niemi14 Posted 25 November, 2012 Share Posted 25 November, 2012 I think Jose deserves a lot of credit. He certainly had a very shaky start to the season with his individual performances match that of the team's; littered with mistakes. However, he is the one constant of the back 5, having played every league game so far and I feel he is learning and adapting to become a Premier League centre back. Lots of posters are very quick to slate players for making mistakes or playing poorly on here. Jose dropped down a league to join us in 2009 and has had to adapt to a higher division each season. This can't be easy but Adkins obviously rates his very highly and he seems to be improving week on week. Will never forget the goal against Brighton at the Withdean, where he hurdled the hoarding and sprinted over to celebrate with the fans. Brilliant moment. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
farawaysaint Posted 25 November, 2012 Share Posted 25 November, 2012 Coming from Palace as he did I'm sure that goal was a special joy. Jose Fonte baby Woooaaa Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
norwaysaint Posted 25 November, 2012 Share Posted 25 November, 2012 I've been quite surprised. I didn't see a lot of our games last year, but from reports, people seemed to rate him below Jos and believe that he would be a player who wasn't good enough for the prem. He'd excelled in league one, but championship was his level. From what I've seen of him on telly, he seems to be doing okay and, considering the players making errors around him, has been reasonably reliable. Of course, you only see so much of his game on TV and I haven't seen every match, but from what I have seen, I wouldn't be too concerned if we kept him as a starter in the team for a while. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
saintfully Posted 25 November, 2012 Share Posted 25 November, 2012 Was not convinced he could do it, but has made the jump up IMHO. Now a decent mid-table premiership centre back. Pleased for him and happy that he will only get better. No idea what the slump in form in the second half of last season was about though, but it definately happened. Just knackered?? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
niemi14 Posted 25 November, 2012 Author Share Posted 25 November, 2012 I also think Jos Hooiveld could make the step up, given a fair chance and run of games. He was superb last season. However, I think Adkins has decided on his first choice centre back pairing, until January at least, and seems to be sticking with it, which can only be a good thing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wild-saint Posted 25 November, 2012 Share Posted 25 November, 2012 If Fonte had a strong consistent partner he'd be good. Look how woeful Claus was without Richards or Svensson. Don't think Fonte has been as bad as Claus in 2004/05, not by a long way. With a player like Dawson perhaps or similar signing, he's good enough, plus it helps to have some continuity. and that is the crux of the problem at saints. both our current first choice cbs need a strong dominant ( particularly in the air) partner who will lead and marshall the back four. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
saintmatt Posted 9 December, 2012 Share Posted 9 December, 2012 Another strong performance from Fonte yesterday. As OP says, shaky start to his Prem career but really proving his class by showing he can adapt. His step up in form has been a big factor in our defensive improvement imo. And I know the money we offered was a big factor, but I'll always love the fact he dropped a division to join us! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dig Dig Posted 9 December, 2012 Share Posted 9 December, 2012 Another lesson which hopefully our expert bed wetters have learnt. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sour Mash Posted 9 December, 2012 Share Posted 9 December, 2012 I didn't think Fonte would be able to cut it in the Prem - happy to be proved wrong, he's been excellent. Should be our captain in my opinion. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beatlesaint Posted 9 December, 2012 Share Posted 9 December, 2012 Quite amusing the way he told the boo boys in the Northam to shut the **** up when Guly came on ! When they realised their error and started singing the Guly song Jose gently clapped them Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fish fingers Posted 9 December, 2012 Share Posted 9 December, 2012 Fonte looks a much better player when Hoovield doesn't play. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barry the Badger Posted 9 December, 2012 Share Posted 9 December, 2012 When they realised their error and started singing the Guly song Jose gently clapped them It wasn't the same people. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
colehillsaint Posted 9 December, 2012 Share Posted 9 December, 2012 I didn't think Fonte would be able to cut it in the Prem - happy to be proved wrong, he's been excellent. Should be our captain in my opinion. Was thinking about that with AL likely to be out. What a good shout. Will be interesting to see who gets the nod. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Saint_clark Posted 9 December, 2012 Share Posted 9 December, 2012 I think Fonte was the captain with Lallana off the pitch. In the second half he was certainly much more vocal than I've seen him, organising everyone and calming the team down in the final 10 minutes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
for_heaven's_Saint Posted 9 December, 2012 Share Posted 9 December, 2012 I think Fonte was the captain with Lallana off the pitch. In the second half he was certainly much more vocal than I've seen him, organising everyone and calming the team down in the final 10 minutes. Indeed, particularly when Davis had the ball, he was telling him to take his time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
