I think Benson has been the best midfielder we’ve had over the last few years, he’s just not been able to play. He looked excellent in the season under Duff - and then he got injured again and fate has meant it’s just not worked.
I said months ago that making him captain would affect his game ... and it has. Captains shout, dictate, organise on the field. Poor little Luca looks like a little boy worried to bits. I don't know who fits the bill though.
We’d be worse off without him. I don’t get the angle that the captaincy has affected his game, why would it? I don’t think pressure or anything comes a part of it. The reason why he’s the captain, is the reason why we all said before he was appointed captain that he should be captain, because he commands and demands other members of the team and one of the very few who is vocal. It’s easy to blame his form (which I don’t think is as bad as 2 seasons, maybe the last ten games) on his captaincy but for me it has no relevance.
This formation doesn’t help him. Teams set up against us to pack the middle of the park, so getting a good ball out of defence doesn’t happen in those kinds of games, (which we especially see at home) and also why you see us knock it around the back until it gets to a wing back, who invariably sends it long. The number of times a wing back has it, and we have no one in the middle of the park is crazy. That’s when the ball invariably goes long down the wing and usually lost or back to the CB and recycled until invariably, one of the the wing back knocks it long. My point is that this system is hardly set up for a CM to shine.
I wouldn’t be selling him until summer at least, for me him having captaincy has unfortunately made him undroppable when he has been playing poorly. Give someone else captaincy and let’s see if it helps him get back to what he was, it might be kick up aris he needs as well.
Can understand that but don’t know who would replace him. Natural pointers towards Roberts of course, but for me what’s the good in appointing a 34 year old to be captain when he can be a captain without the armband. He’ll be here end of next season max. Connell is contracted until end of 2027 so provides a bit more stability and looking into the longer term picture. I think far too much hassle gets put on appointment of who’s captain anyhow, you’re either a leader or you’re not, you’re respected by your teammates or not, your lead in everything not just on a Saturday or not, armband or not. Problem for me is not the leaders we have, but the lack of leaders we have.
I know this is stating the obvious, but hes only a top player when he's at his best. And I'm afraid he hasn't been anything like that, for two years now!.
Thought he was MOTM for us in the week. Played really well. But it's been decided he's crap and Nwakali is the better option, so even when Connell plays as well or better than he did under Duff, which he did at Wycombe, it's claimed he's rubbish. Meanwhile Nwakali genuinely was crap against Stevanage, but he should have played.
He's the only non-fanny of all the midfield options. Dont get me wrong - there's other good players in our midfield. But you can't tell me any of them aren't fannies. Connell - good player, not a fanny Phillips - very good player - bit of a fanny Nwakali - good player - bit of a fanny Russell - ok player - massive fanny DKD - very good player - big fanny. We're already massively short of non-fannies. There's more fannies in our midfield than the audience at a Magic Mike show.
Didn't you used to be Inspector Derek Grim on The Thin blue line ? lol. He always hated hoitey toitey people fannying about.