Ismael Kenneth Kone

[Mitchryan11]

Can we teach him how to play CB

[jhoops__]

I was at field level and and could not believe my eyes how much of a thoroughbred Koné is holy shit!   

[Kadenge]

Delighted to see all the positive comments on Kone. I was in the south section, so not the greatest view but Kone was outstanding. His ability to change direction under pressure is incredible.  A big lad who will  be able to physically dominate in CM as he fills out. He outplayed Staq yesterday

[Snowcrash]

Kone is nowhere his physical peak, in terms of both strength and endurance.  He comparatively towers over someone like Eustaquio but his core strength is in all likelihood weaker. You look at Alphonso Davies now compared to when he first joined Bayern and imagine Kone in 4 years working with top flight physical and nutritional specialists.

[Wasp]

Cannot believe this kid is still only 20 years old. So skilled, so smooth, and is a true box-to-box player. Watford is going to make a nice profit off of him when they eventually sell him on to a bigger club.

[narduch]

I'm guessing he plays Serie A next year with Udinese and will be in the EPL a year later

[Aird25]

13 minutes ago, Snowcrash said:

Kone is nowhere his physical peak, in terms of both strength and endurance.  He comparatively towers over someone like Eustaquio but his core strength is in all likelihood weaker. You look at Alphonso Davies now compared to when he first joined Bayern and imagine Kone in 4 years working with top flight physical and nutritional specialists.

I’m not saying Davies hasn’t matured physically, but he was phenomenally strong and fast for his age even at Vancouver

[Obinna]

What I love about Kone is that he's now exhibiting his innate winger instincts. A few times he floated out wide and took players on the dribble. That's old school, youth player Kone right there. It's nice to see he hasn't lost that - in fact he's re-integrating it into his game at the highest international level. I haven't seen him much at Watford, but I wonder if he tries this kind of thing with them, or if he's still playing it safe relatively speaking.

Either way, I am convinced he's only getting better from here. He has Davies-level physical traits, with the learned-poise of an elite central midfielder, and the innate-instincts of a winger. Great combination and should be anchoring the midfield for the next decade, at least. 

[Dominic94]

29 minutes ago, narduch said:

I'm guessing he plays Serie A next year with Udinese and will be in the EPL a year later

I believe his transfer to Udinese was done when he signed for Watford.

[dyslexic nam]

I know others have mentioned it but he looks like the kind of guy that is going to have a ridiculous amount of strength when he is in his peak years.   He already looks strong but there is still something “boyish” about his physique.  He looks like he could sprout entirely new muscles with the right training.  

[Ozzie_the_parrot]

9 minutes ago, Sal333 said:

...My guts(.or maybe it's just my delusion)tell me this CMNT will become a major player on the international scene by the time the next WC rolls around.

Being viewed as a permanent fixture in a "big 3" in CONCACAF terms is realistic by 2026 and should happen judging by how the player pool is strengthening and deepening. Players like Schaffelburg, Edwards, Cavallini and Millar didn't even get called this time, who almost certainly would have been 5 to 10 years ago with similar club level form.

[Snowcrash]

9 minutes ago, Obinna said:

What I love about Kone is that he's now exhibiting his innate winger instincts. A few times he floated out wide and took players on the dribble. That's old school, youth player Kone right there. It's nice to see he hasn't lost that - in fact he's re-integrating it into his game at the highest international level. I haven't seen him much at Watford, but I wonder if he tries this kind of thing with them, or if he's still playing it safe relatively speaking.

Either way, I am convinced he's only getting better from here. He has Davies-level physical traits, with the learned-poise of an elite central midfielder, and the innate-instincts of a winger. Great combination and should be anchoring the midfield for the next decade, at least. 

Kone reads the game better than Davies and makes better decisions than Davies right now, with about a year of pro experience.

[Obinna]

7 minutes ago, Snowcrash said:

Kone reads the game better than Davies and makes better decisions than Davies right now, with about a year of pro experience.

Couldn't agree more. His decision making is Eustaquio-level. For as remarkable as Davies is, he still struggles with his final action, be it pass, the decision to make a pass (or not make a pass), at least for Canada. Funny enough, at Bayern he's much cleaner in these regards, possibly because he doesn't have the same level of pressure and expectation. He's a role player at Bayern and the face of Canada, which kind of hurts him with our team, I think. 

[pod818]

His first touch and turns are elite. He often receives the pass with opposition players right on top of him. I expect him to make the easy pass back, but he often does a quick turn with pace and a perfect touch to get into an offensive position with space. Its amazing to watch. 

