Luxury Players......

Topfarrier

UTC Legend
After Jimnnina labelled Stan a 'Luxury player' I began to think what exactly that means....is it a player that we could do without perhaps?
I had a look though Stans and Danjuma's (another player that who's output has been questioned by some on here ) goals this season and also those of Solanke a player who wouldn't be regarded as a Luxury....I mean he works hard right?.......they've all scored pretty much the same amount of goals but Danjuma has scored 5 winners and Stan has 3 clean winners to his name .....that's two players who step up in tight games imo.
How many of Solanke"s goals have won us games btw.....yep that's right...none.
So which of those 3 players could we do without?
 
Solanke does so much for the team. Goals return poor vs say pukki or toney but only two teams have 2 players who have scored more than ten league goals this season (us and Norwich) and we are only one with three players in double figures. Thus we play differently.

stop moronic defensive errors first imho
 
Solanke does so much for the team. Goals return poor vs say pukki or toney but only two teams have 2 players who have scored more than ten league goals this season (us and Norwich) and we are only one with three players in double figures. Thus we play differently.

stop moronic defensive errors first imho
We all want Solanke to do well....he works so hard it's hard not to like him but he just doesn't score enough goals and as I've said he doesn't score goals that really matter.
I hoped that a year in the Championship would do him the power of good ....he'd get 20 odd goals and kick on for us in the PL......as it stands I don't see him doing any better than he did first time round.
 
Billing is a luxury player too imo. To me a luxury player can be defined as an inconsistent individual who is capable of sporadic moments of brilliance, but who is virtually non existent when not on his game and who offers little to no impact off the ball, such as when performing defensive duties. It is a difficult one to answer as (just as an example) you can easily calculate how many points that Danjuma has won us in the form of goals and assists, but it isn’t so easy to calculate how many goals he has cost us down the other end by not working off the ball/tracking his runner ect. I’m a bit torn tbh, before this season I’d have said that there is room for luxury/flair players as long as you surround them with the right characters (maybe the balance hasn’t been right at times this season,) but the more championship football I watch the more I get the impression that at this level you can’t afford to carry anybody if you want to be successful, no matter how talented they are. The season is such a long slog that quality alone is not enough. I’m sure I’ll get told that my opinion is silly, and questioned on how I can doubt the value of players such as Danjuma who possess such obvious quality, but I would make the point that it isn’t as black and white as that. As an example I’d urge you to compare Danjuma and Stan to the 14/15 version of Pugh and Ritchie. I think it’s very hard to argue against Danjuma and Stan being the naturally more gifted footballers, but at the same time, I strongly believe that the team would be in a better position right now if we had 14/15 Pugh and Ritchie playing this season. Completely hypothetical of course but using it to make a point. Bottom line is that at this level I believe it is possible to succeed with a moderate level of talent (you certainly need some quality for sure) and an impeccable work ethic, but it is virtually impossible to succeed with an exceptional level of talent but a poor work ethic. Am sure you will disagree but hey ho, I say what I see!
 
Billing is a luxury player too imo. To me a luxury player can be defined as an inconsistent individual who is capable of sporadic moments of brilliance, but who is virtually non existent when not on his game and who offers little to no impact off the ball, such as when performing defensive duties. It is a difficult one to answer as (just as an example) you can easily calculate how many points that Danjuma has won us in the form of goals and assists, but it isn’t so easy to calculate how many goals he has cost us down the other end by not working off the ball/tracking his runner ect. I’m a bit torn tbh, before this season I’d have said that there is room for luxury/flair players as long as you surround them with the right characters (maybe the balance hasn’t been right at times this season,) but the more championship football I watch the more I get the impression that at this level you can’t afford to carry anybody if you want to be successful, no matter how talented they are. The season is such a long slog that quality alone is not enough. I’m sure I’ll get told that my opinion is silly, and questioned on how I can doubt the value of players such as Danjuma who possess such obvious quality, but I would make the point that it isn’t as black and white as that. As an example I’d urge you to compare Danjuma and Stan to the 14/15 version of Pugh and Ritchie. I think it’s very hard to argue against Danjuma and Stan being the naturally more gifted footballers, but at the same time, I strongly believe that the team would be in a better position right now if we had 14/15 Pugh and Ritchie playing this season. Completely hypothetical of course but using it to make a point. Bottom line is that at this level I believe it is possible to succeed with a moderate level of talent (you certainly need some quality for sure) and an impeccable work ethic, but it is virtually impossible to succeed with an exceptional level of talent but a poor work ethic. Am sure you will disagree but hey ho, I say what I see!
And breath. X
 
Seems we all have different definitions of luxury players.

To me it’s someone who is in a side for rare moments of brilliance with the boss and teammates accepting a lack of hard work and defensive diligence for the points, genius and win bonuses they bring.

David Ginola was the ultimate one for me. Stan and Dom are hard working so don’t fall into this category despite what people may think of their output. Danjuma is the closest we have which is why we whinge about our two left backs all the time!
 
Seems we all have different definitions of luxury players.

