a job for a newly promoted premier league team (not Wolves) or a Brighton, Huddersfield standard of team.
11 Posted 30/04/2018 at 15:40:36
William, that game against Man City wasn't last season, it was in January 2016, and it was his only top quality performance in 55 appearances. He had zero goals, zero assists and (Sam please note) one key pass for us in those 55 appearances.
Yes, he did actually score a goal for Boro, only the second goal of his professional life, and has exactly one assist (the purple prose from the newspaper notwithstanding). Over 14 games he has done well against Derby, Brentford and Millwall. He has proven over dozens of games that he is not good enough to do it against the top 6 or Leicester or Newcastle.
I remember reading similar posts about another young Blue midfielder with a splendid attitude, Adam Forshaw, who became a Championship sensation after departing Everton. But when Wigan went up to the Prem, he proved to be in over his head. Forshaw was recently sold to Leeds by Boro after losing playing time to, among others, Mo Besic.
In my opinion Besic's career arc will be the same. He is not, never has been and never will be a top Prem player.
12 Posted 30/04/2018 at 18:45:57
13 Posted 01/05/2018 at 10:17:21
14 Posted 01/05/2018 at 10:29:14
However I don't think he'll be happy being a squad player.
He fits the exact same mould as Gueye, and he's not going to get ahead of him unfortunately.
I think for his own happiness, he should find a team where he can be a regular starter & enjoy his footy.
15 Posted 01/05/2018 at 10:38:22
I think the answer may be yes.
How many assists do Davies, Gueye, Schneiderlin and Mccarthy have between them this season? One!
Seems to me you've written a player off when he's hardly had a chance over the last few seasons. Every player deserves to be considered if they are playing well enough. Forshaw did not play as well as Mo is playing now.
John@13 he's got 4 yellows this season and gives away.4 free kicks per game which ir is pretty low for a defensive midfielder. So not quite the liability you're making out though obviously there is that aggression to his game, which i like!
16 Posted 01/05/2018 at 00:11:09
A few months short of his 26th birthday, he is so far beyond "potential" or "Needs a run of games."
Better to hope Boro makes it up, so we can dump the last three years (Yes, 3 years) of this never-was nor ever-will-be's contract.
18 Posted 16/05/2018 at 20:40:07
19 Posted 16/05/2018 at 20:44:40
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1 Posted 29/04/2018 at 22:14:56