Our chances vs Villa

[Bergen Blade]

Having failed to score for three home league games I think it's time to focus on our attacking. I rewatched the extended highlights from the Villa game and these were the chances showed:

1. O'Connell's header from a corner. Hit bar.
2. Clarke shot after break. Leonard intercepted, Baldock hit a long through ball to Clarke whose shot was saved.
3. Baldock shot after break. Leonard picked up ball in own box, found Fleck who played it in behind to Clarke. Baldock nipped in and shot at goal. Saved.
4. Wilson scissor kick. From a throw in the ball bubbled around in the box. It fell to Baldock on the right who crossed to Clarke at the back post. Clarke's header found Wilson, whose scissor kick was just wide.
5. Baldock shot from left hand side. Ball was bubbling in the box after a corner. Villa headed clear, Stearman's touch found Fleck, who skipped past one man and played it through to Baldock, His shot was saved.
6. Fleck's shot from outside area. Holmes helped regain possession high up. Baldock ran with it, but passed it back to Stevens. Then Stevens ran with it and passed it back to Baldock. Baldock passed it back to Fleck whose clever low shot was well saved.
7. Clarke header from corner, tipped over by the goalkeeper.

There may have been the odd one that was missing from these highlights.

So this was

• 2 corners
• 2 counter attacks (won the ball in own half)
• 3 situations after regaining possession high up

We passed it well in the first half and we should be pleased with the way the performance. Second half we struggled more and we looked to run out of ideas. One thing to notice is that the long passing moves didn't lead to any chances. When they had players back, ready and anticipating, we struggled to carve through them.

Shots are being blocked, crosses (when they eventually come in) are being cleared, if we get on the end of something finished are often hurried and well challenged. We don't seem to quite have the individual brilliance that sees Man City usually overcome deep defending at their level and that saw us do the same in League One last season. It's been the case for a while, and Sunderland apart, we haven't managed more than the odd home goal since Fulham in November. We simply do not score enough goals at home.

Maybe we can learn something from the way we created chances yesterday. Not by hoofing it forward at every opportunity, but by taking advantage more often when the opposition's guard is down, when they've pushed forward and have fewer players back. Maybe it'll mean we waste a few balls. Possibly a little less possession. Not as many 'safe' backwards and sideways passes, but more early forward ones and more running on the ball, more attempts to beat a man. More wholehearted counter attacks and more risky passing when the chances are on.

For example more like this:



and less like this:

 

[GreasyChipBeattie]

Nice one BB

 

[HodgysBrokenThumb]

Having failed to score for three home league games I think it's time to focus on our attacking. I rewatched the extended highlights from the Villa game and these were the chances showed:

1. O'Connell's header from a corner. Hit bar.
2. Clarke shot after break. Leonard intercepted, Baldock hit a long through ball to Clarke whose shot was saved.
3. Baldock shot after break. Leonard picked up ball in own box, found Fleck who played it in behind to Clarke. Baldock nipped in and shot at goal. Saved.
4. Wilson scissor kick. From a throw in the ball bubbled around in the box. It fell to Baldock on the right who crossed to Clarke at the back post. Clarke's header found Wilson, whose scissor kick was just wide.
5. Baldock shot from left hand side. Ball was bubbling in the box after a corner. Villa headed clear, Stearman's touch found Fleck, who skipped past one man and played it through to Baldock, His shot was saved.
6. Fleck's shot from outside area. Holmes helped regain possession high up. Baldock ran with it, but passed it back to Stevens. Then Stevens ran with it and passed it back to Baldock. Baldock passed it back to Fleck whose clever low shot was well saved.
7. Clarke header from corner, tipped over by the goalkeeper.

There may have been the odd one that was missing from these highlights.

So this was

• 2 corners
• 2 counter attacks (won the ball in own half)
• 3 situations after regaining possession high up

We passed it well in the first half and we should be pleased with the way the performance. Second half we struggled more and we looked to run out of ideas. One thing to notice is that the long passing moves didn't lead to any chances. When they had players back, ready and anticipating, we struggled to carve through them.

Shots are being blocked, crosses (when they eventually come in) are being cleared, if we get on the end of something finished are often hurried and well challenged. We don't seem to quite have the individual brilliance that sees Man City usually overcome deep defending at their level and that saw us do the same in League One last season. It's been the case for a while, and Sunderland apart, we haven't managed more than the odd home goal since Fulham in November. We simply do not score enough goals at home.

