One Thing We'll Have To Learn

[ramspride]

This season whenever we have played big strong teams who defend and pack their penalty area we have lost. Whenever we have played sides who play open football we have won, that's why I think we would have done well in in Prem incidently. Next season we must find a way of unlocking packed defences. But how.

[roger_ramjet]

Perhaps the answer to unlocking defences is Billy Kee.

I'll get my coat on the way out.

[Ramondo]

This season whenever we have played big strong teams who defend and pack their penalty area we have lost. Whenever we have played sides who play open football we have won, that's why I think we would have done well in in Prem incidently. Next season we must find a way of unlocking packed defences. But how.

I agree with you on one point, that we struggle to break teams down that park the bus. I disagree that it would have suited us in the Premier League.

Prem defences are considerably stronger, they are bigger, they make less mistakes. We would struggle to get too many goals at the minute without some changes.

How do we combat this? The answer is simple, unfortunately the execution is a lot harder. We need to have players that can play a good final ball. Hughes can, Bryson can, so can Hendricks on his day. But those are through the middle, we play wide but the wide players consistently fail to get the ball past the first man, or

[Rob_the_Ram]

I think there are times when the short, accurate passing looking looking to carve out openings isn't working. Its then good to have the option of a couple of robust centre forwards to test the opposition.

We don't have the option of going with that with the personel we have. For all of Sammon's effort and physical size, I think I've seen him head the ball twice in his career with us.
Has he scored a headed goal for us?

That means other than Martin, we don't have targets for the option of putting halfway line crosses to mix it up a bit. It means the opposition can keep their defensive width and we try to penetrate.

So I think we'll have to learn the time to go more direct and have the players to do it.

As well as a big striker to support Martin, we could do with one to replace him if he's off his game or heaven forbid, picks up an injury.

We've been incredibly lucky with injuries this season with Bryson, Ward and mainly Russell being the unfortunate guys. However we've had pretty

[HOODIE]

What we would have given to bring someone like Kevin Phillips on in the last 20 minutes?

[evensteadiereddie]

You'll have to learn to defend and, for all the pretty, pretty stuff you've apparently played, you'll have to learn to stop giving away so many free kicks.

[Manofpride]

Thought we unlocked many defences, did you see how many goals we scored???

In Mac we trust!!!

[Ramondo]

Thought we unlocked many defences, did you see how many goals we scored???

In Mac we trust!!!

We unlocked quite a few yes. But when there were bodies behind the ball and we couldn't pass our way through we needed to put in some good service into the middle. Most of the service that worked came through the middle, not enough from out wide. The number of times we got ourselves into good forward positions down either side of the box and then cannoned the ball into the first defender can't have escaped peoples attention?

Teams will play in different ways. If we are to be successful we need to have different ways of breaking them down. This isn't a criticism, how can it be when we've just had such a great season. But it is an observation that I've noticed for some time and we saw it again in at Wembley. We can get wide and pass the ball about inside, outside, cutting through, running on etc, etc. We've done that very well but it is