Matteo Guendouzi: 2019/20 Performances

[MutableEarth]

It's not his fault, he's been put into a position he shouldn't be in. He should be out on loan. We should have 3/4 midfielders ahead of him. Yet here we are. He has so much to learn.

He has great personality on the field but he definitely needs work at this level. It's quite astounding that hes played so many games for us yet has not honed, tuned or shaped his game in any way for the entirety of that time. Hes the exact same player he was when he joined. Capable of driving the team forward when at his best (Villa, Sp**s to name 2 off the top of my head) but his positioning, defensive awareness and tendency to overplay is still as prominent as ever and doesn't appear to have been worked on at all.

Theres an excellent player in there but at the moment hes a meat slab waiting to be carved.

 

[albakos]

Those jogs back and the ease with which he was passed through by KDB, remind you of Denilson. TBH he used to score few cracking goals from distance, Guendouzi doesn't even have that.

 

[MutableEarth]

Those jogs back and the ease with which he was passed through by KDB, remind you of Denilson. TBH he used to score few cracking goals from distance, Guendouzi doesn't even have that.

Denilson didnt overplay either. Kept it simple and kept the ball moving so much you almost wished him to beat a man on the dribble or ping a 50 yard cross field pass from time to time. He was a slightly better Elneny.

Guendouzi is just very rough around the edges. Denilson was like that in early games but he almost became too refined, lost his edge completely within 2 seasons.

 

[HBL]

Sad to see lots of fans writing him off/turning on him already.

 

[MutableEarth]

Sad to see lots of fans writing him off/turning on him already.

It's the nature of things, especially when the team overall has been poor. AM is a heel territory now.

Hes still one of the top talents in the team but I lament that he has yet to improve on his most obvious weaknesses yet, despite his ever-growing experience and game time. Fortunately he still has plenty of time.

 

[Yousif Arsenal]

Explain alot we are depending on 19 years old to preform he massively off form he young player hopefully when Ceballos comeback he sit few games on bench

 

[Trilly]

Too often he is easily bypassed without even being able to contest a duel or put a tackle in because hes too far away or too easily turned.

Funnily enough I was just discussing this with my brother, at least Xhaka gets close enough to foul. All I saw from Douzi were flailing arms from trying to pull back yet another player who had skinned him.

 

[celestis]

Sad to see lots of fans writing him off/turning on him already.

Nah I haven't I just never rated him talent wise and his positioning is bordering on stupid . Got bypassed for two goals .

 

[MutableEarth]

Funnily enough I was just discussing this with my brother, at least Xhaka gets close enough to foul. All I saw from Douzi were flailing arms from trying to pull back yet another player who had skinned him.

I rag on Xhaka's questionable positioning often but he very often is closer to his opposing runners than Guendouzi is. Guendouzi is much less savvy in that regard compared to Xhaka's more experienced sh*thouse antics . I still think of Guendouzi as being eventually better but Xhaka has the edge defensively I think. Never thought I'd say that.

 

[HBL]

Nah I haven't I just never rated him talent wise and his positioning is bordering on stupid . Got bypassed for two goals .

Should get a job at the France national team then because it turns out the best national in Europe rates him quite highly.

 

[celestis]

Should get a job at the France national team then because it turns out the best national in Europe rates him quite highly.

Won't be for much longer if he beocmes a regular.

 

[Divided_Pie]

He was the worst player on the pitch today in maybe the most important position. He’s like a dog chasing a squirrel. We are better off with Xhaka, as sad as that is to say. Very concerning that he seems to be regressing this year.

 

[arsenalfc0719]

His positioning and defending is cringeworthy.

He has some ability and can pick out a pass and he has some ability to get past players, however he is too slow on the ball and overthinks things too much or doesn't think and acts like a headless chicken at times so he usually ends up making the wrong choice.

Should be on the bench until he improves, not a starter.

 

[NZgunner]

He was the worst player on the pitch today in maybe the most important position.

agreed, I defend him when arguing with my Dad (he likes Xhaka and hates Douzi - I'm the opposite), because of his age and potential - but he was absolute gash today

it was so obvious last year that we were crying out for a decent CM with the current guys not being up to it - and it's one of those positions where you need some maturity and experience, we shouldn't have spent all that money on Pepe

start Xhaka and Torreira in the next few games, Douzi needs to be dropped, and then needs someone better to learn off after we ship Xhaka in January

 

[Jae]

I'm not being funny, but he's 20 years old, he's got 18 months of top flight football under his belt, and who the **** is this lad supposed to be learning from? Who's there to teach him how a proper CM should be playing? Xhaka?

Who's been there to coach him and point him in the right direction the last 18 months? No wonder he hasn't progressed.

He need's either an experienced WC and vocal CM who will shout and scream at him every time he does something wrong or steps out of shape, or a manager who has actually played CM to some kind of acceptable standard to coach him properly (or both).

 

[Fewtch]

He needs to quit with the diving asap. It’s embarrassing

 

[Big Poppa]

I'm not being funny, but he's 20 years old, he's got 18 months of top flight football under his belt, and who the **** is this lad supposed to be learning from? Who's there to teach him how a proper CM should be playing? Xhaka?

Who's been there to coach him and point him in the right direction the last 18 months? No wonder he hasn't progressed.

He need's either an experienced WC and vocal CM who will shout and scream at him every time he does something wrong or steps out of shape, or a manager who has actually played CM to some kind of acceptable standard to coach him properly (or both).

The double pivot is leaving whichever 2 midfielders that occupy it woefully exposed. Especially since we have zero athleticism and physicality to disrupt opponents and break lines under pressure.

Santi used to do this with his two footed ness and agility but even then we were overrun every time there was a turnover.

Guendouzi should be making 10-15 substitute appearances a season.

 

[Maybe]

He need's either an experienced WC and vocal CM who will shout and scream at him every time he does something wrong or steps out of shape, or a manager who has actually played CM to some kind of acceptable standard to coach him properly (or both).

But in that case, Douzi will be on the bench...
It's hard to tell what we need when so many things don't work out for us, and we can only experiment now to see what fits for the next season.
I have fears about Douzi becoming a new Xhaka, player who doesn't fit in any combination but has some individual qualities which make you feel sorry when he is on the bench.
Even WC CM you are talking about will not be able to cover the ground Douzi leaves behind, and even when his position is solid, opposition players literally walk around him without being challenged, like the second goal of De Bruyne yesterday.

 

[DasBootist]

Mislintat probably had a clear vision for how he wanted the player to develop at the club, but alas Raul hounded him out.

 

[Jasard]

Guys he is a 19 year old not being coached, it's not hard to see what's going wrong here... I mean that literally, Freddie has no staff and Emery's were poor at best.

Even his play acting is something a proper head coach or coaching staff would stamp out.