Frustration!

I’m realistic enough to know we weren’t really a genuine threat to city for the title long term this season but we should be a clear 2nd tbh. I know all teams can say “we should’ve won that game, and not lost this game” etc.

Just annoying. At least it shows if we continue to improve we will challenge in the next few years.

We are doing better than I expected but as I stayed last month we couldn’t possibly sustain the narrow wins.

No matter the improvement we have seen, the defence has been awful all season long and I can’t see it getting better. We should get top four but I think it will be a struggle.

Closing the gap was msin aim this season (along with a top 4 finish), hopefully we'll do both!! However, defence no where near good enough for a title win!

Give Hendo number 1 spot next season and a pacy central defender we'll be able to give the title a good shot.

comment by Vidicschin (U3584)
posted 1 hour, 42 minutes ago
We are doing better than I expected but as I stayed last month we couldn’t possibly sustain the narrow wins.

No matter the improvement we have seen, the defence has been awful all season long and I can’t see it getting better. We should get top four but I think it will be a struggle.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
This. Nothing to add to that

From the position, we shouldn’t struggle to finish top four, at all.

Something will have to go seriously wrong for us to miss out.

We shouldn’t. But our defending suggests we will make it hard for ourselves.

It’s certainly the biggest issue for the coaching staff to deal with.

We’ve only conceded 9 goals in 12 (or 11 1/2) with Hendo between the sticks this season. Granted some of those fixtures have been against opposition we’d expect to dominate, but those are strong figures nonetheless.

In the league, just short of half of the goals we’ve conceded have come from dead ball situations. From open play, only City have conceded considerably fewer. That says a lot.

Very good parts of the reason why we concede so many from set pieces are a) we have a keeper who is aerially abysmal, and b) we give away too many.

It’d help our back four immensely to be playing every week in front of a keeper who was more dominant in the air and a midfield that didn’t give away daft freekicks 30 yards out.

I won’t even mention our defending of corners. I am seeing other teams in recent weeks concede because there is no one on each post.

How are the defensive coaches of today not seeing this.

comment by Vidicschin (U3584)
posted 13 minutes ago
I won’t even mention our defending of corners. I am seeing other teams in recent weeks concede because there is no one on each post.

How are the defensive coaches of today not seeing this.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
The vast majority of teams defend corners without players on both posts. Most now don’t put players on either post.

The data analysts have been telling coaches for years to drop the habit, because the data (of which there is a ton) says that teams concede fewer goals when they use their defensive players to try to win the first ball, rather than using them to try to block attempts on goal.

Now hopefully you will understand why we are going to struggle to make top four.