Taken off after 58 minutes because of an injury
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Taken off after 58 minutes because of an injury
Ah Christ!
Clicked into the thread to see the good news; then the bad news was sneaky hidden on the next page... :mad:
Reality check for Aaron Connolly as Black Cats man faces ‘long journey’ to cement spot in team
https://www.independent.ie/sport/soc...401605324.html
I think the tone and headline of the article doesn't really tally with the quotes of his manager. He doesn't face the "long journey" - he is in the middle of it. And the manager said he struggled for a bit but the last week was positive for him.Quote:
Originally Posted by tetsujin1979
He has had a quiet few weeks but that was always likely to occur and he needs to be flying it to get into a side going so well.
Heading to Millwall it appears. At least he should get more game time and hopefully plays himself into a good run.
Some line up of Championship clubs himself and Obafemi have signed for at this point:
Connolly - Middlesbrough, Hull, Sunderland, Millwall, Luton (in L1 at the time)
Obafemi - Swansea, Burnley, Millwall, Plymouth, Watford (as a youth player)
They've been with nearly 40% of the current Championship clubs between them. It does feel like they're both nearing the end of the road in that division though and will probably both be finding their level in the lower leagues before too long.
Incidentally, of the four young Irish strikers that came through around the same time about five years ago (Connolly, Obafemi, Parrott and Idah), only Idah now won't have played for Millwall in his career - there's still time for him to end up there as well though!
Confirmed now that he has left Sunderland and signed for Millwall.
He looks pretty good in the photos on Millwall's website
https://www.millwallfc.co.uk/news/20...nolly-signing/
No mention of a contract length but presumably just until the end of the season for now.
Will shortly have played for over 20% of the teams in the champiosnhip...by 24, some going.
Fresh start for Connolly, hopefully he can get a run of games and stay injury free etc etc
He's had a few of those at this stage!Quote:
Originally Posted by Exgrad
Came on as an early sub today; missed a penalty. Ho hum.
Seemed to play well enough outside of that in fairness
Seemed to play in a 10 role with a more significant defensive mandate than he'd be used to?Quote:
Originally Posted by pineapple stu
Hey played well but the penalty was absolutely woeful, one of the worst I've seen in a very long time. In fairness, he earned the penalty in the first place and they still won the game so hopefully it's quickly forgotten.
Millwall will probably be the most defensively minded team he has played for in his career, so he may be asked to play a different role. Brighton were a possession team and Middlesbrough, Sunderland, Hull and Luton were all promotion chasing teams when he played for them. (To be honest I don't know much about his time in Italy.) So it will be interesting to see how he deals with potentially being asked to track back and contribute more out of possession at Millwall.Quote:
Originally Posted by Olé Olé
It might be no harm because if his career stats tell us anything, it's that he's not a prolific goalscorer by any means.
He dealt fine with it today.Quote:
Originally Posted by Eirambler
Guess who’s back… back again… Aaron’s back… Hallgrimsson…
Quote:
Aaron Connolly puts Millwall one up after 30 seconds!
The Lions work it well down the right and it comes to Connolly in the area who fires a first time effort into the far corner from about 12 yards out.
Tidy finish. Sustaining his form over an extended period of time is the key for Aaron now though.
Hes actually looking very trim and fit
https://londonnewsonline.co.uk/sport...aron-connolly/
An interesting interview with Connolly, confirms that the Millwall contract is only until the end of the season. Also seems to say that he turned down a contract offer at Hull last season which led to him being dropped, I don't think that has been reported before. Sounds like he's staying on the level so far since his acknowledgement of his alcohol issues, the current lack of a contract for next season will help focus his mind as well I'd imagine.
When Connolly was at Brighton he displayed all the elements of an immature boy who was flush with money - the polar opposite of the likes of Ferguson. Hopefully he has managed to get his head together and figured out how to deal with being a professional footballer (and all the highs and lows that are part of the job). The guy has talent and he can have a very good career if he can keep it going. I wish him the best.Quote:
Originally Posted by Eirambler
Is he cup tied?
Played in the third round for Sunderland so he will be, yes.
Hasn't been starting for Millwall recently, Emakhu preferred to him today. Emakhu was decent, certainly justified the start.
Connolly was lively when he came on, definitely offered Millwall an outlet and made a nuisance of himself. Just looks like he's lost something compared to the player that first broke through at Brighton, whether it's a trick or half a yard of pace, he has a more stocky build now. Will be interesting to see if he gets an extended contract at Millwall, his work rate is good, but at 25 this does look to be about his level.
Moran came on for Stoke just after Connolly and honestly might as well not have been on the pitch for all the impact he had. Millwall took control of the game after he came on and out of possession he really does offer absolutely nothing at all right now.
Released by Millwall. Will hardly get a Championship move next season.
And on a random tangent, I figured the easiest way to find this thread would be to sort the forum by alphabetical order - but then it's on page 8 :eek:
There's links to every player thread, ordered by surname, in the important thread post at the top of the forum homepage
I know - I just thought it'd be quicker for Aaron to sort in alphabetical order
It was originally sorted in first name order, can't remember who asked for it to be changed to surname order
Was maybe a little unlucky that Millwall had a strong season, had they been down in the bottom half like they usually are he might've played more.
That said, you can only be unlucky so many times before it's a case of making your own luck, and I think that applies to both him and Obafemi. Probably looking at League 1, Scotland or further afield for both players next season. Not where either player would have seen themselves at 25 I'm sure.
Not sure which of them I'm more disappointed with, maybe Obafemi because he has genuine pace and goalscoring talent. Maybe Connolly was never really as good as he looked in that breakthrough half season he had at Brighton. Premier League teams seemed to get a read on him quickly enough.
I'd be pretty surprised to see him in another Ireland squad. So at this rate I think I'd like to see him come back and play here in the LOI. If he is still recovering from a bad relationship with alcohol then maybe living in Ireland would be a good thing for him even if it isn't as lucrative.
Shels do seem badly in need of someone who can score goals and Connolly desperately needs to prove he can score goals at some level. A European run over the summer could put him in the shop window again for a January move to the UK.
I'm going to guess Scotland. Somewhere like Dundee United. I think he'd score goals in the SPL, outside of the Glasgow teams the standard is a fair bit below where he's been playing (or often not playing) for the last five years. The money won't be huge, but if he wants to get games and rebuild at a more realistic level, that's probably his best bet. The right League 1 club might suit him also.
Signs for Leyton Orient
His career is a bit like a ride on the Orient Express ~ With Agatha Christie / Wagatha Christie ? !
2 year contract, probably the most stability hes gotten in a while
Thank youQuote:
Originally Posted by Razors left peg
Wins the race to League 1 between him and Obafemi by a nose.
I think this is a good move for Connolly - Leyton Orient are a well run club and Wellens is a high-intensity coach. Connolly will have to knuckle down and focus on football under Wellens or he will find himself out the door quite quickly.
Still time for Obafemi to say "Hold my beer" and end up in League Two...Quote:
Originally Posted by Eirambler
Given his history of not lasting long at clubs this comment makes me think it actually might not be a good move for him.Quote:
Originally Posted by Jolly Red Giant
Fresh start at Swindon in late January anyone?