Barry Ferguson

[Guest Night Owl]

He was called 'back pass Barry' here because he essentially kept possession. In foreign countries such players get applauded.

 

It boils down to the medieval Scottish attitude of pushing forward players based on pace and height as opposed to technical ability.

 

Cue the 'Messi would not have made it if he was Scottish' line...

 

PS - The UK is yet to grasp that football is won and lost based on possession. When they catch up, maybe they will stop being so atrocious.

 

The guys who sat next to me preferred to call him '' Barry Ma Baw ''

 

I don't think Ferguson's contribution can be denied and he was a sound player for us, his ability to keep things simple is a plus in a culture of kick and rush, but my main problem with his play was that although he knew when to keep it tight, he rarely knew when to loosen the valve. I honestly believe that had Barry added an attacking string to his bow, he would have enjoyed far more appraisal and success as a player.

 

Here's a question for you, and it may seem an obvious one to answer but not so if you think about it, Would Barry shine in our current predicament Knowing how tight these pitches are and the little time he'd have on the ball? even if he were in his prime ?

[MikeN63 0]

well Ian Black is doing well for Rangers and I'd say that Ferguson was Black with added class, don't dislike Black, he does the simple things well, but is definitely someone who goes for the glory ball, Ferguson was more keep possession, slip in passes on the ground, sure there were seasons when Ferguson scored double figures as well.

 

holding on to possession was never an issue he had as well, very strong on the ball.

[Guest Night Owl]

well Ian Black is doing well for Rangers and I'd say that Ferguson was Black with added class, don't dislike Black, he does the simple things well, but is definitely someone who goes for the glory ball, Ferguson was more keep possession, slip in passes on the ground, sure there were seasons when Ferguson scored double figures as well.

 

holding on to possession was never an issue he had as well, very strong on the ball.

 

I remember that season as well Mike, I think we had a class midfield back then , if its the Advocaat era you are referring to ( which is when I remember it for some reason ) I do think I also remember Advocaat trying to push Ferguson higher up the field ? or it may have been Eck actually....hmm

[Ser Barristan Selmy 222]

well Ian Black is doing well for Rangers and I'd say that Ferguson was Black with added class, don't dislike Black, he does the simple things well, but is definitely someone who goes for the glory ball, Ferguson was more keep possession, slip in passes on the ground, sure there were seasons when Ferguson scored double figures as well.

 

holding on to possession was never an issue he had as well, very strong on the ball.

I don't think Black should be mentioned in a thread about Ferguson and I view them about as closely related as Andreas Iniesta and Stevie Fulton.

[Ser Barristan Selmy 222]

The guys who sat next to me preferred to call him '' Barry Ma Baw ''

 

I don't think Ferguson's contribution can be denied and he was a sound player for us, his ability to keep things simple is a plus in a culture of kick and rush, but my main problem with his play was that although he knew when to keep it tight, he rarely knew when to loosen the valve. I honestly believe that had Barry added an attacking string to his bow, he would have enjoyed far more appraisal and success as a player.

 

Here's a question for you, and it may seem an obvious one to answer but not so if you think about it, Would Barry shine in our current predicament Knowing how tight these pitches are and the little time he'd have on the ball? even if he were in his prime ?

You forget that in 02/03 he scored 18 goals, had loads of assists and was a real box to box player (going against the grain of his deep lying playmaker role that he generally played).

 

And yes. Barry would be a standout player for us now, let alone when at his peak. Any quality player will stand out against the opposition we are playing.

[Super_Ally 0]

The guys who sat next to me preferred to call him '' Barry Ma Baw ''

 

I don't think Ferguson's contribution can be denied and he was a sound player for us, his ability to keep things simple is a plus in a culture of kick and rush, but my main problem with his play was that although he knew when to keep it tight, he rarely knew when to loosen the valve. I honestly believe that had Barry added an attacking string to his bow, he would have enjoyed far more appraisal and success as a player.

 

Here's a question for you, and it may seem an obvious one to answer but not so if you think about it, Would Barry shine in our current predicament Knowing how tight these pitches are and the little time he'd have on the ball? even if he were in his prime ?

 

"Sound" player and could he hack it in Spfl league 1?

 

By an absolute donkey dick's length the best Scottish footballer since maybe Souness.

 

Suffers from a few key incidents in his career clouding people's judgement and the fact that Brits don't appreciate cultured, continental style players in the way the Spanish, Italians etc would.

[Waltersgotstyle 307]

To say he struggled at Blackburn is simply not correct. He was had a bad injury and on his return he gained several man of the match awards.

 

I could be wrong but I am sure he was also made captain.

 

Barry was a top player for us and held his own against some of Europes top names. If he led us to glory in 2008 he would have been up there with the greats.

[Ser Barristan Selmy 222]

"Sound" player and could he hack it in Spfl league 1?

 

By an absolute donkey dick's length the best Scottish footballer since maybe Souness.

 

Suffers from a few key incidents in his career clouding people's judgement and the fact that Brits don't appreciate cultured, continental style players in the way the Spanish, Italians etc would.

AMEN brother!!

[Ser Barristan Selmy 222]

To say he struggled at Blackburn is simply not correct. He was had a bad injury and on his return he gained several man of the match awards.

 

I could be wrong but I am sure he was also made captain.

 

Barry was a top player for us and held his own against some of Europes top names. If he led us to glory in 2008 he would have been up there with the greats.

I don't think you read what I wrote. When I say struggled, I mean he wasn't the type of standout star that saw a top Bundesliga side praising him immensely:

 

After us he went to Blackburn and struggled in a poor side that was going nowhere, particularly after selling their star asset Duff to Chelsea who helped fund the move. A collision with Gary Speed resulted in a dislocated knee cap that held his career back massively but Ferguson still had what I believe is still a record streak of man of the matches on the trot (5, 6 or 7 was it?).

[Ser Barristan Selmy 222]

I think my point here is that when Ferguson left us in 02/03 he should have been hitting Lampard and Gerrard type heights, as he had more natural talent than both. And this is coming from a Chelsea fan who worships Lampard.