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Current Player Ben Nelson

For me, recalling him makes sense for both clubs. He's able to return to Leicester and undergo rehab with his parent club, we're not lumbered with an injured loanee for the rest of the season, and we can utilise the loan market to replace him - if needed. Shame, because he looked top-class at times; however, I feel we're better with Brown and Moore at CB.

Would love us to recall Currie in Jan and get him in at LB. Rave reviews from Orient fans and according to FotMob (which I take with a pinch of salt), he's been one of the best LBs in League One this season.
 
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Shame, he was good.

But although this might sound a bit harsh and ruthless, he's not our player, and was never gonna be our player, he was only here to help his development for a season before heading elsewhere, or as it seems, back to Leicester, whilst hopefully helping us progress at this level at the same time, not that Leicester, and if we're brutally honest, Nelson himself cared about that.

Shame for the player, and wish him well in his recovery, but from our point of view, it's no biggie in my opinion. We've got Moore and Brown, who were performing admirably before Nelson came into the side, and Longy as cover, who's been superb whenever called upon this season to play CB either in a 2 or 3.

We looked to have uncovered a decent system, playing 3 CB, with Long as cover, and Leigh and Kioso/Avest as wing backs, but now Cam's back, can easily cope going back to a flat back four, with Leigh as LB, and Longy continuing to provide CB cover.

Get to January, add another quality CB to the ranks, and I don't think we'll miss Nelson at all.

Let's face it, we've barley won a game since he's been in the side anyway!
 
Mad Dog said:
Shame, he was good.

But although this might sound a bit harsh and ruthless, he's not our player, and was never gonna be our player, he was only here to help his development for a season before heading elsewhere, or as it seems, back to Leicester, whilst hopefully helping us progress at this level at the same time, not that Leicester, and if we're brutally honest, Nelson himself cared about that.

Shame for the player, and wish him well in his recovery, but from our point of view, it's no biggie in my opinion. We've got Moore and Brown, who were performing admirably before Nelson came into the side, and Longy as cover, who's been superb whenever called upon this season to play CB either in a 2 or 3.

We looked to have uncovered a decent system, playing 3 CB, with Long as cover, and Leigh and Kioso/Avest as wing backs, but can easily cope going back to a flat back four, with Leigh as LB, and Longy continuing to provide CB cover.

Get to January, add another quality CB to the ranks, and I don't think we'll miss Nelson at all.

Let's face it, we've barley won a game since he's been in the side anyway!
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He’s one of 11 on the pitch!
 
LeftSideBoy said:
For me, recalling him makes sense for both clubs. He's able to return to Leicester and undergo rehab with his parent club, we're not lumbered with an injured loanee for the rest of the season, and we can utilise the loan market to replace him - if needed. Shame, because he looked top-class at times; however, I feel we're better with Brown and Moore at CB.

Would love us to recall Currie in Jan and get him in at LB. Rave reviews from Orient fans and according to FotMob (which I take with a pinch of salt), he's been one of the best LBs in League One this season.
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Currie will return in Jan.

Think we have our eye on Ronnie Edwards replacing Nelson for our loan centre back.
 
Mad Dog said:
But although this might sound a bit harsh and ruthless, he's not our player, and was never gonna be our player, he was only here to help his development for a season before heading elsewhere, or as it seems, back to Leicester, whilst hopefully helping us progress at this level at the same time, not that Leicester, and if we're brutally honest, Nelson himself cared about that.
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You’re right, this is harsh. Not sure if it’s ruthless though, just disrespectful to Nelson and any other loan player who joins us to, yes, develop as a player, but also to play well for us and contribute in the time he’s here.

Nelson looked tidy and it was unfortunate his good displays coincided with a downtick in overall form, but I don’t think it’s helpful to have a distrust of loan players like this, especially when we’ve had loan players who’ve played more and stayed longer than some permanent transfers.
 
battman said:
You’re right, this is harsh. Not sure if it’s ruthless though, just disrespectful to Nelson and any other loan player who joins us to, yes, develop as a player, but also to play well for us and contribute in the time he’s here.

