Ben Brereton Diaz

[Hoochie Bloochie Mama]

37 minutes ago, LeftWinger said:

I'm pretty sure it was confirmed on here by a poster that it was Lenihan.

Which poster? It was @arbitro who said there'd been a bid but I don't think he said who it was for. I might have missed it though.

[islander200]

8 minutes ago, Hoochie Bloochie Mama said:

Which poster? It was @arbitro who said there'd been a bid but I don't think he said who it was for. I might have missed it though.

Yeah he said it was Lenihen that the 10 million bid was for the other day 

[Ossydave]

?

[JacknOry]

Good game from BB, looks twice the player from last season. Didn't look that great last few matches but he has definitely become far more influential this season. 

[Ossydave]

14 minutes ago, JacknOry said:

Good game from BB, looks twice the player from last season. Didn't look that great last few matches but he has definitely become far more influential this season. 

He's 10 times better with Armstrong around him and I'm salivating at the thought of Brereton, Armo, Dacky and Elliott in the same team if possible 

[K-Hod]

Credit where it’s due for the lad today, that finish was exceptional for his goal. Glad he’s showing promise finally!

[Stuart]

1 hour ago, K-Hod said:

Credit where it’s due for the lad today, that finish was exceptional for his goal. Glad he’s showing promise finally!

Shinned it!

[Tyrone Shoelaces]

56 minutes ago, Stuart said:

Shinned it!

He probably been having finishing lessons off Jason Roberts, he could shin the ball harder than I could kick it ! Remember Bolton away ?

[joey_big_nose]

I've gone from a huge sceptic of BB to now thinking he's critical for us. Good players are good because they offer the team something of value and deliver on it consistently. Brereton does that in three ways :

1) He offers an out ball when we are under pressure where it sticks to him consistently - he very rarely loses it (which is mad considering he could barely trap the ball a year ago)

2) He can run with with the ball from deep and consistently beats his full back. When he does lose it he almost invariably wins a free kick.

3) He has started to offer a consistent goal threat and has started scoring goals. Looks like we will get 10-15 goals from him this season (I know he has only two so far, but he is generating the chances). 

Considering he was terrible at all three of these things six months ago it's an extraordinary turn around. Don't think I've ever seen a player at Rovers go from so valueless to valuable to the team..... Usually you can see the quality is there, but with Brereton it really wasn't evident that he had anything much going for him until pretty recently (to me anyway...). Now that left sided role is his. Good on him!

 

[LeftWinger]

Just now, joey_big_nose said:

Looks like we will get 10-15 goals from him this season. 

 

Steady on ?

[Miller11]

As a massive critic of his so far, I’m very pleased to admit he’s winning me round more and more.

He’s not the most conventional or elegant player, but he’s mastering how to be extremely effective for us. When he picks the ball up and runs at players he seems to frighten the opposition to death. I’m calling these his Forest Gump runs... they really do get us up the pitch. Even if he seems to be running to nowhere that bit of clumsiness means he draws loads of fouls, winning free kicks and panicking opponents into getting carded. That said, we are also seeing some really intelligent end product and some lovely hold up play.

Unorthodox is exactly How I’d describe that finish today as well... an easier chance and I’d be watching through my fingers, worried he’s going to put it out for a throw in. Somehow I just knew he was going to convert that chance though.

What really impressed me today was his defensive work though. He had improved this facet of his game immensely. I’ve often seen a lack of desire from him, but lately, and no more so than today, he seemed to really relish that side of his game. He was a big help to JRC playing in an unnatural position and took off a big weight defensively.

Another MOTM performance, and he (as well as Holtby) seem to have really found their positions in this system. With the nature of that position he’s bound to have the odd quiet game, and while I don’t think he will ever be a prolific scorer, at the moment he’s incredibly effective and a key component of the team.

Fair play to him and Mowbray. And I’m utterly delighted I’m being proven wrong.

[Exiled in Toronto]

7 minutes ago, Miller11 said:

As a massive critic of his so far, I’m very pleased to admit he’s winning me round more and more.

He’s not the most conventional or elegant player, but he’s mastering how to be extremely effective for us. When he picks the ball up and runs at players he seems to frighten the opposition to death. I’m calling these his Forest Gump runs... they really do get us up the pitch. Even if he seems to be running to nowhere that bit of clumsiness means he draws loads of fouls, winning free kicks and panicking opponents into getting carded. That said, we are also seeing some really intelligent end product and some lovely hold up play.

Unorthodox is exactly How I’d describe that finish today as well... an easier chance and I’d be watching through my fingers, worried he’s going to put it out for a throw in. Somehow I just knew he was going to convert that chance though.

What really impressed me today was his defensive work though. He had improved this facet of his game immensely. I’ve often seen a lack of desire from him, but lately, and no more so than today, he seemed to really relish that side of his game. He was a big help to JRC playing in an unnatural position and took off a big weight defensively.

