Maxime Esteve

[DanH90]

How did people think he got on yesterday?
Was talking to a friend of mine last night who sits in the JHU, and he mentioned that all the people sat around him thought Esteve looked nervous and not at all assured. Whereas from my vantage point in the JML I thought quite the opposite, one dodgy pass back aside. Strange how people see the game so differently.

Interested to see the general consensus on here.

[Silkyskills1]

A decent half. Crisp passing, height and quick over the ground. Course he'd be nervous. Only met his team mates on Friday, doesn't speak English. What exactly do people expect?

[Vino blanco]

It was good to see a left sided centre back playing in the right position. He was calm, strong and in control: I also noticed that towards the the end of the game he had started telling other players around him what to do and where to mark. That is the sign of a leader, something we have been sadly lacking. His playing at left cb will give players like Beyer, Ekdal, and O’Shea the chance to play in their rightful position on the right.

[Roosterbooster]

Very promising debut. I'm not sure I agree with the nervous comments. Made an error early on, but then just plugged away and got better and better. So quite the opposite of those comments as far as I could tell

[evensteadiereddie]

He looked like a player to me, watched him closely second half from near the front of the CFS.
Assured, distributed pretty well and looks a fairly powerful unit.
A very good addition.

[dougcollins]

It was good to see a left sided centre back playing in the right position. He was calm, strong and in control: I also noticed that towards the the end of the game he had started telling other players around him what to do and where to mark. That is the sign of a leader, something we have been sadly lacking. His playing at left cb will give players like Beyer, Ekdal, and O’Shea the chance to play in their rightful position on the right.

Exactly what I saw.

[Lubanski]

Positive performance,left side looked much better going forward with his to the point sharp distribution, did the defensive part fine,very committed in tracking and holding up their late progress attempts down that side..

[alwaysaclaret]

It was good to see a left sided centre back playing in the right position. He was calm, strong and in control: I also noticed that towards the the end of the game he had started telling other players around him what to do and where to mark. That is the sign of a leader, something we have been sadly lacking. His playing at left cb will give players like Beyer, Ekdal, and O’Shea the chance to play in their rightful position on the right.

Be on the right wing v Liverpool if kompany has he's way

[evensteadiereddie]

Why?

[bobinho]

Did well I thought. Promising start - I look forward to seeing being partnered with Beyer….

Sadly, every time he touches the ball we are treated to the CFS “massive” shouting “steeeeeeeve” despite him announcing to us all his name is in fact NOT Steve, but Esteve (ess stev).

[NewClaret]

Did well I thought. Promising start - I look forward to seeing being partnered with Beyer….

Sadly, every time he touches the ball we are treated to the CFS “massive” shouting “steeeeeeeve” despite him announcing to us all his name is in fact NOT Steve, but Esteve (ess stev).

Think it’s because of his announcement video

[JimmyRobbo]

He has 2 things we're desperate for at the back. He has height and strength. We're short of both.

I thought he looked composed. The way he moved the winger off the ball smacks of a natural defender's mentality. It's easy to look good in your first games when you're full of energy and feeling fresh. See how he looks when he's bedded in to a losing team.

If we still have him next year, I think he will be a quality addition and, at this stage, more of what I wanted than paying £10-15m for THB or JB.

[NewClaret]

Your mate saw a totally different game to me Dan. I thought he looked excellent. Couple of poor passes, but otherwise top drawer. Saw him organising, leading, pushing them forward. Looked calm in possession and played a few good passes.

Thing I like most though was his pace. Saw it a few times and I think some fans don’t realise how important at this level. Saw him win a few 1:1’s that other players wouldn’t have won and suddenly there would’ve been an attack on but his pace just dealt with it easily.

Top signing and apparently wants to stay regardless of what league we’re in next year. Brilliant.

[Kilson810]

Did well I thought. Promising start - I look forward to seeing being partnered with Beyer….

Sadly, every time he touches the ball we are treated to the CFS “massive” shouting “steeeeeeeve” despite him announcing to us all his name is in fact NOT Steve, but Esteve (ess stev).

Why sadly? It's done in good humour after the announcement video.