Maybe we can learn something from the way we created chances yesterday. Not by hoofing it forward at every opportunity, but by taking advantage more often when the opposition's guard is down, when they've pushed forward and have fewer players back. Maybe it'll mean we waste a few balls. Possibly a little less possession. Not as many 'safe' backwards and sideways passes, but more early forward ones and more running on the ball, more attempts to beat a man. More wholehearted counter attacks and more risky passing when the chances are on.

For example more like this:

View attachment 36455

and less like this:


View attachment 36456

Thanks for all that. If we were ever in doubt, it is clear that route 1 is not the way forward, even as Plan B.

 

[5tannington Blade]

What do people think to Moore's distribution too? There were too many wayful long balls which we didnt have a chance with second half. Their defence were bug and strong and won most of them, don't know why Simon kept perservering

 

[AWetFlannel]

Having failed to score for three home league games I think it's time to focus on our attacking. I rewatched the extended highlights from the Villa game and these were the chances showed:

1. O'Connell's header from a corner. Hit bar.
2. Clarke shot after break. Leonard intercepted, Baldock hit a long through ball to Clarke whose shot was saved.
3. Baldock shot after break. Leonard picked up ball in own box, found Fleck who played it in behind to Clarke. Baldock nipped in and shot at goal. Saved.
4. Wilson scissor kick. From a throw in the ball bubbled around in the box. It fell to Baldock on the right who crossed to Clarke at the back post. Clarke's header found Wilson, whose scissor kick was just wide.
5. Baldock shot from left hand side. Ball was bubbling in the box after a corner. Villa headed clear, Stearman's touch found Fleck, who skipped past one man and played it through to Baldock, His shot was saved.
6. Fleck's shot from outside area. Holmes helped regain possession high up. Baldock ran with it, but passed it back to Stevens. Then Stevens ran with it and passed it back to Baldock. Baldock passed it back to Fleck whose clever low shot was well saved.
7. Clarke header from corner, tipped over by the goalkeeper.

There may have been the odd one that was missing from these highlights.

So this was

• 2 corners
• 2 counter attacks (won the ball in own half)
• 3 situations after regaining possession high up

We passed it well in the first half and we should be pleased with the way the performance. Second half we struggled more and we looked to run out of ideas. One thing to notice is that the long passing moves didn't lead to any chances. When they had players back, ready and anticipating, we struggled to carve through them.

Shots are being blocked, crosses (when they eventually come in) are being cleared, if we get on the end of something finished are often hurried and well challenged. We don't seem to quite have the individual brilliance that sees Man City usually overcome deep defending at their level and that saw us do the same in League One last season. It's been the case for a while, and Sunderland apart, we haven't managed more than the odd home goal since Fulham in November. We simply do not score enough goals at home.

Maybe we can learn something from the way we created chances yesterday. Not by hoofing it forward at every opportunity, but by taking advantage more often when the opposition's guard is down, when they've pushed forward and have fewer players back. Maybe it'll mean we waste a few balls. Possibly a little less possession. Not as many 'safe' backwards and sideways passes, but more early forward ones and more running on the ball, more attempts to beat a man. More wholehearted counter attacks and more risky passing when the chances are on.

For example more like this:

View attachment 36455

and less like this:


View attachment 36456

Always love your posts.
Think we usually have a good balance of risky and safe passing. When we have possession in the final third, it looks like we pass up crossing opportunities wilfully in an attempt to work it in behind. Presumably Wilder thinks that gives our best chance of scoring, though we didn't manage to get behind the Villa back four at all.

 

[HodgysBrokenThumb]

What do people think to Moore's distribution too? There were too many wayful long balls which we didnt have a chance with second half. Their defence were bug and strong and won most of them, don't know why Simon kept perservering

Agreed. Not sure the midfield were giving him options for a short pass, but his kicking could be improved.

 

[John Street West Terrace]

What do people think to Moore's distribution too? There were too many wayful long balls which we didnt have a chance with second half. Their defence were bug and strong and won most of them, don't know why Simon kept perservering

I comented myself on Moores kicking last night ,he needs to work on that a bit , their keepers was very good a couple of times to landed a accurate kick to try and feed Hogan on the break.

