What's The Solution?

[PoshSpur]

It's your turn to have your say.

What's the solution to our obvious problem?

Here is the league table as of 25.09.2006

http://img154.imageshack.us/img154/6862/25092006wv3.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

I know it's early and that many of us shouldn't have any reason for concern. I personally am not that concerned. But for conversation's sake......


Have your say!

[tomas_brolin]

i guess spurs kinda regret loaning out routledge...

yeah he might not be as good as one thought this past year.. but id rather have him than jenas as a right wing, and have the players play in their proper spots...

[PoshSpur]

i guess spurs kinda regret loaning out routledge...

yeah he might not be as good as one thought this past year.. but id rather have him than jenas as a right wing, and have the players play in their proper spots...



....spot on. Clubs are trying have at least 2 players play in key positions. I suppose Martin thought that Jenas was better on the right wing than Routledge is. I can't see any other reason, can anyone?

[Colm]

Start scoring some goals.

[PoshSpur]

Start scoring some goals.



....we all understand that Colm, but how do we score more goals?

[Colm]

....we all understand that Colm, but how do we score more goals?By putting the ball over the goal line, not rocket science...:)

[THFC1]

We need Michael J. Fox to get us back to the future. Last season was brilliant, lets go back to that time.

[Skizz]

If you change your system every time you have a bad run, you're never going to get the consistency you need at this exact moment in time. Davids allegedly saying he doesn't want to play on the left doesn't help the situation, but the problem doesn't lie with anyone in particular. I would go with the system you are currently putting out, hope the strikers come into form and wait to get some points on the board.

Think about it this way - the problem doesn't lie with the lack of chances you are creating (because you had a fair few at Liverpool Saturday), so it's NOT a problem with the system. The problem IS that you are not putting the chances in the back of the net. It's a confidence issue, a mental block, which is why I voted for "get behind the team". Grumbling about them isn't going to help anybody, their confidence is low so you need to show some support!

[DigitalTron]

OK, first of all, who voted to sack Jol? Obviously we have some trolls voting.

Here's my take on the system last season, and why it worked, and the system this season, and why it isn't working.

Last Season:
While we played a 442, Davids pinched in to be a second Dmid. He played the Destroyer role, and Carrick played the Holding role. Having two Dmids allowed Carrick the freedom to create--which we sorely miss--and covered for his lack of pace defensively. We had one true winger, Lennon.

On the other side, Davids wasn't playing as a winger, so Lee pushed forward and almost played as a wingback. Last season our formation was a 442 on the right and a 352 on the left. We had flank service from Lennon and Lee.

This Season:
Service has suffered without Carrick. Similarly, Lennon has been given the freedom to roam. This is typical of a bright young talent, but it prevents us from having consistent service from the right flank. Our flank service comes from our fullbacks who haven't learned their teammates so we have mistimed crosses and misreading of runs.

The Future as I see it:
It seems the design is to eventually have our flank play provided by our two excellent fullbacks, Ekotto and Chimbonda. They both have the talent to do it. Until they learn the tendencies of their teammates, particularly Berbatofteninjured and Midontgetinjured, our offense will be one-dimensional. But, once the defenses have to contend with one fullback and one midfielder providing width, the goals will come.

Ultimately, when Ekotto pushes forward, one of the midfielders (e.g. Lennon or Jenas) will slide up the right wing to provide width on both flanks. When Chimonda pushes up the right wing, another midfielder (e.g. Davids or Tainio) will slide up the left wing to provide width from the other side. At no time will both fullbacks be pushing forward simultaneously, so the midfield needs to be a bit fluid. Remember, Jol is Dutch ... total futbol and all that. So, he wants versatile midfielders.

If it works, it can be extremely hard to defend. Constantly switching midfielders usually leads to at least one blown defensive assignment a game, which usually means goals. It always leads to mismatches. With the speed of our midfield (Lennon, Jenas, Zokora, Davids), we should be able to punish gaps in defense or mismatches against slow defenders. I think Jol is just trying to put the right system in place to allow our speedy midfielders to flow like that. And, there are obviously growing pains. Coupled with the large turnover in personnel ... massive growing pains. :(

-Digital

[tomas_brolin]

we should just get our fastest players on the field and dump and chase like chelscum and let robbo dawson and king do all the work..

[Danners9]

It's the opposition's fault. If they didn't score then we might win.

[pookspur]

It's the opposition's fault. If they didn't score then we might win.

unfortunately, the fulham match disproves this theory.

[THFC1]

unfortunately, the fulham match disproves this theory.

That was Helguson's fault, if he hadn't cleared Chimbonda's header off the line we would have won.

[pookspur]

That was Helguson's fault, if he hadn't cleared Chimbonda's header off the line we would have won.

fair enough. though i suppose this means we should modify danners' hypothesis to "if they didn't score and defend then we might win".

