After the International break there is no injuries to worry about. Andy King, Wes Morgan, Kasper Schmeichel and Chris Wood all spent time away. Sean St. Ledger is close to returning from his hamstring injury but after his recent history he wont be rushed back. Matty James is suspended after getting sent off against Charlton. Dean Hammond could come straight in for his debut. Martyn Waghorn is set to sign for Millwall on loan until Christmas. So here is what I would go with Schmeichel De Laet Morgan Moore Schlupp Drinkwater Hammond King Knockaert Nugent Vardy Subs- Logan, Miquel, Bakoyogo, Danns, Dyer, Wood, Hopper
Schmeichel RDL Moore Morgan Schlupp Hammond Drinkwater King Dyer Knockaert Vardy Subs: Logan, Bakayoko, Whitbread, Danns, Gallagher, Nugent, Wood
Interesting EDN ... wouldn't mind seeing it and would force us to play more 'football' - he'll never do it in a month of Sundays ... I'll go with Proud's line up with the exception of Wood in for Nugent.
I just think its worth a go. I think the 4-3-3/4-5-1 system only works if the 2 wide players in the attacking third are natural wide men with attacking flair but can also track back and play a bit with it on the deck. nugent/vardy/wood just doesn't work for me
... can't fault the logic bud ... but old monolith mush appears reluctant to start games with the creativity of Dyer and Knockaert despite the fact that we have been second best in every league game until he has been forced to bring one or both of them on ... my own view is that Nigel is (or feels) under immense pressure (perhaps he has been given a figure / target of league losses that will not be accepted etc) and so we are commencing every league game conservatively with a 'must not lose' mind set rather than a go out and win one .. only my opinion (before Nigel's Nympettes start getting their pom-poms all in a twizzle) ... quite happy to accept that I am wrong and the cunning tactics are obviously working because the table does not lie
if anything this lineup is 'safer' as there's only 1 natural centre forward. I just think dyer/knocky much more of a threat going forward than some of our other options but can still get stuck in when we haven't got the ball. it would also mean we only need to make 1 sub to revert to the tried and tested 4-4-2
I was going to say Fosse, while we are by no means setting the world alight in terms of eye-catching performances, we have been picking up some decent points. And as you say, the table does not lie, IMO it has been a very good start for us. Just comparing the games to last season: 'Boro (A) 2-1 win (exactly the same result) Leeds (H) 1-1 draw Derby (A) 2-1 loss Birmingham (H) 2-2 draw Charlton (A) 2-1 loss (exactly the same result!) If we had achieved those same results this season, the table and NP's position would be very different... Saying that, I hope we do mix it up after our first league defeat of the season. Would love to see Knockaert and Dyer starting. But as you say, I think we will originally set up to not lose, and maybe bring those on later in the game to play against tired legs.
Schmeichel De Laet - Morgan - Moore - Schlupp Knockaert - King - Hammond - Dyer Wood - Vardy Won't be the team I know. Maybe a bit harsh to drop Drinkwater after scoring a goal, but he doesn't work hard enough in a 4-4-2 for me. Also can't believe I'm advocating 4-4-2 tbh.
Slightly off topic. When we started playing 5-3-2 or 3-5-2 or whatever we want to call it, I thought the one person who would really shine in that formation would be De Laet. Have been really surprised, and actually feel he is more effective going forward in a 4-4-2. Thought he would be a nightmare for opposing left backs, and whilst he hasnt played badly, he hasnt shone the way I thought he would.
NP doesn't seem to be able to make his mind up on formations. Personally I'd be happy with the wing backs and would like to see Bakayogo given an opportunity on the left with RDL on the right and Schlupp and Vardy up front ... RDL and Bakayoko are very quick and if they could get to the byline and put in good crosses then we could really judge our strike partneships because there ought to be a hatful of chances ... hey ho.
I actually think the same is true for Schlupp. It depends who plays in the winger position ahead of them- Dyer and Schlupp make a good partnership, whereas I like Knockaert cutting inside and De Laet bombing beyond him. I think De Laet looks a little timid when he's playing the wing-back role as he has to start far up the pitch and therefore has to play the role of both winger and defender. It's a very tricky role to play- and remember that when we first signed him we were debating whether he'd start as a CB or RB?
Nugent scores a pen after missing a host of chances earlier in the game. And elsewhere, Waghorn has scored as a substitute for Millwall in their defeat at home vs Derby.
