Playing away from home.........

In Milan we pushed up and tried to play our attacking game, we took the game to them just like we do pretty much every game, we were then hit on the counter, 1-0 down.

Being 1-0 down away in European competition is not the end of the world, infact you're very much in the game, keep it tight and try to pinch an all important away goal, but we just pushed on, started pushing up, chasing the game, becoming almost desperate to score an equaliser. Predictably we lost our shape and conceded another.

Even at 2-0 down the same rules apply, dont panic, you're still in the tie. We conceded 4 goals on the counter attack away from home, we were the away team, thats incredible tactical naivity.

At Sunderland again we played as if we were the home team, started lots of posession pushed up the pitch, Sunderland welcomed that approach it suited them perfectly, their first goal resulted from a free kick gained from a counter attack, their second was typical counter with our players pushed on players all over the place.

We offered nothing in an attacking sense, our team shape was hard to fathom and we had become desperate, yet 1-0 down we were still in the tie.

Players and the coaching staff need to learn to be more measured when going a goal down collectively. Also why not start the game dropping deeper and let them come out, they are the home team, if the dont then thats their problem, we'll take a 0-0 and take them back to the Emirates, thats football- firstly dont lose!

Wenger sets the team up to push up the pitch press and play our football in their half in pretty much any game, just like a team like Barcelona do, only problem is that we dont have the same quality player as Barca and dont press the ball like them either.

Sometimes though, for whatever reason I dont know, we might drop deeper away from home and hit teams on the counter, these games we've actually had good results and been really dangerous in an attacking sense. In Dortmund we sat back because they were on top, our defending was ok and we got a result, yes we conceded a late goal but job done.

I think we are a better counter attack team and have the players to do this away from home.

Any defender in a Barca style system with no pressure on the ball will struggle.

Wenger's best teams were essentially counter attack teams, we do not have the capabilities nor personel to play the 433 high line total game. Yes sometimes you do need to take the game to a team, but at home we're ok and our pitch helps us play that way in bursts.

When we go a goal down our responce has to be much more clever and measured.

There seems to be an obsession with the Barca way of playing, yes it's great but it's not the only way.

Germany might well win the Euro's playing 4231 counter attack football, it's great to watch and helps defenders defend, If anything thats who we should be trying to emulate in a playing style.

That team down the road went to Stevenage on a cow field of a pitch and got a result, they played poorly, they changed their tactics, they even hoofed the ball but they didn't lose, so go back home ready to play their game- now that's annoying.