Ettiene Capoue Performance Report

15th September 2014 at 15:00

English Premier League (EPL)

Stadium: Stadium of Light (Sunderland)

On the surface it looked as if it is the Capoue had a decent game, a 95% passing statistic certainly suggests so. Lillt things matter and though and if little things cost yur side can you really be said to have had a good game?

if you look a little closer at his performance there were two important errors and from those Sunderland scored two goals. The goals were not entirely his fault but he played in part in and could have prevented both.

To improve as a player and improve as a team we must find our weaknesses and work on them. While the mistakes were not major the fact two goals were scored cost us two easy points, although we should also have scored more goals.

His performance was unspectacular, but that is the nature of his job, especially in a game where he has little defending to do compared to a game where we under greater pressure. He was doing all the things a defensive midfielder should be doing. He was covering, tackling, passing well and allowing Dembele to go forward.

Read around and you'll generally find fans saying he had a quiet but competent game, and he did, but for the two errors of judgement.

For he first goal after 3 minutes, when Johnson cut in from the left hand side, Capoue allowed him to easily pass him on his right hand side, simply sticking out a leg. Johnson is a left footed player and while Dier shouldn't have allowed him into the box so easily, he also should not have been allowed to cut inside him so easily. Johnson should have been forced onto his right foot and ushered across goal, passing him on to the next player a cross goal.

He simply cut inside, changed the angle of attack taking Dier and Capoue out the game, shot and scored, it was soft and far far too easy.

The rest of the game was good, he headed away from corners when needed and did everything you would expect him to do holding up play when Sunderland had attacks. Then however with 10 minutes to go he needlessly pushes over a Sunderland player in a dangerous area on the side edge of the box. Why? He doesn't need to put two hands on him and push him in the back, he was goal side of him and the player had nowhere to go. In that position the goal line become an extra defender and the only way to go is to turn and pass backwards or try to win a corner off the defender.