The case against the defence

Few games now where we concede sloppy goals through either losing a man and not tracking back or just not being able to keep up.

Thinking back to the first season of MB we used to dominate teams and hunt in packs - I remember where about 6 players tracked back against WBA that year.

Clearly teams are a lot quicker and better in the prem but also wonder if that is also a sign of the age of some of the players and not being quick enough.

Dallas gets done a lot that way as does Klich, Rodrigo, Roberts and sometimes Ayling. cooper just looks slow at this level and if he gets isolated Llorente is not the quickest no matter how quickly he reads thinks.

Spurs defensively against City were very cute in the way they studied where their goals come from and flooded that space.

We did something similar last year and maybe the tactics need to take more accou t of our limitations and evolve for the end of the season.

If we go behind we all know how that tends to end.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by hopelesslyoptimistic

Few games now where we concede sloppy goals through either losing a man and not tracking back or just not being able to keep up.

Thinking back to the first season of MB we used to dominate teams and hunt in packs - I remember where about 6 players tracked back against WBA that year.

Clearly teams are a lot quicker and better in the prem but also wonder if that is also a sign of the age of some of the players and not being quick enough.

Dallas gets done a lot that way as does Klich, Rodrigo, Roberts and sometimes Ayling. cooper just looks slow at this level and if he gets isolated Llorente is not the quickest no matter how quickly he reads thinks.

Spurs defensively against City were very cute in the way they studied where their goals come from and flooded that space.

We did something similar last year and maybe the tactics need to take more accou t of our limitations and evolve for the end of the season.

If we go behind we all know how that tends to end.

---

mate i replied with a long message but took too long and lost it, Lol, nothing new for me,

basically i will just name 3 players, the spine of our team, Cooper(what he lacks in quality he is a leader and we dont have one in his absence), Kalvin and Bamford. Get the back and we will be ok and survive..

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by pete1967b

mate i replied with a long message but took too long and lost it, Lol, nothing new for me,

basically i will just name 3 players, the spine of our team, Cooper(what he lacks in quality he is a leader and we dont have one in his absence), Kalvin and Bamford. Get the back and we will be ok and survive..

---

True but no guarantee that all three will be back. KP one of the key defensive players but we haven’t had him for weeks and the problems are there for all to see.

Love MB and hope he says for another couple of seasons but until he has better players available he needs to adapt to stop the pain.

If we get too close to the bottom out goal difference is a massive problem by the end of the week it could be by far and away the worst.

Spurs played cute against City when they won with a strategy to stop them- if only we had done the same.

will forever be grateful to MB and not just for getting us promoted but for the thrilling style he plays.

However, if we do somehow manage to stay up it's time for a change. We'll be missing raph, phillips and rodrigo. worried about someone swooping in for Strujik and Meslier. They are too good to not have caught someone's eye.

Ayling, Cooper are too slow for the prem. Think Bamnford may hang it up. He's a natural for the booth. May want to save his body for later in life.

If it all goes to hell like the above scenario I hope we pick up the Huddersfield coach. He's done wonders with that squad and he's shown the ability to adapt to a difficult squad assignment. We may need that badly next year. he won't have any big egos to stroke if the above happens. He's a MB protege but seems more defensive minded.

It's a big job for whoever takes over....
Orta needs to go for sure, clean sweep.
I would be happy with a calm manager that when we win its 2 or 3 1 ...and when we lose its by the odd goal.. not 5 6 7.
I certainly won't lose any sleep over Bielsa always thought he is a good manager, nothing else. I look at him now and its just embarrassing.
Sunday it was like watching Benny from crossroads.
Plan A is getting worse depending how serious Liverpool take this game tonight, it could be anything from 5 upwards.

The problem lies neither with Bielsa nor with Plan A but the players available to him.

With injuries and a lack of investment we just don’t have the quality to perform like we did last year and no longer have the first season bounce of us being excited to be back and teams underestimating us.

I get that Bielsa could dramatically alter his tactics but he isn’t made that way and I would hate to see us just park the bus.

With a fully fit squad we are okay ish at defending corners.

With a fully fit squad we get hit slightly less on the counter.

With a fully fit squad we give the ball
Away less.

