Matsuki

[Midfield_General]

8 minutes ago, S-Clarke said:

I thought we were changing that in the summer with Downs and Quarshie, some even Quarshie whilst tall is quite weak in one-on-one duals. 

But after adding some height with those first two, we didn't really continue in the same vein which was odd. I thought we were hitting the spine of the team with some physical presence.

It's especially negligent given that Spors came out at the beginning of the window and said that the one thing you need in this league is physical presence. And then, Quarshie aside, did absolutely fuck all about it. 

[davefizzy14]

Matsuki has to be back in the squad for tomorrow. He has got quality. His stunning goal in the cup proved this. 

Edited 30 October, 2025 by davefizzy14

[Deanovski]

I get there’s probably a bit of a language barrier but we’ve seen enough of him in pre season mainly because we hadn’t signed anyone yet to know he’s solid. He looked sharp against Norwich in the cup too, actually wanted the ball which matters when the team’s got low morale, and he’s got that bit of spark others just don’t. Honestly I’m done watching Downes look useless both defensively and going forward. I get we don’t see training but what more does the guy have to do? Bet he’s already feeling demoralised with this circus, being overlooked while we’ve got players who are "sick". Would’ve much rather seen him come on than Aribo last night that’s for sure.

[SuperSAINT]

Surprised he’s not been featuring for the 21’s.

[Harry_SFC]

8 hours ago, Deanovski said:

I get there’s probably a bit of a language barrier but we’ve seen enough of him in pre season mainly because we hadn’t signed anyone yet to know he’s solid. He looked sharp against Norwich in the cup too, actually wanted the ball which matters when the team’s got low morale, and he’s got that bit of spark others just don’t. Honestly I’m done watching Downes look useless both defensively and going forward. I get we don’t see training but what more does the guy have to do? Bet he’s already feeling demoralised with this circus, being overlooked while we’ve got players who are "sick". Would’ve much rather seen him come on than Aribo last night that’s for sure.

Agree. Aribo was the opposite of what we needed last night. Needed some energy and bite, instead we got someone jogging around and giving up too easily. 

[SNSUN]

Is he injured? I know there are players ahead of him bang in form right now but if he's not injured I'm surprised he's not even getting on the bench. Loan in January?

[benjii]

Masski san!

[Harry_SFC]

2 hours ago, SNSUN said:

Is he injured? I know there are players ahead of him bang in form right now but if he's not injured I'm surprised he's not even getting on the bench. Loan in January?

Not sure why we've got to put Aribo in the bench ahead of him. Aribo doesn't look interested at all and seems very slow on the ball. 

[Deanovski]

2 hours ago, SNSUN said:

Is he injured? I know there are players ahead of him bang in form right now but if he's not injured I'm surprised he's not even getting on the bench. Loan in January?

Literally. I said last night that it was the perfect game for him to come on and add to Leicesters suffering.

[Holmes_and_Watson]

2 hours ago, Harry_SFC said:

Not sure why we've got to put Aribo in the bench ahead of him. Aribo doesn't look interested at all and seems very slow on the ball. 

He's not back to being the total lump he was for quite a while, but Aribo is obviously a bit rusty and not as mobile as he could be. 

That said, the pace of that second half was very different. Everyone was a bit slower and more measured. Only Robinson having a few solo runs and AA's work rate strong, even when slower.

Even then, Aribo's awareness closed things down without him having to bust a gut. He also took up at least one really good space only for no one to pass to him.

That, and the off chance of getting some January pennies for him, and I can see why he's there.

[Suhari]

I'd forgotten about him!

They way we are playing under Tonda would suit him very well I think. Maybe he'll get some game time over the busy Christmas schedule.

[Miltonaggro]

4 minutes ago, Suhari said:

I'd forgotten about him!

They way we are playing under Tonda would suit him very well I think. Maybe he'll get some game time over the busy Christmas schedule.

Hoping for this too. Buzzing little player, seems perfect for a TE team.

[Harry_SFC]

9 hours ago, Miltonaggro said:

Hoping for this too. Buzzing little player, seems perfect for a TE team.

You've got to feel for him. Comes off the bench, plays well and scores an absolute worldy then hasn't seen a minute since. 

[sockeye]

Surely worth playing over Aribo?

[SaintJackoInHurworth]

Based on recent performances (where possible), I would rank our midfielders in different positions as follows in comparison with Matsuki and Aribo:

AM/Wing: Scienza, Fellows, Arma*, Robinson, Azaz, Matsuki, Archer, Fraser, Edozie, Aribo

(* But prefer him as striker at present!)

CM/CDM: Jander, Charles, Downes, Bragg, Romeu*, Matsuki, Sesay, Aribo

(* Will improve with fitness hopefully!)

