And Hockaday's!! The new season is up and running, and we have seen our opponents given the luxury of possession in all three league games thus far ... The only reason we got off against Boro is because Karanka persisted with just one up top, which meant the majority of their crosses were wasted ... Millwall exposed our diamond, Brighton were ruthlessly efficient against it Now here's the thing, we can see how easy it is for teams to play their way around the diamond, yet it seems Hock can't ... I'm convinced the players don't believe in this formation because they seemed defeated after five minutes ... slow starts, lack of fight, these are signs that the players are not in tune with Hock, and something has to give The diamond is a problem formation if you don't have world class players who have the ability to be fluid and move around the shape swapping roles at will ... Jock made the point that the diamond kept going narrow, he is correct ... Josh made the point about the diamond struggling in this league, he is correct as well Here's the thing about the diamond ... for it to work your players have to be quick and nimble, have superb touch and be able to play short, sharp passes in order to move the diamond around and progress up the field ... well, we don't have Xavi and Iniesta who can pass and move and make the diamond effective, we have Austin and Tonge who are slow and insecure ... this forces OUR diamond to become narrow as we try to find a pass, and the lack of pace means it stays narrow thus exposing our flanks So why not 4-4-2? So many good managers have stated that it is still the hardest formation to beat, two solid banks of four ... Gary Neville said on MNF in his analysis of the Scum loss that if he were a Prem manager he would set up his team as a 4-4-1-1 and Carragher agreed ... the two banks of four mean you have your flanks covered, making it hard for teams to get in behind and cross balls into your box ... it means you have width and an out ball when under pressure ... it means if you're patient opponents will get frustrated and make mstakes you can punish The Liverpool team of the 80s used 4-4-2 perfectly, and simply frustrated opponents into submission ... they were quite happy to play forty passes across the back four until an opposing player lost his head and stepped out of position then bang, two passes and Rush scores ... yet the first thing they set out to do was be hard to beat ... Arsenal under Georgie Boy were masters at this as well, because his teams were just as patient and hard working, and they punished your mistakes that usually came when you lost your discipline This is a tough old division, and one thing you can't afford to do is allow your opponents time on the ball and space to play in ... I said after the Boro game that whilst I was ecstatic with the win, any team with half a brain would have a look at that video and simply push their full backs on to exploit our flanks and retain possession at will ... well, Brighton looked like Germany and if they had better players the hiding would have been massive I am still sensing what FGR fans told me ... Hock is a bull who won't budge, he will make strange decisions and alienate players ... we are starting to see this happening now at Leeds ... the only consistent thing from Hock is "my team will work hard and sweat for the shirt, and that will please Leeds fans" ... well, that's all well and good, but if a formation is as badly exploited as it was by Brighton last night, your players don't even get the chance to work hard and simply look bad Hock is now well and truly out on that tightrope, and he needs to rethink HIS attitude ... he is starting to show us he is not a master tactician, and in sticking with something that simply doesn't work he reflects an inflexible nature, and this is a dangerous trait ... let's see if he has the ability to work this problem out and solve it on Saturday ... if he doesn't, then I'm afraid his time is up and Cellino should swallow his pride and send him packing And why was Norris on the bench? It's not April 1st
Good question ristac, however Hock has repeatedly said he selects the team, chooses the formation and decides the tactics ... hmmmmmm
When Cellino took over he probably watched us with Kebe and Stewart and told McD to go diamond, I blame Kebe and Stewart for our mess
Wednesday unbeaten in 4 games conceded one late goal last night and Lee's played the whole game in each of them, what does that say about us
If that's the case with Lees, one of our own, then that's the most depressing thought to come out of the club in a while
Who was the last player you saw at ER who gave the impression they actually cared? The players seem so remote from the ordinary supporter, and have precious little real interaction. Don't have the answer. Money has ruined football.
I can't be sure but looking at their team it looks like 1 as RB and three as CB Do we actually turn decent defenders into bad ones when they get their confidence smashed, Bruce was the same when he went to Hull, far too many questions today... I am going to take a break and get back to some work, I am actually depressing myself now
True, I guess its hard to work out who actually cares. Ross always looked committed (in the weeks after signing a new contract) but that wasn't necessarily the case. Also hard to distinguish players "putting in a shift" like Austin. Might be mistaken for passion. But I see what you're getting at
It comes down to the manager unfortunately ... at Everton they played for Moyes ... at Swansea and Wigan they played for Martinez ... at Palace they played for Pulis ... at Fulham they clearly are not playing for Magath and it shows ... Lees did not take to Hock so Hock moved swiftly and got rid ... Norris is no doubt agreeing with everything Hock says (as is Hunt) and he gets into the squad ... a team devoid of passion is down to the man who sets them up every week ... I maintain Hock is our problem now, we have signed good players and if we're not careful we'll ruin our chance to rebuild and push on
Completely agree that Hock is the root of many of our problems Billy, it remains to be seen just how quickly Cellino will pull the trigger if performances like this carry on
Hock is obviously the problem and he may end up out of work today, tomoz or Sunday if we get smashed by the other Italian team. Cellino will want to beat Watford badly and if we don't it could be curtains for Hock. he now has decent players but can't seem to get his tactics or team selection correct. Bad signs all!!! The other major problem we have is leadership on the pitch. Lets be honest we haven't had a leader since Strachs and Vinnie. JP isn't a leader as he has to spend most of his time trying to do his own job, plus I believe him to be the 4th best CH at the club so should be on the bench. We need a big character, a guy who can inspire the lads and he doesn't have to be the greatest player in the world. I remember the days at TA when Alan Smith was around and even the players watched him in awe. The ground staff swooned when he was around. For those of you who know me you'll be aware that my nephew is assistant senior groundsman at the Emirates. A few years ago was invited to TA to be interviewed and because he's a Leeds fan he couldn't wait to get there. Upon arrival there were notices all around telling people to keep off the grass, especially players. Alan Smith drove up in a big black yank SUV and parked on one of the lawned areas, the ground staff just smiled and said morning Al, in the next breath they were shouting at 4 first team players for stepping on it. They told my nephew that Smudge was god and he could do anything. Smith isn't everyones cup of tea but he wasn't a big I am, he was a team player and an inspiration to the rest on how you give 100% on the pitch and off it. We need a leader fast
Doc, sounds like we need eleven Leeds lads in the team then, but I fear even then they won't play their hearts out for Hock
Sorry I would have to disagree with that attitude, it doesn't make sense to me, he shows disrespect by parking on the lawned area but he isn't a big I am he is a team player, the action and description do not go hand in hand??
I agree 442 for me Silvestri berardi belusci cooper Taylor Agard bianchi Aryan antenucci sharp smith More balance in the squad Sell on Austin byram Norris white poleon HUNT Morison
