TRO Posted March 16, 2014 Share Posted March 16, 2014 I think this is his position now. He's been a utility player in previous years but I think now he's at an age and at a level where he should commit himself to becoming a top class rb. And to be honest I don't think he'll have to do too much. Would be nice if we can save some pennies in the transfer window by not having to buy a new RB. Bacuna with Lowton for back-up is sufficient for me, guessing if both of them got injured or something ridiculous we could stick Okore there too. I still would like to see him have a consistent run in midfield at some point (next season). Not me, I want him to keep improving at right back and for us to spend money on a decent attacking and a defensive midfielder. Definitely agree with you and although I would like to see him in the middle of the park, what is the point if he can play like he is doing at right back. His shirt number fits him to a tee, a number 7 at right back who gets very far up the pitch but always seems to get himself back when he needs to, almost as if he is playing two positions at the same time which is what we look for in a modern fullback. If he can keep his concentration levels up and cut out the lapses, I honestly think he'll go on to be something special. If we have no need to buy a right back and we can sign Bertrand up, surely we'll be able to bring in some real talent to help further up the pitch. .....kenny Swainesque Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TRO Posted March 16, 2014 Share Posted March 16, 2014 more transfer business like this will soon have the dark days prior to the austerity measures well and truly behind us....looking forward the new renaissance. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Demitri_C Posted March 16, 2014 Share Posted March 16, 2014 i think he has been lamberts best buy this summer. he was excellent yesterday and really gets stuck in. he has so much energy love that about him Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nazvfc Posted March 16, 2014 Share Posted March 16, 2014 i think he has been lamberts best buy this summer. he was excellent yesterday and really gets stuck in. he has so much energy love that about him Don't worry buddy - one bad game and he'll be shit again - you know that don't you?? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
theboyangel Posted March 16, 2014 Share Posted March 16, 2014 I think Bacuna epitomises the type of player Lambert wants at the club - he brought him into the club offering him a chance in the Prem and wanting Bacuna to seize the opportunity with both hands - this is what Bacuna is doing and obviously really appreciates the chance Villa and Lambert have given him. That's the kind of desire and effort we want from our players! 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PieFacE Posted March 16, 2014 VT Supporter Share Posted March 16, 2014 How on earth did they find this player? Not only his footballing ability but also for his determination and drive. Great find. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rovers13 Posted March 16, 2014 Share Posted March 16, 2014 I understand. I would also like us to sign new players in the positions you have suggested. I think some of Bacuna's other attributes are wasted playing RB (Vision/Finishing/Crossing/Shooting) though, I am thinking more box-to-box midfielder. He has many good attributes but I'm not sure vision is one of them. His vision when he played in the hole against west brom was really good, kept trying really clever passes. The problem was he was didn't have the technical ability to convert them. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
samjp26 Posted March 16, 2014 Share Posted March 16, 2014 (edited) How on earth did they find this player? Not only his footballing ability but also for his determination and drive. Great find. What confuses me is that A. He only played 5 games as a right back for Groningen and didn't do very good there apparently. B. Although opinions were divided in terms of rating him as a decent footballer, Groningen fans were generally baffled by the fact we signed him and are now even more so baffled by the way he is performing. Although he was decent for them, nobody really seems to have seen him as outstanding or their best player. I'd understand if we had picked up the best player from a mid-table Dutch side, but here we've seemingly signed a guy who many would see as the 4th or 5th best player at the club playing as a box to box midfielder and thinking "okay, this kid could be a good right back." Somehow, it actually seems to have been pulled off. We really need to give whoever scouted him a pay rise. Edited March 16, 2014 by samjp26 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AntrimBlack Posted March 16, 2014 Share Posted March 16, 2014 Strangely enough, out of all our summer signings, he is the one I was most dubious about, but he is definitely the best of them. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LordSepulchrave Posted March 16, 2014 Share Posted March 16, 2014 Strangely enough, out of all our summer signings, he is the one I was most dubious about, but he is definitely the best of them. Same. Pacey winger with an "atomic strike"? Promising Spanish fullback? Danish striker whose youtube videos are filled with finesse, technique and finishing ability? Nope, the signing of the season is a utility player from a midtable dutch team who didn't even particularly rate him. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rovers13 Posted March 16, 2014 Share Posted March 16, 2014 The tonev crashing the plane theory is the most plausible one I've seen. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GENTLEMAN Posted March 16, 2014 Share Posted March 16, 2014 (edited) Strangely enough, out of all our summer signings, he is the one I was most dubious about, but he is definitely the best of them. Same. Pacey winger with an "atomic strike"? Promising Spanish fullback? Danish striker whose youtube videos are filled with finesse, technique and finishing ability? Nope, the signing of the season is a utility player from a midtable dutch team who didn't even particularly rate him. If you look at Bacuna's goal scoring record at his former club it is fairly good, especially for such a young player. Groningen made a huge mistake letting him go for under a million, I suspect it had something to do with LB falling out with their manager. Edited March 16, 2014 by GENTLEMAN Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LordSepulchrave Posted March 16, 2014 Share Posted March 16, 2014 (edited) Was a falling out reported or is that your gut feeling on the situation? But yeah, 14 goals in 109 games isn't bad - I'm assuming he mainly played on the right side of midfield? Edited March 16, 2014 by LordSepulchrave Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post nazvfc Posted March 16, 2014 Popular Post Share Posted March 16, 2014 Think it also proves another thing - please don't right a player off after just a few games (or even before a ball is kicked in earnest). Give them a chance - be patient. Just saying - a few had written him off after a few games!! 7 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