S-Clarke Posted 9 December, 2012 Share Posted 9 December, 2012 Classy defender who is coming back into form. Looks more composed, and his confidence is growing as it looks like he believes he can now play in the PL. (same can be said for alot of the players TBF) But he's dealt with some pretty decent strikers in recent weeks, Cisse, Ba, Holt, Saurez, and he's done his job pretty well on every one of them. I always believed he had class, and was confused at the back end of last season as his performances were uncharacteristic. But you never lose the class, as they say - form is temporary, class is permanent Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colbury Posted 9 December, 2012 Share Posted 9 December, 2012 He has come good for us when many including me had written him off. Fair play to him. One thing that continues to annoy me though is his long diagonal balls forward.. He doesn't have the technique to strike a ball cleanly and gives it straight back to the opposition more often than not. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thedelldays Posted 9 December, 2012 Share Posted 9 December, 2012 been superb lately....really impressed with him....does not look out of place in the prem at all.. I do LOL at myself when i thought he would be benched and jos would be our main man this season... we really do need another prem standard CB...even if just on loan till the end of the season.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
View From The Top Posted 9 December, 2012 Share Posted 9 December, 2012 (edited) He's grown into , as have most of our players. Fair play to him as I didn't think he'd be good enough. Edited 9 December, 2012 by View From The Top Grammatical error. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trousers Posted 9 December, 2012 Share Posted 9 December, 2012 http://www.saintsweb.co.uk/showthread.php?t=39791 http://www.saintsweb.co.uk/showthread.php?t=37401 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chez Posted 9 December, 2012 Share Posted 9 December, 2012 I also think Jos Hooiveld could make the step up, given a fair chance and run of games. He was superb last season. This is exactly what I have been saying for months now. It's good that we have a settled back four, that is very important, but if Jos has to come in I won't be concerned at all. He will be fine. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pezza Posted 9 December, 2012 Share Posted 9 December, 2012 Most improved player closely followed by Puncheon who I had down gash!!!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Restark19 Posted 9 December, 2012 Share Posted 9 December, 2012 Fonte has been top class recently, thought he was excellent against Reading Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mitch01 Posted 9 December, 2012 Share Posted 9 December, 2012 I've got to say I didn't think he or Jos would be good enough for us in the Premier League, especially due to their lack of pace. The first few games did nothing to change my mind, but I remember being at the Emirates and thinking that - despite the scoreline - Jose was actually competing pretty well and standing up to be counted. From then on I haven't had much to criticise him on; he is playing with a good intensity and has been a reliable partner to Yoshida while he continues to adapt to the division. I always enjoy watching his reaction to our goals, you can see how much he wants us to succeed. 1st and 3rd goals vs QPR are good examples, for the Ferdinand OG he fell to his knees in delight! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
corsacar saint Posted 9 December, 2012 Share Posted 9 December, 2012 Fonte has been superb for the last couple of months and is definately changing my opinion on whether he is good enouugh to play in this league.He is stepping up to the plate,when it was imperative that he did and long may it continue. Hopefully we only need one central defender in January now and not two. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
St Chalet Posted 9 December, 2012 Share Posted 9 December, 2012 Two goals against Fulham were pretty useful as well. Did very well yesterday. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Saint Garrett Posted 9 December, 2012 Share Posted 9 December, 2012 I've got to say I didn't think he or Jos would be good enough for us in the Premier League, especially due to their lack of pace. The first few games did nothing to change my mind, but I remember being at the Emirates and thinking that - despite the scoreline - Jose was actually competing pretty well and standing up to be counted. From then on I haven't had much to criticise him on; he is playing with a good intensity and has been a reliable partner to Yoshida while he continues to adapt to the division. I always enjoy watching his reaction to our goals, you can see how much he wants us to succeed. 1st and 3rd goals vs QPR are good examples, for the Ferdinand OG he fell to his knees in delight! This. He took a few weeks to adjust this season, but no surprise as he's never looked particularly happy next to Jos and Yoshi was learning. He played OK Vs Arsenal and has been brilliant the last few months. You can also see how much it means to him, definate captain material while Adam's out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Restark19 Posted 10 December, 2012 Share Posted 10 December, 2012 definate captain material while Adam's out. Have up agree with this. Clearly very passionate. Was also good to see him questioning those booing Guly against Reading. Great to see players backing each other, exactly the spirit needed to survive in this league. Really impressed with him so far and long may it continue Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wade Garrett Posted 10 December, 2012 Share Posted 10 December, 2012 He looks a different player now. Wonder if it's got anything to do with his partnership with Yoshida. They both derserve a lot of credit for our defensive improvement. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rooney Posted 10 December, 2012 Share Posted 10 December, 2012 He looks excellent now. His Reading pre-match media interview was superb on Friday. Such an intelligent person & player. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
