Plan B

[kill_the_drum]

Can someone explain to me what the term means in a footballing sense? The last two managers have been accused of it but where does it exist in football?
I don?t see any team drastically change the way they play during a game. At most, they change personnel and formation slightly depending on whether they need to score or defend. Maynard was no different!
We played out from the back but when we lost Crowley and had zero pace on the wings, we went far more direct to feed off Jatta.
If that?s not a plan B, then what is?
It seems to be a default response when a passing team isn?t winning. Likewise, how many times have you ever seen a bunch of kickers or long ball merchants start passing through the lines when they?re not winning?

[Chicken Balti Pie]

Can someone explain to me what the term means in a footballing sense? The last two managers have been accused of it but where does it exist in football?
I don?t see any team drastically change the way they play during a game. At most, they change personnel and formation slightly depending on whether they need to score or defend. Maynard was no different!
We played out from the back but when we lost Crowley and had zero pace on the wings, we went far more direct to feed off Jatta.
If that?s not a plan B, then what is?
It seems to be a default response when a passing team isn?t winning. Likewise, how many times have you ever seen a bunch of kickers or long ball merchants start passing through the lines when they?re not winning?

We generally did have a plan B under Burchnall, Williams and very early on Maynard. We would switch to a 4-2-3-1 and unleash wingers and over load the wings with the fullbacks. It worked when behind and with the opposition sitting back. We'd be a little more direct to the wings, and we'd finish the game at least in top of not winning. The problem is, now we have actual wingers in the squad with Jones and Jarvis, we don't play it

[Boomerangpie]

It is a great post and question.

Good illustration of a Plan B is Spurs in a cup competition compared to Spurs in the league this season. Their approach was chalk and cheese, probably out of desperation rather than desire.

There is a lot of criticism of Maynard, William and all recent managers about a lack of Plan B. I instantly always think who had a good effective and often used Plan B for Notts when manager. I?m really struggling even considering the few successful ones we?ve had.

Some fans seem to think it?s as easy as pressing a button that?s marked Plan B, which is right next to the dial that says tempo which can easily be changed in a game to good instant effect. Doesn?t work like that sadly.

Other than throwing a defender or big man who never scored up front at the end of games and going long ball a complete new Plan B is a bit of a myth in my eyes. One that is worked on the training ground. Well it has been at this footballing level and at Notts from my experience.

Interested to hear others thoughts on this subject

[kill_the_drum]

We generally did have a plan B under Burchnall, Williams and very early on Maynard. We would switch to a 4-2-3-1 and unleash wingers and over load the wings with the fullbacks. It worked when behind and with the opposition sitting back. We'd be a little more direct to the wings, and we'd finish the game at least in top of not winning. The problem is, now we have actual wingers in the squad with Jones and Jarvis, we don't play it

I only remember once Williams changing formation, away at Newport.
Even when we had to play Chicksen at the back, he still kept with a back 3!

[matt_magpie]

Can someone explain to me what the term means in a footballing sense? The last two managers have been accused of it but where does it exist in football?
I don?t see any team drastically change the way they play during a game. At most, they change personnel and formation slightly depending on whether they need to score or defend. Maynard was no different!
We played out from the back but when we lost Crowley and had zero pace on the wings, we went far more direct to feed off Jatta.
If that?s not a plan B, then what is?
It seems to be a default response when a passing team isn?t winning. Likewise, how many times have you ever seen a bunch of kickers or long ball merchants start passing through the lines when they?re not winning?

I asked the exact same question last week and didn?t get an answer regarding Notts. My argument was it was difficult to go longer as Jatta was not suited to it. We couldn?t try and hit more diagonals as our defenders haven?t the passing ability. We couldn?t use pace as on the whole for most of the season we had none. We couldn?t rattle team physically for obvious reason and we had reverted to a back four a handful of times but with little effect as it?s the same players that basically on the whole want the ball to feet with little other ability to do something different.

[Chicken Balti Pie]

I only remember once Williams changing formation, away at Newport.
Even when we had to play Chicksen at the back, he still kept with a back 3!

We didn't often have to change it with Williams but he was willing to do it when necessary

[slack_pie]

Nit sure if it constitutes a plan B, but most teams in L2 when needing a goal late on will go direct and launch balls into a big guy in the box. It's rather primitive but actually quite effective. Even if the target man doesn't win the header, the second ball is up for grabs in and around the area. We just don't do that.

Imagine if we'd been leading against Wimbledon with 15 mins to go. They would have absolutely bombarded our goals until we inevitably crumbled. When we needed a goal, we changed nothing.

[Med Pie]

Can someone explain to me what the term means in a footballing sense? The last two managers have been accused of it but where does it exist in football?
I don?t see any team drastically change the way they play during a game. At most, they change personnel and formation slightly depending on whether they need to score or defend. Maynard was no different!
We played out from the back but when we lost Crowley and had zero pace on the wings, we went far more direct to feed off Jatta.
If that?s not a plan B, then what is?
It seems to be a default response when a passing team isn?t winning. Likewise, how many times have you ever seen a bunch of kickers or long ball merchants start passing through the lines when they?re not winning?

Even Barcelona got 'worked out' when Bayern did them 7-0 on aggregate over two games but plan B simply means the ability to recognise any issue and counter it. The high press is something we've struggled against as long as we've played possession football, we also struggle to break down teams who sit deep but so do far better teams than Notts.

Solutions can be simple, apparent even to the average fan. If a team is sitting deep and you can't pass through, trying going over, be more direct use the width and go wide, get in behind, sometimes, what has been obvious to fans, has gone unaddressed by the man in charge. The high press, should, in theory, leave gaps in or behind the midfield, find them, use them, . IMHO, playing wing backs, invites the high press.

[Med Pie]

Nit sure if it constitutes a plan B, but most teams in L2 when needing a goal late on will go direct and launch balls into a big guy in the box. It's rather primitive but actually quite effective. Even if the target man doesn't win the header, the second ball is up for grabs in and around the area. We just don't do that.

Imagine if we'd been leading against Wimbledon with 15 mins to go. They would have absolutely bombarded our goals until we inevitably crumbled. When we needed a goal, we changed nothing.

Exactly.

[upthemaggies]

Many a wise old manager has said that football is simple game. Far too many geeks involved now over-complicating it. When it reaches the point where almost everybody is doing the same thing (and we might be already there, even at this level), most teams are going to find that this approach fails, then fails again and keeps on failing.