My view on todays game

Remember, this is just my view.

Anyway, plenty of possession just not enough imagination to go with it. Not sure what our best 11 is and how much longer it will take for the team to really hit stride. I guess the consolation is that we haven't played a great game yet but we are still grinding out points.

I like that we are trying to play it out from the back but we need the midfielders to make themselves available for the pass. Too many people had average games today and we are not going to win when that happens. But like I said, at least we got a point.

Would like to see gomez/alvarez in for larsson. I just feel that he doesn't give us enough for a CM.

I thought PVA had a canny game but he was the exception.

Just not enough imagination in the final third of the field.

Like I said just my opinion.

 

Thanks for sharing, it is a tough league and we have made a better start than last year, time for a goal or two from our front men to ease the tension I feel is building on our defense. .

 

Whilst we keep starting Larssen I can't see the attacking MF speeding up.
I could mark him out of the game myself and Im fecking ancient and have a bad back.
He is so predictable, collect the ball turn back away from our forwards and pass it backwards and lets start again ad infinitum.
The defenders just need to get near him and the ball is all the way back to Mannone.
Think I'm correct in saying this was the second time in a row he was substituted first?
Gus if you can see it late in the game, that he is delivering nada, why continue to start him?
Although I'm pointing out Larssens flaws, the attacking options need a swift kick up the arse too.
Very disappointed in Wickham, standing behind a defender isn't the best place to receive a pass young man.
And hoofing a ball from close range at a defender will rarely get you goals., couple of times he could have rolled in team mates.

Thank Christ we didn't lose I could be on suicide watch.

We are nearly there, a few more tweaks and a bit of luck for a win should get the lads heads up and moving forward.

 

A total lack of creativity in the final third is killing us, defensively we look OK but theres just no service to the striker. We need to be beating teams like Burnley, not grinding out a draw.

 

Nail on head MW.

 

If you look towards the end of last season I think it shows why we are not firing at the moment. We played the games on an up tempo basis because we had to chase games to win. To me at the moment we are sitting off to much instead of pressing teams. We scored goals towards the end of last season. No goals yet from Wickham, Fletcher, Altidore or Graham in the league. At the back I'm not saying we are great but are getting by. So far this season our key players are below par....Rodwell, Johnson, Larsson, Wickham...even Wes hasn't been usual self. However, at least we are managing to grind out some points but it is still a struggle. We need that spark that Wickham brought last season.....where is it going to come from.....Alvarez? Need striker in January imo.....

 

I think inept link up is just as much to blame as the service

Vs WBA:

Wickham(90m): 57% pass acc.
Fletcher (90m): 71% pass acc.
Jozy(10m): 60% pass acc.

Vs Man U

Wickham(90m): 67% pass acc.
Fletcher (77m): 63% pass acc.
Jozy(13m): 67% pass acc.

Vs QPR

Wickham(90m): 59% pass acc.
Fletcher (70m): 75% pass acc.
Jozy(8m): 100% pass acc(2 passes).

Vs Spurs

Wickham(90m): 67% pass acc.

Vs Burney

Wickham(90m): 50% pass acc.
Jozy(23m): 0% pass acc.

Service could be better yes, but half the problem is we're not getting high enough up the pitch to be in the position to create chances. Our forwards constantly lose the ball. I feel our forwards just aren't good enough footballers. The lack of goals and the inability to contribute to build play means we may as well play a midfielder up top cause the strikers are offering nowt.

 

Sums it up really.....great post!!

 

Wickham wants 40k a week...

 

Not just creativity. At one point second half Wickham got the ball and held it up. It was 15 seconds before anyone was alongside him to give the ball to. The gap between midfield and the forward is massive. Far too big in a game like that. If we're playing against Chelsea or Man City then fine but this was Burnley!!

Bit like bri's post. If Wickham has to make every pass of over 40 yards then a 50% success isn't that bad. If he has people around him to lay the ball off to and has 50% then that's terrible... But he has very little support. Altidore yesterday was totally brainless. One point on the left wing he passed to PVA who was getting out of the way as he was off side. I watched the game having only played at pub level and I could see PVA was offside. Don't pass to him. Hold it up FFS!!

 

Bri I agree with all that but want to add something more. All 3 of them are lazy.

Burnley managed to get lots of good balls into Jusciwietz because he worked hard to make runs, angles to receive and basically fought to get into a position where there was a pass to him. Wickham stood still and as a result much if the service to him was hopeful high balls or, more often, they didn't attempt to pass to him cos he wasn't available

 

Didn't see the game, but this all sound a little depressing.

 

I just don't get it mate, we played Whickam in the lone striker role and it clearly wasn't working, so Gus took Jonno off and replaced him with Altidore which i thought meant we would go 4-4-2. Altidore immediately took up a deeper role more like a midfielder? Just baffles me that one.

Then you have the quality issue, Altidore just isn't good enough imo, spends way too much time on the floor just like Heskey used to. We ballsed up big style in the transfer window imo, yes we needed to strengthen our defence and midfield but even Stevie Wonder could see we needed some quality up front. It's going to be a long hard slog until January.

 

Spot on, I have been saying this for some time, Altidore is not at the races, and Whicks is the same, niether can operate inside the penalty box as they both stand waiting for the ball to come to them, good strikers have anticipation and create options with movement, ours dont and they never will.

 

Class that Bri, good stats and i agree, our strikers just aren't good enough. Also not that chuffed with Rodwells performances so far and i'd like to see him alongside Alvares or Gomez cos Larsson just isn't offering a lot going forward.
I only saw the match on a very dodgy link but Rodders was the only one making runs forward, Larsson while doing some decent graft seemed a bit static, not sure if those were our tactics or just down to a lack of pace or imigination from him.

Either way we're suffering and we got out of jail with a point yesterday, play like that against any half decent team and we're in trouble.

 

This team can beat anybody and loose to anybody, this is a crazy league and its why we all love it. I must admit the AJ substitution was strange yesterday, but we are a team in flux and things must be tried out, sometimes they work and sometimes they don't, keep the faith, Gus will get it right soon.

 

I was at work so didnt see the game but said if Larsson starts we won't win. Im not blaming him for all our problems but we need an extra attacking player on the field and he is nowhere near as good as Catts or Rodwell. He stifles us in possession and doesn't offer a lot in general

 

We got worse yesterday when Seb went off

 

Only watched the match of the day stuff, and please not the motd biase, not particularly enthused, ok first clean sheet, another away point but desperate for a win, maybe in truth away point to a relegation rival.

The team is not right and pretty woeful up top

Don't bash that's just my opinion. Improvements from, hull, villa, west ham, Swansea, saints

Albeit it's still early haaawaaayyy

 

Agreed mate, Jusciwietz gave our forwards a lesson yesterday, he was fantastic, brought his teammates into play and tore JoS a new arsehole, JoS should have seen red, without that foul Jusciwietz could have had goal for his efforts and it would have been fully deserved.

Don't get me wrong, Larsson hasn't done badly this season he just a bit too 'colback' for me in the sense that he has no real midfield Identity. He doesn't attack enough to make him an attacking player, his defensive work rate is high, but he doesn't do it as well as Catts and do we need that? He was wide mostly yesterday and didn't offer anywhere near enough that position demands. Gomez is the man for me like to take Larsson's place.