david in sweden Posted 10 December, 2012 Share Posted 10 December, 2012 I think Jose deserves a lot of credit. He certainly had a very shaky start to the season with his individual performances match that of the team's;. I've been a constant critic of Fonte this season, and not (I think) with good cause. He single-handedly cost us the Wigan game, BUT having watched the Newcastle and Norwich games first hand, I was impressed by his "revival " of form and feel he's beginning to look like the player we once knew - even though it is at a higher level. I only hope he can hold his form in the future. NOTE: Signing a new CB - doesn't mean that we should feel disatisfied with Fonte ........or Yoshida (who's beginning to look like a good signing ), but if any of them were to have a serious injury.....as did Jaidi, or like the " Seaborne Incident " we'd be really up against it without any good, experienced cover. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Patrick Bateman Posted 10 December, 2012 Share Posted 10 December, 2012 I got him totally wrong. Thought that Jos would be the one who could step up to the Prem and not Fonte - clearly I couldn't have been more wrong. Delighted for Fonte, but a bit gutted that Jos hasn't been able (yet?) to do it especially as he became such a big player for us last season!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pingwing Posted 10 December, 2012 Share Posted 10 December, 2012 Next to Yoshida he seems to have really found a partnership that works, they are both confident to play the ball, know who is going to get which ball and who to mark/stick to like glue. I think Jos just demonstrates the different needs in different leagues, he is an all action CB who goes for everything, works well in the champ where everyone is always going for everything. In the prem that attitude is very costly (his pen's conceded and own goals are way too high so far this year) as it is the simplest way to create a mistake that the opposition will pounce on. Both Fonte and Yoshida have shown they have the mentality to take a moment to think what to challenge for and time it properly, its a refreshing partnership to watch now it has gotten working. Also loved his shear determination against Fulham, his interview afterwards summed it up though of "should of won, cannot believe I had to play like that to get a point", top guy for honesty and determination to succeed with us! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sotonian Posted 10 December, 2012 Share Posted 10 December, 2012 Knowing him fairly well, got to ask the question, Why do saints fans continue to call him Fonte A, he really doesn't like it, back to the original point, yes he has looked better every game this season Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dig Dig Posted 10 December, 2012 Share Posted 10 December, 2012 (edited) Knowing him fairly well, got to ask the question, Why do saints fans continue to call him Fonte A, he really doesn't like it, back to the original point, yes he has looked better every game this season Were we supposed to know this? Edited 10 December, 2012 by Dig Dig Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pingwing Posted 10 December, 2012 Share Posted 10 December, 2012 Knowing him fairly well, got to ask the question, Why do saints fans continue to call him Fonte A, he really doesn't like it, back to the original point, yes he has looked better every game this season Be cause Jose Font baby, Jose Font OHHHHH, seems difficult to sing Shame as Font is better than actually pronouncing the A... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sour Mash Posted 10 December, 2012 Share Posted 10 December, 2012 Knowing him fairly well, got to ask the question, Why do saints fans continue to call him Fonte A, he really doesn't like it, Because it fits well with his song? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ericb Posted 10 December, 2012 Share Posted 10 December, 2012 I got him totally wrong. Thought that Jos would be the one who could step up to the Prem and not Fonte - clearly I couldn't have been more wrong. Delighted for Fonte, but a bit gutted that Jos hasn't been able (yet?) to do it especially as he became such a big player for us last season!! Agreed mate, i'll hold my hands up on this one and say i got it wrong. He's been quality in recent weeks and looks like he's properly found his place. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sotonian Posted 10 December, 2012 Share Posted 10 December, 2012 Were we supposed to know this? Pre match player announcements Comentatators Interviews Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
david in sweden Posted 11 December, 2012 Share Posted 11 December, 2012 I got him totally wrong. Thought that Jos would be the one who could step up to the Prem and not Fonte - clearly I couldn't have been more wrong. Delighted for Fonte, but a bit gutted that Jos hasn't been able (yet?) to do it especially as he became such a big player for us last season!! Me too, but I don't think we've seen the last of Jos either. Many of the squad were blitzed by the pace /skill of the opposition we had at the start of the season and Jos suffered more than most, but I'm banking on seeing him again - if and when required. The eventual new CB we sign in Janaury won't be " Saints-fit" until March. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dimond Geezer Posted 11 December, 2012 Share Posted 11 December, 2012 I've been very impresed with him laterly, he had a shaky start but has come good in recent weeks, he needs a reliable partner though, I'm not sure Yosh is the man for that, although he's not done too bad himself recently. I have to admit I was in the camp that thought Jos would be our star defender & Fonte would be in the stiffs. That just goes to illustrate why I'm not a football manager. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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