I’ve banged on about him often enough, and while others have questioned his ability to settle and adapt to life in the Premier League I, along with others, have always maintained that he won’t have a problem. His game is, was, and always has been, suited to Premier League football.
And that thankfully seems to be the case as Cabaye has put in a couple of decent performances at the start of his Premier League career. There has been nothing “headline grabbing” although that would have changed had his 30-yard shot against the Mackems been just an inch or two lower. Instead it’s been steady away for the French international who is starting to show us what he is made of.
Some interesting stats for your delectation regarding Cabaye’s performances so far. In his first match against Arsenal he put in more successful tackles than any other player in the Premier League. In his second match against Sunderland he made more key passes than any other player in the Premier League, and whilst he wasn’t top of the tackle chart on this occasion he did get stuck in when he had to and put in the tackle. Just ask Phil Bardsley!
Whilst I can’t condone that tackle it’s worth pointing out that the vast majority of his stuff was well timed unlike a certain Lee Cattermole who is so late at times it looks as though he is playing in a different timezone!
It’s early days in the career of Cabaye but I’ve been quietly impressed about the start he has made, and with room and time to improve we could end up with a real player on our hands.
It’s all part of our midfield strength in fairness, and with Yohan Cabaye and Cheik Tiote in the middle, and when both hit peak form and fitness, we could have some midfield on our hands. A tough-tackling, ball-winning, passing, fluid midfield featuring two players who will run, chase, harass and make things tick. I’m looking forward to seeing that partnership develop.
What do you think of Yohan Cabaye though? I’m not asking anyone to judge him after just two league games and I’m certainly not suggesting that he has been outstanding, but I do think he has made a good start and believe that there is much more to come from him.
Impressed or not so far? I know I am.
have to agree with you toonsy (**** ****!!)……..this guy is serious quality and fro a frog seems a tough little bugga too.
craig chisholm(Quote)
He put in an average performance on Saturday and against Arsenal he was nowhere to be seen…..a bit premature to be raving about him i think….He will have to adapt to the pace and the physical game in the Premier League….not trying to put a downer on matters, Modric had to do the same remember
marco(Quote)
Early days but the signs are very promising.
Lyle(Quote)
Think he’s going to be something special for us he a very good player with good eye for passing and good tackler of the ball shows he’s got a good foot on him with that unlucky effort what could have stole the headlines. Also just thought id say like to see more of marveux,fergusson,abeid,vuckic thing these lads also look very promising.
hammy/nufc(Quote)
Craig – never doubted his quality mate. Just because a player doesn’t settle it doesn’t make them ****. Look at Forlan, Rossi etc etc. For that reason I never doubted his quality. I did wonder just how he would handle the physical side of things but it would appear that he can teach our lot a thing or two about that 😆
toonsy(Quote)
He certainly looks like he will be a great player, not scared to get stuck in and we all know you have to be able to give and take a tackle in the premier league.Looking forward to seeing him at his peak this year,
Mund(Quote)
Thought he was quality against the mackams. Commitment, energy and showed a bit of spunk when Bardsley tried to have a go at him, even if his challenge was late.
I also read an article the other day about stating that the player Lille were missing the most this season was Cabaye.
Cabaye — Tiote — Barton ——–> This is a very good midfield combination imo.
David(Quote)
craig chisholm
Have you got two personalities, you’ve been so encouraging lately its starting to scare me 😉
I also really rate Cabaye though. Though he did look a little slow (unfit) towards the end of the Arsenal game, but its not surprising considering the preseason and the amount of work he puts in.
Against the Scum, he was for me the best player in the first half.
Only player to actually pick players out with his passes rather than just boot it up field, and also did a massive amount of defensive work covering for an out of sorts Barton and Tiote.
He also put in a cracking swerving shot which took a decent save.
All in all a cracking central midfield, and I definately think when they gel will make a superb engine to feed the creative talents of Ben Arfa, Marvaux, Obertan, Jonas and hopefully one more quality striker to go with Ba.
IMO Simpson is still a weakness though because his distribution and passing is so rushed and panicky. Its something he really needs to improve or he must accept a role as cover and we bring someone else in eventually.
JJ(Quote)
“Quietly”??… 😉
bowburnmag(Quote)
I was just thinking a great away formation would be:
—————————Krul——————————
————-S Taylor—-Colo—-Pieters—————
Gosling—————Tiote———————-Jonas
—————Barton———-Cabaye——————
————————-Ben Arfa————————–
—————————–Ba——————————
JJ(Quote)
I thought he looked the real deal at Elland Road and he’s done nothing to suggest otherwise since.
He will only get better from here on in.
Toon Chicken(Quote)
Bowburn – Well, relatively quiet 😛
toonsy(Quote)
JJ – Didn’t the Xmas tree go out of fashion with Glenn Hoddle and that god-botherer of his?
