Marius Niculae

[IMMORTAL HOWDEN ENDER]

Fer fecks sake - If we got him from Cowdenbeath we would be raving feckin mad.

[IMMORTAL HOWDEN ENDER]

Have I got this all feckin wrong or what ?

Nearly every paper that I pick up this morning places Marius in the same bracket as Cowie and Wyness.  :024:

Before and after the game the large majority of people were agreeing with the comments I have placed on this thread.  :024:

I thought that basically he looked good in the first 20 minutes - missed a great chance set up by Wyness and then faded badly. Bayne came on at Killie and made little difference or impression - but he did yesterday.

I also noticed that Marius made space on the wide left 2 or 3 times in the second half and his team mates chose to go down another avenue.  :024: :024:

I am more concerned about strong comments that it is part of his contract that he should start if he is deemed to be fit.  :018:

I am getting really pished off with the constant drive to keep on playing him. There were sections of the crowd yesterday that were clapping when he passed the feckin ball - and claimed that he was unlucky to miss two absolute sitters.  :023:

So lets talk about the performance and NOT anything else - that is all that I am bothered about.

[Johnboy]

I don't think you've got anything wrong....

I must have seen on tv or read at least a dozen interviews with Craig Brewster in recent weeks....

Why can't none of these hapless interviewers ask him what he thinks about Marius..?

His contract..?  His wages..?  His fitness..? His performances to date (or lack of)..?

How much longer can Caley afford the luxury of having him in the team?

[Kind of Blue]

Marius is extremely unlucky, due to hitting the woodwork and inspired saves, not to be on about 5 league goals by now.  This situation will change very soon and once it does he will relax in front of goal and his class will be apparent to one and all.  I've been impressed with him so far and I have every confidence that he will be an important player for us.

[Johnboy]

  I've been impressed with him so far and I have every confidence that he will be an important player for us.

I hope you're right.....

I just wish we could see a general improvement in his play and comittment each week  :017:

[caley100]

Well i saw a player who was commited as much as any ICT player yesterday, and what you will not see on highlights is his work off the ball, he very seldom wastes a ball and his passing his top drawer.

How is wish he had slotted that shot into the net, but we have to persevere, his day will come.

[Johnboy]

I hope you're right too.....  :014:

[CaleyD]

I'm with Caley100.  Apart from creating 3 or 4 chances from nothing for himself against Gretna he couldn't have done much more for the one that was cleared off the line as he was already at full stretch.  A couple of times he picked the ball up on the half way line only to find himself crowded out with no support and having to opt for a shot from 25+ yards out.

He reminds me a lot of Bayne and puts in a fair amount of leg work and seems to get very little reward in terms of goals, yet you don't see Bayne coming in for the same stick this season.  Niculae has one big plus point over Bayne though, and that is his high level of ball control....not to mention the fact he can jump more than 6 inches off the ground.

It seems that some people have dug themselves into such a deep hole when it comes to slating Niculae that it's become an obsession and they go looking for excuses to play down his performance on the pitch.

What annoys me even more are those who listen on the radio every week or catch the 2/3 minute highlights and base opinion on that.

[Guest eliza]

Well said Caley D  :021:

[Johnboy]

It seems that some people have dug themselves into such a deep hole when it comes to slating Niculae that it's become an obsession and they go looking for excuses to play down his performance on the pitch.

Deep hole...?   I don't think so...

I wasn't at Saturday's game but I have seen enough of him to form an opinion... I don't accept that he should be above and beyond criticism from any quarter..

Re-reading all the hype surrounding his signing, it was as if we were getting a cross between Mark Viduka and James McFadden... 

I'm not sure either about the comparison with Bayne.... Surely it should be borne in mind that one is earning 3 times as much as the other.

As mentioned previously I'll be delighted to be proved wrong come the end of the season, as we celebrate a top six finish.... and I'll be more than happy to present him with his ICT player of the year award....!! :014:

[davieB]

Spot on CaleyD :022:

Whatever he does on the pitch, it's never going to be enough for some people. Fortunately, most people can see what a good player Marius is. And for those who question his committment :017:.....not sure that they've been watching the same player as I have every week.

Is it any coincidence that Denzil is playing his best football since he returned, now he's got someone alongside him with a football brain to match his own. Marius rarely gives the ball away, wins most headers, directs those headers to where they're intended, and works superbly with Dennis. He's been unfortunate not to get off the mark yet......his time will come though.

And as much as I like Bayne, to compare him to Marius is....