To me it’s someone who is in a side for rare moments of brilliance with the boss and teammates accepting a lack of hard work and defensive diligence for the points, genius and win bonuses they bring.

David Ginola was the ultimate one for me. Stan and Dom are hard working so don’t fall into this category despite what people may think of their output. Danjuma is the closest we have which is why we whinge about our two left backs all the time!
Seems like that is pretty similar to my definition tbh.
 
I tend to think of them in the context of the team.

For me a luxury player is someone who offers something special but requires the whole team to accommodate them. It's not necessarily their choice.

Harry Wilson for example is a bang average player but with the ability to fire in a long range shot or free kick.

It seems Jermain Defoe is another example, he'll score goals like against Palace but doesn't know how to come deep, stray wide or press from the front,

I guess the best test is that if you could run a ten man team reasonably well without them but with them you get those moments of magic impossible without them.

To be fair to Waz, I think of Billing at number 10 as a bit of a luxury.
 
Look mate I know you’re just having a laugh which is fair enough, but every time I post you just feel the need to make a ‘witty’ comment. Why don’t you actually try getting involved in the discussion? You might find it more fulfilling.
Hey Waz. I would say I leave a comment in one out of every 20 posts of yours.
Yes it was a light hearted comment.
I thought u invited a reply with your ‘disagree’ comment.
As for getting involved. I think Stanislas acts like a kid at times, sulking if he doesn’t get his way.
Danjuma although a very good player, i think Stanislas is his Mentor.
 
Hey Waz. I would say I leave a comment in one out of every 20 posts of yours.
Yes it was a light hearted comment.
I thought u invited a reply with your ‘disagree’ comment.
As for getting involved. I think Stanislas acts like a kid at times, sulking if he doesn’t get his way.
Danjuma although a very good player, i think Stanislas is his Mentor.
Possibly feels more frequent because it seems to be the only responses you give. I invited a reply to get involved in the discussion, thought that much was obvious but there you go. I agree with your comment on Danjuma and Stanislas, and would go as far to say that this isn’t the type of character that leads to success at this level.
 
Yes danjuma is probably a luxury player, but he delivers, is it 3 goals and 3 assists in last 3/4 games.
For me wilshire is a luxury player too far, not sure what's happened to him, I know in the last loan spell he couldn't play in a midfield 2, but we had 3 on Saturday, he did one or two good turns, but tackling was poor, going to ground too easily. This guys played for England, won fa cups with arsenal, how can he be so far off the pace?
 
Seems we all have different definitions of luxury players.

To me it’s someone who is in a side for rare moments of brilliance with the boss and teammates accepting a lack of hard work and defensive diligence for the points, genius and win bonuses they bring.

David Ginola was the ultimate one for me. Stan and Dom are hard working so don’t fall into this category despite what people may think of their output. Danjuma is the closest we have which is why we whinge about our two left backs all the time!
You see for me any player that constantly affects the outcome of games cannot be considered a Luxury....they are Essential players....we're going nowhere without the likes of Danjuma.....where would we be this season without him?....as I've said he's scored 5 winners ........and tbf we moan about our left backs whether it's Danjuma or Stan playing in front of them!
 
Yes danjuma is probably a luxury player, but he delivers, is it 3 goals and 3 assists in last 3/4 games.
For me wilshire is a luxury player too far, not sure what's happened to him, I know in the last loan spell he couldn't play in a midfield 2, but we had 3 on Saturday, he did one or two good turns, but tackling was poor, going to ground too easily. This guys played for England, won fa cups with arsenal, how can he be so far off the pace?
He does deliver for sure. But the point is would a slightly less gifted player who delivers a little less in goals and assists, but who offers more off the ball, benefit the team more overall? It’s an interesting thought if nothing else. Personally think you need a mix of both at this level. Re Wilshere, said it when he signed, his legs have gone. Feel sorry for the guy, still has touches of quality but injuries have taken their toll, a luxury we can’t afford.
 
You see for me any player that constantly affects the outcome of games cannot be considered a Luxury....they are Essential players....we're going nowhere without the likes of Danjuma.....where would we be this season without him?....as I've said he's scored 5 winners ........and tbf we moan about our left backs whether it's Danjuma or Stan playing in front of them!
You are ignoring the fact that it’s possible for a player to provide direct goal contributions and at the same time bust a gut while not in possession. Watch the top three teams in the league, not a player there with as much natural talent as Danjuma (Buendia aside.) Maybe every left back looks poor because they are left constantly isolated by him!
 
You are ignoring the fact that it’s possible for a player to provide direct goal contributions and at the same time bust a gut while not in possession. Watch the top three teams in the league, not a player there with as much natural talent as Danjuma (Buendia aside.) Maybe every left back looks poor because they are left constantly isolated by him!
Stan very rarely played on the left this season.
 
Look mate I know you’re just having a laugh which is fair enough, but every time I post you just feel the need to make a ‘witty’ comment. Why don’t you actually try getting involved in the discussion? You might find it more fulfilling.
Do you really need to be so arrogant and condescending? If you weren’t then perhaps you might find this message board more fulfilling ...
 

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