[bobinho]

Why sadly? It's done in good humour after the announcement video.

Perhaps I was wrong to assume they were doing it out of ignorance (remember the “voot” chants when Wout Weghorst touched the ball?) as opposed to some highly original and good natured “bants”

[NewClaret]

If we still have him next year, I think he will be a quality addition and, at this stage, more of what I wanted than paying £10-15m for THB or JB.

THB was £20m

[NewClaret]

Perhaps I was wrong to assume they were doing it out of ignorance (remember the “voot” chants when Wout Weghorst touched the ball?) as opposed to some highly original and good natured “bants”

The voot chants were dreadful

[JimmyRobbo]

THB was £20m

Ouch!

A very good player who I rate highly. Having said that, I'm not convinced he is dominant enough at the next level to warrant that fee.

Who knows!

[Westleigh]

Why sadly? It's done in good humour after the announcement video.

Thiig was at the Jimmy Mac end it sounded like we were booing him.

[Jellybean]

Thiig was at the Jimmy Mac end it sounded like we were booing him.

This is what I'm confused about, definitely an ooo sound not eeee so it did sound like booing!

[Kilson810]

Thiig was at the Jimmy Mac end it sounded like we were booing him.

Fair enough although I can assure you from the CFS that we were just shouting Steve for a laugh after his announcement video. There wasn't much entertainment on offer, so we needed a laugh at something

[Taffy on the wing]

Thought he looked very good, strong & quick.....a lot to like.

[Vegas Claret]

Ouch!

A very good player who I rate highly. Having said that, I'm not convinced he is dominant enough at the next level to warrant that fee.

Who knows!

the fact not a single PL team went in for him tells you a lot

[Rick_Muller]

The shouts of “Steve” in the CFS certainly were in response to the reveal video. At the time, as we were playing quite poorly it was a welcome distraction from the scoreline at the time. A lot of us were having a laugh about it.

That said, I can see why it would sound like a “boo” as it was almost in the style of how we used to shout “Beast” at Brian Jensen.

As to his ability - I’m delighted with how he played, looked very assured and inspired some confidence at the back straight away. Bar the one wayward pass back, his passing again was top notch, including one delightfully flighted cross field pass of 40+ yards to foot. I also like his drive out of defence on a couple of occasions, again a good sign for me.

[NewClaret]

Ouch!

A very good player who I rate highly. Having said that, I'm not convinced he is dominant enough at the next level to warrant that fee.

Who knows!

He’s a bit like Ekdal to me. Top defender but if he gets turned you’re going to be in bother. That’s why he’s not worth £20m unless you play in a low block.

[Tricky Trevor]

As debuts go he was better than ok. Ironically his misplaced right foot back pass led to a corner, which led to a corner, which led to our first breakaway goal.
His stats from Sky.

IMG_3937.jpeg (82.42 KiB) Viewed 3245 times

[Goliath]

As debuts go he was better than ok. Ironically his misplaced right foot back pass led to a corner, which led to a corner, which led to our first breakaway goal.
His stats from Sky.
IMG_3937.jpeg

I think he was very good but these stats tell us literally nothing

[Goobs]

Thiig was at the Jimmy Mac end it sounded like we were booing him.

I was in the Jimmy mac Upper and it was very clear they were saying Steeeve

[Quicknick]

Steeeve. Honestly!

[Quickenthetempo]

Around us in the Longside up it was EsSteeeeeeeve.

You can here the Es around you but the Steve bit will travel.

[Foshiznik]

I genuinely thought he looked a class above. Made smart decisions, put his foot in at the right time and looked confident on the ball. Was surprised afterwards seeing how few felt the same tbh.

[burnleymik]

I genuinely thought he looked a class above. Made smart decisions, put his foot in at the right time and looked confident on the ball. Was surprised afterwards seeing how few felt the same tbh.

Same. I thought we suddenly looked more assured and O Shea looked better when he came on. Could be coincidence, but I do think he looked good.

[Stayingup]

He did ok and that's with Vitinho alongside him!!!

[Newcastleclaret93]

THB was £20m

I suspect that’s the same 20m that Trafford cost.

