With any luck people will be able to make great fun of this article come Saturday evening, but I can't see how we'll be able to pick up 3 points against Swansea. Granted that they, like us, have hit some poor form after a strong start to the season so an off-form draw may be obtainable, but to me we seem to have some problems which could well take some time to solve.
We don't yet seem to have figured out how we should be playing in this league. Last season we were able to play good, passing football and developed a growing confidence that we'd ultimately be able to get control of a match. This season we don't appear to have the belief that we can keep hold of the ball and control any matches, instead playing a counter-punching style that requires direct play and no emphasis on bringing out the best in players like Drinkwater, Knockaert and Cambiasso. And that's at home - away we just appear to be battling to stay in a match rather than exerting any influence over it.
Gaining the confidence to play a passing style comfortably - and to be effective in more formations - isn't something that's likely to come quickly though. The last two or three matches should have been a chance to get started with this after a chaotic opening to our fixture list for which the direct counterattacking style was demonstratively effective. However, instead we've found ourselves chasing around again, almost sitting back and hoping for a result rather than applying ourselves and taking reasonable risks to play the right way. The Premiership can be very harsh on teams that don't really know what they're all about, grinding them down as other teams and managers impose themselves on an ever more confused squad that don't really have an answer except to hope that the opposition have a lapse of concentration, and this confusion is what I'm finding with us right now.
So what I want to see against Swansea is more arrogance on the ball, trying to move it around quickly and feeling our way into passing football. The result in that match probably wouldn't be a positive one as we'd be likely to make mistakes but my concern is that we haven't really taken the bull by the horns in any one match so far and I don't see how continuing with that can keep us up. If we can find some swagger then I believe we have the players to do fine in this league, but it would require some patience to achieve.
Worse before it gets better?
posted on 23/10/14
I agree and disagree Dunge (whatever that means).
I don't think we've set ourselves up to play counter attacking direct football in every game. Utd was clearly the obvious one where we did, but against Everton, Stoke and Newcastle, teams perceive to e more our equal, we have not.
In those games, to your point, we've played some sort of defensive, passing counter formation were we rely on our wingers to create chances. The problem is, they have not! We were lucky to get away with it at Stoke,
And came out with nothing at Palace.
Maybe the loss of Dean Hammond is too much for the team to get over!
So, I do t agree that we are not playing passing football, but I do agree that we are trying out too many formations and giving the opposition too much respect.
So, I'd also like to see us play how you suggested. I don't think we will - Pearson has already been out in the media suggesting we can't give Swansea too much space (he's right).
To be honest, a god awful scrappy 0-1 away win would do me right now.
posted on 23/10/14
Good article DM. Since the Newcastle result I have been worried about the way the season is starting to pan out.
My main issue is the lack of a settled side and formation. We seem to be picking each of these based on the opposition. Now this worked fantastically well against Utd but over a whole season we should really look to keep playing the same team. It worked well for us last season.
Our players are, in the main, young and new to this division. I think if they are being constantly chopped and changed it isn't giving them the confidence to just go out and play. They are unsure if they will start the next match and this can't help I'm giving consistent performances.
Pearson is also new to this division and I could forgive him for getting carried away with 'outwitting' the likes of van gaal and wenger. But we do now need to go back to the basics and just play our best team and not necessarily the team to thwart the opposition.
I also cannot see anything other than a defeat (3-0) on Saturday though I can't remember how many times I have written off a Pearson team and then they have surprised me. For what it's worth I think if we can manage to stay up his year we will be a lot better next season for the experience.
posted on 23/10/14
I was not encouraged my Nigel's comments in the Merc this morning. He spoke about 'having the players to play different formations', needing to 'stay in the game' etc
posted on 23/10/14
The first part of that doesn't concern me - I think we need more flexibility with formations this year, and I'd fear that 4-4-2 would just get overrun in this league without a pair of strong and athletic central midfielders. 4-2-3-1 looks like a better standard formation for us given our personnel, although I wouldn't want this to be an absolute by any means and it also contains a difficult question of how best to utilise both Vardy and Ulloa within it.
Comments of needing to stay in the game are rather negative though - suggesting that we can just stick around and wait for the opposition to tire or worry themselves into a mistake. The problem with this is twofold: Firstly that just holding out often isn't enough in this league and secondly that teams are far less likely to capitulate to the pressure of not scoring than they were in the Championsip. I'd much rather see us have a go, try to express ourselves and accept that we're going to make mistakes, because I think the last couple of seasons have shown that this squad needs that mentality in order to perform.