- Oct 19, 2004
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thanks for the reports @Waxman and @ralphs bald spot. i'm not surprised to hear that about azzaoui, he does have talent but he can also be really immature in his play, obviously at 17 he has more than enough time to eradicate that from his game though. i'm not sure how i feel about ehiogu recently saying we're reining kwp's game in, i know he has to work on the defensive side of his game but he's such a weapon going forward so i hope he doesn't become too conservative.
Exactly what crossed my mind reading the reports. Him running at defenders is his best and most dangerous attribute. It's second nature to him and something he is used to. If it is reigned in, he may lose the confidence and instinct to do it. Really would be sad if that side disappeared.
This might not actually be such a bad thing. I guess it's about development, and we already know what he does well, we know he can bomb on and attack, if he's going to make it as an EPL FB he's got understand the balance between both disciplines and he must be able to defend.
I fear this is what cause Smith's career to stutter. I stand by my opinion that he's still a better, cleverer, technically superior footballer and better going forward than both Walker and Naughton, but he could look a bit frail defensively at times. I just wish we'd convinced him to stay and taught him the defensive side better.