Nelson looked tidy and it was unfortunate his good displays coincided with a downtick in overall form, but I don’t think it’s helpful to have a distrust of loan players like this, especially when we’ve had loan players who’ve played more and stayed longer than some permanent transfers.
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The comment about us barely winning a game when he was in the side, was merely tongue in cheek! He's a good player, who played well in every game he played.

The comment about him not really caring about us progressing at this level, I stand by.

Just like any loan player who knows full well he's only going to a club for a brief spell, before inevitably going back to their parent club, or moved on to a bigger club on loan for further progression, will obviously give his all in games whilst here, and try to help the team, but once he's gone, he won't be concerning himself with our progress.

Do you really think Nelson is concerned about how Oxford are gonna cope while he's out injured? Nope. He'll be solely concerned with recovering from his injury, and sorting his next loan move, or step up into Leicester's first team. Within a week of returning to Leicester, he'll have already forgotten all about us.

It's not like with Roofe or Baldock, who returned to their clubs after their initial loans, and knew they would be loaned out again, but were given the chance to return to us, and jumped at the chance, and became much loved players in the process. But even they both had bigger plans.

I'm in no way distrusting of loan players who come to the club, but it is the brutal reality of the loan transfer market, some will come here with a view to trying to secure a permanent position with us, and will buy into the club and the fans, and look to help us progress whilst they're here, and even if they do move on, they will always have a soft spot for us thereafter.

But others will arrive knowing full well that this is merely a stepping stone, and they're only here for a short while before progressing on, and they won't spare us a 2nd thought once they leave. We've had plenty of those over the years, and yes, there have been a number of permanent signings who have had a similar mindset as well.

That's football, it's a cold, ruthless business, with very little loyalty, particularly modern day football, and I don't think I'm being particularly harsh by simply acknowledging that.

To be honest, it's pretty naive to think otherwise really, and probably why people have such emotive reactions when players leave.

Thanks to Nelson for his contributions while he was here, and good luck to him with his recovery and future career, but that's over now, he's going back to Leicester, and will already be thinking and planning a future that doesn't involve Oxford United, and once fit again, will continue to progress eventually to a level that's beyond our current level or reach.

Maybe I'm being a touch harsh by pointing that out, but it is what it is.
 
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Mad Dog said:
The comment about us barely winning a game when he was in the side, was merely tongue in cheek! He's a good player, who played well in every game he played.

The comment about him not really caring about us progressing at this level, I stand by.

Just like any loan player who knows full well he's only going to a club for a brief spell, before inevitably going back to their parent club, or moved on to a bigger club on loan for further progression, will obviously give his all in games whilst here, and try to help the team, but once he's gone, he won't be concerning himself with our progress.

Do you really think Nelson is concerned about how Oxford are gonna cope while he's out injured? Nope. He'll be solely concerned with recovering from his injury, and sorting his next loan move, or step up into Leicester's first team. Within a week of returning to Leicester, he'll have already forgotten all about us.

It's not like with Roofe or Baldock, who returned to their clubs after their initial loans, and knew they would be loaned out again, but were given the chance to return to us, and jumped at the chance, and became much loved players in the process. But even they both had bigger plans.

I'm in no way distrusting of loan players who come to the club, but it is the brutal reality of the loan transfer market, some will come here with a view to trying to secure a permanent position with us, and will buy into the club and the fans, and look to help us progress whilst they're here, and even if they do move on, they will always have a soft spot for us thereafter.

But others will arrive knowing full well that this is merely a stepping stone, and they're only here for a while before progressing on, and they won't spare us a 2nd thought once they leave. We've had plenty of those over the years, and yes, there have been a number of permanent signings who have had a similar mindset as well.

That's football, it's a cold, ruthless business, with very little loyalty, particularly modern day football, and I don't think I'm being particularly harsh by simply acknowledging that.

To be honest, it's pretty naive to think otherwise really, and probably why people have such emotive reactions when players leave.

Thanks to Nelson for his contributions while he was here, and good luck to him with his recovery and future career, but that's over now, he's going back to Leicester, and will already be thinking and planning a future that doesn't involve Oxford United, and once fit again, will continue to progress beyond our current level or reach.

Maybe I'm being a touch harsh by pointing that out, but it is what it is.
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Very over the top comments! Yes, he's a pro and his focus will be on recovery, and quite right. But. He obviously enjoyed his time here, he's bound to have made a few friends, so to say that 'within a week ..he'll have forgotten all about us' is just a tad harsh!
 
