Downing

No doubt he was a quality player underrated by many imo. However, he definitely didn't live up to expectations in his second spell with us. It's a shame as he was excellent for West Ham the season before he came back to us.

700 career appearances is some achievement.
 
An achievement probably helped by never making a tackle and therefore risking injury. The big f@nny. 😉

Great player but for me, apart from his breakthrough season, always left you wanting more. Don't know if it was body language giving that perception or whether he genuinely did play within himself a lot of the time, but it just felt like he should've achieved more than he did. His ability was right up there, not sure his mentality quite matched it.

Still an excellent career though.
 
His first spell should of made him a club legend, but, those Hollywood balls he was playing at the end of his second stint and his name constantly being linked with the unrest at the time made me feel really frustrated with him. I was really happy he came back, then really happy when he finally left.
 
A Boro stalwart. Annoyingly will never be a legend due to he his second stint, which was asre

His last two seasons before us, he was mustard. Scoring great goals for fun at w Ham and then he was shiite for us, mostly
 
Sadly became a player who had the adventure coached / drilled out of him, maintaining posession being the end game. So ending the runs taking a man on, and the checking back, passing inside.
In effect losing what we as fans wanted from him, playing on the right , cutting inside then crossing, not beating the 1st man with the cross etc etc
A good career that could have been so much better, and as Festa says could not tackle a paper bag, same as Johnson who is having the same thing imposed on his game. Safety safety and losing what initially he was bought for.
To be fair, it is not easy always driving on, taking your man on, trying to do them with pace and a lower succes rate than the safety safety option. I can still remember when the ball would go to him and the crowd would be thinking go on son, take him on and get a cross in ( like we did with Traore).
long career that for me offered little in later years
 
Jostler said:
Just seen on his wiki he's played over 700 career games. As underwhelming as his 2nd spell was at times, that is some achievement! I miss those balls he used to put in on his first spell. Eindhoven wouldn't have happened without them!
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Probably the best player we have produced in the modern era. Not many could pass a ball like him. Never understood the animosity toward him?
 
Apart from Karanka’s paranoid claims behind the scenes, no manager ever criticised him. Rodgers played him left back when he was still one of England’s best wingers. He clearly didn’t rate him but still praised his attitude and commitment when he fought his way into the team.

His problem was the willingness to always do what he was asked to the detriment of his own game and career. As people have said, he was one of the better players at West Ham in the Premier League. It was our negative tactics and slow build up play that meant he couldn’t do the same here. He did well at Blackburn last year so clearly he still had something to contribute in the right team and system.
 
I always thought Downing put a shift in and was commited to the club. I only felt let down by him in the relegation season where he was an anonymous player in an anonymous team.
 
I hope he’s the next manager tbh, he’s local, he has local passion, knows the players from youth to first team and know the area. You can fly around Europe at 4am and I’m sure he will still be the best candidate.
 
SilentProf said:
Apart from Karanka’s paranoid claims behind the scenes, no manager ever criticised him. Rodgers played him left back when he was still one of England’s best wingers. He clearly didn’t rate him but still praised his attitude and commitment when he fought his way into the team.

His problem was the willingness to always do what he was asked to the detriment of his own game and career. As people have said, he was one of the better players at West Ham in the Premier League. It was our negative tactics and slow build up play that meant he couldn’t do the same here. He did well at Blackburn last year so clearly he still had something to contribute in the right team and system.
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Nowt to do with our slow play. Tomlin did well. Ramirez did well. Adomah did well. Nsue was more of an attacking threat than downing. He was just poor in his second spell.
 
NoloBoro said:
Probably the best player we have produced in the modern era. Not many could pass a ball like him. Never understood the animosity toward him?
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Much of it came from a perceived failure to play well for England, now OK he never played brilliant for England but he was unfairly criticised. There was one draw in particular at Wembley, might have been Macedonia, where he got pelters for being poor, despite putting it on a plate for Crouch about 5 times. He should have come away with a hattrick of assists and came away with pelters from the fans for not beating his man......football fans, and Ingerlund fans in particular are dense. I've lost count of the number of london fans singing you let your country down to Downing.
 
truck said:
Sadly became a player who had the adventure coached / drilled out of him, maintaining posession being the end game. So ending the runs taking a man on, and the checking back, passing inside.
In effect losing what we as fans wanted from him, playing on the right , cutting inside then crossing, not beating the 1st man with the cross etc etc
A good career that could have been so much better, and as Festa says could not tackle a paper bag, same as Johnson who is having the same thing imposed on his game. Safety safety and losing what initially he was bought for.
To be fair, it is not easy always driving on, taking your man on, trying to do them with pace and a lower succes rate than the safety safety option. I can still remember when the ball would go to him and the crowd would be thinking go on son, take him on and get a cross in ( like we did with Traore).
long career that for me offered little in later years
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Agree with that.
Always felt that the cavalier spirit was crushed by coaches prioritising ball retention.
Probably a player that would have shone in an era - even just ten years previously.
Look how Rippers got a Premier League winners medal with, I dare say, less natural talent.
 
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