The Curious Case of Steven Caulker

[Rout-Ledge]

This has been discussed before, but now the dust is settling on a tumultuous season perhaps the strangest decision of last summer was to swap out a promising home grown center-back who'd already made his England debut for an unproven youngster from abroad at the same price.

Why, when undergoing a summer of many changes in the playing squad, did we think this was a sensible move?

I know there was talk of him getting restless as a result of lack of game time, but that really isn't good enough reason in my book to ship him out. Big clubs don't let players go that easily.

I don't think Caulker is the next Rio Ferdinand or Ledley King, but why heap further unnecessary need for adaptation on a squad already heaving with changes? It makes less sense now than it did at the time.

Cardiff are looking likely to go down, and we're looking likely to need a new center back or two in the summer.

Do we want him back? Could we get him back? Is he good enough?

 

[JUSTINSIGNAL]

He wanted to play first team football to push his claims for an World cup place. We couldn't offer him a nailed on first team spot, Cardiff could. That's it really.

 

[Bruts]

I thought he said wanted to play every game and we couldn't guarantee him that (for whatever reason) so he moved on.

 

[Rout-Ledge]

I'm aware of that. I still don't think it's a good reason to sell.

To me (as with Van Der Vaart) it seems more like an excuse to sell rather than necessitating a sale.

I don't like the idea of our club letting go of players they'd otherwise keep at the drop of a hat, just because the player is unsettled in the short term.

 

[MkYid]

From what I remember Caulker didnt want to be 3rd, 4th or 5th choice which he would of been as nobody foresaw the injury problems we have had. So we made the decision to sell him, which in my opinion was right.

He is at the right level for his game right now high championship / low table premiership

And he's the captain of his team now

 

[Rout-Ledge]

He wanted to play first team football to push his claims for an World cup place.

I'd have told him to wait a year due to the major upheavals at Spurs that summer, and if he's good enough for a place in the world cup squad then he's good enough to become a first team regular for us.

Spurs are more important than Steven Caulker, surely?

 

[Roynie]

I can see why he would want to play as often as possible in a year leading up to the World Cup, but I wouldn't have thought he would want to play in the Championshiop next year either. I haven't seen much of him this year but I would have him back, if he is good enough and he is one of our home grown players.

 

[Tucker]

Wasn't there rumours about him saying something nasty about one of Joe Lewis' daughters?

 

[JUSTINSIGNAL]

I'd have told him to wait a year due to the major upheavals at Spurs that summer, and if he's good enough for a place in the world cup squad then he's good enough to become a first team regular for us.

Spurs are more important than Steven Caulker, surely?

It would have been a bit harsh on a player who was never going to be a first team regular for us but has a genuine chance of making the England squad.

Being good enough for England doesn't really mean he would have been good enough for us. Look at Townsend.

 

[thinktank]

Slow slow slow slow slow.

 

[Roynie]

Slow slow slow slow slow.

Well the last thing we need is slow CBs look what the top 3 have done to us this year with our current crop!

 

[Rout-Ledge]

It would have been a bit harsh on a player who was never going to be a first team regular for us but has a genuine chance of making the England squad.

Being good enough for England doesn't really mean he would have been good enough for us. Look at Townsend.

The world of football is harsh though. Players fuck over clubs, clubs fuck over players, and the same applies both ways with managers. There's really no room for sentiment in the modern game.

But then look at Dawson: so much game time for us and doesn't get a sniff of the England squad.

I think the Townsend thing is less him being good enough for England but not good enough for us and more that he had a brief spell of being quite dangerous because he was an unknown. I don't think he's getting into the World Cup squad on current form.

 

[Rout-Ledge]

Slow slow slow slow slow.

I'd rather have a competent slow center back than one who's pacey but lays the ball on a platter for the other side in dangerous positions...

Ideally you wouldn't have either, but for us it was a straight swap.

 

[m*****73]

Caulker grades out at an 'excellent Championship', or 'average Premier League' standard. Home grown or not, he's not good enough to play regularly for a team with aspirations of making the Champions League.

Now, whether or not this club is capable of qualifying for that competition is another question altogether.

 

[OmarsComing]

Wasn't there rumours about him saying something nasty about one of Joe Lewis' daughters?

Yep as if he would talk about Joe Lewis' daughters in the first place.

 

[thinktank]

I'd rather have a competent slow center back than one who's pacey but lays the ball on a platter for the other side in dangerous positions...

Ideally you wouldn't have either, but for us it was a straight swap.

He's also error prone and has dodgy positional sense and shitty attitude. You think verts is bad...this guy is an uber sulk if he doesn't get what he wants.

I want proper centre backs, not settling for we should have kept 'shit here, but a bit better there' and not bought 'a bit better here, but a bit shitter there'

No more mediocrity! I'm putting that on a T-shirt.

 

[Rout-Ledge]

He's also error prone and has dodgy positional sense and shitty attitude. You think verts is bad...this guy is an uber sulk if he doesn't get what he wants.

I want proper centre backs, not settling for we should have kept 'shit here, but a bit better there' and not bought 'a bit better here, but a bit shitter there'

No more mediocrity! I'm putting that on a T-shirt.

I get that, and I don't want to settle for mediocrity any more than you do.

But I do think that it was more unnecessary disruption in a summer of huge disruption.

 

[nightgoat]

Ironically he'd have stood a better chance of making the England squad by staying at Spurs and playing every third game or so rather than being captain of Cardiff. Woy just doesn't look that far down the league.

 

[Buggsy61]

Centre backs don't really come into their prime until their mid 20's as there is so much to learn, a lot of which comes from hard lessons learned in games.
I do worry about his pace, but then he is no slower than Terry and his goals are a bonus. Dawson will be gone in the summer whoever takes over I reckon so Caulker would be a good buy if we can get him. Not too many other talented young centre halves around, and Verts looks like he has lost interest - shadow of thre player we saw last season.

 

[allatsea]

I'd have told him to wait a year due to the major upheavals at Spurs that summer, and if he's good enough for a place in the world cup squad then he's good enough to become a first team regular for us.

Spurs are more important than Steven Caulker, surely?

Not to Steven Caulker