Having said that, I am judging Matsuki based on good performances in pre-season but lack of selection since, more than having seen him recently.

Edited 4 December, 2025 by SaintJackoInHurworth

[Charlie Wayman]

On 26/11/2025 at 19:53, Harry_SFC said:

You've got to feel for him. Comes off the bench, plays well and scores an absolute worldy then hasn't seen a minute since. 

Bloody criminal if you ask me, the way he has been treated. Eckert persists with useless clowns like Downs and Aribo yet ignores a guy who starred in that one chance he was given. 

[Charlie Wayman]

On 26/11/2025 at 10:11, Miltonaggro said:

Hoping for this too. Buzzing little player, seems perfect for a TE team.

Blackmore should ask the question on Friday, put Eckert under a bit of pressure and see what bulls*t he comes up with about his absence.

Over to you Adam if you're reading this thread.

[revolution saint]

Great goal against Norwich but I thought he looked a bit lightweight.  He played the equivalent of about 11 games from 28 appearances last season but only 5 of those appearances lasted more than 65 minutes.  He might be a better option than Aribo but I'm not sure he's that much more of a better option.

[OnceaSaintalwaysaSaint]

On 04/12/2025 at 20:27, Charlie Wayman said:

Bloody criminal if you ask me, the way he has been treated. Eckert persists with useless clowns like Downs and Aribo yet ignores a guy who starred in that one chance he was given. 

And I remember him coming on at Northampton and while he didn't do anything spectacular, he looked competent and in control of the ball.

I am also really confused with Eckert's persistence with Aribo (and Downs). He's now got a settled starting 11 and we're getting off to a good start but his substitutions seriously weaken the team. Matsuki, even Edozie, need game time.

[Lighthouse]

This whole ‘why isn’t he playing instead of Aribo’ idea is a complete guess based on absolutely nothing we’ve seen on a football pitch. Sure, Aribo has looked lazy and disinterested and I can’t wait to see the back of him, but he also has nearly 100 appearances in the SPL and the same again in the PL/Champ. I’d say it was fairly obvious why he is being chosen over a man who has never done anything other than a forgettable loan in Turkey and one decent goal against Norwich reserves.

[saintant]

57 minutes ago, Lighthouse said:

This whole ‘why isn’t he playing instead of Aribo’ idea is a complete guess based on absolutely nothing we’ve seen on a football pitch. Sure, Aribo has looked lazy and disinterested and I can’t wait to see the back of him, but he also has nearly 100 appearances in the SPL and the same again in the PL/Champ. I’d say it was fairly obvious why he is being chosen over a man who has never done anything other than a forgettable loan in Turkey and one decent goal against Norwich reserves.

I'm guessing Lionel Messi started with a goal against someone's reserves.

[Verbal]

15 hours ago, saintant said:

I'm guessing Lionel Messi started with a goal against someone's reserves.

Yes, probably Real Madrid reserves, when he was 12.

[Saint NL]

He seemed to divide the fan base with his performance today.

I thought he looked dangerous, some very nice tricks and flicks, but didn't really do the basics all that well. There's definitely a player in there, just need to get him working harder defensively imo.

[JohnnyShearer2.0]

I like him.

I think this season is about acclimatising to the Championship for him. Next season he could take off, unless he is sold first.

[sfc4prem]

3 minutes ago, JohnnyShearer2.0 said:

I like him.

I think this season is about acclimatising to the Championship for him. Next season he could take off, unless he is sold first.

I'd be frustrated if we sold him in the summer. What a waste of time that'd be. There's talent there.

[Holmes_and_Watson]

33 minutes ago, Saint NL said:

He seemed to divide the fan base with his performance today.

I thought he looked dangerous, some very nice tricks and flicks, but didn't really do the basics all that well. There's definitely a player in there, just need to get him working harder defensively imo.

Yup. Mixed. Some of the downsides contributed to our lack of effectiveness.  For which, he can join a number of others for their mixed performances. Good to see him getting minutes to develop.

[benjii]

10 minutes ago, sfc4prem said:

I'd be frustrated if we sold him in the summer. What a waste of time that'd be. There's talent there.

 

14 minutes ago, JohnnyShearer2.0 said:

I like him.

I think this season is about acclimatising to the Championship for him. Next season he could take off, unless he is sold first.

 

44 minutes ago, Saint NL said:

He seemed to divide the fan base with his performance today.

I thought he looked dangerous, some very nice tricks and flicks, but didn't really do the basics all that well. There's definitely a player in there, just need to get him working harder defensively imo.

Agree with all these. 

He clearly has ability and also seems to have bravery/bottle.

It was his willingness to show for the ball and try something that gave Azaz the chance to play in Armstrong in the first half.

