Nir Bitton

Sorry what first choice player was dropped to allow Bitton to play?

I don’t want squad players that come in, play poorly and get sent off on the first half.

Are you daft enough to want that?

 

Honestly defending Nir Bitton as an important squad player because he isn’t good enough to start and has a shocker in the desperate situations where he is brought in is some * hill to die on

 

Wanting rid of loyal & valuable squad players is a worse one.

 

Sitting on the bench of a club you aren’t good enough to regularly play for while collecting a massive salary doesn’t make you loyal. That’s like saying Marvin Compper was loyal.

It certainly doesn’t make you valuable.

 

‘Valuable’

 

He’s a nice tidy player but is never going to “hurt” the opposition

would you be worried about him if he lined up against us for say hibs or Aberdeen?

 

Compper is a weird comparison for loyalty. Bitton has been here for years, Compper was here for a season.

 

We have different views on loyalty.
If he wasn’t available / there & the manager picked the ‘next available player’ is that not weakening the team? That makes him valuable in my eyes.

 

Invaluable

 

Unless McCarthy maintains fitness on a consistent basis, we will need someone for the DM role (and even if he does, we still need back-up). Soro is a better option playing slightly further forward.

Our options are few and far between - playing McGregor in the DM role with Rogic and Turnbull ahead of him just isn't going to cut it, except at home to dross.

So, I wouldn't be surprised to see Bitton in there on occasion. Not saying I want that (and not saying I don't), but I think it's going to happen either way.

 

Think as an international his salary will be too high to be kept around as a squad player.

 

Just don't think he's aggressive enough in the press to play Angeball.

 

Bitton, a scapegoat? I've heard it all.

He's been a liability the last couple of years. The last two big games I can remember him playing in, he got sent off needlessly and threw his teammates under the bus.

The fact that our defence has been rotten for * knows how long, and yet very few (if any) people have been calling for Bitton to start says it all.

And this suggestion of putting him back in midfield. Are these people watching the type of football we're playing right now? He'd kill us in there.

 

So we’ve bought Shaw to not play him, waste his best transitional/development years, and let a guy who has continuously let us down - a guy who, into the bargain, has never proven himself as an athlete or team player - play ahead of him?

4 months til Jan. The likelihood is McCarthy will be our established 6 long before then. Shaw and even Lawal - while raw - can surely step in for certain games, and McGregor (much as I prefer him further forward) can play DM v bottom 6 sides at least.

Would have to have at least one injury before we see Bitton at DM even just for certain games, imo.

 

It’s all fairly moot now anyway so relax, the window is shut.

 

He doesn't get picked because he isn't good enough. Soro is seeing minutes and Bitton is still behind him getting nothing. I don't think Ange has come in and thought, right lets bully Bitton. He obviously doesn't show enough in training and the time he put him in he let him down.

He's not loyal, he's a lazy * who likes to gets paid to play 10 games a season and not push himself. Normally has a crackin spell when a new contract is needed right enough. Sums him up.

 

Windows shut mate. Ange chose to keep him.

 

I wasn't discussing him moving or not. It's easy to keep someone that nobody wants.

 

No offence, but that's ridiculous. Going by that definition, every single player is valuable and you could use that argument to keep every player. Barkas is valuable if Hart, Bain, Hazard become unavailable - so we should keep Barkas?

A valuable player is one that can do their job well when it matters. Bitton cannot, as he has shown several times now.

There's not even an expectation the guy should be contending for a first team place. He's somehow getting a pass here and people actually complaining he's being scapegoated. You would think he's come in and played a blinder in big games recently. Bizarre.

I thought Compper illustrated the point clearly enough since he's a fairly obvious example of someone who couldn't do better so sat on a wage doing * all for 18 months, no matter how clear we made it that we wanted to shift him.

The point is staying at a club isn't always due to loyalty. Time is not equal to Loyalty. Bobo Balde is another good example.


That's not to say we're actively desperate to shift Bitton, but stays because he likes it here and he has a cushty gig. Probably likes where he lives, his lifestyle, his salary, doesn't need to play too much football.

It's a weird take to say he's staying out of loyalty, as if he's knocking back something much more desirable.

 

Compper was a terrible example, sorry.