Brandon Barker - Kicking On

I think his biggest problem is he's far to easily brushed off the ball. Don't know if he's to lightweight or just not up for the battle
 
He did well as a sub in the previous league match so I think SG rewards a good performance.
For me Barker is a direct player which SG sometimes thinks is required in a particular game. He is a young player so he may improve his game. The management obviously see something in him. He certainly looks to be a major part of the 1st team squad.
 
I remember him causing us bother when he was at hibs, was out wide and his pace and crossing caused us trouble.

I haven’t rated him at all since joining us, offensively he brings very little in my opinion and would have Hagi, Aribo, Jones in there before him. He had one positive contribution which OP highlighted (ball to Kent) however I would say it was more to do with how the play developed than anything he did - that was the obvious pass.

I think we wanted someone with pace to exploit any space their wingback left so was Barker or Jones. I think Barker holds his position better than Jones which is why he gets the nod, I can see that for this game.

I don’t see it happening unfortunately but it would make a massive difference if we could get him to the levels he apparently shows in training.
 
DBTrueblue said:
I think his biggest problem is he's far to easily brushed off the ball. Don't know if he's to lightweight or just not up for the battle
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This seems to me to be a likely place where he can improve , obv not the only one which equally applies to all of the players , and funnily enough we thot Kamara had the same challenge and is improving on that skill this season imo .
 
We have so much of the ball, and are so good with it, that each one of our front three should be making at least half a dozen meaningful attacking contributions (dropping the shoulder, beating their man, quick one-twos, shots, crosses etc.) in any given match. Anything less and they simply shouldn't be in the team.

Completely agree with other posters on here that signing another Kent style player for the right side would have seen us in a much stronger position this year. Getting Skov Olsen on loan and punting one of Jones/Barker would've been perfect IMO.
 
What does “he does the tactical side well” mean in the context of Barker and that win on Saturday? That he occasionally shut down space like any player in a football match general does? Sometimes applied pressure as the opposition as players generally do?

I feel that not making himself available for passes surely wasn’t one of his tactical instructions. I do watch players off the ball and he wasn’t contributing much at all. I get that everyone wants to be supportive but I think folk are really reaching when looking for reasons to justify his inclusion. For me these are games where he should be standing out more given he’s afforded more space than he would be against the 10 man defences elsewhere, so to me it’s concerning that he manages to be almost anonymous in a game where the rest of the team were playing well.
 
I remember Gerrard made a remark about improving numbers after Candeias left and Ojo was starting all the time. As far as I can see Barker has a couple of goals and zero assists in the league since joining. I’ve watched the game back and he looked to be happy to pretend he was doing something but not really wanting to get involved. When Morelos fired that ball across the face of goal he wasn’t busting a gut to get in there to try and get on the end of it. I get the tactical bit but surely someone could do the closing down as well as offer more going forward.
 
Danger Zone said:
What does “he does the tactical side well” mean in the context of Barker and that win on Saturday? That he occasionally shut down space like any player in a football match general does? Sometimes applied pressure as the opposition as players generally do
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Danger Zone said:
What does “he does the tactical side well” mean in the context of Barker and that win on Saturday? That he occasionally shut down space like any player in a football match general does? Sometimes applied pressure as the opposition as players generally do?

I feel that not making himself available for passes surely wasn’t one of his tactical instructions. I do watch players off the ball and he wasn’t contributing much at all. I get that everyone wants to be supportive but I think folk are really reaching when looking for reasons to justify his inclusion. For me these are games where he should be standing out more given he’s afforded more space than he would be against the 10 man defences elsewhere, so to me it’s concerning that he manages to be almost anonymous in a game where the rest of the team were playing well.
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Holds his position well? Maybe knows when to press and when not to? It’s an important part of our game plan.

I really don’t know. I just think there must be something the manager and coaches see with him that I don’t.

Maybe he’s just Stevie G’s version of Namouchi.
 
Danger Zone said:
What does “he does the tactical side well” mean in the context of Barker and that win on Saturday? That he occasionally shut down space like any player in a football match general does? Sometimes applied pressure as the opposition as players generally do?

I feel that not making himself available for passes surely wasn’t one of his tactical instructions. I do watch players off the ball and he wasn’t contributing much at all. I get that everyone wants to be supportive but I think folk are really reaching when looking for reasons to justify his inclusion. For me these are games where he should be standing out more given he’s afforded more space than he would be against the 10 man defences elsewhere, so to me it’s concerning that he manages to be almost anonymous in a game where the rest of the team were playing well.
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Agree with most of that.

I posted in the Morelos thread about Barker’s performance, as both he and Morelos frustrated me whilst watching the game unfold.
However, watching the game back it was apparent that both played ok.
I was calling for Barker to be subbed, but watching back he did little wrong and came up with our best bit of play to put Kent in.
It was the right decision to sub him though and Jack just shored things up for us.
I would still rather it was Jones getting the chances Barker seems to keep getting!
 
if SG and staff said “look this is what we need of you today” and he went out and effectively did just that... then that’s good enough for me... and judging by quite a few posts he did just that...

does he have self confidence issues?
based on wearing a hair piece at his age.. I’d suggest he does, along with knowing we have players who are ahead of him on the depth chart...
 