[InglewoodJack]

38 minutes ago, dyslexic nam said:

I know others have mentioned it but he looks like the kind of guy that is going to have a ridiculous amount of strength when he is in his peak years.   He already looks strong but there is still something “boyish” about his physique.  He looks like he could sprout entirely new muscles with the right training.  

Agreed, but he looks less boyish than even when he was at Montreal. He had a bit of that kid posture last year and looked like a really talented young guy keeping up with the men, but the player we saw last night looked like a man playing amongst men. And it’ll only go up from here.

 

Also, man- if this game was a UEFA nations league game against comparable opposition, Kone’s value might’ve gone up a few million just from that one game. So exciting watching him blow up in real time. He might be a completely different player by our next games in June.

[canadasoccer20]

Can't believe how special Kone has become at only 20. A large credit of his development needs to be to Montreal. To have a player this composed is unheard of and clearly they did a great job taking there time with him early on. Having him for the next 3 cycles is going to be so big especially with Hutch retiring soon. Keep it up Kone!

[pod818]

there are those CANMNT games where you watch a player cement themselves as a undisputed starter for the foreseeable future. I remember thinking that with Eustaqio at the gold cup and then with Tajon later on. These last 2 games were that for Kone. He's cemented himself as a main guy for the next 10 years. 

The only thing that leaves me wondering is how he is not a regular starter for Watford

[Kadenge]

Kudos to Montreal for giving Kone the platform to showcase his ability and then move him. At Watford he has developed the defensive part of his game to go along with his immense offensive abilities while playing in a physical league with a heavy schedule. The vets at Watford do not allow Kone to tune out and he seems to be more focused now vs drifting in and out of games previously. If he keeps healthy, Kone could be right up there with Phonzie & David

[kingvikingstad]

I was blown away with the progress he's made. If I'm dreaming, I see a version of Thiago in his future.

He basically turned at will in the midfield and from watching him live, his movement to find space and accept the ball was excellent too. He's going to be so hard to take the ball off of once he adds more muscle, and he already has some of the balance that made JDG so good in his heyday, with those herky-jerky movements that keep defenders guessing. At the same time he also shapes and weights his passes perfectly and was even directing others around him to move into space quite a bit.

If he works hard and stays healthy, I think he's playing in the champions league in less than three years.

[InglewoodJack]

2 hours ago, pod818 said:

 

The only thing that leaves me wondering is how he is not a regular starter for Watford

He is- 8 starts in 10 games. Watford has had a lot of injuries to their midfield, so as those guys come back I think some are being slotted ahead of Kone, but for the most part, he’s a starter.

 

funny- his FOTMob rating (7.0) at Watford is now officially higher than at Montreal (6.99). That’s what I call growth baby!!

[jonovision]

I'm sure some of the usual dinosaurs will complain about this format but it certainly highlights the match that he had.

[Corazon]

One Soccer put together a video of all his touches from last night's win.

Looks like @jonovisionbeat me to it so I'll take mine down.

It's beautiful 🥲

 

Edited March 29, 2023 by Corazon

[Treppy2]

This may be behind a paywall, but the Toronto Star is echoing everything you guys have said about Kone: 

https://www.thestar.com/sports/soccer/analysis/2023/03/29/ismal-kon-has-only-been-a-pro-for-a-year-hes-already-taken-up-the-mantle-in-canadas-midfield.html

A brief snippet from the article:

Ahead of Tuesday night’s CONCACAF Nations League destruction of Honduras, Davies had been presented with Canada Soccer’s 2022 Player of the Year award and Koné with the Young Player honour. Ninety minutes later, it’s clear that Koné is coming for Davies’s prize in 2023 and so much more beyond.

[Ally McCoist]

28 minutes ago, jonovision said:

I'm sure some of the usual dinosaurs will complain about this format but it certainly highlights the match that he had.

Holy shit this is the content I've been waiting for. Well done One Soccer.

[costarg]

6 hours ago, Obinna said:

Couldn't agree more. His decision making is Eustaquio-level. For as remarkable as Davies is, he still struggles with his final action, be it pass, the decision to make a pass (or not make a pass), at least for Canada. Funny enough, at Bayern he's much cleaner in these regards, possibly because he doesn't have the same level of pressure and expectation. He's a role player at Bayern and the face of Canada, which kind of hurts him with our team, I think. 

I see a mix of Wanyama's strength and ball control and prime Pogba's vision and offensive prowess.  Where does that put him?  Yaya Touré spectrum? 

I'm getting goose bumps thinking of the potential.