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Bruv that aint his squad number its his top speedI don’t like the fact he is number 38 ! Feels like that’s a reserve reserve number!
He won nearly all his battles against Saka and the latter ones while on a yellow. It was an impressive display against arguably the best RW in the league on form right now.
Definitely can become world class. I love his incisive attacking play, and he is a monster in defense.
Loving this kid. Absolutely perfect for this system. Really amazing to think he's 20yo. But he's still got some learning to do. Wasn't great on the goal. But didn't shrink and contributed massively to the performance. Fantastic mentality.
If this was a Paratici signing, we have to give him credit. This is an absolute gem of a signing.
If this was a Paratici signing, we have to give him credit. This is an absolute gem of a signing.
Fucking wankhorn didn't fancy it.
one blip all game and that was the passback. other than that he was excellent. if things go the way they should he should be a top 3 LB in the world in a few years.
has he crossed the ball yet? not sure ive seen it. if he can cross a decent ball he goes up another level.
has he crossed the ball yet? not sure ive seen it. if he can cross a decent ball he goes up another level.
Plan:
First; get 11 quality footballers and then arrange them into positions based upon their physical and athletic attributes......
Fancy that.... It might just work.
Hah.
Fuck that. I'd be willing to put money on the fact that he will neuter Salah.
I mean imagine his confidence - he dealed with younger and arguably sharper Saka in away game for 75 minutes while being on yellow. It like running with gas mask ... which will be taken off for this new challenge.
I just love Udogie. It is absolutely sick to think that we got Udogie, Sarr and Bissouma for combined fee of like 60 million ?!?!? Feels like there would be 1 missing from starting of that number.
We have had some fantastic performances from several of our players this season , but this lad tops my list .
For someone so young and untested at this level , he has come in and looked so calm and assured .
We need to get him well and truly tied in because without doubt , the very top clubs will be sniffing around in the not too distant future .
For someone so young and untested at this level , he has come in and looked so calm and assured .
We need to get him well and truly tied in because without doubt , the very top clubs will be sniffing around in the not too distant future .
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Ballon D'ogie
Don't shoot the messenger..They dedicated a whole article to Udogie trying to down play his impact
Actually, I did just read the beginning...
Why Tottenham's manager is wrong about Saka and Udogie
Woolwich's Bukayo Saka delivers a standout performance in a 2-2 draw against Tottenham, contradicting Spurs manager Ange Postecoglu's claim that Destiny Udogie dominated the Woolwich winger.dailycannon.com
Why Tottenham's manager is wrong about Saka and Udogie
Woolwich's Bukayo Saka delivers a standout performance in a 2-2 draw against Tottenham, contradicting Spurs manager Ange Postecoglu's claim that Destiny Udogie dominated the Woolwich winger.
dailycannon.com
Ange:
“Woolwich have outstanding wide players, that’s where their threats are. Destiny picked up a yellow card and it could have made him nervous but I felt he dealt with it well and ended up as the dominant player on that side of the pitch. It will have been a great learning experience for him, going toe-to-toe with a top side.”
However, Udogie’s statistics from the game suggest otherwise.
The defender, who narrowly avoided a second yellow card, lost 10 of his 19 ground battles, won only 50% of his tackles, was dispossessed three times, and was dribbled past twice.
He won no aerial duels, committed four fouls, and mishandled a backpass that almost led to a goal for Eddie Nketiah.
Additionally, he handled the ball in the penalty area which should have been awarded as a penalty by VAR, with his hand above his head, and was forced to rugby tackle Saka to prevent a breakaway, further undermining Postecoglu’s claim of dominance.
In contrast, Bukayo Saka was involved in both Woolwich goals, something Udogie was tasked with stopping, although he can obviously be excused for the penalty.
In total, Saka created four chances, more than any other player on the pitch.
When you look at the player ratings for both, based on Opta stats, Saka was Woolwich’s highest rated player – by a distance – with 8.6.
Only Tottenham’s captain Heung-min Son had a marginally higher rating on the day (8.8) and he scored two, despite an xG of just 0.51.
Udogie, on the other hand, picked up a poor 6.3, making him the second worst-rated Spurs player and the third worst from both sides.
Did that gooner twat watch the same match we did?Don't shoot the messenger..
Why Tottenham's manager is wrong about Saka and Udogie
Woolwich's Bukayo Saka delivers a standout performance in a 2-2 draw against Tottenham, contradicting Spurs manager Ange Postecoglu's claim that Destiny Udogie dominated the Woolwich winger.
