Hold on a second, he was dreadful for long periods so people had every right to be moaning twats. He's playing at the level that was expected of him when he was bought. A lot of that is down to playing under a manager who knows how to set up a team defensively. Also he's had a regular run in the team and is thriving off that. People chance, circumstances change and opinions change, such is life!
I don't think he was dreadful for long periods. He was very inconsistent and wasn't anywhere near the level we wanted him to be, but many on here were singling him out game after game for one mistake or misplaced pass and deliberately ignoring anything he did well.
As another poster has eloquently stated on this thread - his performances were as much about circumstance as they were about ability and confidence. His partnership with Skrtel, his proximity to Moreno, a team under pressure, a new system, playing for a manager that had yet to prove himself as a defensive tactician, and playing in front of an indecisive keeper all had a part to play in a very indifferent season last year.
'Playing at the level expected of him when he was bought' is exactly the kind of assumption that leads to impatience and judging a player too early. If you genuinely believe that you buy a player and they simply perform at the same level as they did at their old club then you will often be disappointed as its very often not the case (Schneiderlin, Di Maria, Benteke, and Pedro being a few recent examples). There are dozens of examples of players that have a slump in form when moving clubs, both from within and outside the premier league, and often it has little to do with their ability as a player.
I'm all for constructive criticism but too often on this site it's simplistic one-dimensional football analysis (i.e. he's made a few mistakes therefore he's shite), instead of seeing the bigger picture, understanding the wider reasons for a players lack of form, and giving a player time to adapt to new systems, new teammates, new expectations or a new manager.
I'm acutely aware that 'opinions change', as this site is like a rollercoaster of bi-polarism at times. The point I was making is that there are enough examples at this club of players that have turned their form around to at least take a little more than a single season before writing a player off completely.