Another MOTM performance, and he (as well as Holtby) seem to have really found their positions in this system. With the nature of that position he’s bound to have the odd quiet game, and while I don’t think he will ever be a prolific scorer, at the moment he’s incredibly effective and a key component of the team.

Fair play to him and Mowbray. And I’m utterly delighted I’m being proven wrong.

Good stuff. None of us saw the turnaround coming.

[bboy]

He's improving and found his position in this team.

That said I still don't see how he can ever be a 15-20 goals a season striker (if that's what we ultimately want him to be)

My counter to my own argument is that while different types of players I would have said the same about Armstrong after his first season in the Championship with us. In an absolutely perfect world Brereton could do with a season bullying league one defenders and racking up that 15-20 goals like Armstrong learnt to do (I'm not suggesting we actually do loan him out).

The only good thing about Covid is that it gave time for Brereton to bulk out and play without the fear of crowds, I hope by the day we set foot in a stadium again he'll be a different monster to the one we once saw!

[joey_big_nose]

22 minutes ago, bboy said:

He's improving and found his position in this team.

That said I still don't see how he can ever be a 15-20 goals a season striker (if that's what we ultimately want him to be)

My counter to my own argument is that while different types of players I would have said the same about Armstrong after his first season in the Championship with us. In an absolutely perfect world Brereton could do with a season bullying league one defenders and racking up that 15-20 goals like Armstrong learnt to do (I'm not suggesting we actually do loan him out).

The only good thing about Covid is that it gave time for Brereton to bulk out and play without the fear of crowds, I hope by the day we set foot in a stadium again he'll be a different monster to the one we once saw!

He's not a striker though, he's a wide forward. I don't think he will ever play through the middle. Not his game.

[Admiral Nelsen]

10 hours ago, Miller11 said:

As a massive critic of his so far, I’m very pleased to admit he’s winning me round more and more.

He’s not the most conventional or elegant player, but he’s mastering how to be extremely effective for us. When he picks the ball up and runs at players he seems to frighten the opposition to death. I’m calling these his Forest Gump runs... they really do get us up the pitch. Even if he seems to be running to nowhere that bit of clumsiness means he draws loads of fouls, winning free kicks and panicking opponents into getting carded. That said, we are also seeing some really intelligent end product and some lovely hold up play.

Unorthodox is exactly How I’d describe that finish today as well... an easier chance and I’d be watching through my fingers, worried he’s going to put it out for a throw in. Somehow I just knew he was going to convert that chance though.

What really impressed me today was his defensive work though. He had improved this facet of his game immensely. I’ve often seen a lack of desire from him, but lately, and no more so than today, he seemed to really relish that side of his game. He was a big help to JRC playing in an unnatural position and took off a big weight defensively.

Another MOTM performance, and he (as well as Holtby) seem to have really found their positions in this system. With the nature of that position he’s bound to have the odd quiet game, and while I don’t think he will ever be a prolific scorer, at the moment he’s incredibly effective and a key component of the team.

Fair play to him and Mowbray. And I’m utterly delighted I’m being proven wrong.

 

Great post. Inelegant but effective sums him up perfectly this season.

I was thinking along similar lines after the Wycombe/Derby/Cov games, and which other players could be put in the same category. The name which came to mind immediately was Kevin Davies. They're not too similar in their style of play, but they're both players who don't look like they'll ever be prolific and yet are well worth their place in the side by being a nightmare for defenders. 

I think we can see his value in Armstrong's form. Obviously Armstrong is a top goal-scorer anyway, but having scored double any other player in the league this year bar Toney, and having enough chances to have scored a good four or five more, I think we have to see Brereton's form as a major reason why he is getting so many chances. 

Edited November 8, 2020 by Admiral Nelsen

[philipl]

The key is having a forward threat that overwhelms the opposition defence with problems.

Ben no undoubtedly adds to their headaches and having two players who can run through you with the ball in Brererton and Rothwell allied to the creative passing of Holtby and Elliott is going to continue tearing oppositions apart.

Having those four on the pitch together with Dack and Arma is a salivating proposition. Quite how you do get all six on at the same time I don't know but Ben has added defensive maturity this season so it might not be kamikazi football to try it. We could be seeing Ben taking on an Elliott style rotation including midfield duties but then where does Travis fit?

If we get Rothwell Holtby and Ben to up their accuracy in strikes on goal then some unfortunate club could get hit for double figures this season.

[Admiral Nelsen]

Getting all of the attacking players in the side is undoubtedly going to be a huge challenge. Says a lot about Brereton's form that at present he would be near impossible to drop.