He was the right person to start, he played well and he came off when we wanted to shut up shop for the day.

His passing was good, his positional play was very good, his defensive work and pressing was very good. He did get eased off the ball a few times but it always happened in an isolated area of the pitch.

Playing a half-fit Jack in midfield and Arfield further up instead of Barker would have been too defensive to start and it wouldn't have worked. Jones got asked to do the same thing as Barker last season and decided to get himself sent off. We need Hagi to unlock a team in the Europa League then probably go again against Livingston. After three international games in a week. asking him to go the majority of 270 incredibly tough minutes in a week would be mental so he got the easiest game off.
 
Michael Mols said:
Holds his position well? Maybe knows when to press and when not to? It’s an important part of our game plan.

I really don’t know. I just think there must be something the manager and coaches see with him that I don’t.

Maybe he’s just Stevie G’s version of Namouchi.
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I just don’t see it, but sometimes managers have a player they like for whatever reason. I just don’t see him doing anything particularly well, on the ball or off it and half way into his 3 year contract I’d be look for a hell of a lot more at this stage.
 
He was good defensively, but nearly everything in an attacking sense broke down that went his way.

Jones is better with the ball, but suspect he’s not trusted defensively by Gerrard.

Without doubt, it’s the next area we need to look to strengthen. A right sided Kent should be a priority.
 
Virtually a man down, Jones could have ripped them apart with a far better scoreline imo.
I know, no guarantee of that scenario but a far better chance with J ax in
 
Northampton_Loyalist said:
He did not really do anything to stand out, however, if you get a chance to watch the game back you will see he played an incredibly disciplined role and did an absolute power of work without making any real errors. He was one of a number of players who quietly went about their business in a calm and professional manner, allowing us the platform to dominate the scum.
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Totally agree looks like he carried out specific tasks and perhaps that's why Gerrard choses him over others - trust
 
aghalee_hero said:
Didn't feel like anything would happen when he got the ball. He wasn't bad either. But if Hagi isn't going to make that position his own, I'd rather it was someone better than Barker getting the nod. He is clearly trying his heart out though so fair play to him.
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He was picked, in the main, for his pace, something that Hagi lacks.
Hagi will have more appearances than Barker over the course of the season.
 
Danger Zone said:
What does “he does the tactical side well” mean in the context of Barker and that win on Saturday? That he occasionally shut down space like any player in a football match general does? Sometimes applied pressure as the opposition as players generally do?

I feel that not making himself available for passes surely wasn’t one of his tactical instructions. I do watch players off the ball and he wasn’t contributing much at all. I get that everyone wants to be supportive but I think folk are really reaching when looking for reasons to justify his inclusion. For me these are games where he should be standing out more given he’s afforded more space than he would be against the 10 man defences elsewhere, so to me it’s concerning that he manages to be almost anonymous in a game where the rest of the team were playing well.
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I think when you watch Neil McCann's analysis of the game, its clear the coaching team think Barker is more capable of carrying out instruction and remaining positional disciplined than other options. He clearly also didn't contribute enough in an attacking sense.

I suppose the coaching staff weigh up what they think is most important on the day and go with that decision on a game by game basis.
 
Chester Loyal said:
The people who are trying to talk us into Barker being effective are the same ones who argued the Jack/Kamara midfield base was working well earlier in the season.
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You must have a lot of time of your hands to cross check all the posts with threads made months ago. Either that or you‘ve just made that up.
 
We won the game - Barker played his part.

Livi on Sunday though he doesn’t get a look in, it’s a completely different style required. Front 6 I’d go for

Kamara Aribo
Roofe Hagi Kent
Morelos
 
Looking like he’ll be this management team’s Neil Murray and will continue to get chance after chance. He’s set the bar so low in the past that barely average performances now get heralded as good ones. Until someone can raise their game to claim that right side spot as their own though I expect he’ll continue to feature heavily.
 
Barker has proven me wrong - in so much as I thought he was a traffic cone.

His workrate has seriously upped, he needs to work on his decision making - pass or beat a man; is the pass the right one.

He, like his two partners up front, all worked hard on Saturday and moved Celtic around but little end product.
 
I would like to see him taking on his man like he seemed to do regularly when he was with Hibs against us.

He's doing ok, no more, no less.
 
I am for sure not his biggest fan however think his game is affected by confidence, he must be doing a lot at training and can for sure damage teams however still not convinced on that lad myself
 
Did his job well enough in a winning performance. Seems good enough for me.

I'd love to see him grab a few important goals or give us some big moments at important times because he just seems to be lacking confidence.

I don't think Jones is any better and the truth is that once Aribo and Roofe are back its not clear if Barker would even be a starter.
 