Toon Chicken(Quote)
Plus I wouldn’t want to be the one to tell Demba Ba he’d be playing the role of the fairy! 😀
Toon Chicken(Quote)
@10 – I wouldn’t be confident playing wingbacks. Midfield is our strongest asset and should be packing it imo.
David(Quote)
T – not sure whether it an educated guess, a glass half full approach or a bit of both. Either way, he’s still got long way to go but getting stuck in like he did in that sort of environment goes a long way to endearing yourself to supporters. Looks a tidy prospect.
bowburnmag(Quote)
TC
Nothing is out of fashion if it still works well. And fashions work in cycles.
The thing is, we are weak in the full back positions, and apart from Jonas we dont really have wingers that are willing to help out in defense.
So, in order to prevent that weakness, why not play our wide men as wing backs?
Say we played a 4-4-2 or 4-2-3-1, fair enough, Jonas would cover the left side and Pieters should be good defensively. But the right side would then have Marvaux/Obertan/Ben Arfa who I don’t see dropping back and Simpson will be left exposed. Also, if we don’t get Pieters in, then Jonas would basically be playing as a wing back anyway.
JJ(Quote)
lee_ryder Lee Ryder
Dutch sources say #nufc will not offer more than 5m Euros for Pieters, #psv want 7m Euros
batty(Quote)
cabaye will settle in pretty quick ,seems a bit of a work horse
batty(Quote)
@18 the merry-go-round continues in full swing. #sigh
David(Quote)
JJ – personally I’d play a flexible 4-2-3-1 that can switch to a defensive 4-5-1 when you’re under the cosh or an all-out attacking 4-2-4 when you’re playing lesser teams like the mackems! 😀
Something like this…
………………………Ba………………………
Jonas………Ben Arfa……….Obertan
…………..Tiote………Cabaye…………
Pieters…Coloccini…Saylor…Simpson
…………………..Krul……………………….
Toon Chicken(Quote)
i think cabaye has been impressive so far and will only improve more, the french xavi i refer to him as!! give him a couple months to really get to grips with the league and i think we could again have a fantastic player on our books who cost peanuts!!
rambo87(Quote)
Oh, naughty Craig @1,
The name Chisholm is said to be derived from a Norman French word ” chese” meaning “to choose” and the Saxon word “holm” meaning “meadow. …
So does that make you a frog too?
🙄 😉
►
lesh(Quote)
So far so good I think once him & Tiote gel, Barton stays & Ben Arfa gets fit I can see the following team:
—————Krul———
Simmo—-S Taylor—Collo—- new LB (Pieters hopefully)
Barton—Cabaye——Tiote——Jonas
————Ben Arfa—————
————CF (anyone better than what we’ve got)–
Geordiedoonsooth(Quote)
Oh Batty ffs, why don’t they offer £6m and see how PSV react to that?
lesh(Quote)
well i have also been waiting to see him play like you said he had it from the start of his career and he certainly dont lack the physical ability either a proper excellent addition to our squad , just a shame we dont have a striker that fits the same bill and with the same sort of shot power
kormeeNUFC(Quote)
if we wont pay more then 6mil then we will defo not be getting the french lad…who would cost a lot more…the bid should be in 2day..if not we are messsing around…last eight weeks..pardew did say it will be the last week of transfer week..when everthing hots up…we are in it..lets see..
asim(Quote)
Next week is the last week I think, but yeah, all the deals will start going through now.
Some huge transfers that have been talked about all summer are still to go through so I wouldn’t panic just yet.
Toon Chicken(Quote)
Seems to be the typical Ashley approach.
We won’t offer an extra million for a world class player despite the fact we just sold a non international for more and have millions in the bank from previous big transfers.
I can see this one going down to the last day. Us finally offering 6mil and then PSV increasing the value because they quite rightly know they cannot then get a replacement in time and we are desperate. Joke…
JJ(Quote)
JJ – if it wasn’t for the Ashley approach then Raylor almost certainly wouldn’t have scored that freekick on Saturday. 😉
Toon Chicken(Quote)
Call me selfish TC but the overall result of our league position at the end of the season and strength of our squad means more than a single victory agaist the Scum.
Raylor scored a great goal and did well for playing out of position, but he still looked very frail in defence.
I actually wouldn’t mind him playing in place of Simpson at right back. I think the two are much the same in terms of ability with different strengths and weaknesses.
JJ(Quote)
The difference being that Raylor wouldn’t have the protection of Jonas on the right 😉
toonsy(Quote)
JJ – but we’re 6th with 4 points from what were 2 potentially very tricky fixtures.
