Squirrelhumper Posted March 25, 2015 Share Posted March 25, 2015 What makes it more depressing is that he's desperate to play for us. Fact that he's chosen us over Spain shows that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wullzer Posted March 25, 2015 Share Posted March 25, 2015 Ferkin speechless (nearly) For Strachan to say he probably wont play for Real is maybe correct (did you Gordon?) but I don't think they hand out 5 YEAR CONTRACTS to all their youth players. Might be wrong here but maybe someone smarter than me can check this up. If this is all swept under the carpet without proper investigation it will reek of SFA same old, same old. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John_B81 Posted March 25, 2015 Share Posted March 25, 2015 Yet their were people in the media and on here slating Mark Wotte for leaving? No wonder when too many coaches are still stuck in their ways and refuse to embrace change. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ShedTA Posted March 25, 2015 Share Posted March 25, 2015 More proof how out of touch the whole sfa set up is. The fact they are still employing people who think like Sbragia says it all. They will aslo all close ranks to protect the cosy old boys network they have. f&cking disgraceful. Sbragia should be nowhere near the set up with commetns like that. the whole governing set up need turned on its head and so many people need punted out of there. will it happen? will it f*ck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TartanTon Posted March 25, 2015 Share Posted March 25, 2015 The lads dad's response was very level headed and refreshing. Clearly that lad wants to play for us but as his dad says if Scotland aren't intertested by the time he is 21 and other nations are the lad will need to look at the options. We have called up and tied down some right nuggets over the years, but yet when we have a lad who at this stage shows huge potential we should be welcoming him in with open arms, letting him get a feel and Scotland to get a closer look. Is that not what part of the U21's, U19's etc are set up to do anyway? To come out with such a ridiculous excuse for overlooking him has me thinking are they doing a Rhodes on him? (but of course Rhodes is in the bag so to speak) Other nations look at promising talent and tie them down as soon as they can, if that talent fails to then fulfill potential nothing has been lost. We seem to do it in the reverse. And of course we have form in missing out on decent talent (well, not all wanted to play for us right enough, despite the soundbites) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Davied14 Posted March 25, 2015 Share Posted March 25, 2015 “Quality is never a luxury. High technique is never a luxury. If the coach has an issue with Jack’s work rate he should a] tell him in private b] help alter that.“Personally, having seen how Jack plays, understanding his will to play for Scotland, and having suffered too long without Scotland having sufficient high quality players in our playing pool I think this is a retrograde step, almost impossible to understand and extremely disappointing. “This coach isn’t in a full-time club job, and one of the complaints of all who coach at international level is the lack of day-to-day contact with players. “What they DO have is time. Time to study, time to follow players’ development. If Ricky hasn’t seen a lot of Jack … then WHY not? “Games in the Madrid youth system are easy to follow, there’s no reason not to have taken in five or six of them in person or via a scout. “If the decision not to include Jack based on power and height etc seems retrograde and the lack of ‘eyes on’ the player, to me, is totally inexplicable. The coach, ultimately, must take big decisions and I respect his right to do that. “But in this case I strongly disagree with the criteria upon which this one has been made Spain have just spent eight years, 2006-2014 dominating senior and youth football with players who share Jack’s characteristics.” What ever happened to the Scottish FA Performance Strategy of playing the best v the best?" Graham Hunter “The day after Scotland announced the under-19 squad, and Jack wasn’t included, Spain were on the phone asking about his position and international status. Their national academy is just a few miles from Real Madrid’s own training ground, so they know about Jack because they watch his team often enough.“Jack wants to play for Scotland. I’m Scottish, so is his mum and the rest of the family. He is committed to Scotland, but if nothing is happening by the time he is 21 then he will have a decision to make because he has a life and a career to fulfil. Hopefully, it won’t come to that. “To describe Jack as a ‘luxury player’ is a bit harsh. The word ‘luxury’ is a bit strong, but I have no wish to verbally assassinate the Scotland coach. He probably wishes he could back track on his choice of words because I certainly don’t believe Jack is a lazy player. He is not the type who will put in tackles all over the pitch and his game is more about passing and movement, but it’s better to let him do his talking on the football pitch. “There have been many positives for him this season with Real Madrid. He has played and scored in the youth elite level for the club in the Champions League and that has helped his confidence. He is still fighting for the league and a couple of other major trophies with the club between now and the end of the season. He has still to fill out a bit, we appreciate that, but he’s already 6ft 1in and I know for a fact he will get there.” Jack Harper's Dad Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ParisInAKilt Posted March 25, 2015 Share Posted March 25, 2015 Great response from his Dad. Very measured and reasonable. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kenneth Farrington Posted March 25, 2015 Share Posted March 25, 2015 Have never seen Harper play & don't know anything about him in all honesty. However, the stuff I've read over the last couple of days is very positive & a wild stab in the dark suggests he most be more than capable & is being well coached at club level. Very worrying comments from Sbragia though. Has he just got round to watching the 2013 Champions League semi games with Bayern & Barca or has he just watched Spain flop at the World Cup last year & concluded small guys are done? Surely to Christ the idea of having a squad is when plan A isn't working, you have other options? This sord of dark days thinking has to go if we are ever going to get anywhere. Thankfully Messi wasn't trying to make the grade in Scotland years ago! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ShedTA Posted March 25, 2015 Share Posted March 25, 2015 without over reacting too much - since harper is not going to guarantee a winning team on his own, but it is the comments from Sbragia that disappoint me. it is a window into his mentality and his view of what sort of U19's team he wants. This is the development team FFS., this is where we should be playing technical players over runners, to grow them ready for the full side. pathetic stuff. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ParisInAKilt Posted March 25, 2015 Share Posted March 25, 2015 without over reacting too much - since harper is not going to guarantee a winning team on his own, but it is the comments from Sbragia that disappoint me. it is a window into his mentality and his view of what sort of U19's team he wants. This is the development team FFS., this is where we should be playing technical players over runners, to grow them ready for the full side. pathetic stuff. This. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ShedTA Posted March 25, 2015 Share Posted March 25, 2015 without getting vindictive, though its hard, how do we express how annoyed we are? petition to get him the f&ck out? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Auld_Reekie Posted March 25, 2015 Share Posted March 25, 2015 Im actually gutted by Strachan's comments to be honest. Have been hoping we were doing all the right things behind the scenes but this sort of thing really dents my confidence. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Squirrelhumper Posted March 25, 2015 Share Posted March 25, 2015 He bottled the pressure at Sunderland. Hopefully he does likewise and resigns and is never seen again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ShedTA Posted March 25, 2015 Share Posted March 25, 2015 He bottled the pressure at Sunderland. Hopefully he does likewise and resigns and is never seen again. aye but is anyone putting the pressure on? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Magnum Posted March 25, 2015 Share Posted March 25, 2015 As said before, his father has put across a very balanced and fair, but firm, view of the position. I would like to see Sbragia offer the Harper family the same courtesy. To be fair to him, I would like to think that he is thinking that the squad he has picked is the best one to get us to the finals, and he will then have Harper into the squad for the finals, where he can really show off his talents. Whether or not that is the case, he should get on the phone, immediately, to Jack Harper (if he hasn't already done so), and fully explain his decision, and give the boy (although he's really a man now), and his family, some reassurances. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ShedTA Posted March 25, 2015 Share Posted March 25, 2015 Even more bizarre here is Sbragia claiming he went for more height in the squad. Now I didnt think Harper was a wee lad - just checked and Wiki says he is 1.85m tall (6ft 1"). Is this correct? if so WTF? Harper is a midfielder FFS! how tall does Sbragia want his players to be. the guy is a clown. this just gets nmore and more infuriating. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bristolhibby Posted March 25, 2015 Share Posted March 25, 2015 Just read this thread. I'm raging. WGS comments are equally baffling. The type of dismissal that used to make me want to punch him when he was at Celtic. There's defending your team, but that was lunacy from Strachs. J Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ParisInAKilt Posted March 25, 2015 Share Posted March 25, 2015 Even more bizarre here is Sbragia claiming he went for more height in the squad. Now I didnt think Harper was a wee lad - just checked and Wiki says he is 1.85m tall (6ft 1"). Is this correct? if so WTF? Harper is a midfielder FFS! how tall does Sbragia want his players to be. the guy is a clown. this just gets nmore and more infuriating. Yeah that's right, although he's more of a forward. Completed by Wotte to RVP in style and stature. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kenneth Farrington Posted March 25, 2015 Share Posted March 25, 2015 This is the sort of management you used to get at BB fitba. Big guys at centre half / centre mid, wee guys at full back out the road. As Shed says, he's not even wee! Ridiculous comments & certainly not ones to go public with. He shouldn't be anywhere near our setup if this is his his "vision". Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
adamntg Posted March 25, 2015 Share Posted March 25, 2015 Has anyone tweeted Wotte yet? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
El Gingerino Posted March 25, 2015 Share Posted March 25, 2015 Dinosaurs like this need to be removed from our game asap. We're never going to get anywhere with views like this, the whole point in the youth set up is to get our best/most promising players in for as much experience at as high a level as possible, not to try and win every game at all costs by only play the big strong lads. Awful stuff. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
adamntg Posted March 25, 2015 Share Posted March 25, 2015 In all honesty, who gives a flying feck whether the under 19s win or lose? It's all about development up to and including the under 21s. I hope everyone keeps making as much fuss as possible so that Strachan and/or Sbragia is forced to make some soothing overtures to Harper and soon, Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Squirrelhumper Posted March 25, 2015 Share Posted March 25, 2015 A one jack Harper chant would be amusing tonight. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mariokempes56 Posted March 25, 2015 Share Posted March 25, 2015 A one jack Harper chant would be amusing tonight. Aye Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davew Posted March 25, 2015 Share Posted March 25, 2015 (edited) Here's the full quote from the daily mail: I thought I would bold the comments that IMO are cause for concern. It's practically all of it ffs 'Our concentration is on the opening game with Austria and we've deliberately got more height in our squad. That's one of the reasons why Jack isn't in. 'Unfortunately, I don't see enough of him in action. The last time he was with us, he did OK, but I wanted a little more impact. At Real Madrid he can float all over the place, which he does. But with us, he has to be more disciplined. 'He's an exceptionally gifted lad, but sometimes we can't carry him. He can be a luxury sometimes. In some cases, if it's going well, he can be a good luxury.' 'Listen, Jack's time will come. The last time I spoke to him, he wanted to really settle in at Real Madrid and find a place there. That's been a big thing for him. 'I've gone with the boys I've seen most in the last six months. We keep tabs on Jack and see video clips of him. We have people over there who keep their eye on him. 'There are others I've left out like Dominic Thomas at Motherwell who will have gripes that they're not in the squad. 'But I've picked a group of 18 which will hopefully do well for us. It's my opinion and I'm not saying it's right. But the squad I've picked is an extremely strong one. 'I can only pick 18 when I really could have picked 26 or 27. I've gone for a physical side and runners. Hopefully I'm right. 'It's purely tactical and there certainly hasn't been a lack of enthusiasm from Jack about playing for Scotland.' Edited March 25, 2015 by davew Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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