Mad Dog said:
The comment about us barely winning a game when he was in the side, was merely tongue in cheek! He's a good player, who played well in every game he played.

The comment about him not really caring about us progressing at this level, I stand by.

Just like any loan player who knows full well he's only going to a club for a brief spell, before inevitably going back to their parent club, or moved on to a bigger club on loan for further progression, will obviously give his all in games whilst here, and try to help the team, but once he's gone, he won't be concerning himself with our progress.

Do you really think Nelson is concerned about how Oxford are gonna cope while he's out injured? Nope. He'll be solely concerned with recovering from his injury, and sorting his next loan move, or step up into Leicester's first team. Within a week of returning to Leicester, he'll have already forgotten all about us.

It's not like with Roofe or Baldock, who returned to their clubs after their initial loans, and knew they would be loaned out again, but were given the chance to return to us, and jumped at the chance, and became much loved players in the process. But even they both had bigger plans.

I'm in no way distrusting of loan players who come to the club, but it is the brutal reality of the loan transfer market, some will come here with a view to trying to secure a permanent position with us, and will buy into the club and the fans, and look to help us progress whilst they're here, and even if they do move on, they will always have a soft spot for us thereafter.

But others will arrive knowing full well that this is merely a stepping stone, and they're only here for a while before progressing on, and they won't spare us a 2nd thought once they leave. We've had plenty of those over the years, and yes, there have been a number of permanent signings who have had a similar mindset as well.

That's football, it's a cold, ruthless business, with very little loyalty, particularly modern day football, and I don't think I'm being particularly harsh by simply acknowledging that.

To be honest, it's pretty naive to think otherwise really, and probably why people have such emotive reactions when players leave.

Thanks to Nelson for his contributions while he was here, and good luck to him with his recovery and future career, but that's over now, he's going back to Leicester, and will already be thinking and planning a future that doesn't involve Oxford United, and once fit again, will continue to progress beyond our current level or reach.

Maybe I'm being a touch harsh by pointing that out, but it is what it is.
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I didn’t know we had someone so close to Nelson as to be able to relay his exact thoughts and feelings.
Make sure to text him our result next Saturday though, start it with ‘Your last club’ in case he really does forget us..
 
Northernyellow said:
Very over the top comments! Yes, he's a pro and his focus will be on recovery, and quite right. But. He obviously enjoyed his time here, he's bound to have made a few friends, so to say that 'within a week ..he'll have forgotten all about us' is just a tad harsh!
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I'm talking merely from a football perspective, as opposed to friends he may have made while here.

You'd be surprised how quickly players move on, once they move clubs. A lot quicker than fans do!

I dunno, I've probably been guilty of being too upset and pissed off when players have left in the past, which is why I'm so matter of fact about these things now, and see them for what they are, quickly draw a line under it, and move on.
 
Mad Dog said:
The comment about us barely winning a game when he was in the side, was merely tongue in cheek! He's a good player, who played well in every game he played.

The comment about him not really caring about us progressing at this level, I stand by.

Just like any loan player who knows full well he's only going to a club for a brief spell, before inevitably going back to their parent club, or moved on to a bigger club on loan for further progression, will obviously give his all in games whilst here, and try to help the team, but once he's gone, he won't be concerning himself with our progress.

Do you really think Nelson is concerned about how Oxford are gonna cope while he's out injured? Nope. He'll be solely concerned with recovering from his injury, and sorting his next loan move, or step up into Leicester's first team. Within a week of returning to Leicester, he'll have already forgotten all about us.

It's not like with Roofe or Baldock, who returned to their clubs after their initial loans, and knew they would be loaned out again, but were given the chance to return to us, and jumped at the chance, and became much loved players in the process. But even they both had bigger plans.

I'm in no way distrusting of loan players who come to the club, but it is the brutal reality of the loan transfer market, some will come here with a view to trying to secure a permanent position with us, and will buy into the club and the fans, and look to help us progress whilst they're here, and even if they do move on, they will always have a soft spot for us thereafter.

