Seems odd seeing as we have options at left mid to play our record signing out on the wing twice running where he is so obviously not as good as his main role in the middle? Also a keeper is a massive priority in jan if possible. We have lost so so many points this season from GK mistakes with a prem class keeper we probably would have another 6+ points look where that puts us in the table! Its just fustrating as Nigel and the team are doing so much good work but several strange decisions over the summer and every now and again seem to be holding us back. What are your thoughts?
He's not 'out of position' as such. It's not like playing a right-back at left-wing or something. He has played on the wing before, is comfortable playing in that position and has many of the attributes required to play there. He may not be as good on the wing as he is in the centre but that's life. You can't always play where you want to, you have to do a job for the team, like Rodriguez has for example, when playing on the wing rather than up front as he would prefer to. Bottom line is he's playing there because that's what has been judged to be the most effective way of configuring the team with the players that are available.
I can see the sense of playing Morgan,Cork and Davis today to try and dominate the midfield, which is basically what they did. That leaves space on the left and right for Ramirez and punch, who change sides anyway throughout the game. I thought we looked more balanced with Punch on the left and Ramirez on the right. Its a shame that the midfield trio could not put any decent passes through
I would have quite liked a midfield and attack of Cork-Ramirez-Schneiderlin Mayuka-Lambert-Rodriguez today. I think it has balance with Cork and Schneiderlin, Ramirez is in the middle, and that front three would be very fluid.
For away games, I like having Steve Davis playing in front of JC and MS. It looks very solid and difficult to play through. With this formation we are very reliant on the wide midfield to make the play going forward and supply RL
Please Nigel, Boruc in goal at Stoke, for his physical presence. And give him a decent run in the team. That`s the one position he needs to sort out to keep us up.
He plays on the wing for Uruquay so he can't be all that bad. I do wish (and the team) would shoot more from outside the box, as we have a shocking record in that regard. I can't remember the last time we scored from outside the box. Can anyone else? I would have thought on Saturday with the pitch as wet as it was, we would have done but didn't. Also, even renowned GK like Hart and Butland make mistakes. It would be our luck that we sign a GK on big money and he will still continue to make them.
We did take a few long shots but nine of them led to goals obviously. Cork and Ramirez had notable efforts though. I think it is something we are doing more.
The Uruguay manager has a habit of playing players in weird positions, I guess because of the areas they are strong in. They aren't blessed with wingers, so they shove Ramirez and Cavani out there. They play Suarez wide too when Forlan is fit. He's about 35 now, but they are still quite dependant on him. England aren't the only international side with problems after all.
For me Ramirez is best as an attacking midfielder/ advanced playmaker /trequartista. He looks to play through balls and clever passes. Therefore he has a tendency to drift central when played on the wing. When he drifts central from the right he can still be quite effective as he is a left footer. He'll come onto his strong side and have the option of playing his passes or shooting. If he tries doing that from the left he's on his weak foot for a pass or shot which makes him reluctant to shoot and far less effective at trying to open up the opposition defence. He isn't a great crosser nor does it seem natural to him plus we don't have much to aim at with a cross other than Lambert who is often doubled up on by the defence. It's why he's ineffective on the left and needs to be central.
On the topic of shooting from outside the box, we're 8th in the league in terms of percentage of shots from outside the box, and at the other end we've had the smallest percentage of shots outside the box against us. Read into that as you will! I do think our lads can get a little bit muddled in terms of when to shoot and when not to, at times we suffer a bit from 'Arsenal Syndrome' and pass up good opportunities to shoot and try to get too intricate. Case in point in the Fulham game, when Cork had the ball with a clear sight on goal from the edge of the box (having earlier had a good long range drive which had been our best effort of the game so far), but instead of having a go he tried a very tight one-two with Davis which did almost come off but in the end just evaded Davis after the ball was returned to him from Cork. We ask a lot from our players to play 'The Southampton Way' and play a very technically and mentally strenuous style of football in the best league in the world and it shows. We can frequently become unstuck and run out of ideas in and around the box when seemingly simple options (such as just having a shot) are available because they are looking for a defence-splitting Xavi-like pass. But this is not a criticism of our style of play or our players, just a fairly pointless and lengthy observation! On the subject of Gaston and the actual subject of this thread, PTF and Ashby Saint are quite right when they say he is capable and comfortable playing out wide, so he is not 'out of position' per se. However when he has really been on song for us is when he has been floating between the midfield and Lambert, picking up the ball and turning and running in open space rather than cramped against the sideline, picking up Lambert's knockdowns telepathically whilst simultaneously linking the team to Lambert. We have lacked all of these things against Sunderland and Fulham, when he came inside for the last 30 minutes against Fulham and we were able to start properly and succesfully playing through the middle is when we entered the best period of the game from our point of view. Basically, I wouldn't say we aren't playing him 'out of position' so much as we are playing him 'out of the position from which he benefits the team most' which is a slightly pedantic difference. He is the easiest solution to the question of who to play out left with Lallana gone, but regardless of if we have to play a less suitable player out there, I think it's very important that we play Ramirez centrally where he can have the greatest positive influence on the game. Something else to note is that his lack of defensive desire/responsibility might well have lead to Fulham's goal with him not tracking his full-back. In his free role he has still worked hard without the ball and made some tackles, but he is still mostly without the kind of responsibility that Lallana and Puncheon have; to track back deep into our half and work hard defensively and this may have cost us yesterday!
Good post and one that's saved me a lot of typing. A lot of people were suggesting playing Ramirez on the left before the Sunderland game, because like you say, it was the easy option. The easy option isn't always the best one. The argument for playing Rodriguez wide isn't because he's the best winger we have, but because it allows us to retain the systen that's worked best for us this season and makes the most of Gaston Ramirez, who has the flair to turn a game in our favour.
