romavillan

Interesting so many think we have the best squad in the division, Bruce is going in to this season with a lot of pressure on if that's the case. Favourites to go up, fans convinced we have the players and expecting to go up. From what we've seen though I'd say we need to ship out 4 or 5 at least and look for a very talented link between midfield and the striker(s), be that wide left, right or central (number 10). That and some coaches to see if we can keep the ball for more than 2 passes in a row every now and again.

Looks like 2 nearly definitely in and 4 nearly definitely out, with lots of other stuff being discussed.

Last night the player mopping up, winning the ball and distributing it sensibly on the deck was John Terry. He's also 65 and had probably only just got off the ref's wife 2 mins before kick off so was almost certainly going into the game knackered. Of the rest, it seemed Lansbury was playing just in front of the back 4 and in the first 20 minutes he did play some neat stuff (in our own half). that's where the positives end though for me. I thought we looked completely devoid of ideas, lacked any kind of movement off the ball and were careless with it. Rubbish in front of goal and only made half chances. One dimensional going forward and went long far too often and too quickly when it was clear things were not right. Whilst I don't want to read to much into a pre-season game, they were league one opposition and they made the better chances and in those chances played much nicer football than we seemed capable of. Especially the first half chance where the lad missed a sitter when clean through after Samba's brain fart. That chance actually displays a lot of why I am getting worried, before the free kick that they took short and worked 9-10 nice passes together before slipping the through ball that should have led to a goal, we had a throw in high up the pitch on our left. There was zero movement, the player that received it had no chance and sliced a high hack out to the other side of the pitch which was contested 50/50 and a foul was conceded. The reason I am worried are that these are the same problems we have seen for years, new manager, new team, been working at BMH for best part of a year. Still no movement, still no ball retention. Without those two things bossing a game is impossible, when we won and got points last season we did so because of the codger up front, not because we bossed teams or were better than the opposition. I am worried because we need to get out of this division, but the key faults are not being addressed, I see no evidence we are turning into a team, I see no pattern of play, no plan A, let alone a plan B. I see simple unforced errors everywhere and players that don't appear to know what they should be doing. He's had time now, I'm not saying we should be thinking of getting rid on the basis of poor pre-season football, the thing I don't like is it's the same problems again. We have tough fixtures in the first month or so, we will struggle from what I've seen. EDIT: I got a warning point saying this has nothing to do with Bruce, for me it has everything to do with Bruce, as I said he's had time to address these problems and the buck stops with him.

5-3-2, 3-5-2, call it what you like 3CBs if played right is a nice system, if Elmo helps us to actually look like we have a plan and have a system that suits the players then awesome, I'm all for it. Style in quotes says it all, and if he is going to go with 3CBs we need to see it have a run out before the first game of the season surely, maybe he was waiting for this signing? I'm not sure why though. The money is right, let's hope the player is.

As has been mentioned in another thread, Chester plays there for Wales, Baker is more suited to left sided CB in a 3.

It looks like we are saving loads by not paying coaches to train them. Also saves on the leccie bill at BMH by no-one having to go in.

Even if you allow for 50% of the "proven at this level" signings we made from last summer onwards to fail, then we STILL should have enough to be seeing better on the pitch. Much better on the pitch, these players were smashing this league in a different shirt. We aren't even talking about smashing anything, I'd just like to see off the ball movement to allow us to keep the fuggen ball a bit so that we coudl create some chances to score. It really isn't a lot to ask, I don't need to see Brazil '70 or '82, I just don't want to be completely baffled as to why the players in claret and blue cannot move in to spaces, trap the ball and then give it to another one who has moved in to space. Kids do it FFS, i've seen kids being coached over here and the basics are repeated all the time, where to be when you don't have it so as to minimise the chances the opposition can score relative to the player with the ball and his teammates etc. Then where to go when you have it and your teammate needs to find a pass. They do it at walking pace, again and again and again. That we manage to get players who have shown attributes so far above the basics as to be seen head and shoulders above most at this level and then after they put our shirt on then the basics go out the window is as baffling to me as what happens when people put on an England shirt...

our throw in's have been gifts for the opposition since MON left pretty much and then his were pretty predictable down the line flick on but were at least effective most of the time. I tend to feel sorry for whoever has the ball in their hands when it's a throw-in for us.