:o ;)

[Spur_Forever]

Frankly, I think there are 2 main problems that the side has.

(1) The lack of a true left winger and Jol's decision to play a central midfielder in that position (as opposed to switching formations, for example). I'll say no more about this, because it has been discussed ad nauseam.

(2) The failure to compensate for Carrick's creativity in central midfield. From what I've seen this season, I have no doubt that Zokora can fill his shoes in terms of the traditional defensive midfielder's role. He can also render Davids obsolete in terms of providing some "bite" and a little bit of "hustle" in the center of the park (something that Carrick was missing). But Zokora does not spread things around like Michael used to. The solution? Well, there are 3 potentials. Hudd is one option that we've used already, and he will definitely be our long-term solution. But I'm wondering whether he can cut it immediately in the premier league. So, at least for this season (and probably the next), Malbranque is the man. It just sucks that he's not fit. And even when he is, he'll take some time to gel with the rest of the team. The only option we are left with for right now is Murphy, who consequently NEEDS to start every game from now on. If he can gel with the team, he will be the best person to provide the "killer pass" that our strikers have been craving. He can also spread things out when we're getting too congested in the center. Davids, Tainio and Ghaly will have to play on the left or not at all. And in the long run, Jenas will have to be the back-up for Lennon/Malbranque/Zokora, or else play on the left...

So long story short, unless we change formations (which Jol seems reluctant to do) our immediate reversal of fortunes seems to be hanging on Murphy's return to form (and to a lesser extent, Lennon and Berbatov's return from injury). In the long run, our success will depend on Zokora and Malbranque gelling in the center, as well as us finally finding someone who can play on the left.

[Danners9]

fair enough. though i suppose this means we should modify danners' hypothesis to "if they didn't score and defend then we might win".

:o ;)

Orrr... if they just stood still, then we may win.

[SpursGlory]

I'd like to see Defoe given a decent run of starts... with a little consistency I think he could get us some much needed scoring . Why Jol paired Keane and Defoe is unexplainable. Defoe and Mido seems to be our best option until Berby gets back.

I worry MJ is resting too much of our attack on Lennon (the only player willing to take the ball past opposing defenders)... with Lennon out our lack of other options is pathetically obvious.

The team needs drastic improvement in the attacking third... more shooting, creativity going FORWARD, aggressiveness, did I say more SHOOTING!

Finally the lack of passion shown by the team is disturbing... yes there are new players and Carrick is gone but there is no fire under their butts and MJ is responsible for that. We're not playing with any hunger. Considering the accomplishment (and the disappointment of last season) you'd think they'd act a bit more excited and eager to make a statement this season.

Has Carrick leaving underscored the "waiting to move on to a bigger club mentality" that creates the apathy shown on the field?

As far as luck or breaks go, yeah we haven't gotten many but the team needs to create their own luck... it isn't going to happen sitting back bunkering or sulking after giving up a goal.

The next 3 or 4 league games (Pompey, Villa, West Ham and Watford) are huge... it won't be easy but we really need to turn it around and pick up 10pts out of the next 4 to get back into contention for Europe again.

[DigitalTron]

The next 3 or 4 league games (Pompey, Villa, West Ham and Watford) are huge... it won't be easy but we really need to turn it around and pick up 10pts out of the next 4 to get back into contention for Europe again.

I agree. I hate to sound dramatic, but I think we need a minimum of 9 points from the next 4 games ... and we really should take 12. :(

On a positive note, teams are built from the back, and our back four looks to be complete and very encouraging. Sure, Robbo has looked dreadful, Davenport hasn't inspired confidence as a sub, and our fullbacks are still learning how to play with their teammates, but all in all it's very good stuff. Our fullbacks have both been attacking yet we've gotten very solid play from the back line. Not a lot of goals have been allowed when they're all 4 in there. I think we all agree that Lee is a capable backup at either fullback, so once Davenport starts being consistently reliable, we'll really have a solid defense.

Also, we definitely have the talent at both midfield and forward. I'm confident that Jol will get them playing as a unit in time to keep us in contention for a top 4 spot this season.

We're no longer missing pieces as we have been in the past. Other than possibly Berbatov (and I really hope he isn't injured long), we don't have any sicknotes. Now it's just a matter of getting the pieces working together.

-Digital

[PoshSpur]

OK, first of all, who voted to sack Jol? Obviously we have some trolls voting. :(

-Digital



Batcave Brigade, Mango-THFC, Sultanofsham

[PoshSpur]

When all the players are fit, this is the system I would play:

http://img181.imageshack.us/img181/1850/howiwouldplayuv3.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

I would play with wing-backs (as the fullbacks we have are perfectly capable of playing as wing-backs).

Huddlestone would be my stopper, with Zokora and Malbranque providing the passes and making the runs.

I would have Lennon playing just behind the front two. I would ask him to drift to each flank and make runs into the box.

We can't buy a winger, so that is the reason for this team.