[Johnboy]

Thinking about comparing players....

Can I ask CaleyD, DavieB and anyone else, who do they think was the better of these two signings..?

Cowie or Niculae?

:024:

[Ronaldo]

Sunday Herald had him as man of the match on Sat, what does this poor chap have to do to score a league goal?!

Must be saving himself for Ibrox........

[Johnboy]

Does this warrant a separate thread..?

[clacher_holiday2]

Not until this one has run its course.

[Johnboy]

Which could take a long, long time....  :023:

[absent friend]

From Johnboy

''.... Surely it should be borne in mind that one is earning 3 times as much as the other''

Are you now suggesting that the players run around the park, on a Saturday, with their incomes's showing and we can then compare them ? for ???

Or is it that a player on a higher income must run faster than a player on a lower one?

Or maybe he should score more goals?

Or by your ??'s for players performance, his goals should be more spectacular!!

I accept that I am only an 'armchair/terracing manager' but even I realise that there is more to a player than just scoring goals - if a player assists in 10 goals and does not score himself is he then deemed to be a failure, in your opinion?

And, believe it or not, the opposition are aware of a good players ability and will set out to nullify this threat to them but this then leaves the other attackers more free to be shining stars and score the goals!

[Caley Stan]

Another week, another frustrating Niculae performance.

The boy has a bit of class, nobody disputes that - but we are entitled to expect more than a few tidy flicks and intelligent runs. He is very slow and doesn't seem to have enough aggression in his game for the SPL. 

Note the difference when Bayne came on - he looked much more up for the battle and in this league that can mean just as much as a neat lay off.

I think the board have fecked up with signing. When you pay a player significantly more than the rest of the squad you expect something a bit special and we're just not getting that. 

[Guest TinCanFan]

Niculae's magic moments might (and almost definately) will come.

[IMMORTAL HOWDEN ENDER]

I am afraid that his magic moments lie in the depths of time. IMHO he comes across so well as he never wastes a ball and always plays the simple pass. Give him time and he could be deadly - but you rarely get that in the SPL. He forages in bursts and not consistently. In other words he looks good at times but IMHO is not producing the end product. Totally agree with Stan. And I would say the opposite of Caley D - not many people can see his faults and he has become a protected species and too many people are concentrating on what he has done well in a game and not on his general performance - why is he being hooked?? . Week in week out I am hearing wait until he scores - wait until he is 100% fit.  :017: :017:

Wyness is a better player because he has to run the lines and work harder and make space. His close control and turning is more akin to the Wyness of old. Wyness is playing better to compensate fer Marius. I would agree that Marius is a complete role model in how to make the game look easy but his lack of pace and mobility is quite frankly shocking. He can produce 2 or 3 killer passes but is that enuff. I can see Marius doing a job fer us at home but only on the bench away - and surely that is simply not good enuff.

And no team has set out to nullify Marius. There is also a big difference in a direct assist and an indirect assist - the most difficult part of the game is putting the ball in the net.

[CaleyD]

I wasn't at Saturday's game but I have seen enough of him to form an opinion... I don't accept that he should be above and beyond criticism from any quarter..

Not suggesting for one second he should be beyond criticism, but it needs to be balanced and some people seem intent on exaggerating the negatives and not balancing their argument by acknowledging the positives, of which there are plenty.

Re-reading all the hype surrounding his signing, it was as if we were getting a cross between Mark Viduka and James McFadden... 

All the hype prior to his arrival is half the problem IMO.  Many had built him up in their minds as some kind of demi-god before he had even kicked a ball and he is now suffering the backlash of not living up to that.

I'm not sure either about the comparison with Bayne.... Surely it should be borne in mind that one is earning 3 times as much as the other.

The "Value for money" argument is for the club to worry about and if fans wish to criticise on that front then they should be criticising the club for the manner of their spending.  As far as I am concerned it matters not a jot what a player is getting paid when he is out there on the park.  When a player comes in for criticism it should be in comparison to his peers and not based on the size of his wage packet.

Thinking about comparing players....

Can I ask CaleyD, DavieB and anyone else, who do they think was the better of these two signings..?

Depends on the comparison your looking for....

- In terms of contribution on the park I think both players are doing a job.

- In terms of "Value for Money" then Cowie by a country mile.

Which brings up the point...had we signed Niculae on similar wages, would he be coming in for so much criticism for his performance?

