I love Scott Brown. I used to fight his cause when we first signed him and many fans were against him - of course that all changed when he scored that goal against Deidco and "Broony" \o/ was invented. Nothing would give me greater pleasure than him playing an active role on the pitch winning the 4th treble and leading us to 10IAR.
But, despite his incredible fitness, he was always going to struggle to play 2 x 90 minute matches every week for months on end. I believe he would have been better if there was no lockdown as trying to regain that incredible edge he had was always going to be tough for a 35 year old - whereas if he'd continued on after a couple of weeks break then I think he could have better maintained the intensity.
I don't think he should be scapegoated either for some awful performances because he always gives 100% which you couldn't say about everyone else in our starting line-ups. But I don't think I am being too unfair to agree with those observations about our play being much more ponderous, static and side-to-side rather than the fast, dynamic, fluid football we've played without him in the centre of the pitch. As SP pointed out, he has lost that incredible burst of speed he used to enjoy with the result that he can now get to challenges a fraction of a second too late and is a booking waiting to happen.
I thought there were a handful of games this season where Brown & Soro could have played well together - lots of energy and a real bite in the centre of the pitch (e.g. away ties in Europa League) - but I don't think a game against Hearts is the right one to try it in.
Those who have read my posts over the last few months will not be surprised to hear that I would prefer Soro to start, but would want Broony to come on and close out the game (not necessarily at the expense of Soro being removed). I know that Hearts are dirty buggers and will be putting the boot in, but Soro can handle himself and is a tough cookie - he won't get intimidated by their thuggish antics.
All great player's careers eventually come to a close and it is not always enjoyable seeing heroes slow up. But it happened to McNeil, McGrain, Burns, McStay, Boyd, Lambert and Lennon himself. Of them all, Lenny seemed to be the one most upset about missing out and despised being dropped or subbed. He believed he could continue for longer - but he was wrong, he was getting too slow. I believe it is this memory of how much he hated being dropped that has caused Lenny to continue playing Broony too much instead of maximising his impact to the team by resting him at keys times.
Broony is a leader and champion. He deserves to enjoy and contribute to our triumph. But the team must come first. IMO I think we should have more than enough to win against Hearts if Broony starts, but I believe we will win easier if Soro is picked, and that does not imply any disrespect to Broony or his remarkable achievements and successes.