Danger Zone said:
what most consider a disappointing performance for any other player is now spoken of as a decent performance in the case of Barker because we’ve come to expect so little.

He doesn’t deserve all the chances and all the game time he gets, end of story. I’m sure he does train well but it’s what you do in match days that really counts and on match days he looks every inch the Hibs or Aberdeen player.
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Correct.

Let’s be honest, he was an empty jersey on Saturday.

He constantly hides and with his so called blistering pace very seldom makes runs behind defenders.
 
I have watched as supporters slagged players from every era, here and in England, winning titles. The same old, I just can’t see it, he is a waste of a jersey etc.

Every single one of us has a right to an opinion. Not many of us are qualified to be a manager, never mind a manager of Rangers.

If Brandon Barker plays every game from now until the end of the season and we win the title I could not give a monkeys.

No, he is not my favourite player but he is one of Steven Gerrard's. That means he is worthy of supporting. If he is a confidence player, as most wingers are, constant sniping isn’t going to do him any good.

If he was a missing shirt, as some would suggest, he would be found out by the analysts etc. His team mates would rip into him and if you think for one fucking second Steven Gerrard and Gary Mac know less about footballers than you do then go see a gp. You are either on drugs or in need of some.
 
HamiltonBear said:
I have watched as supporters slagged players from every era, here and in England, winning titles. The same old, I just can’t see it, he is a waste of a jersey etc.

Every single one of us has a right to an opinion. Not many of us are qualified to be a manager, never mind a manager of Rangers.

If Brandon Barker plays every game from now until the end of the season and we win the title I could not give a monkeys.

No, he is not my favourite player but he is one of Steven Gerrard's. That means he is worthy of supporting. If he is a confidence player, as most wingers are, constant sniping isn’t going to do him any good.

If he was a missing shirt, as some would suggest, he would be found out by the analysts etc. His team mates would rip into him and if you think for one fucking second Steven Gerrard and Gary Mac know less about footballers than you do then go see a gp. You are either on drugs or in need of some.
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Personally I don’t get this line of thought at all. It basically says football fans discussing/critiquing team selections/tactics is a waste of time because the management team have their coaching badges and therefore know better and can’t be wrong, and that would extended to Ally, Waburton, Murty and Pedro too.

The reality is there is no “analysis” that shows or proves Barker was the right pick. On top of that Gerrard and McAllister have yet to mount a credible title challenge, have only gotten us to 1 cup final and haven’t won a trophy as coaches yet. Although I’m starting to feel more and more positive about this season, the reality is they’re not infallible and just because we won doesn’t mean it’s not possible we win more convincingly with another player in there instead of Barker.
 
Barker has shown glimpses of his ability in cameo appearances. He has said it himself that he needs to deliver this season. There are other players - Jones, Hagi, Stewart - who are equally eager to be given the chance to prove what they can do. When Roofe gets fit emogh to play regularly they will all struggle to get in the front three.
 
HamiltonBear said:
I have watched as supporters slagged players from every era, here and in England, winning titles. The same old, I just can’t see it, he is a waste of a jersey etc.

Every single one of us has a right to an opinion. Not many of us are qualified to be a manager, never mind a manager of Rangers.

If Brandon Barker plays every game from now until the end of the season and we win the title I could not give a monkeys.

No, he is not my favourite player but he is one of Steven Gerrard's. That means he is worthy of supporting. If he is a confidence player, as most wingers are, constant sniping isn’t going to do him any good.

If he was a missing shirt, as some would suggest, he would be found out by the analysts etc. His team mates would rip into him and if you think for one fucking second Steven Gerrard and Gary Mac know less about footballers than you do then go see a gp. You are either on drugs or in need of some.
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im not sure why you would come onto a football forum with this attitude.
 
Not sure Jones would have been a better choice as most are suggesting.

He managed to get himself sent off and put himself out for months with an injury when Gerrard placed his trust in him.

Barker isn't the best but was the correct choice. Kent and Morelos weren't great either but we all know what they can do on their day.
 
Danger Zone said:
I just don’t see it, but sometimes managers have a player they like for whatever reason. I just don’t see him doing anything particularly well, on the ball or off it and half way into his 3 year contract I’d be look for a hell of a lot more at this stage.
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We're reaching Maurice Edu levels of ''he's better without the ball'' justification on Barker's contribution to games.
 
Danger Zone said:
I just don’t see it, but sometimes managers have a player they like for whatever reason. I just don’t see him doing anything particularly well, on the ball or off it and half way into his 3 year contract I’d be look for a hell of a lot more at this stage.
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I agree. He looks to avoid getting involved most the time when you watch him off the ball. May be a confidence issue but hes been here long enough and had enough chances.
 
BB is not my cup of tea but there is an article with an interesting slant on him in yesterdays Athletic if anyone can access it.
 
Well, we haven't conceded with him on the pitch this season so he's doing his positional and tactical defensive work up the pitch well enough to avoid pressure being built on the defence by teams breaking away and getting a chance when they're disorganised.
 
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