Edited November 8, 2020 by Admiral Nelsen

[Adam C]

12 hours ago, joey_big_nose said:

I've gone from a huge sceptic of BB to now thinking he's critical for us. Good players are good because they offer the team something of value and deliver on it consistently. Brereton does that in three ways :

1) He offers an out ball when we are under pressure where it sticks to him consistently - he very rarely loses it (which is mad considering he could barely trap the ball a year ago)

2) He can run with with the ball from deep and consistently beats his full back. When he does lose it he almost invariably wins a free kick.

3) He has started to offer a consistent goal threat and has started scoring goals. Looks like we will get 10-15 goals from him this season (I know he has only two so far, but he is generating the chances). 

Considering he was terrible at all three of these things six months ago it's an extraordinary turn around. Don't think I've ever seen a player at Rovers go from so valueless to valuable to the team..... Usually you can see the quality is there, but with Brereton it really wasn't evident that he had anything much going for him until pretty recently (to me anyway...). Now that left sided role is his. Good on him!

 

I was lucky enough to attend Ewood when we played Swansea at the start of March. Brereton came on for a second half cameo and still looked a bit raw, but he had one lovely dribble down the left flank where he showed an ability to keep the ball and glide inside. Of course it came to nothing and characteristically he had a chance near the end of the game and fluffed it, cueing a mass groan and amused, resigned grins between the fans. All the same I went away thinking that day that if BB could get a bit of confidence and a good run, he could actually be worth the money we paid.

It’s so heartening to see him begin to show his class, and he’s become one of my favourite players now in a cult hero sort of way - kind of like if Grabbi had started scoring goals. I agree entirely with what you say - he’s become a key player now and I’m just made up for him. If he gets us 10+ goals this season I think I’ll name any future son “Brereton” ? 

[RoverCanada]

His first touch is occasionally awful, but he really shows his abilities with that 2nd and 3rd touch (if he gets to it!)

What impresses me is how fast he is with the ball right at his feet. Never seems to kick it forward and gallop, yet still gets up the pitch at great pace and with control.

Similarly, always seems to be on the verge of trouble in tight in the corner/around the box, yet always seems to wriggle loose. Then his final ball occasionally leaves a lot to be desired, but that finally seems to be improving this year!

Edited November 8, 2020 by RoverCanada

[Tyrone Shoelaces]

5 hours ago, philipl said:

The key is having a forward threat that overwhelms the opposition defence with problems.

Ben no undoubtedly adds to their headaches and having two players who can run through you with the ball in Brererton and Rothwell allied to the creative passing of Holtby and Elliott is going to continue tearing oppositions apart.

Having those four on the pitch together with Dack and Arma is a salivating proposition. Quite how you do get all six on at the same time I don't know but Ben has added defensive maturity this season so it might not be kamikazi football to try it. We could be seeing Ben taking on an Elliott style rotation including midfield duties but then where does Travis fit?

If we get Rothwell Holtby and Ben to up their accuracy in strikes on goal then some unfortunate club could get hit for double figures this season.

I'd like to see him do it when we're up against good teams who are on top in the game. He strikes me as another one of these players who can cause problems when the team he's playing in is on top but will never get you on top. I'm waiting to see him being the best player in a losing team, not just the best player in a winning team. When we've lost games previously he's been more or less anonymous. He's not the only one though.

[ben_the_beast]

I quite liked that he gave it the gun show in his celebration. I think putting on a bit of muscle has been crucial to his progress this year. He still has a long way to go in his physical development but it's good to see that he is either enjoying or proud that he is starting to get a bit of a physique on him. If he continues to work on it I could see him finally transitioning into that number 9 role we bought him for by the age of say 23/24. Much like Armstrong has done. 

[Admiral Nelsen]

1 hour ago, Tyrone Shoelaces said:

I'd like to see him do it when we're up against good teams who are on top in the game. He strikes me as another one of these players who can cause problems when the team he's playing in is on top but will never get you on top. I'm waiting to see him being the best player in a losing team, not just the best player in a winning team. When we've lost games previously he's been more or less anonymous. He's not the only one though.

I think that's a fair point, although as you say you could level the same at a few others. Dolan (who I'm delighted we've signed) is probably the best example of that, but you'd let him off with it at such a young age. 

Not quite speaking to the same point that you're making, but it was encouraging to see him take his chance when the sides were level and the pressure was growing. It's been commented that his goals before season were in dead rubbers, and the Watford goal was when we were already two goals down. One of the next stages in is development will be to make more match winning contributions, so yesterday was a good start.

[philipl]

We have just got Brereton to the level he is in the Skybet Team of the Week and then contracted to sell him...

[Darrenbot]

We keep Brereton they can have Gallagher instead.

[Rogerb]

20 minutes ago, philipl said:

We have just got Brereton to the level he is in the Skybet Team of the Week and then contracted to sell him...

Clearly nobody checks this stuff. Oh he plays for someone up north that'll do.