Is it time for us to replace Howard?

Groucho · December 1, 2014

The Hibbert Agenda said:
If someone better is available then he should be brought in from next season. From 2016 Howard should be #2.

If they're better, why wait till then?

If we can get a better player in any position, we should go for them and play them immediately.

The Hibbert Agenda · December 1, 2014

Groucho said:
If they're better, why wait till then?

If we can get a better player in any position, we should go for them and play them immediately.

By 2016 a replacement SHOULD be in place. As in identified, contracted, ready to play.
A big factor is availability though, and that includes from a financial perspective. I don't want to pay 9m of our budget on a Mignolet. If there is no one available in January who is better than Howard then so be it. Before next season our scouts should have identified his improved replacement and contracted him.

daz4matty · December 1, 2014

I wonder who is scouting the keepers because the one we have brought in already is not good enough.
I would bring ruddy home from norwich

Groucho · December 1, 2014

The Hibbert Agenda said:
By 2016 a replacement SHOULD be in place. As in identified, contracted, ready to play.
A big factor is availability though, and that includes from a financial perspective. I don't want to pay 9m of our budget on a Mignolet. If there is no one available in January who is better than Howard then so be it. Before next season our scouts should have identified his improved replacement and contracted him.

I get you now.

Billy Dean · December 1, 2014

Maybe we could be looking to the Bundesliga for a replacement? Zieler at Hannover is pretty good.

Groucho · December 1, 2014

Billy Dean said:
Maybe we could be looking to the Bundesliga for a replacement? Zieler at Hannover is pretty good.

We need excellent, rather than pretty good.

Howard and Martinez aside but football in general - why spend £28m on a forward but skimp on the goalie? Equally important to find a superb goalie and if we need to spend, then we need to break the bank for someone to even touch the person who we all compare to, Neville Southall.

We were very lucky and very spoilt with him but he embodied NSNO, and that's what we need again between the posts. Not knocking Tim but Neville was better than boss.

toffeeblue9 · December 1, 2014

Howard is one of those players who has never been popular and is first to get a load of stick when he has a bad game

Bit like Osman in that respect

Keepers I'd rather have than him in the Premier League: De Gea, Courtois, Cech, Hart, Lloris and Begovic. Other than that, I wouldn't say I think anyone else is particularly much better than him. If a replacement became available who was significantly better and younger than him, I'd be all for it, as I would for pretty much any other player in the side.

I think we notice Howard's mistakes more because he plays for us, but I don't think he makes significantly more than his peers.

ijjysmith · December 1, 2014

toffeeblue9 said:
Howard is one of those players who has never been popular and is first to get a load of stick when he has a bad game

Bit like Osman in that respect

Keepers I'd rather have than him in the Premier League: De Gea, Courtois, Cech, Hart, Lloris and Begovic. Other than that, I wouldn't say I think anyone else is particularly much better than him. If a replacement became available who was significantly better and younger than him, I'd be all for it, as I would for pretty much any other player in the side.

I think we notice Howard's mistakes more because he plays for us, but I don't think he makes significantly more than his peers.

Sadly the stats for 2014 say that only Vito Mannone has made more errors leading to goals mate. And Mannone's came nearly all from the same game.

Billy Dean · December 1, 2014

Groucho said:
We need excellent, rather than pretty good.

Howard and Martinez aside but football in general - why spend £28m on a forward but skimp on the goalie? Equally important to find a superb goalie and if we need to spend, then we need to break the bank for someone to even touch the person who we all compare to, Neville Southall.

We were very lucky and very spoilt with him but he embodied NSNO, and that's what we need again between the posts. Not knocking Tim but Neville was better than boss.

How much would someone like that cost on today's market though, and would they come to a team not in the CL?

Groucho · December 1, 2014

Billy Dean said:
How much would someone like that cost on today's market though, and would they come to a team not in the CL?

So people though about Lukaku. But he came.

We're not a tiny club, we need to aim high and not have psychological barriers now.

Azzurri · December 1, 2014

raib said:
Howard is past his best - If you look at Lloris he make important save and wins Spurs matches.

We had to score a world class goal to beat him today.

For the first goal, Howard should of pushed the ball out of play for a corner (he put it in Eriksens path).

For the second goal, Howard should have saved that poor effort.

On thursday, I expected him to save all the shots he did (95% of them were straight forward save, which were at him most of the time).

Come on now. I don't rate Howard but you can't blame a keeper for getting beat in a one on one from about 6 yards out.

toffeeblue9 · December 1, 2014

ijjysmith said:
Sadly the stats for 2014 say that only Vito Mannone has made more errors leading to goals mate. And Mannone's came nearly all from the same game.

Wasn't really basing it on this season mate, more a general observation.

Howard's mistakes earlier in the season had me furious (Palace and United instantly spring to mind). Wouldn't be fair to base my opinion of him on 13 games this season though, he probably had his best season for us last year and followed that up with a good World Cup. Having said that, if a better, younger keeper in a realistic price range became available, we'd be silly not to look at replacing him.

Billy Dean · December 1, 2014

Groucho said:
So people though about Lukaku. But he came.

We're not a tiny club, we need to aim high and not have psychological barriers now.

Yeah true but Nev was the world's best GK. In today's world the best GK in the world wouldn't come to us.

cjuk87 · December 1, 2014

The problem is how many individual errors are not only happening, but costing us!

Are they all Howards fault? No, but should he be doing better, Yes.

It's a tough one, at times he looks great, other times like yesterday, shocking.

I honestly don't know my answer to this...so i'm going for maybe.

maccavennie · December 1, 2014

Groucho said:
So people though about Lukaku. But he came.

We're not a tiny club, we need to aim high and not have psychological barriers now.

Yep, spend whatever is needed because a top keeper between the sticks wins points and helps wins games to get you to finals and winning trophies. Howard has been a top drawer signing he really has and last season was his best season with us and he followed that on with a great world cup. He's always been prone to the odd mistake but he's just not been at the races this season and has made as many mistakes as you would expect in a whole season let alone 13 games and cup games. In my opinion that just isn't good enough. I'm not solely blaming Howard either as loads of being out of form but as a keeper your the last line of defence so when you make a poor save, mistake 9 times out of ten it's costly and this season every mistake he's made ( well he got away with one when he dived on the ball at Sunderland with his chest and had to improvise in a situation that shouldn't have happened ) we have been punished for.