Having failed to score for three home league games I think it's time to focus on our attacking. I rewatched the extended highlights from the Villa game and these were the chances showed:

1. O'Connell's header from a corner. Hit bar.
2. Clarke shot after break. Leonard intercepted, Baldock hit a long through ball to Clarke whose shot was saved.
3. Baldock shot after break. Leonard picked up ball in own box, found Fleck who played it in behind to Clarke. Baldock nipped in and shot at goal. Saved.
4. Wilson scissor kick. From a throw in the ball bubbled around in the box. It fell to Baldock on the right who crossed to Clarke at the back post. Clarke's header found Wilson, whose scissor kick was just wide.
5. Baldock shot from left hand side. Ball was bubbling in the box after a corner. Villa headed clear, Stearman's touch found Fleck, who skipped past one man and played it through to Baldock, His shot was saved.
6. Fleck's shot from outside area. Holmes helped regain possession high up. Baldock ran with it, but passed it back to Stevens. Then Stevens ran with it and passed it back to Baldock. Baldock passed it back to Fleck whose clever low shot was well saved.
7. Clarke header from corner, tipped over by the goalkeeper.

There may have been the odd one that was missing from these highlights.

So this was

• 2 corners
• 2 counter attacks (won the ball in own half)
• 3 situations after regaining possession high up

We passed it well in the first half and we should be pleased with the way the performance. Second half we struggled more and we looked to run out of ideas. One thing to notice is that the long passing moves didn't lead to any chances. When they had players back, ready and anticipating, we struggled to carve through them.

Shots are being blocked, crosses (when they eventually come in) are being cleared, if we get on the end of something finished are often hurried and well challenged. We don't seem to quite have the individual brilliance that sees Man City usually overcome deep defending at their level and that saw us do the same in League One last season. It's been the case for a while, and Sunderland apart, we haven't managed more than the odd home goal since Fulham in November. We simply do not score enough goals at home.

Maybe we can learn something from the way we created chances yesterday. Not by hoofing it forward at every opportunity, but by taking advantage more often when the opposition's guard is down, when they've pushed forward and have fewer players back. Maybe it'll mean we waste a few balls. Possibly a little less possession. Not as many 'safe' backwards and sideways passes, but more early forward ones and more running on the ball, more attempts to beat a man. More wholehearted counter attacks and more risky passing when the chances are on.

For example more like this:

View attachment 36455

and less like this:


View attachment 36456

They denied us a lot of the space wide second half BB and we really rely on delivery from wide as that’s where Clarke gets most joy from , no good hitting a long ball down the middle against 3 centre halves .
They also kept the two central midfielders deeper sitting behind Grealish which made the. Very compact ala how the pigs set up .
Thought we offered a lot more options though last night and on another occasion would have got some joy out of it

 

[Bruce Wayne]

We can create 100 chances per game and analyse them all we like, bemoan bad luck all we like but if they don't go in it means fuck all. Give me one moment of quality and a one nil win every time.

 

[DronnieBlade]

Having failed to score for three home league games I think it's time to focus on our attacking. I rewatched the extended highlights from the Villa game and these were the chances showed:

1. O'Connell's header from a corner. Hit bar.
2. Clarke shot after break. Leonard intercepted, Baldock hit a long through ball to Clarke whose shot was saved.
3. Baldock shot after break. Leonard picked up ball in own box, found Fleck who played it in behind to Clarke. Baldock nipped in and shot at goal. Saved.
4. Wilson scissor kick. From a throw in the ball bubbled around in the box. It fell to Baldock on the right who crossed to Clarke at the back post. Clarke's header found Wilson, whose scissor kick was just wide.
5. Baldock shot from left hand side. Ball was bubbling in the box after a corner. Villa headed clear, Stearman's touch found Fleck, who skipped past one man and played it through to Baldock, His shot was saved.
6. Fleck's shot from outside area. Holmes helped regain possession high up. Baldock ran with it, but passed it back to Stevens. Then Stevens ran with it and passed it back to Baldock. Baldock passed it back to Fleck whose clever low shot was well saved.
7. Clarke header from corner, tipped over by the goalkeeper.

There may have been the odd one that was missing from these highlights.