Truth is even with a fully fit squad we don’t have the quality to compete with the top 4 which is nothing to do with tactics but the quality of the squads

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by hopelesslyoptimistic

The problem lies neither with Bielsa nor with Plan A but the players available to him.

With injuries and a lack of investment we just don’t have the quality to perform like we did last year and no longer have the first season bounce of us being excited to be back and teams underestimating us.

I get that Bielsa could dramatically alter his tactics but he isn’t made that way and I would hate to see us just park the bus.

With a fully fit squad we are okay ish at defending corners.

With a fully fit squad we get hit slightly less on the counter.

With a fully fit squad we give the ball
Away less.

Truth is even with a fully fit squad we don’t have the quality to compete with the top 4 which is nothing to do with tactics but the quality of the squads

---

Of course it lies with Bielsa, he's the manager picks the players and formation.
You don't go to City playing our way, you just tweak.

Losing by 7 is a disgrace, I just don't get the park the bus comment, straw man's arguement
Pep and klopp adjust and tuchel
You have blind love for bielsa, no issue with that by the way.
But the bloke needs criticism.
Playing Roberts is just bonkers when he would not be played by any other prem team in my view.
Hodgson has just got a tune out of a team that was total and utter pants under tickerboy.
Norwich have a fighting chance now.
They will target leeds as a game they can get 3 points. To concede the amount of goals we have is total shocking.
We now at the moment need to score 3 or 4 to win a game good luck with that without any striker of note
At this stage give me a grinding result and 3 points than a bumming by Everton and Co.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by klix

Of course it lies with Bielsa, he's the manager picks the players and formation.
You don't go to City playing our way, you just tweak.

Losing by 7 is a disgrace, I just don't get the park the bus comment, straw man's arguement
Pep and klopp adjust and tuchel
You have blind love for bielsa, no issue with that by the way.
But the bloke needs criticism.
Playing Roberts is just bonkers when he would not be played by any other prem team in my view.
Hodgson has just got a tune out of a team that was total and utter pants under tickerboy.
Norwich have a fighting chance now.
They will target leeds as a game they can get 3 points. To concede the amount of goals we have is total shocking.
We now at the moment need to score 3 or 4 to win a game good luck with that without any striker of note
At this stage give me a grinding result and 3 points than a bumming by Everton and Co.

---

He has tweaked plan A - we played differently against Spurs, West Ham and tried to against Man U.

We just don’t have the players whatever the plan. My point being I would rather lose playing how we do than lose parking the bus. Albeit I don’t like losing to anyone.

The reality is without a fully fit squad we are not good enough to compete.

Having such a thin squad is not down to Bielsa alone and he has spoken openly in his very polite way that of course he would like more players BUT they have to be better than those we have at present. All of which makes sense. We didn’t buy better (bar James) in the summer and left ourselves open to injuries to key players - when that happened we didn’t buy in January - that isn’t Bielsa’s fault.

If you read what Angus Kinnear said in programme notes or interviews back in August, September and more recently January it is clear that was a board strategy.

Surely the clubs policy of only " buying better " is self evident, a no brainer, but we keep on hearing about it. Sadly quality costs, attracts greater awareness / competition, which in the end, only a select few , can compete. Bit like moving house or changing your car, you have to cut your cloth etc.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by hopelesslyoptimistic

The problem lies neither with Bielsa nor with Plan A but the players available to him.

With injuries and a lack of investment we just don’t have the quality to perform like we did last year and no longer have the first season bounce of us being excited to be back and teams underestimating us.

I get that Bielsa could dramatically alter his tactics but he isn’t made that way and I would hate to see us just park the bus.

With a fully fit squad we are okay ish at defending corners.

With a fully fit squad we get hit slightly less on the counter.

With a fully fit squad we give the ball
Away less.

Truth is even with a fully fit squad we don’t have the quality to compete with the top 4 which is nothing to do with tactics but the quality of the squads

---

Come on it is Bielsas fault. Plan A maybe not be the problem but it is his drilling methods that crock the players hence you say he doesn't have the players. Happened Last season and happening again this season. What he has left he displaces from normal position or doesn't play kids even though they have shown they can do a job. It's been out for all to see how to do you keep defending him and the likes of Roberts And Firpo is beyond me but hey there your views I don't agree with them but i respect them.