Ange:
“Woolwich have outstanding wide players, that’s where their threats are. Destiny picked up a yellow card and it could have made him nervous but I felt he dealt with it well and ended up as the dominant player on that side of the pitch. It will have been a great learning experience for him, going toe-to-toe with a top side.”
However, Udogie’s statistics from the game suggest otherwise.
The defender, who narrowly avoided a second yellow card, lost 10 of his 19 ground battles, won only 50% of his tackles, was dispossessed three times, and was dribbled past twice.
He won no aerial duels, committed four fouls, and mishandled a backpass that almost led to a goal for Eddie Nketiah.
Additionally, he handled the ball in the penalty area which should have been awarded as a penalty by VAR, with his hand above his head, and was forced to rugby tackle Saka to prevent a breakaway, further undermining Postecoglu’s claim of dominance.
In contrast, Bukayo Saka was involved in both Woolwich goals, something Udogie was tasked with stopping, although he can obviously be excused for the penalty.
In total, Saka created four chances, more than any other player on the pitch.
When you look at the player ratings for both, based on Opta stats, Saka was Woolwich’s highest rated player – by a distance – with 8.6.
Only Tottenham’s captain Heung-min Son had a marginally higher rating on the day (8.8) and he scored two, despite an xG of just 0.51.
Udogie, on the other hand, picked up a poor 6.3, making him the second worst-rated Spurs player and the third worst from both sides.
Also Madders for 40 million....all that lot for same price as Rice and less than Caceido.......
https://theathletic.com/4897118/202...-Woolwich/?campaign=5888993&source=dailyemail
PART 1
Fourteen minutes into the north London derby on Sunday, Destiny Udogie flew into a tackle on Bukayo Saka.
It was a genuine attempt to win the ball, but it was late and an obvious yellow card.
For the next 75 minutes, Udogie had to face arguably the in-form winger in the Premier League in the knowledge that another foul could be the end of his match. After Tottenham team-mate Emerson Royal’s daft dismissal in this same fixture last season, it seemed history might be about to repeat itself.
Instead, against the odds, Udogie was still on the pitch at the final whistle. Not only does that mean Udogie avoided a second booking, it tells us head coach Ange Postecoglou didn’t summon Ben Davies from the bench and take the young Italian out of the line of fire.
Considering his early struggles, how did Udogie and Spurs do it?
First, Tottenham approached the task of stopping Saka as a team. Even before Udogie’s early booking, Brennan Johnson knew that Saka was a serious threat and when the Woolwich danger man received possession, he often got back into positions to prevent him from cutting inside.
He can’t permanently be in that position, however, so Johnson’s job wasn’t to drop back on top of Saka, nor was it to be primarily concerned with Ben White.
Instead, Johnson was always checking over his shoulder and positioning himself to cut off diagonal balls out to Saka. Here’s one early example — Oleksandr Zinchenko should be capable of lifting this pass over Johnson, but he misplays it and the young Welshman intercepts.
Woolwich centre-back William Saliba also had problems — again, there’s no reason he can’t play this ball past Johnson — but he somehow miscues it into touch.
And here, Saliba does what Zinchenko did earlier. Seemingly caught in two minds about whether to play the ball out to White or Saka, he hits it straight to Johnson and Tottenham can relieve the pressure.
This is a very basic thing, but it repeatedly prevented Saka from dribbling at Udogie.
When Johnson wasn’t on hand to help out, Yves Bissouma was effective at moving across from his holding midfield position to close down. This left Martin Odegaard free, but centre-back Micky van de Ven knew the Norwegian then became his man.
Here, both Johnson and Bissouma move across to discourage Saka from dribbling at Udogie.
However, the complication — and the opening goal — came when White became involved in an attacking sense.
He only overlapped three times all game but, just like in the corresponding fixture last season when his sudden bursts on the outside effectively won the game for Woolwich, his run proved crucial here. With White going on the outside of Saka, Johnson diligently sprints back with him…
… but the problem is that White’s run distracts Udogie, too. At this point, the Italian is perfectly placed to stop Saka from coming inside, in a position roughly in line with the far post…
… but Saka uses White’s overlapping run to check inside into space. Johnson has gone too far with White and Udogie has also taken two steps backwards. White has occupied two opponents and Saka’s shot deflects in off Cristian Romero.
