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Match Day Thread Town v Charlton

Discussion in 'Ipswich Town' started by YorkieLancsHampyLondoner, Apr 29, 2022.

  1. itfcptc

    itfcptc Well-Known Member

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    So you think we should play 2 up top?

    I'm honestly struggling to think of a striker we would get who would fit into this team given what we've had at our disposal this season...who'd have thought Jackson is seemingly the one who McKenna likes best.
     
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  2. itfcptc

    itfcptc Well-Known Member

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    I'm not sure about Aluko, at the start of the season (under Cook) I liked him, I thought he was one of the only attacking players we had who was good at keeping possession of the ball....however i don't know if it's just the games I've seen but since then everytime I've seen Aluko it seems to follow the same pattern of play....he picks up the ball shows an amazing piece of skill or touch and then runs straight into the place in the pitch where the most opposition players are and loses the ball.
     
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  3. Nuggets

    Nuggets Well-Known Member

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    I agree with itfcptc that we're not just a '20-goal-a-season' striker away from promotion. There needs to be more consistent creativity throughout the 90 minutes, when we are up against the better teams in the division. If we can bottle the defensive solidity in the early McKenna months and increase the chances - as well as having a confident striker that is more efficient than the ones we have - then we'll hopefully start seeing draws turn into wins next season. At times, we've been too cautious under McKenna - at best, we set a defensive club record but at worst, a focus on edging 1-0 wins can turn into 1-1 draws with a lapse of concentration.

    I agree with the general sentiment that the quality of football is higher than it has been for years and I'd even refer to the brighter moments under Cook where we were simply unplayable at times. I think that comes down to the quality of players that we bought in during the summer. The high level of investment and generally strong recruitment has left us looking better-placed for promotion from what is becoming an unforgiving and tough division. I don't think any of us would have predicted the top seven would have 80 points and above! If there is one criticism of the recruitment in the summer, with hindsight I feel that while we've bought a talented bunch of individuals, it's difficult playing our 'best eleven' on paper, because we have the players to play several different systems and formations. Choosing one formation over the other means that good players either miss out or are having to play in unfamiliar positions.

    I hope McKenna has used this half a year wisely and now knows what formation he wants to play week-in, week-out and also what back-up formation/system he will use when we're either chasing a game or trying to close a match out. From the performances I've seen this season, I think we play best with three at the back, wing-backs, and a strong focus on creativity.

    Without loanees and announced departing players, our strongest eleven probably looks something like this (players in bold are the ones I'd like to keep in starting eleven):

    GK: Walton
    CB: Donacien
    CB: Wolfenden
    CB: Edmondson
    LWB: Penney
    RWB: Burns
    CM: Morsy
    CM: Evans
    AM: Chaplin
    AM: Aluko
    ST: Pigott

    The coaching under McKenna and his team has, in my opinion, been much better than under Cook or Lambert. I'd like to think that talented, fringe players in the squad - such as Kane Vincent-Young, Baggott, Harper, Evans, and Edwards - would improve and potentially feature. I think a left-back/left wing back, a creative midfielder, a goalscoring midfielder, and a centre-forward are the top recruitment requirements this summer. We probably need some additional cover at centre-back too.
     
    #43
  4. YorkieLancsHampyLondoner

    YorkieLancsHampyLondoner Well-Known Member

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    One thing that needs addressing is that Donacien and Edmundson are not doing the same job and neither are Burns who really plays RM and the LWB.

    That left side is a big part of us not scoring more goals.

    You get something very different in the attacking areas depending on the personnel - Chaplin tends to play as a number 10 whereas Aluko naturally drifts to the wing. We can call either of those a forward when they’re on the pitch but it depends who they’re playing with. I think we need a better #9 or even two options in that position and Chaplin is the only effective #10 we have so we need another CF.
     
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  5. itfcptc

    itfcptc Well-Known Member

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    Agree the balance of the side hasn't looked right all season but in different ways with the different managers. I guess that's what you get putting together a squad over 1 summer.

    That left hand side has been an issue particularly during McKennas reign (wasn't perfect under Cook).

    I think there will be a bit of a question for McKenna to answer next season when it comes to Edmundson, he hasn't looked particularly comfortable in that left sided CB position in a 3. My initial reaction when Woolfenden came back into the back 3 was why was he the sweeper and not Edmundson and have him on the left side but Woolfenden has played so well at sweeper why would you change it..he looks like a rolls Royce of a defender.

    I think Penney provides a nice balance down that side I just don't think he's good enough, the only player who did was Coulsen but he was injured for the most part. I'm not sure playing 2 number 10s helps either, sometimes down the right it gets congested and despite both Burns and Chaplin being some of our better players I found Chaplin sometimes gets into the space Burns would occupy where as the left hand side is where our strikers tend to go because noone else is out there then the problem is there's no one in the box.

    The best and most balanced performance I've seen all season was when we beat Gillingham 4-0, we played Norwood and Bonne upfront with Aluko behind, it just worked so well but he never tried that again. I think we either need to play 2 up top with a number 10 behind or as a 3 with wide forwards (but probably a flat back 4)
     
    #45
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