And I would say the opposite of Caley D - not many people can see his faults and he has become a protected species and too many people are concentrating on what he has done well in a game and not on his general performance - why is he being hooked?? . Week in week out I am hearing wait until he scores - wait until he is 100% fit.  :017: :017:

As is often the case in life, you get two arguments that are at the opposite end of the scale and the truth normally lies somewhere in the middle.

Wyness is a better player because he has to run the lines and work harder and make space. His close control and turning is more akin to the Wyness of old. Wyness is playing better to compensate fer Marius. I would agree that Marius is a complete role model in how to make the game look easy but his lack of pace and mobility is quite frankly shocking. He can produce 2 or 3 killer passes but is that enuff. I can see Marius doing a job fer us at home but only on the bench away - and surely that is simply not good enuff.

Marius put in as much leg work against Gretna as Wyness did, if not more.  How many times did Wyness pick up the ball in the middle of the park and make a run at goal?  Who was the first player off the mark to chase down the save by Mikey which was pushed wide and in danger of being kept in by Gretna?

As I said above, 2 or 3 times Niculae picked up the ball from well out and made a run from goal only to find himself crowded out by defenders with nobody in support.  If Niculae is as slow and unfit as people would have us believe then how is he able to make these moves, and why is it that others aren't able to keep up?  Not saying he's the fastest of players, but I think his "weakness" in the speed/fitness department is being hugely exaggerated.  And when you allow for the fact he's constantly playing between the centre of the pitch and the box then it's no wonder he's being hooked early with tired legs.  It's very much the same scenario for Bayne when he starts a game and finds himself being hooked near the end, and it's for the same reasons....they both put in the miles.  Perhaps if we started Niculae alongside Bayne and allowed Bayne to do the legwork for Niculae instead of Niculae doing it for others then we'd see more goals from him.

[Johnboy]

Which brings up the point...had we signed Niculae on similar wages, would he be coming in for so much criticism for his performance?

Yes - That is the nub of the matter, is it not..? He would have been praised highly for his undoubted skills - had he been signed on the same terms as - say... Cowie.

The club is at much to blame as anyone else for all the hype they fed us with when the signing was made.

As for his goal scoring or lack of... I have not criticised him for that - setting up goal-scoring chances is as an important part of the game as finishing.

He has never been a prolific scorer anyway.... He's only scored six goals since his days at Standard Liege in 2005.... and two of these were against Arbroath....!!

[CaleyD]

2 men buy the exact same car.

First guy pays 20,000 for it, and second guy pays ?18,000 for it.

Both cars will still perform exactly the same regardless of what was paid for them.  Should the first guy be going back to the garage and demanding his car perform better just because he paid more?

Performance and Price are two very separate and distinct arguments.

I would not say we are getting value for money from Niculae at the moment, but that's not to say that I don't think he is performing on a par with his peers.

[IMMORTAL HOWDEN ENDER]

Bit reluctant to get drawn into this as this feels like beg to differ scenario. But I aint and never have had made direct comparisons with wages - it is all about performance as far as I am concerned. Caley D made some positive observations but there were lots of negatives as well. He pushed the ball past the full back and had a three yard start on him but was caught up by the end of fifteen yards. He plays mainly down the centre and very rarely goes to the flanks or moves into the forward spaces - on the last defender for example. I could go on but I will desist. He is doing things on the pitch which would be expected of most professional footballers - he isnt excelling or providing entertainment - he is a good pro - end of story.

And in regard to the car scenario I would prefer to make a comparison between the cost of running it, the size of the engine and the performance expectations. If the lower priced car is performing better than or on a par with the higher priced model then you would be complaining to the manufacturer.

Marius to Bayne should be like a Jaguar to an Escort. Perhaps it is because the Jag has some faulty parts due to wear and tear whilst the Escort has been customised and souped up.  :001:

[CaleyD]

The car comparison was not two different models....it was the same car bought for two different prices.

i.e.  A Niculae getting paid ?1000/week compared to a Niculae getting paid ?4000/week.

Both would perform the same and the argument only arises in terms of "Value for money"

Johnboy and others have said that had Niculae been on a lower wage then he would be getting praised for his contribution.  I personally don't see why the cost should be brought in to it when commenting on his performance.

Of course it's a "beg to differ" scenario.  I just want to understand why it is that some people see his performances as acceptable and some don't.  I've already shown that for some people it is based on the wage the guy is getting and the high expectations that we were as guilty of creating as fans as anyone else.  For me, his wage has no baring whatsoever on how his performance is judged.