The "Zak Steffen" watch

Expat Smoggie

Expat Smoggie

Well-known member
Anyone close their eyes and cross their limbs whenever he has to make a decision? Today he was "in my opinion" the reason why we went off the boil in the second half as we closed ranks and protected the goal, not that it needed protecting but it's fair to say that Zak needed protecting. There can be no disguising that Zak was to blame for their goal and the nervousness around the box whenever they attacked. What gets me is that he makes almost identical mistakes every other game and never seems to improve. From the moment he made the error for Cardiff's goal he rarely looked comfortable, as his kicking became hoof ball while his command of his box for corners and free kicks he looked anything but in control. The mix-up between Paddy and him in the second half certainly looked like it was a bit of both but then again Zak being the sweeper keeper should have dealt with it instead of making a clown out of Paddy and maybe out of the whole situation. Make no mistake Steffen has not grown with this team and I don't understand why as most of the other players under Carrick have improved significantly. Up next obviously is a team who will really target Steffen's [multiple] weak points-- let's hope he's ready.
 
BoroPhil said:
ok so you know better than Carrick. I suggest you give Steve Gibson a ring
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I’m not suggesting playing out from the back isn’t integral to Carrick’s style of play. Im saying Stefan is poor at it. The two comments are not mutually exclusive.

Stefan is currently the best we have, but I will hazard a guess Carrick will bring a more reliable keeper in next year, regardless of the division we’re in
 
Alexander Supertramp said:
I’m not suggesting playing out from the back isn’t integral to Carrick’s style of play. Im saying Stefan is poor at it. The two comments are not mutually exclusive.

Stefan is currently the best we have, but I will hazard a guess Carrick will bring a more reliable keeper in next year, regardless of the division we’re in
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Didn't suggest you were. Don't think he is poor and I don't think Carrick does either.
 
Expat Smoggie said:
Anyone close their eyes and cross their limbs whenever he has to make a decision? Today he was "in my opinion" the reason why we went off the boil in the second half as we closed ranks and protected the goal, not that it needed protecting but it's fair to say that Zak needed protecting. There can be no disguising that Zak was to blame for their goal and the nervousness around the box whenever they attacked. What gets me is that he makes almost identical mistakes every other game and never seems to improve. From the moment he made the error for Cardiff's goal he rarely looked comfortable, as his kicking became hoof ball while his command of his box for corners and free kicks he looked anything but in control. The mix-up between Paddy and him in the second half certainly looked like it was a bit of both but then again Zak being the sweeper keeper should have dealt with it instead of making a clown out of Paddy and maybe out of the whole situation. Make no mistake Steffen has not grown with this team and I don't understand why as most of the other players under Carrick have improved significantly. Up next obviously is a team who will really target Steffen's [multiple] weak points-- let's hope he's ready.
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I think you very much see what you want to see.

Other than the poor ball to McNair (and I'm of the opinion that whilst it was definitely Steffen's error, McNair is the weak link in this style of play at the moment) Steffen was solid.

Took a few crosses under pressure and never really looked troubled throughout.

The difference in the second half was that Cardiff moved the ball much more quickly and largely bypassed our midfield goinf forwards and then pressed hard and quick when we were trying to get control. They were excellent second half and we still beat them 1-0. It wasn't pretty but we didn't concede.

Blaming Steffen for the outfield players not being able to get their foot on the ball is ridiculous, in my opinion.
 
One conspicuous error apart I thought he had a really solid game, making saves and coming for the ball when he could.

To be fair I also thought McNair wasn't ready for the pass and should have been in a team that always plays put from the keeper, so it made a bad pass look even worse.

His mistakes will always be highlighted because of the position he plays and he's under scrutiny too. Akpom's miss in the second half was just as bad, but he's obviously riding on the currency of a brilliant season so it doesn't get mentioned.

Ultimately though both thankfully proved irrelevant.
 
BoroPhil said:
Didn't suggest you were. Don't think he is poor and I don't think Carrick does either.
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He might but he may also feel he’s limited on options and there is probably an unwritten agreement/expectation of game time.

He certainly won’t be here next year regardless of what division we are in.

That said, he does the rest quite well but he’s too casual with the ball at his feet. Thinks he has more time that he does at times and today was just a lazy pass.

He’s a huge improvement on Lumley though.
 
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It wasn't the greatest pass, but Paddy certainly didn't cover.himself.in glory. His lunge at the player took himself out of the game left them with a 4 on 3. If he'd stayed on his feet and goal side we have had a better chance of defending successfully. Still, three points in the bag at the end. Looking forward to Wed now.
 
Unfortunately keeper's tend to be remembered for the mistakes they make and steffen does make quite a lot.
Could you imagine him doing that in a play off final at Wembley?
Makes the blood run cold that thought.
He's one of the most frustrating keepers ever because the customary howler apart he's a really good keeper.
 
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