PART 2
At this point, it felt like Woolwich were in charge and would win the game down that flank, but Udogie showed great discipline throughout the rest of the afternoon.
Here, he outmuscles Declan Rice to win possession.
On the stroke of half-time, there was an interesting incident because it was almost identical to that earlier booking. Udogie seems to be steaming into the challenge…
… but he stops a couple of yards short. Saka, putting his body in the way and anticipating contact and getting his opponent in trouble again, almost forgets about the need to control the ball, taking a heavy touch.
From there, Udogie initially manages to get his body in front of the ball…
… before Saka fights back; Udogie again resists making a challenge…
… and eventually gets a toe to the ball, winning possession for his team.
This is something Udogie continued to do excellently.
Saka kept trying to stand him up in the hope of luring him into a tackle before speeding away…
… but Udogie stayed on his feet and concentrated on nicking the ball from him.
Equally important was the fact that, in keeping with Spurs’ proactive, attack-minded nature overall, Udogie continued to push forward.
Look at him here, pressing goalkeeper David Raya. He’s almost in the Woolwich six-yard box.
Later, with Spurs building an attack, Udogie is almost positioned like a second striker (highlighted by the white dot in the next screengrab), with Saka (red dot) now being forced to tuck in and defend.
Woolwich, meanwhile, probably didn’t attack Udogie enough.
Here’s Zinchenko in possession, looking up and seeing Saka flying forward into space to his right, with Udogie (white dot) a little too narrow. But look at Odegaard, who is in the inside-right position on the halfway line. He’s gesturing for Zinchenko — and the team — to calm down, to slow the tempo. Zinchenko instead turns inside.
Four seconds later, he’s still working out which pass to play. In these situations, perhaps Woolwich could have been snappier.
Johnson continues trying to help out Udogie, although on this occasion he sprints back with White and seems to pull his hamstring…
… but the impressive Bissouma is, as ever, on hand to move across and support his left-back…
… and knows to hold his position on the inside, forcing Saka to pass to the raiding White. His ball is overhit though and runs out for a goal kick.
But the greatest praise should be reserved for Udogie, who eventually did commit a second foul on Saka — an awkward challenge having stumbled when battling with Odegaard in the 89th minute.
By that point, the game had calmed down and that individual duel was a distant memory — the crowd almost forgot to appeal for a second yellow.
At the time of Udogie’s first foul on Saka, if you’d been told there would be a further six bookings in the match and seven substitutions, you’d have got long odds on none of either involving the Tottenham left-back.
But after his early wobbles, this was an excellent recovery from a talented young player, which justified Postecoglou’s show of faith in sticking with him.
At this point, it felt like Woolwich were in charge and would win the game down that flank, but Udogie showed great discipline throughout the rest of the afternoon.
Here, he outmuscles Declan Rice to win possession.
On the stroke of half-time, there was an interesting incident because it was almost identical to that earlier booking. Udogie seems to be steaming into the challenge…
… but he stops a couple of yards short. Saka, putting his body in the way and anticipating contact and getting his opponent in trouble again, almost forgets about the need to control the ball, taking a heavy touch.
From there, Udogie initially manages to get his body in front of the ball…
… before Saka fights back; Udogie again resists making a challenge…
… and eventually gets a toe to the ball, winning possession for his team.
This is something Udogie continued to do excellently.
Saka kept trying to stand him up in the hope of luring him into a tackle before speeding away…
… but Udogie stayed on his feet and concentrated on nicking the ball from him.
Equally important was the fact that, in keeping with Spurs’ proactive, attack-minded nature overall, Udogie continued to push forward.
Look at him here, pressing goalkeeper David Raya. He’s almost in the Woolwich six-yard box.
Later, with Spurs building an attack, Udogie is almost positioned like a second striker (highlighted by the white dot in the next screengrab), with Saka (red dot) now being forced to tuck in and defend.
Woolwich, meanwhile, probably didn’t attack Udogie enough.
Here’s Zinchenko in possession, looking up and seeing Saka flying forward into space to his right, with Udogie (white dot) a little too narrow. But look at Odegaard, who is in the inside-right position on the halfway line. He’s gesturing for Zinchenko — and the team — to calm down, to slow the tempo. Zinchenko instead turns inside.
Four seconds later, he’s still working out which pass to play. In these situations, perhaps Woolwich could have been snappier.