So this was

• 2 corners
• 2 counter attacks (won the ball in own half)
• 3 situations after regaining possession high up

We passed it well in the first half and we should be pleased with the way the performance. Second half we struggled more and we looked to run out of ideas. One thing to notice is that the long passing moves didn't lead to any chances. When they had players back, ready and anticipating, we struggled to carve through them.

Shots are being blocked, crosses (when they eventually come in) are being cleared, if we get on the end of something finished are often hurried and well challenged. We don't seem to quite have the individual brilliance that sees Man City usually overcome deep defending at their level and that saw us do the same in League One last season. It's been the case for a while, and Sunderland apart, we haven't managed more than the odd home goal since Fulham in November. We simply do not score enough goals at home.

Maybe we can learn something from the way we created chances yesterday. Not by hoofing it forward at every opportunity, but by taking advantage more often when the opposition's guard is down, when they've pushed forward and have fewer players back. Maybe it'll mean we waste a few balls. Possibly a little less possession. Not as many 'safe' backwards and sideways passes, but more early forward ones and more running on the ball, more attempts to beat a man. More wholehearted counter attacks and more risky passing when the chances are on.

For example more like this:

View attachment 36455

and less like this:


View attachment 36456

Maybe I don’t have this clear.

But what you appear to advocate in your diagrams are either :-

1. A dink ball over Don, two Villa players, at height, into Willo who hasn’t trapped a bag of cement all game, where he is clearly fronted by a further Villa player goalside.

Or.

2. A wide player (Baldy) that appears to be in clear space but it’s very unclear due to the screen shot taken just exactly how close the Villa LB is to him (which again appears due to how the screen shot is taken could be as near as 5 yards) ?

If any of this is close to the mark, Flecky makes the correct decision to go out wide, slightly backwards, reset, change angles (much misunderstood btw) retain possession, go again.

IMHO.

UTB

Ps I’ll concede the reverse ball out left to Enda is the clear winner here.
Unfortunately Fleck is facing slightly right and Enda is out of his field of vision. He’s good but doesn’t have eyes in the back of his head !

 

[Ricky]

What do people think to Moore's distribution too? There were too many wayful long balls which we didnt have a chance with second half. Their defence were bug and strong and won most of them, don't know why Simon kept perservering

Moore's kicking from his hands is shocking. So is Blackman's. They both need to work on it.

 

[Iceybabey]

What do people think to Moore's distribution too? There were too many wayful long balls which we didnt have a chance with second half. Their defence were bug and strong and won most of them, don't know why Simon kept perservering

Sometimes it can be very good but not last night. I remember him putting one out for throw in second half and Wilder was livid. He's been good lately so I don't want to be bashing the lad but one thing that really frustrates me is the way he is glued to his line. I do think we need to strengthen this area in the summer.

 

[DronnieBlade]

Maybe I don’t have this clear.

But what you appear to advocate in your diagrams are either :-

1. A dink ball over Don, two Villa players, at height, into Willo who hasn’t trapped a bag of cement all game, where he is clearly fronted by a further Villa player goalside.

Or.

2. A wide player (Baldy) that appears to be in clear space but it’s very unclear due to the screen shot taken just exactly how close the Villa LB is to him (which again appears due to how the screen shot is taken could be as near as 5 yards) ?

If any of this is close to the mark, Flecky makes the correct decision to go out wide, slightly backwards, reset, change angles (much misunderstood btw) retain possession, go again.

IMHO.

UTB

Ps I’ll concede the reverse ball out left to Enda is the clear winner here.
Unfortunately Fleck is facing slightly right and Enda is out of his field of vision. He’s good but doesn’t have eyes in the back of his head !

My bad.

It’s not Willo, it’s Holmes ,

Potato, Potarto

UTB

 

[Bergen Blade]

Maybe I don’t have this clear.

But what you appear to advocate in your diagrams are either :-

1. A dink ball over Don, two Villa players, at height, into Willo who hasn’t trapped a bag of cement all game, where he is clearly fronted by a further Villa player goalside.

Or.

2. A wide player (Baldy) that appears to be in clear space but it’s very unclear due to the screen shot taken just exactly how close the Villa LB is to him (which again appears due to how the screen shot is taken could be as near as 5 yards) ?

If any of this is close to the mark, Flecky makes the correct decision to go out wide, slightly backwards, reset, change angles (much misunderstood btw) retain possession, go again.

