Main improvements required
Passing on the ground especially to the strikers
Possession
The middle of the pitch
Set pieces
Pressing and territory
In addition to these points Elmo needs to try and get to the bi-line more often before crossing. Huddlestone needs to give us more than two accurate attacking passes in a match. Meyler needs to be told he can pass to OUR players and the strikers need to SCORE GOALS!!
Passing on the ground especially to the strikers
- Watch the match today and count how many passes our strikers receive below waist height.
- Against Palace in the first half every pass dropped like doodlebugs from the heavens. In the second we played proper football and looked far better.
Possession
- The ball doesn't explode into deadly shrapnel after 6 passes. There is no need to welly it forward or pass it back to the goalie to do the same after this interval.
- Defenders must try to pass forward and midfielders the same whenever possible. Tapping it around in our half only encourages the opposition to press and force the next big punt.
- The goalie should throw or pass the ball to our players if he can to ensure we can build moves rather than our strikers hoping to get hold of the next V2 rocket pass.
The middle of the pitch
- It's a lovely place lads, you can run around there and pass the ball without having to cluster around the side lines and turn the game into a series of throw-ins.
- It is also possible to attack through the centre without switching to Elmo to put in an aimless Scud cross - Just a thought.
Set pieces
- Corners; BEAT THE FIRST f**kING MAN!! Preferably with a low trajectory Exocet at head height that only needs a slight flick to burst the net.
- Throw ins; They should go to one of our players and not just the maximum distance into their half.
- Free kicks; Have we scored from one directly this season? A bit of imagination like Palace showed wouldn't go amiss. Also our defence of free-kicks needs a complete over-haul.
Pressing and territory
- Granted it's not always easy, but our forward players need to press the opposition more and force them to lose possession.
- Huddlestone needs to venture further forward and stop contributing to the team being compacted into our own penalty area.
In addition to these points Elmo needs to try and get to the bi-line more often before crossing. Huddlestone needs to give us more than two accurate attacking passes in a match. Meyler needs to be told he can pass to OUR players and the strikers need to SCORE GOALS!!