El Bak

[blueboy]

Boy can he hit a ball. That last one that zipped over the bar was unsaveable. If on target, which might be his problem.

[gedee]

It seems he not only has endless energy, he has the skills and confidence, to go along with with it. And likes to be in amongst it.

Would love him to pick up anither weel deserved goal or two, in the last couiple of games. As you say Blueboy, he can hit a baw.

[kumnio]

Come on guys, his shooting was wild, and he missed an easy pass to Kerr, instead deciding to have a go. Thought his first touch was iffy at times, hope I'm wrong, but I can't see him being good enough. 

[8utters]

He has improved greatly over the last wee while.

He has the confidence to kill any ball played into him, beat the 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th opposition player who approaches him then take a shot.

All that needs working on now, IMO, is his decision making (when to shoot and when to pass).

He's going to be a star for us.

[1stevie]

4 minutes ago, kumnio said:

Come on guys, his shooting was wild, and he missed an easy pass to Kerr, instead deciding to have a go. Thought his first touch was iffy at times, hope I'm wrong, but I can't see him being good enough. 

Maybe he won't be but he does have that something about him.

He is a bit unconventional and does get us on our feet.

I like him in the team.

[Attilio]

Just now, 1stevie said:

Maybe he won't be but he does have that something about him.

He is a bit unconventional and does get us on our feet.

I like him in the team.

I think next season, under the proper manager and played in his best position, he is going to be a top player for us.  I could never have a go at a player for having a pop at goal from distance and this lad can strike a ball.  It looks like he's settled in now and there is less of the 'tekkers' and a lot more teamplay.

[Cobra]

I got annoyed at Tankulic shooting from 30 yards because all it meant was a move breaking down and the opposition being gifted possession of the ball. He'd aim for the top corner and put it in the stands every time.

El Bak though has every right to have a pop because he's capable of scoring from distance. Maybe his decision-making could improve but I agree we have an unpolished diamond in this lad.

[Ivan Drago]

53 minutes ago, kumnio said:

Come on guys, his shooting was wild, and he missed an easy pass to Kerr, instead deciding to have a go. Thought his first touch was iffy at times, hope I'm wrong, but I can't see him being good enough. 

Very harsh imo. 

Laddie is raw but has scored a great number of goals in the lower leagues. First touch is normally a cut above and at least he's exciting to watch. He might not make it but far far too early to write him off just now. A preseason of decent coaching and I'm still confident we will have a star on our hands. Started putting in a real shift now too. 

[WoodStein]

46 minutes ago, Cobra said:

I got annoyed at Tankulic shooting from 30 yards because all it meant was a move breaking down and the opposition being gifted possession of the ball. He'd aim for the top corner and put it in the stands every time.

El Bak though has every right to have a pop because he's capable of scoring from distance. Maybe his decision-making could improve but I agree we have an unpolished diamond in this lad.

I completely agree, there are clear signs that he's worked on aspects of his game from when he arrived after jumping two leagues, and still with relatively limited pro game experience. He'll continue to make mistakes, and to learn from them...but he's not short of confidence, and I suspect he's now got the type of coach who can do a lot for his game.

I mentioned it in another topic, but at Killie & yesterday, I felt his 25 yard+ shots tend to get closer each time....and after his dipping rocket [Blueboy: "That last one that zipped over the bar was unsaveable"] I was convinced the next one was in the net....but NM hooked him! Different end of the striker spectrum, but the young Bobby Charlton said he'd been coached to work on hitting every shot with as much power as he could, and to not bother about the 'wides' and 'row Z' ones, the ones that hit the target will be very hard to stop.

I think 8utters is also right with this: "He has the confidence to kill any ball played into him, beat the 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th opposition player who approaches him then take a shot." His control is improving, and he can change gear quickly, as he demonstrated a few times at Killie, doing exactly this. I noticed, not long before he was subbed, he wanted a long ball from Bain, out to the left, Bain 'half volleyed' the ball about head height with a wee bit of spin on it, El Bak sold the defender a dummy by letting the ball run between them & he was off, our box to their box in a couple of seconds.

A lot more to come from this boy, I feel. 

[J_Kitamirike]

Gonna be a big player for us next season .

Hopefully with a full pre season under his belt he will come out firing. I always get an exciting feeling when he's on the ball and feel like he is a dangerous player.

Get him on the protein shakes in the summer and bulk him up a bit and he will be a star player. 

[RossDee01]

Strange, I see it totally different from most. His shooting is wild, and his decision making is very poor. I do think he'll improve with time but my honest opinion is that he doesn't actually know how to kick a ball properly. He is very good on the ball and has by far the best touch of anyone in our squad, but his shooting is erratic. The shot being described as "unsaveable" was, in fact, very saveable as the keeper had it covered. He seems to jab the ball rather than putting his foot through it and keeping over the ball which is why his shots can be so wild at times. I think it's due to the fact that he was originally a futsal player.

There was so many times yesterday when there was a better option that the long shot yet he failed to see it. Hopefully this improves as I do think he could be a quality player.

Edited 14 May 2017 by RossDee01

[8utters]

14 minutes ago, RossDee01 said:

Strange, I see it totally different from most. His shooting is wild, and his decision making is very poor. I do think he'll improve with time but my honest opinion is that he doesn't actually know how to kick a ball properly. He is very good on the ball and has by far the best touch of anyone in our squad, but his shooting is erratic. The shot being described as "unsaveable" was, in fact, very saveable as the keeper had it covered. He seems to jab the ball rather than putting his foot through it and keeping over the ball which is why his shots can be so wild at times. I think it's due to the fact that he was originally a futsal player.

There was so many times yesterday when there was a better option that the long shot yet he failed to see it. Hopefully this improves as I do think he could be a quality player.

I'm pretty sure he put his foot through the shot that went screaming past Craig Gordon.

It's likely NM has encouraged him to have a pop at goal when the opportunity arises.

I'd rather we were having a shot at goal than turning back or passing sideways which we seemed to too an awful lot of under PH.

But like you say, he does need to improve his decision making.