Vital Reading looks at the players’ individual performances from the stalemate with Blackburn on Saturday.
Vital Reading looks at the players’ individual performances from the stalemate with Blackburn on Saturday.
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Adam Federici – 6 – For the third game running, not a lot for Feders to do. Distribution faultless as ever.
Chris Gunter – 6 – Nothing spectacular from the right-back, who did his defensive duties fine, keeping a good winger in Marshall very quiet. Didn’t offer a lot going forward though, as Mackie looked very isolated.
Alex Pearce – 6 – Like Gunter, nothing spectacular, but solid enough. Barely troubled by the physical duo of Brown or Rhodes.
Michael Hector – 7 – Good showing once again from big Hec, who like Pearce, kept a physical front duo very quiet. A definite contender for player of the season.
Nathan Ake – 6 – The Chelsea loanee showed his versatility by coming in at left-back and doing a good job. Very composed on the ball, but unfortunately didn’t put any crosses in of any note.
Nathaniel Chalobah – 7 – Fantastic to have him back in the side ahead of the semi-final next week and a classy performance too. Good energy and crisp passing, which helped our general control of the game.
Jem Karacan – 6 – What a sight to see Jem back out playing again, especially as skipper. There were a few loose touches and passes, but on the whole, a very typical Jem performance – great engine, hassling and simple passing.
Jamie Mackie – 7 – Man of the Match – The only player on the pitch that looked like creating anything throughout. He may not possess the greatest pace, but his balance and technique is very good. If we had killer instinct in the box, he should have had at least two assists.
Hal Robson-Kanu – 5 – A different and more central role for HRK, but failed to grasp it. He was often far too deep to have any influence and had a great chance in the first half to open the scoring.
Garath McCleary – 5 – Frustrating afternoon for McCleary, who lacked any real final product. Lots of good and positive running, but didn’t pick the right option often enough.
Pavel Pogrebnyak – 5 – Not the big Russian’s best game. His touch had an off day and couldn’t get in the right positions, which Clarke alluded to afterwards.
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Oliver Norwood – 6 – A few neat touches and good set pieces.
Kwesi Appiah – N/A – Not on long enough to make an impact.
Hope Akpan – N/A – Brought on too steady the ship in midfield, but again, bought on too late to have a massive impact.