Probably more like 10m with loads of add ons

[Foshiznik]

I suspect that’s the same 20m that Trafford cost.

Probably more like 10m with loads of add ons

Like Trafford then

[alwaysaclaret]

I genuinely thought he looked a class above. Made smart decisions, put his foot in at the right time and looked confident on the ball. Was surprised afterwards seeing how few felt the same tbh.

Looked a captain in he's first 2 minutes

[Goody1975]

I thought he looked promising but remember he's played 45 minutes, he needs time to settle.

Al Dakhil and Ekdal have looked fantastic at some stages of their time here but are now written off by many.

Let's see how he does over the next few weeks before claiming he's the next big thing.

If he makes one mistake he'll be described by some on here as ****, a waste of money and another clueless signing.

[beddie]

Let’s hope he can quickly speak the language, then he can start to bollock some of his colleagues to get into position especially when defending corners and set plays.

[NewClaret]

I thought he looked promising but remember he's played 45 minutes, he needs time to settle.

Al Dakhil and Ekdal have looked fantastic at some stages of their time here but are now written off by many.

Let's see how he does over the next few weeks before claiming he's the next big thing.

If he makes one mistake he'll be described by some on here as ****, a waste of money and another clueless signing.

Very good point. The thing with young players is they’re consistently inconsistent and will make mistakes.

They all need our fullest support.

[Cirrus_Minor]

I thought that he looked very good, as did all the debutantes. In fact the three signings looked more like the regulars than the regulars did, which probably tells us something (not sure what).

[ClaretAndBlue94]

Did well I thought. Promising start - I look forward to seeing being partnered with Beyer….

Sadly, every time he touches the ball we are treated to the CFS “massive” shouting “steeeeeeeve” despite him announcing to us all his name is in fact NOT Steve, but Esteve (ess stev).

Did you genuinely think every fan in CFS thinks his name is Steve ? Humour completely missed ha

[bobinho]

Did you genuinely think every fan in CFS thinks his name is Steve ? Humour completely missed ha

Nope. Well, not EVERY one... just most of ‘em. Like I said, I assumed going off what we learned when they tried to pronounce Wout… I wonder if they meant that in a humorous way too?

[KateR]

thought it was telling that on the BBC's player ratings the first five highest were all substitutes, our play apart from the first ~10 minutes was poor, very poor! It wasn't that much better second half, but it was certainly the substitutes who made the difference, however I thought Assignon deserved to be up there, as I thought he was better than previous in that position. Certainly thought all three January additions looked better but very early days, hopefully they can make some difference.

[bobinho]

Looked a captain in he's first 2 minutes

It’s the one real position we are missing. By that I mean most important. Over the years we have been truly blessed with some exceptional leaders on the field… what I wouldn’t give for one of them now.

[StayingDown4Ever]

Looked a little nervy which was of course understandable given:

1. It was a debut for his new side
2. He’d just heard the team booed off 15 minutes earlier
3. He knew he had Trafford behind him

Overall I think he did quite well.

[Paul Waine]

Let’s hope he can quickly speak the language, then he can start to bollock some of his colleagues to get into position especially when defending corners and set plays.

We've already got a number of French speakers in the team. The rest will quickly learn what he's telling them.

UTC

[alwaysaclaret]

Let’s hope he can quickly speak the language, then he can start to bollock some of his colleagues to get into position especially when defending corners and set plays.

He'll have a big job on with Trafford, he has a problem communicating in any kind of language.

[ClaretAndBlue94]

Nope. Well, not EVERY one... just most of ‘em. Like I said, I assumed going off what we learned when they tried to pronounce Wout… I wonder if they meant that in a humorous way too?

Point very well made. The Woot chants were definitely not in humour

[FCBurnley]

Thought he had a very good half. Looked strong and physical which we need but he will have to be careful at Liverpool. Easy to pick up a red card against the cheating scousers

[basil6345789]

Thought he had a very good half. Looked strong and physical which we need but he will have to be careful at Liverpool. Easy to pick up a red card against the cheating scousers

Foster will upset Van Dyke