What a mess, start to finish. Why does Maresca change 5 players just when we started to look like a Team ? Yet again a pretty poor team beats Chelsea with no more than 5 across the back and non stop work as their tactics. Maresca offered nothing tactically. Even with the useless Delap alone up front, not once was a ball played over the line of 5 for him to run onto. Instead we tried going through them and were always repelled by a block or we simply passed to their defence with one of the dozens of dreadful passes. Then there was the third goal, like something from a you- tube comedy video. Not much more to say really, surely our low point of the season so far, now every other lower Team will play the Leeds way now because we showed them it works.
For me Palmer should have started at 10, Garnacho on the left, Estevao on the right with Joao Pedro up front. Delap isnt it, and despite improvement, and grabbing an assist, I think Garnacho is the superior player over Gittens. We were told Palmer was fit to play against Arsenal, he doesnt feature, then he comes in as a sub 65 minutes into a game against Leeds....I know we dont want to rush him back, but if he was fit to play against Arsenal, why is our best player by a mile being benched for the following game after not featuring? I really do believe it is Maresca that is holding this team back. His tactics hit a brick wall, literally, when we face a low block and/or 5 at the back.
Maresca doesn't actually have tactics. This team of young players is being destroyed by lousy coaching, negative set ups and completely wrong style all forced on them by Maresca. I'm watching a replay to ensure I'm not wrong, but our players more often than not, took passes facing the wrong way !! Our opponents took theirs running TOWARDS our goal. They were quicker, more fluent and far more direct often travelling long distances with two passes. By comparison, we are so obsessed with passing backwards, it is now our style to be flat footed, stationary and needing to spin 180degrees just to see where we should be going. Appalling training, plus we give the ball away too often. Maresca is now exposed as a very limited, second rate Manager and he needs to go. Delap was utterly hiopeless again before his unfortunate injury. Young Guiu was more involved but like Delap, got nothing to work with from those behind him. A really lousy performance against yet another struggling Team who have something we need, get go, drive and sound coaching..
I said this last season too, I DONT like him. I never have, he is a limited, tactically naive and, like you said, second rate manager. I gave him a little bit of leeway when he achieved his goal last season of winning the cups and getting top 4. But this proves we wont take the next step with him at the helm.....next manager please....
