Patrick Roberts!

He’ll want to up his chance of a future England place.

Goes down there, does well in a pish mid table team and he’ll go straight in to the squad. They always pick the best performing players in the PL at the time and end up with half a squad who’s never played top level international football before.

Dicks.

 

Cant blame them tbh. Their whole national pool plays local, English players very rarely travel.

Look at Sinclair last season ripping it up when he is absolutely nowhere near good enough for England. It really is hard to tell a players true ability at this level, if they haven't totally proved themselves in European competition for us.

On a few occasions it has been a gripe with me. Thought Hooper deserved a call, Thompson, Sutton, big FF, but in hindsight Hooper wasn't good enough - He was better than the likes of Zamora, but thats hardly the bar. And FF is nowhere near the England team at 30 years old after a good start in the Prem.

On Paddy, he wont be back next season, he's had his time here and this season has been a bit if a disaster for him personally with the injury. He will got for a crack at the Prem and it will be interesting to see how he does, not a nailed on success straight off the bat for me, might take time and a few moves. Got the talent, needs the right manager and club.

 

Astonished at how easily the fans (and management) are letting such a one-off talent like this go.
Anyone remember the absolute hysteria last season on this forum ref. signing him?

Paddy is a MUCH better player than James Forrest.
Roberts hasn’t been given a chance since he’s been fit and Forrest has somehow kept his place despite barely kicking a ball in the last 12-15 games.
Roberts has resigned himself to going because he’s not getting picked ahead of a less talented player - simple.

It seems to me we’ve gotten lazy, settling for what we have and not moving the team forward.
Will be GUTTED to see him go....oh how quickly and easily we forget - this decision will come back to haunt us.

 

Entitled to your opinion, but I think the part in bold is dead wrong.

On their day, I think the general consesus would say that Roberts is the better player than Forrest. However, you're being waaay too harsh on Jamesy. The guy's played great all year and has been terrific the last month of the season. Fully deserving of his place in the side at the moment.

Roberts has unfortunately been hampered all season with injury and that's affected his form. Couple that with Forrest's stellar play and you can't expect BR to give Roberts many starts.

I also disagree with the idea that Roberts is "resigning" himself to leaving because James is getting games ahead of him. I think he wants a new challenge and definitely wants a shot at Man City, if not another Premier League club. He's done great work here in his 2 and a half seasons and we'll no doubt miss his quality, but if he's seeking a new opportunity we can only wish him well and move on.

 

Totally agreed.

 

All this talk of him going back to city. He won't ever make the first team there, no chance.

And I can't see any other PL team signing him, for other than a back up to what they have. Can anyone name a PL team that would take him?

Prob end up in the championship huffing and puffing for the rest of his career. Shame because Celtic would have been the ideal platform for his talent.

Good luck Paddy, and thanks.

 

Wish him all the best let's be honest I know this season has been injury plagued but we've had this talent for 3 years.

Would love to see him get a run out today but for some reason can't see it.

 

It’s clear to me Brendan decided several months ago that he would go long term with the cheaper option in Forest. Jamesy was playing very well at that time and so given that why would you give game time to a loan player?

Paddy then went to be only 3rd or 4th choice even from the bench - you can’t tell me that this is based on footballing ability??

Now that Forest has reverted back to his normal, inconsistent, frustrating, no end product form after having an admittedly wonderful spell 15 games ago, I think the decision will be wrong in the long term.

 

I think you would be hard pushed to find someone who genuinely thinks Forrest is better player than Roberts.

Roberts was never staying beyond this season, especially if he had had a stormer of a season. The fact that he's still going for a pop at the Prem after a poor one shows exactly that - He thinks he's ready.

We are all gutted to see him go, again, you would be hard pushed to find someone who isn't.

It was not our choice to let him go, he wasn't ours to keep, and he had no intention of spending another year here.

 

At their very best I'm not sure there is too much between them. Roberts edges it for creativity and skill. i would have given him edge on goals but obviously Jamesy has improved there. At their best though, both can create goals, both can waltz past players, both can score. Theyre very different and Paddy is the more pure footballer. But at his best Forrest is electric and can cause the very best full backs problems. Paddy maybe edges it hut for me its close, ar their best. Forrest is more consistent though and better defensively (both coming with age ofc) so deserves his starting berth.

 

I reckon if he was to have another season here, fit and injury free he would tear it up and the potential clubs he could join down south will increase massively. But he will be on a bit of a downer to be fair, having not had that sort of impact this season - so weigh it up Paddy, take a crack at City, or even low end EPL and hope you stand out - Scott Sinclair will advise him on that - or come back here for a season again? Each have their risk, but I honestly won't begrudge the lad what he decides. He has always been open and honest with what he wants to achieve - epl success - so can't fault the guy. He has done nothing but big up the club, fans and his time up here.

i just hope we get a farewell from him today. Gotta start.

 

Paddy will struggle to cut it in the premiership. He's not exactly on the same level as players like Barton, charlie Adam, Gary Mcallistair or Diouf.

Only the best of the best play in that league.

 

It’s gonna be like the song
‘Only know you love him when you let him go....And you let him go’

 

Pretty sure it's over, sadly. Much more talented than Forrest; but perhaps we need Forrest's defensive workrate in Europe. Also now question marks about whether he might just possibly be a wee bit injury prone, which given the potential fees involved, would make him a risky investment.

From his point of view building a career, if the right mid table EPL move comes along, it probably looks the right time to him.

Gary McAllister was a * good player, why do you lump his name in with that shower?

 

* me I'll miss him. Favourite player gone. Hope he plays today and goes out with a bang.

 

I don't see him featuring at all unfortunately going to miss him big time.

 

Roberts being left on the bench and looking sad as * is a bigger tragedy than the sinking of Titanic.