Yes, another article on the new manager. But I thought this was a well-considered piece of analysis worth sharing. Compares Poche's first 4 to Nigel's last 4. Nice to see someone spend some good time over the article too. http://sfcplayerstats.wordpress.com/2013/02/12/the-pochettino-effect/ DTLW
Interesting, though statistics can be skewed in such a small sample. However, it does explain what Pochettino is doing to create such a different look to our play. The team have to bust a gut, but if they see results they will be willing to stick to it. Their confidence is high which means they fear no one...belief is a major factor in success.
I feel a little uncomfortable with all the praise for MP after just 4 games and 5 points. I am not saying he is doing a bad job though but is it really possible to judge a manager after four games? I am sure there are plenty of managerial appointments in the past that have have had a promising honeymoon period and it then went pear shaped once they fully implemented their way on the club.
Have to agree. We can all see a difference but it's too early to make judgements. Next season will be the time to assess.
Hi Guys and Girls, thanks for the feedback. I agree with everything that you have said, remember the article is merely based on the last 8 games, looking at what effect Pochettino has on the team and what areas he has looked on improving from when Adkins was manager. I believe I mention at the end that there is still a long way to go so hopefully we can see real big improvements by the end of the season; which I intend to go into a lot of detail then. Anyway thanks for reading and cheers DTLW for posting my article on here!
I don't think it is full on praise as you might be suggesting.......just praise for the way he has them playing at the moment and there can be no denying he has got them playing so much better. The real praise or criticism will come later when as you correctly point out he hasn't been here long enough to make a full judgement yet.
Interesting piece on Talksport this morning when Andy Gray was talking to a Spanish journo who told them that MP was advising Mourinho on how to deal with Man U, recommending a high line and closing down the space quickly to not allow time for them to play out from the back. Impressed that the Special One uses MP as an adviser
This is a positive analysis and I dont find anything to disagree with, I do however have concerns. Are the increased physical demands going to result in higher fatigue and injury rates and do we need more quality in depth in the squad to compensate? Is it sustainable over longer periods, can we keep the intensity for a whole season? Or will some players start to switch off /lapse after a while. Whats Plan B? At somepoint some teams are going to find ways of thwarting / exploiting weaknesses in the system, one of the things Adkins had was some tactical flexibility with a number of formations and set ups that the team understood. I am not feeling negative about our style, just keen to see how things are going to develop in the light of some potential issues.
the players have been doing extra training sessions to get them fitter and have you noticed pochettino makes substitutions quite early?
Good article, but I have to agree with others that many of the stats purportedly showing a change in style are not really statistically significant; the 'minutes per tackle' graph example, doesn't really show anything, and even if it did, it would more likely be explained by having less possession than a change in style. The text and specific examples are good though and correspond closely to what I've observed.
Jen, Its the longer term effects I am concerned about, the cumulative effect of the extra hard yards.
The fact that it has been possible, in the short time MP has been at Southampton, to improve the players' fitness at all, shows that they weren't fully fit before. I know that's hard to believe given Nigel Adkins' training regime and the facilities at Staplewood etc. but it must be true. I would anticipate that the next pre-season will, combined with a few additions to the squad for improvement and in-depth backup, give us a good chance of maintaining this high workrate throughout a whole season. The players must be glad of this break at the moment, but I bet they aren't taking it easy!
MP did say he was happy with the team's fitness and skill (then he started double-training sessions!!). I hope they are monitoring them closely though as it is possible to overdo it.