But others will arrive knowing full well that this is merely a stepping stone, and they're only here for a short while before progressing on, and they won't spare us a 2nd thought once they leave. We've had plenty of those over the years, and yes, there have been a number of permanent signings who have had a similar mindset as well.

That's football, it's a cold, ruthless business, with very little loyalty, particularly modern day football, and I don't think I'm being particularly harsh by simply acknowledging that.

To be honest, it's pretty naive to think otherwise really, and probably why people have such emotive reactions when players leave.

Thanks to Nelson for his contributions while he was here, and good luck to him with his recovery and future career, but that's over now, he's going back to Leicester, and will already be thinking and planning a future that doesn't involve Oxford United, and once fit again, will continue to progress eventually to a level that's beyond our current level or reach.

Maybe I'm being a touch harsh by pointing that out, but it is what it is.
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Best thing I’ve seen about loan players, yes they will give 100% during games and in training. Those who don’t won’t get into the starting X1
For instance Ebiowi , you would think with the other 3 wingers being injured he would be an obvious starter. But something is wrong because we have changed the system rather than play him. Des must see in training that he isn’t up to it.

This isn’t just him ,we get a lot of players from top clubs who think they come on loan and will automatically get into the side because we are a lot smaller club and they dont have the right attitude. Can’t remember the name of the lad from Leeds but he was the same, never got a start because he didn’t want it enough.Or we found out he wasn’t good enough
On the other hand you have players who come to us and want to prove that they are good enough not just for us but their parent club. Nelson and Beadle are those sort of players.

If you get a chance read “ we want our football back” by Jon Nicholson , mainly about how SKY have ruined football with all the big money. He talks to an unnamed top flight footballer who says these kids who are on mega money think they have made it,some obviously rise to the top but hundreds go out on loan across Europe and they are more interested in cars,fashion,jewellery etc knowing that on a 3/4 year contract at £20,000 a week they know they only have to find another club in the last year of their contract. Absolute farce.

Remember Luke Garbett on £30000 a week at Everton, when he finally found his feet he was average for us, there was talk of us signing him, never going to happen. It was another couple of years after being loaned out at Ipswich he finally signed for Blackpool in the last year of his contract.
And then it was on a third of what he was getting at Everton. Karl finally got his man he is now at Salford he is 29. He was never going to make it,
Contrast that with Jon Jo Kenny who was terrific for us( don’t forget he replaced George Baldock so some shoes he had to fill) went back and played for Everton and went to German club Shalke after going on loan to Celtic.

All about attitude and wanting to better yourself
 
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Mad Dog said:
The comment about us barely winning a game when he was in the side, was merely tongue in cheek! He's a good player, who played well in every game he played.

The comment about him not really caring about us progressing at this level, I stand by.

Just like any loan player who knows full well he's only going to a club for a brief spell, before inevitably going back to their parent club, or moved on to a bigger club on loan for further progression, will obviously give his all in games whilst here, and try to help the team, but once he's gone, he won't be concerning himself with our progress.

Do you really think Nelson is concerned about how Oxford are gonna cope while he's out injured? Nope. He'll be solely concerned with recovering from his injury, and sorting his next loan move, or step up into Leicester's first team. Within a week of returning to Leicester, he'll have already forgotten all about us.

It's not like with Roofe or Baldock, who returned to their clubs after their initial loans, and knew they would be loaned out again, but were given the chance to return to us, and jumped at the chance, and became much loved players in the process. But even they both had bigger plans.

I'm in no way distrusting of loan players who come to the club, but it is the brutal reality of the loan transfer market, some will come here with a view to trying to secure a permanent position with us, and will buy into the club and the fans, and look to help us progress whilst they're here, and even if they do move on, they will always have a soft spot for us thereafter.

But others will arrive knowing full well that this is merely a stepping stone, and they're only here for a short while before progressing on, and they won't spare us a 2nd thought once they leave. We've had plenty of those over the years, and yes, there have been a number of permanent signings who have had a similar mindset as well.

That's football, it's a cold, ruthless business, with very little loyalty, particularly modern day football, and I don't think I'm being particularly harsh by simply acknowledging that.

To be honest, it's pretty naive to think otherwise really, and probably why people have such emotive reactions when players leave.

