The CB's are a partnership. I played there for many years and even at my level I found it really difficult when the usual lad was injured and had to play with another player.

You need to get to know each others games and the only way to do that is playing the same CB's regularly.

Comment deleted by Site Moderator

I think you need a settled defence in general. I think our problem is, we know Kaboul is made of glass and will break down if he plays too much, our RB position has been disrupted by our No.1 choice having a long term injury and our back up RB having been sent off twice. Add to the fact we just spent £10m on a LB (and regardless of our individual opinion on Rose – and who should be No.1 LB) we were always going to rotate that position from league to cup fixtures. Add all this together and already the foundations of our defence is a shambles. And this isn’t even taking into a account the ability of each player / back up.

I'm happy for Fazio and Vertonghen to get a run of 5 consecutive games.

Chiriches and Vertonghen will not win much in the air. both are too similar.

Kabul needs to study defending from the bench.

One partnership in the league.

Another in the cups.

Both having a player who attacks the ball, or gets tight to the main centre forward, with a partner who sweeps for the second ball or tracks the runner.

Protection for the right back

Maybe eventually, HRH but right now - we need a pairing to play every single game until they forge an understanding and build on that

That'd be great in an ideal world, but I'd rather them not fack off to the aris end of Europe.


Need to keep the others match fit too

Kabul needs to study defending from the bench.
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yup

comment by HRH Ledley II (U20095)




posted 5 minutes ago



That'd be great in an ideal world, but I'd rather them not fack off to the aris end of Europe.


Need to keep the others match fit too

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yeah.

we need consistency, but we need to be smart too.

for example if we win on Thursday we should qualify, so we don't have to jet the entire first team off to Turkey for the last game just because we want them to play together more.


I personally would pick the team for everton game, then decide which players should play both games (3 or 4 probably), and then pick the Thursday team

Injuries are inevitable and can happen at any time, including in training or on national duty, so I don’t think we should wrap up a CB pairing in cotton wool just for league games. I like the idea of playing the same settled back 4 (maybe even 5) whenever we can. So if Poch’s favoured defence is (this is purely an example for the point of this post) Naughton, Verts, Fazio and Rose, then I would like to see this defence play midweek and on a weekend, to give them as much opportunity to gel as possible.

Obviously, if there are no complications or injuries and the same 4 play every fixture for silly number games, then maybe consider resting 1 here and there, but it’s highly unlikely all will remain fit, injury free and have no suspensions for too many on the spin that it will be a worry later on.

Chopping and changing every week / midweek isn’t doing anyone any good, and isn’t likely to.

We could play the same back four, but if they don't have players doing the exact jobs elsewhere it could be counter productive.

Example:

In the league matches coming up we may have Mason to play through in midfield and an option for the back four to play out to, and protection for Dier in Lennon, allowing him to defend first and foremost and tuck in when Rose gets forward.

Go to Europa and Dier is being asked to essentially play as a winger, Mason is at home, and the whole dynamic changes.

comment by HRH Ledley II (U20095)
posted 37 minutes ago
We could play the same back four, but if they don't have players doing the exact jobs elsewhere it could be counter productive.

Example:

In the league matches coming up we may have Mason to play through in midfield and an option for the back four to play out to, and protection for Dier in Lennon, allowing him to defend first and foremost and tuck in when Rose gets forward.

Go to Europa and Dier is being asked to essentially play as a winger, Mason is at home, and the whole dynamic changes.
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I hear you. but I think lets deal with one variable at a time. opposition, midfield, referee. These can all change. if we worry about that then there's an argument for never picking the same team twice.

Lets keep a settled CB partnership to start with. Full backs in Poch's system tend to do more running so I can see why a regular back four playing twice a week may not be physically possible. But for CBs they really don't have to make 30-40 yard runs up and down the touchline.

If Kaboul made that clearance Fazio did then there would certainly be an article about how bad he is.

comment by Edinspur - Aaron Lennon <3 (U1109)
posted 20 seconds ago
If Kaboul made that clearance Fazio did then there would certainly be an article about how bad he is.
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Yes but people also didn't notice the block Fazio did when Lloris misjudged the clearance. That would have made it 2-0 and we most certainly would have lost the match.

That was Davies

comment by Edinspur - Aaron Lennon <3 (U1109)
posted 1 minute ago
That was Davies
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Just watched the game again it looked like Fazio to me. However my point is...judge the defence as a unit not on individual toe pokes and clearances.

My conclusion which is my opinion. Our defence looks more Solid with a Vertonghen and Fazio. Than when Kaboul replaces either of them. It's unfortunate as I had high hopes from Kaboul a consistent rock in our defence but he seems clueless for whatever reason.

Admittedly there isn't much between annoys our CBs so this debate could ramble on.

So I will refer back to the OP which poses the question

Can Poch's preferred partnership whoever that is play 2 games in a week?

You watched MOTD last night?

comment by Edinspur - Aaron Lennon <3 (U1109)
posted 21 seconds ago
You watched MOTD last night?
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Sky + extended highlights... you may be right. but I'm sure I can find things Fazio did that prevented goal scoring opps.... so I'm politely moving on to deal with the OP

Comment deleted by Site Moderator

Vertonghen
Fazio
Kaboul
Dier

In terms of experience and winning things. Fazio and Vertonghen are ahead of our other CBs.

I thought Fazio did pretty well yesterday, a couple of little errors aside. He and Vertonghen are, on paper at least, our strongest partnership. As the OP suggests, they just need a run of games together.

I also thought Fazio was pretty good in possession. His passes into midfield were nice and crisp, and he lofted a couple of nice balls into the channel for Soldado.

oteoi,

I don’t mean this to sound as blunt as it may do written down (apologies in advance if it does ), but if you thought Fazio’s distribution was good then you must have been watching either a different game or a different player, his distribution was poor both from heading and from his feet. A certain ex-player used to get mocked for a single long pass that didn’t happen to roll down the body of the intended player, yet Fazio completes 1 or 2 passes and he gets a good rating for distribution.

I really cannot see what Poch (or whoever it was) saw in Fazio to bring him to our club. Apart from being extremely tall, he offers nothing. I hope I end up with on my face on this one though.

The best CB on that pitch yesterday was somehow deemed surplus to requirements at our club by the very people who brought in Fazio. I’m glad the ex-player was on the losing side at the end but it does make you wonder what the scouting set up consists of.

Comment deleted by Site Moderator

They should be able to with ease unless they're old. They shouldn't be running the sort of distances that would knacker them.... Although ours are usually out of position and therefore rack up appox 16km per game

I know it is early days for Fazio, but from what I have seen of him so far he looks clumsy, slow and ponderous.

I hope he can turn into the no nonsense defender we need.