samjp26 Posted March 16, 2014 Share Posted March 16, 2014 (edited) Strangely enough, out of all our summer signings, he is the one I was most dubious about, but he is definitely the best of them. Same. Pacey winger with an "atomic strike"? Promising Spanish fullback? Danish striker whose youtube videos are filled with finesse, technique and finishing ability? Nope, the signing of the season is a utility player from a midtable dutch team who didn't even particularly rate him. If you look at Bacuna's goal scoring record at his former club it is fairly good, especially for such a young player. Groningen made a huge mistake letting him go for under a million, I suspect it had something to do with LB falling out with their manager. At Groningen he was played all over the place as a utility player but the fans and even Bacuna himself thought he would be best suited in the middle of the park. I'm not sure if there was a real falling out with Maaskant, but Maaskant played a defensive game very much like McLeish and he was the one who played Bacuna at right back for a hand full of games. I guess the real problem was that because he was moved into different positions, he never really had time to settle or learn to become good at one individual position. He doesn't have any real technical attributes that stand out, but he is very quick and also strong as we know. However, physicality doesn't really count for as much in the Dutch league as it does here and in contrast I'd imagine many of the technically gifted players in Holland wouldn't make it here because of that. Towards the end of last season I do believe he hit a bit of form in midfield as a box to box player, but obviously we came in and bought him after that. Edited March 16, 2014 by samjp26 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
samjp26 Posted March 16, 2014 Share Posted March 16, 2014 (edited) Here is a small interview with Bacuna just after he signed for us, slating Maaskant for playing him all over the place: The transfer of Leandro Bacuna FC Groningen to Aston Villa was a surprise to many football followers in the Netherlands. Not only because it came out of nowhere, because the midfielder with his club and had had. Less year itself He knows that himself, yet he claims to be ready for the Premier League. "I played as a right winger, left winger, attacking midfielder, defensive midfielder. Sometimes I felt myself as the toy of the coach, "said Bacuna opposite Inside Futbol as he looks back on last season. It failed Bacuna pressing the squad a stamp. The season went from bad to worse, where he became a target of criticism. "We played bad, no doubt about it. However, I can not understand why fans were so mad at me, I was at the club since I was nine." "Groningen has had a season with too many ups and downs, I myself had that too," said Bacuna. It was a reason for his absence during the European Championships under 21. At Aston Villa he does not want a toy anymore, he wants to focus on one position and performance. "In my first season at Groningen I was often criticized for my sometimes brutal approach to the game. Now I have become calmer, but not too much. Now I want to focus me on a defensive role " "The Premier League is one of the strongest leagues in the world, I feel I'm ready," close the 21-year-old Groninger off. Pretty obvious that he just wanted to and probably still wants to focus on just one position or role. Like I said, I don't think there was any literal fall out between him and Maaskant, but more Leo just being frustrated at the way he was used as simply a fill in for whoever was out injured etc. Edited March 16, 2014 by samjp26 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AVTuco Posted March 16, 2014 VT Supporter Share Posted March 16, 2014 Think it also proves another thing - please don't right a player off after just a few games (or even before a ball is kicked in earnest). Give them a chance - be patient. Just saying - a few had written him off after a few games!! Well it really doesn't prove that. Tonev is proof the other way around. So, it could go either way. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dn1982 Posted March 16, 2014 Share Posted March 16, 2014 Think it also proves another thing - please don't right a player off after just a few games (or even before a ball is kicked in earnest). Give them a chance - be patient. Just saying - a few had written him off after a few games!! Well it really doesn't prove that. Tonev is proof the other way around. So, it could go either way. I wouldn't write off any signing after such a little amount of time. Some hit the ground running others struggle they're all different. Luna was everyone's favourite after the first couple of games. Luckily none of the signings have been a massive out lay but shopping in the lower end of the market you'll be very fortunate to get a star every time. Bacuna has settled very well but is still very young so a drop in form could be around the corner but hopefully he'll settle as RB for the rest of the season and keep getting better. Having 2 good FB and Vlaar in the team makes a massive differnce! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rob182 Posted March 16, 2014 Share Posted March 16, 2014 I'm sure when he joined, I saw clips of Bacuna taking some decent penalties for Groningen. So for less than a million, we picked up a free kick/ penalty taker who is strong, quick, versatile and built like a bulldog. Bargain. He's probably one of my favourite Villa players at the moment. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robbie09 Posted March 16, 2014 Share Posted March 16, 2014 Think it also proves another thing - please don't right a player off after just a few games (or even before a ball is kicked in earnest). Give them a chance - be patient. Just saying - a few had written him off after a few games!! Spot on. He's so far improved from his performance against Fulham earlier this season. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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