Thanks to Nelson for his contributions while he was here, and good luck to him with his recovery and future career, but that's over now, he's going back to Leicester, and will already be thinking and planning a future that doesn't involve Oxford United, and once fit again, will continue to progress eventually to a level that's beyond our current level or reach.

Maybe I'm being a touch harsh by pointing that out, but it is what it is.
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Stan Mills has been back to watch us at least once so obviously 'cares' about us. Maybe he is the exception.
 
So the general consensus seems to be that some loan signings work, and some don't (no different to permanent signings).

Many factors contribute to this. First loan deals for very young players moving away from home are notoriously difficult. As is the need to adapt for a handful of PL2 games to the demands of league football twice a week. And then we have seen that some players just click under a particular manager or playing style but not under others, regardless of age or contract type. And then we also have the fact that all players are different, with different characters, work ethics and ambitions, or are more susceptible to injuries etc.

The bottom line is that every signing is a bit of a gamble regardless of whether on loan or permanently signed and it is all to do with the individual.

Yet somehow @Mad Dog decides that Ben Nelson couldn't care less about the club? That seems to be an extreme assumption to make without anything to support it.

As for the point about Ebiowei that @The mighty Aldo made, it's nothing to do with whether or not Des rates him, but the need to balance the team. Ebiowei was the only winger at one point, so we had to change the system. At this level it would be a huge gamble to play a winger (any winger) at full back in a 5 when the ratio of defence to attack is likely to be 70/30. With a flat back 4, he will get more games and it's far too early to write him off.
 
Scotchegg said:
Yet somehow @Mad Dog decides that Ben Nelson couldn't care less about the club? That seems to be an extreme assumption to make without anything to support it.
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I think some are dissecting my point a bit too much, I’m simply stating the cold reality and simplicity of the situation.

But I’m not saying Nelson couldn’t care less about the club, of course he’ll no doubt have fond memories of his (very short) time here.

But as we know, there’s no room for sentiment in football, and while we wish him well on his journey, and he probably wishes us the same, once he returns to Leicester, Oxford United will be sitting firmly in his rear view mirror, as he continues on his way.

It perhaps would also be worth noting, that this trail of thought was the result of an evening consuming two thirds of a bottle of spiced rum, accompanied with almost an entire tray of Ferrero Rocher, and I’ll say anything when lost in such a boozy chocolate hazelnut vortex.
 
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Scotchegg said:
So the general consensus seems to be that some loan signings work, and some don't (no different to permanent signings).

Many factors contribute to this. First loan deals for very young players moving away from home are notoriously difficult. As is the need to adapt for a handful of PL2 games to the demands of league football twice a week. And then we have seen that some players just click under a particular manager or playing style but not under others, regardless of age or contract type. And then we also have the fact that all players are different, with different characters, work ethics and ambitions, or are more susceptible to injuries etc.

The bottom line is that every signing is a bit of a gamble regardless of whether on loan or permanently signed and it is all to do with the individual.

Yet somehow @Mad Dog decides that Ben Nelson couldn't care less about the club? That seems to be an extreme assumption to make without anything to support it.

As for the point about Ebiowei that @The mighty Aldo made, it's nothing to do with whether or not Des rates him, but the need to balance the team. Ebiowei was the only winger at one point, so we had to change the system. At this level it would be a huge gamble to play a winger (any winger) at full back in a 5 when the ratio of defence to attack is likely to be 70/30. With a flat back 4, he will get more games and it's far too early to write him off.
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Scotchers

I hear what you say however we have Dale and Ebiowei so my thinking is he doesn’t think either of them are up to it. Stand by what I said and that is we changed to a back 3 because we don’t have the players who are good enough until Edwards Dembele and Placheta are back
So it has everything to do with whether Des rates him or not
 
Mad Dog said:
I think some are dissecting my point a bit too much, I’m simply stating the cold reality and simplicity of the situation.

But I’m not saying Nelson couldn’t care less about the club, of course he’ll no doubt have fond memories of his (very short) time here.

But as we know, there’s no room for sentiment in football, and while we wish him well on his journey, and he probably wishes us the same, once he returns to Leicester, Oxford United will be sitting firmly in his rear view mirror, as he continues on his way.
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It's not a cold reality at all, you're just stating your opinion as fact
 
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