Let's get behind him.

[Lee On Solent Saint]

22 minutes ago, benjii said:

 

 

Agree with all these. 

He clearly has ability and also seems to have bravery/bottle.

It was his willingness to show for the ball and try something that gave Azaz the chance to play in Armstrong in the first half.

Let's get behind him.

Needs to cut out the needless fouls. Possibly trying too hard to make an impression. 

[Harry_SFC]

14 minutes ago, Lee On Solent Saint said:

Needs to cut out the needless fouls. Possibly trying too hard to make an impression. 

More than likely. Either way I would give him another season at this level. 

[Plumstead_Saint]

He's the king of the back-heel pass, and had a good game today. Maybe toom many fouls but it was the poopey derby....

[sockeye]

Needs a run of games. Cmon Kuryu

[davefizzy14]

Yeah Matsuki needs a run of games. He's got quality. 

[Deanovski]

On 05/12/2025 at 21:22, Lighthouse said:

This whole ‘why isn’t he playing instead of Aribo’ idea is a complete guess based on absolutely nothing we’ve seen on a football pitch. Sure, Aribo has looked lazy and disinterested and I can’t wait to see the back of him, but he also has nearly 100 appearances in the SPL and the same again in the PL/Champ. I’d say it was fairly obvious why he is being chosen over a man who has never done anything other than a forgettable loan in Turkey and one decent goal against Norwich reserves.

This aged well. Had a pretty decent loan spell and probably was our best player pre-season. 

[Harry_SFC]

Does he deserve a start ahead of Fellows or Azaz? I'd suggest so. 

[SuperSAINT]

16 minutes ago, Harry_SFC said:

Does he deserve a start ahead of Fellows or Azaz? I'd suggest so. 

A cert to start in the cup you’d think.

[Sheaf Saint]

1 minute ago, SuperSAINT said:

A cert to start in the cup you’d think.

He did in the last round, and scored as well.

[Chez]

11 hours ago, Harry_SFC said:

Does he deserve a start ahead of Fellows or Azaz? I'd suggest so. 

Azaz has been playing very well and his workrate has bene good. I wouldn't start Matsuki ahead of him. Fellows has played a lot of football and run a lot of yards. There has been a lack of end product, but he hasn't played too badly in most games. Obviously not great against Leicester. No harm in giving him a rest once in a while. 

Matsuki did quite well yesterday, keeping the ball and making good runs. But he isn't very quick, so it will be difficult for him playing out wide.

I've not seen a lot of him, so not really sure if he is good enough to start Championship games. No problem playing in the cup game on Saturday - perfect timing.

[Jack]

Thought he was excellent last night. Fellows was ineffective, though everyone was, and had the shocker for the pass back. Matsuki isn’t going to beat players but he’s combative and can pick a pass, and fight for everything. We needed that last night. 

[S-Clarke]

His energy and fight is infectious, that's what I see he brings more than anything else. He's always buzzing around, always pressing, always hassling. He's not the quickest nor the strongest, but he's the sort of guy who injects energy and life into a side - and it showed in that 2nd half. Sometimes you don't need amazing skill or pace, just a bit of tenacity and energy can be enough to tilt the momentum.

He's not an every week type of player, but his energy is so important at times we're lagging. We could do with a few more players with his style, as we do become passive from time to time.

[Saint86]

He's a good squad player for us and clearly loves a stepover, but he shouldn't be starting, and really he shouldn't be playing on the wing (like he was last night). Edozie and Jayrob are both better natural picks for that position.

[Matthew Le God]

Anyone willing to say loaning him to Goztepe (at a club where SR control conditions for loanees) may have helped his development to be ready for this season and is a benefit of the group system of clubs? 

Edited 17 hours ago by Matthew Le God

[Saint_clark]

2 minutes ago, Matthew Le God said:

Anyone willing to say loaning him to Goztepe (at a club where SR control conditions for loanees) may have helped his development to be ready for this season and is a benefit of the group system of clubs? 

I doubt he gained anything from the experience he couldn't have gained from being on loan without the group system in place.

[Deanovski]

4 hours ago, Saint86 said:

He's a good squad player for us and clearly loves a stepover, but he shouldn't be starting, and really he shouldn't be playing on the wing (like he was last night). Edozie and Jayrob are both better natural picks for that position.

He was great on right wing tbh? Didnt lose the ball, won all his duels, won fouls and put the ball into the box? 

[chiknsmack]

I'm not seeing the lack of pace others are, but maybe I just need to see more of him. I worry more about lack of size, but he seems to do alright regardless.

I think he's better suited in the middle than out wide, particularly from what I saw in preseason. If we wanted full rotation for this weekend something like Edozie - Matsuki - Robinson behind a striker would be my go.