I’m not sure we’d have done any better with Enrique or anyone other LB in the world.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying things will carry on and we can do without, I just think its a bit early to be bitching and moaning, especially after that result! 😀
Toon Chicken(Quote)
Batty, yeah Cabaye is amazing is’nt he?Had I not known better I would have thought he was pure English blood and not a frog! 😆
arrowhead(Quote)
See Colo made the Beeb’s team of the week? Makes for good reading…
“Centre-back
Newcastle United
Last week you Mags put a coherent argument together and brought my attention to the skipper’s performance. Against Sunderland he was even better. A stylish defender fit for the modern era. Pity I can’t say the same about the haircut!
Did you know? Coloccini made 11 clearances. Only in one game last season did he make more, and that was the same fixture: away at Sunderland.”
Toon Chicken(Quote)
OptaJoe Opta Sports
53.3% – For the first time ever in the PL (116 games) Stoke have recorded more than 50% possession in a single match. Patience.
18 hours ago Favorite Retweet Reply
toonsy(Quote)
Fast becoming a toon leg end is wor Colo!
A couple more performances like that and we’ll be able to flog him to the bindippers for a tidy profit before the window shuts. 😆
Toon Chicken(Quote)
TC
Not bitching and moaning about the lads on the pitch. They lifted a lot of us with the result and it was massive for confidence and unity in the dressing room.
But just stating facts in that we cannot be blinded by the great result, we had some fantastic results last year, like the Villa 6-0 only to be disappointed the next weekend, because our weaknesses were exposed and the lack of depth and refusal to replace outgoing players with quality cost us points in the end.
Dont want the same to happen this year.
Instead of Ashley seeing the positivity as a chance to attract players and boost morale further, he sees it as a chance to not spend.
JJ(Quote)
JJ………nah same old me… i will always say ashley is a ****** til he does anything to make me think otherwise. i just say it as i find in mate… and i find cabaye to be a little gem already.. its clear to all that this guy will be a new favorite at st james. jose has gone, cabaye is in. Its a case of ‘the king is dead, long live the king’.
craig chisholm(Quote)
juliette_grace juliette ferrington
steve staunton has joined #safc backroom staff as a match assessor.
Lol You have to laugh. I’ll assess the last match for you for free. You were ***** with no bottle.
David(Quote)
David – 😆
A fecking match assessor. Isn’t that the managers job anyway? 🙄
toonsy(Quote)
I think he is showing great promise and will only get better when he has had a few more premiership games under his belt. Loved the way he put Bardsley in his place, who then backed off, sat down and showed anyone who wanted to look what that nasty Frenchman did. 😀 QUALITY.
Just one complaint Toonsy – and sorry lads but I am going to go into my girly Dreamboat Cabaye mode, where is the picture with his shirt off?
WOW! 😆
Mags(Quote)
Toonsy – If his match assessment is as good as his potential transfer target assessment, ne wonder they have got someone else in! 😆
David(Quote)
Mags – Just for you I’ll do it on the next article 😉
toonsy(Quote)
Toonsy – your star xxx 😀
Mags(Quote)
Toonsy….taking it straight from your screensaver? 😆
richietoon(Quote)
Rich – Nah. the bedroom ceiling 😆
toonsy(Quote)
😆
richietoon(Quote)
Nah richie he has to take it of his bedroom wall and scan it in first.
I was impressed with the way the lad gets stuck in. I do think he could become a fan fav very quickly if he keeps going.
Big Dave(Quote)
he was quite v **** but showed he’s a quick learner v the mackems. Probably still needs 5 games or more to really pick the up pace but its hats off to whoever decided for him to come here. A quality player with lots to offer.
Just been reading PSV want 7mil now but MA has stated he won’t pay more than 6mill. If he hadnt give Darren Clark 2mill just to have his name linked to golf we might be ok 😉
come on Ashley..1mill… 😉
I’ve been impressed with Taylor/Collo, they look solid. I also have high hopes for our midfield enforcers Barton-Tiote-Cabaye. These type of players could make it a successful season for us..
HWTL
mark(Quote)
I see the club trying their best to make money on transfers again. So they get £5.5m for Jose but won’t reinvest it for a replacement – kind of makes a mockery of the “we will reinvest all the money on replacements” argument.
Can they run this club any worse?
Don’t be surprised if we have the same squad come the 1st Sept.
Stuart79(Quote)
LOL just had a reply from my old Mackem m8 I emailed on Sat. his reply was , We’re ****. Spent loads, Bruce must go!!!
lol the damage we’ve caused 😀
mark(Quote)
http://www.rokerreport.com/2011/8/22/2376248/talking-tactics-sunderland-v-newcastle-united-h
Haha loving this mackam match report. Not a single mention to the hand ball by Larsson. Apparently negative tactics by us, parked the bus and played the percentage game. Haha quality.
David(Quote)
I love Cabaye, as soon as i heard he was coming to our team, I decided he was going to be on the back of my jersey. he’s a cracking player.
Wor Joseph(Quote)