Yep for too long it would seem that we've needed a real shake up in the coaching, we have first class facilities, we don't appear to have had first class coaching. I can't remember the last time I wasn't just inwardly screaming "MOVE" when watchign us play. We constantly seem incapable of doing the most simple stuff that kids get coached to do, move into space and give the poor sod on teh ball as many options as possible. That's before getting in to how to unlock the defence of a particular team.

I think 3 CBs suits the players we have, with width from the fullbacks, because we only have Green as a natural winger. we can then play one out and out striker and have tons of options for who to play centrally. The worrying managerial decision for me is why we haven't seen a 3 yet, if he's thinking of playing it, we should have seen it already.

If after a full pre-season and two thirds of last season we start this season looking like a total bunch of strangers who have just been told to "get on with it" then we and Bruce are screwed. Will not take long for the crowd to be on Bruce's back if we aren't winning and looking good doing it at home. The expectation is that we are firm favourites for promotion this year (i don't think so myself but that's the case) so there will not be time and patience if we play our now traditional brand of static, poor first touch, no movement, no vision, no ability to pick a pass, hit and hope football, then the shit will hit the fan very fast. At the end of last season, Bruce did just enough to warrant this pre-season and a go at promotion. However, this was on the assumption that he could create a proper team. So far there has been little to no evidence that this is the case. Which as the first fixtures draw closer, is a shit state of affairs.

way off topic but jimmy was sore about playing because he was easily the best striker in the country and after missing the semi was fit (in his opinion) for the final and he thought he should have been picked.

Don't forget the wife-shagger bit, 65 year old wife shagger.

Absolutely spot on, in a 5 man midfield we can afford a space for someone to give Jedinak a stupidly easy pass who when he gets it can do the right thing and not lose the ball as a minimum, hopefully find a quick counter when it's on too. I think Veretout can do this, we could play a 3-4-2-1 with jedi and veretout in the middle of the four, 2 from hourihan/mcormack/grealish/adomah and kodija up top. Against weaker teams we could leave Jedi out and play another attacking midfielder or forward.

He was our best defender last season, but I think Terry will play seeing as he's been the big high profile signing, Baker is naturally suited to the left side of a 3. That was my point. If you play De Laet on the right, for the same reasons then Baker would be on the left, leaving one spot for either Terry or Chester assuming Elphick doesn't remember how to play football in the meantime. I was commenting on using De Laet, and moreso the why use De Laet in the 3 really. I'm not advocating droppin gChester just for shits and giggles. I'd expect our 3 if do use it to be Terry, Chester and 1 more from the rest. I'd hope that 1 more from the rest was fast as you like in that case.

If you are playing 3-5-2 right then those 4 attacking players become 6 with the addition of Bree and whoever in down the left. De Laet woudl definitely fit there, not convinced of Chester's mobility and Baker is naturally left sided and has played left back so would like him on that side of the 3, I see Terry and Chester as playing centrally in a 3, so Terry when fit/not knackered, Chester when he isn't (which will be quite often I'm guessing, or the last half hour of games).

Lining up with a 4-2-3-2 is definitely ballsy.

His first pass was incredible though, outside of the foot curling and dying diagonal out to the right. Absolutely gorgeous it was, perhaps he had some sort of a stroke after that?

If hes willing to play, then I'd definitely give him a go. With an actual defence behind him he could be really useful in a midfield 5. I doubt he'll be too happy dropping down a level though.

Yeah you'd want the other two to be very quick if that was the case. Baker isn't exactly slow but Chester isn't exactly pacey either.

Agree on close to zero chance of him coming, and whilst I do not rate him as one of the best keepers in the world or anything he would be far and away the best goalkeeper we've had for a long time, probably since Bosnich. Even with the 3 or 4 howlers he will let in every year...

Let's not forget we were one of the favourites at this time last year and we all know how that went. /ray of sunshine

Ah, must learn to read at some point.

(Ray Wilkins)

Gazza was probably in the england squad when at Lazio? Platt Bari/Samp? Mark Hately? Must be some more...