Johnson continues trying to help out Udogie, although on this occasion he sprints back with White and seems to pull his hamstring…
… but the impressive Bissouma is, as ever, on hand to move across and support his left-back…
… and knows to hold his position on the inside, forcing Saka to pass to the raiding White. His ball is overhit though and runs out for a goal kick.
But the greatest praise should be reserved for Udogie, who eventually did commit a second foul on Saka — an awkward challenge having stumbled when battling with Odegaard in the 89th minute.
By that point, the game had calmed down and that individual duel was a distant memory — the crowd almost forgot to appeal for a second yellow.
At the time of Udogie’s first foul on Saka, if you’d been told there would be a further six bookings in the match and seven substitutions, you’d have got long odds on none of either involving the Tottenham left-back.
But after his early wobbles, this was an excellent recovery from a talented young player, which justified Postecoglou’s show of faith in sticking with him.
I really like Micheal Cox's analysis, I've followed his work for many years now. Much of his writing will pull out aspects of a game that aren't obvious and largely missed but once he's pointed them out you will notice them happen almost every game. The only time I get annoyed with him is his NLD takes (he's a staunch gooner, he used to write a weekly tactical piece on Woolich pr-match programme and on their website before he wrote his book and his Athletic work. e.g when Nuno took us to the Emirates his piece was entirely about how great Woolwich where, I went toe to toe with him on his analysis as I thought they weren't that great in that game and that his piece should have been on how shit we were, how Nuno set us up in that first half was one of the worst managerial performances I've ever witnessed).PART 2
At this point, it felt like Woolwich were in charge and would win the game down that flank, but Udogie showed great discipline throughout the rest of the afternoon.
Here, he outmuscles Declan Rice to win possession.
On the stroke of half-time, there was an interesting incident because it was almost identical to that earlier booking. Udogie seems to be steaming into the challenge…
… but he stops a couple of yards short. Saka, putting his body in the way and anticipating contact and getting his opponent in trouble again, almost forgets about the need to control the ball, taking a heavy touch.
From there, Udogie initially manages to get his body in front of the ball…
… before Saka fights back; Udogie again resists making a challenge…
… and eventually gets a toe to the ball, winning possession for his team.
This is something Udogie continued to do excellently.
Saka kept trying to stand him up in the hope of luring him into a tackle before speeding away…
… but Udogie stayed on his feet and concentrated on nicking the ball from him.
Equally important was the fact that, in keeping with Spurs’ proactive, attack-minded nature overall, Udogie continued to push forward.
Look at him here, pressing goalkeeper David Raya. He’s almost in the Woolwich six-yard box.
Later, with Spurs building an attack, Udogie is almost positioned like a second striker (highlighted by the white dot in the next screengrab), with Saka (red dot) now being forced to tuck in and defend.
Woolwich, meanwhile, probably didn’t attack Udogie enough.
Here’s Zinchenko in possession, looking up and seeing Saka flying forward into space to his right, with Udogie (white dot) a little too narrow. But look at Odegaard, who is in the inside-right position on the halfway line. He’s gesturing for Zinchenko — and the team — to calm down, to slow the tempo. Zinchenko instead turns inside.
Four seconds later, he’s still working out which pass to play. In these situations, perhaps Woolwich could have been snappier.
Johnson continues trying to help out Udogie, although on this occasion he sprints back with White and seems to pull his hamstring…
… but the impressive Bissouma is, as ever, on hand to move across and support his left-back…
… and knows to hold his position on the inside, forcing Saka to pass to the raiding White. His ball is overhit though and runs out for a goal kick.
But the greatest praise should be reserved for Udogie, who eventually did commit a second foul on Saka — an awkward challenge having stumbled when battling with Odegaard in the 89th minute.
By that point, the game had calmed down and that individual duel was a distant memory — the crowd almost forgot to appeal for a second yellow.
At the time of Udogie’s first foul on Saka, if you’d been told there would be a further six bookings in the match and seven substitutions, you’d have got long odds on none of either involving the Tottenham left-back.
But after his early wobbles, this was an excellent recovery from a talented young player, which justified Postecoglou’s show of faith in sticking with him.
So when I read his piece on Monday I was pleasantly surprised by his piece, something I would expect from him in a non-NLD article.
I am really falling for our team, with Vicario, van de Ven, Porro, Bentancur, Sarr, Biss, Romero, Son and a guy that I thought was good but never dominant Maddison, but arguably it's Udogie that has the biggest potential of all to be one of the best players in his position in the World, currently (yes it's early days) I don't think there's a better FB in the league.......he's 20 FFS!!!