Summer window

We went in there on the way back from the play off semi at SJP ....

... some sad locals just didn't appreciate our joyous celebrations

 

You’ll get lynched for this but it’s bang on. If people could actually be arsed to think back over the last 18 months they’d realise that our 3 best players from last season were all bang average when they joined us but we persisted with them.

 

I am seeing it as pinching one of Peps ideas. When you see Cancello or Alaba stepping into midfield when in possession it looks great and the opposition press can be made to look innefective. Maybe other coaches have done it too before Pep, but not sure. The idea is to create more passing options from defence through midfield and into attack. Either through having an extra body to receive or allowing a holding midfielder to push higher sooner. Moving the team higher faster, without having to play quick to do it. The full backs being asked to do it need to be very good technical players. Zinchenko at Arsenal makes it look good. I believe the holding role, who takes the ball of the defenders and turns us round is the hardest of all positions to play. Neil is the only one at our club I think can do it well. Ekwah is learning it and I think will get there. To be fair to Hume though he hasnt had the years of coaching in that 360 degree position to just step in and make it work. The challenge is seeing everything all around you all of the time. Full backs have never really had to develop that. Hume does so much right in his game, but I dont see him ready for this ask yet. I think it is upsetting our balance. Ekwah is learning the deeper role, and his awareness out of possession is a bit lacking, but having someone else stepping in seems to be putting him off somehow. The back 3 left shuffle a bit and we end up narrow which I think sees Clarke and Ba deeper than they should be at Coventry. Obviously Mowbray knows 100% better than me, so I should wind my kneck in, but I think it is trying to fix a problem that never existed. At no point last season was our problem moving the ball through midfield in my opinion. We were as good as any side at that for me, perhaps because we didnt have the outball to Stewart we had to learn it fast. I like full backs to go wide as soon as we get the ball and keep the pitch big, and last season it suited us. Time will tell, in a few weeks we will all be saying Mowbray was right all along, again, probably...

 

Totally agree as Clarke seems more effective when Pritchard is on(think that's because Pritch is deeper than Dack) however I also think that pushing Hume into a kind of extra midfielder is causing problems as it stops Cirkin getting forward to support Clarke and reduces width up the pitch

 

Yeah mate, spot on for me. See my last post. Cirkin and Clarke were in tandem last year a lot. We are now playing narrower at the back when have it. Early days for everyone in the season though.

 

Remember when we were in League One and teams were playing out from the back, like ****ing Barca or City?

We nicked the ball a fair few times and scored from it, cos League One teams don’t have a LB with incredible first touch.

That’s this living a wing back inside.

We haven’t the players, the balance or the possession, it needs to stop. For all of the reasons above. The key one I agree with is Cirks not being as open to support Jacky.

Cirk and Jacky are the best combo in the side and it’s been diluted.

 

Does that mean some people may disagree ...

... if so, you'd be right.

 

Aye, exactly, I think the main reason behind it is so that both Ekwah and Neil can advance further up the field as neither are natural sitters (although Neil was deployed there and did the job excellently last season). I'm hoping that if we sign a more natural deeper sitter that we'll revert to something closer to that which saw us have success last year. Having said that, we do seem to have consciously changed our approach this season to a slower, more considered and less direct build up so maybe it's all just part of that.

In the meantime I think I would have left Neil and Ekwah as they were last year rather than effectively switching their roles.

As you say though, there's a reason why Mowbray is coaching in the second tier and I'm sat writing nonsense on a forum.

 

I agree about Ekwah and Neil. Think Ekwah is better in the no 8, up and down box to box.

 

Speaking of the midfield did anyone notice O’nien made a point of stating Evans was still the captain and he’s just standing in? Wonder if TM sees him coming straight back in if he’s fit by December/January

 

was the french kid virginius over here recently?

 

Hope he does, even if it’s just every other game or for 30 minutes seeing games out.

 

We might be talking nonsense mate, but I am enjoying it.

I thought Neil was brilliant in the deeper role last year. He made mistakes and had games where he wasnt at his best, but for a first season there I thought he did great. I would have kept him there personally and let Ekwah carry the ball forward. I have said before the best deep lying midfielder is Rodri and I would love to see Neil develop that way. I dont see the role as a defensive midfielder in the way of a Kante for example. Busquets is the blue print and Rodri is taking it on. Have to be able to look after the football first, receive it on both sides in really tight situationd keep the thing moving. Passing quality is key. Rodri carries a tremendous forward threat when the time is right. Neil could play that way too. Not saying Neil will be as good as Rodri, but he has the tools to play that role in our side. So why has Mowbray given Neil the licence to push on and Ekwah sit more? It does look counter intuitive to me. I have a feeling, based om how Mowbray speaks, he finds Ekwah frustrating. Not that he is a bad player, but more that it is too easy at times and it causes him to switch off a bit, or fail to sense danger. There was an examole of this against Coventry where we got lucky. I think Mowbray trusts Neil much more at this stage to spot the revovery run and make it, than he does Ekwah. Just my sense of it and could be wrong. Ekwah in theory should be the lad hitting the shots from outside of the box not Neil, he strikes a much cleaner shot for me, but will he see the counter quick enough to get back?

I have a suspicion we will sign a central midfielder on loan this week and Ekwah will be the one to sit it out initially. He has had a great start overall to his career here and wont be out of the side for long. But I remember when Alex Neil dropped Dan Neil when he came in and it probably did Dan a lot of good. He definitely worked a lot harder on his game as a result, and his physicality. Again just guessing but if I were Mowbray I would be demanding more from Ekwah, he has the attributes, bit of learning needed. These are all bairns in football terms, easy to forget at times. Would love to think this time next year we are starting with Neil and Ekwah in the central midfield areas, they both have bright futures for me.

 

Good post mate. Personally I’d like to see Bellingham have a go there I think he has all of the attributes. I see Neil more as the Hendo than the Fabinho in THAT Liverpool midfield, the engine that’s constantly harassing and winning the ball back. I think you’re right about Ekwah being the one to drop out.

 

Bellingham is interesting isnt he. I spoke to lads from Birmingham academy who loved him to bits. Not entirely sure where he would end up as a player though. I dont mind that at his age personally. If I were taking a punt it would be as a box to box player but with him no rush to pigeon hole him. Same with Rigg, I am convinced he is second coming of Gazza but again he can play anyway to learn the game this season. In time we wont be able to get them all in the same team.

 

Be good to see him back, not sure he starts many games for us anymore though. Canny option off the bench if we are 1 up with 20 left, but think our style has evolved a bit and we are trying to be a bit more dynamic in midfield.

 

Bullshit. It was confirmed on football forums he was going to Luton.

 

Probably more of a Sunderland fan

 

Don't recall seeing it mentioned anywhere?

 

I don’t like Hume inverting to become a centre is in possession, although I am willing to persist with it if Mowbray thinks it will payoff in the end. It was better against Coventry as cirkin didn’t push up as much, so we built up in a 3-2 shape instead of a 2-2. We are less susceptible to transitions that way.

In theory, such build up play leaves 5 players further forward to attack with, and should enable our wide players to get 1v1. However, we need to improve switching the play faster to find the spare man when opposition are doubling up on our wingers.

guardiola doesn’t like his wingers to dribble 1v1 due to the transition risk. He’s all but eliminated that from grealish’s game. They play probing passes, stick to their zones, find pockets of space and have a dominant box target. I don’t think he would approve of how we have been hoying 6 players forward, defending in a 2-2, and then watch a winger dribble at their full back and lose the ball 50% of the time, then watch everyone sprinting backwards.