IMHO.

UTB

Ps I’ll concede the reverse ball out left to Enda is the clear winner here.
Unfortunately Fleck is facing slightly right and Enda is out of his field of vision. He’s good but doesn’t have eyes in the back of his head !

The screenshots are supposed to illustrate us taking the safe options of going backwards, letting the opposition get all players behind the ball, before we start going forward. We do this at times, also when we have options of passing the ball to forward facing teammates.

Obviously it's easier to freeze the moment and point out options, but encouraging players to look for these forward options even before they get on the ball is partly what can define a team's style. In the above situation it is Evans who gets the ball from Donaldson and he's got at least three options available, all of whom have some space. In doing so we may have got past five Villa players and having a player running at their defence. The option we chose meant we had to start again, with 11 players to beat.

 

[Harrisblade]

The screenshots are supposed to illustrate us taking the safe options of going backwards, letting the opposition get all players behind the ball, before we start going forward. We do this at times, also when we have options of passing the ball to forward facing teammates.

Obviously it's easier to freeze the moment and point out options, but encouraging players to look for these forward options even before they get on the ball is partly what can define a team's style. In the above situation it is Evans who gets the ball from Donaldson and he's got at least three options available, all of whom have some space. In doing so we may have got past five Villa players and having a player running at their defence. The option we chose meant we had to start again, with 11 players to beat.

but by taking advantage more often when the opposition's guard is down, when they've pushed forward and have fewer players back.

Those were probably our best chances of the evening, and the problem we have with teams who a) don't push forward much and b) don't give the ball away often when they do!
Next best ploy is probably the triangles in the corners which do quite often end up with a pull back from the goal line.

 

[kop_blade9]

What impressed me earlier in the season was that the players work in three's.
One guy has the ball and the two guys in his three find space to take the pass.
This was done quickly and automatically without the players thinking about it or having to look up and find out where the two players were.
Well drilled is the phrase that kept coming up. And it worked because the opposition didn't know where the ball was going and were often chasing shadows. We on the other hand knew exactly where it was going. The pass was often decided before the player received it.
The opposition have learned that they have to close us down more and cut off the passing which is making it more difficult.
Coutts was a big loss as he as seemed to be a focal point of many of the triangles that kept the ball moving and eventually pulled the opposition out of position to create a chance to go forward or "killer pass".
We seem to be labouring in our passing at the moment. On Tuesday I noticed that as soon as the players received the ball they were all looking up to see where their team mates were before making the pass. This seemed to slow our momentum in going forward and we ran out of ideas in the last third as it got congested.
Maybe this is due to the new players getting used to the system and in time it may improve.
To me the key at the moment is to pass quicker, get the ball to the strikers quicker and mix it up a bit. Run with the ball, play a long ball, have a long shot, do something different that the opposition are not expecting. We just seem to be stuck in a bit of a rut at the moment.

 

[Trafford]

The recurring themes that I've noticed are:

1. O'Connell's header - he's our only threat at corners and is usually crowded out, meaning that his headers mostly go too high
2. Clarke shot after break - took a deflection but was a "good height" for the keeper, comfortable save.
3. Baldock shot after break - good height for the keeper, comfortable save
4. Wilson scissor kick - opportunist strike, unlucky
5. Baldock shot - good height for the keeper, comfortable save
6. Fleck's shot - our only low shot of the night
7. Clarke header - can't remember this one, so won't comment other than to observe that it was tipped over (see 1)

The half-time stats showed lots of chances and their keeper was put forward as man of the match but he had a relatively easy night, as did Moore. It's quality in the final third of the pitch that we've generally been missing since November - Baldock has got into some great positions but is a poor finisher, the excitement seems to get to him (that's the only material difference with Freeman in my opinion). We need Leon to re-find himself and everyone else to chip in when it's not happening for him.

 

[Grappler]

What I did like, was the fact that Baldock was going for goal on a number of occasions, and is usually one of our best threats (in recent games)

 

[snootyfenooty]

What I did like, was the fact that Baldock was going for goal on a number of occasions, and is usually one of our best threats (in recent games)

Now that Leon's escapades are increasingly looking like a flash in the pan, he's heading for the Player of the Season award in my book.

 

[dc_blade]

We need to find a happy medium between the ultra-patient build up play and the desperate long balls into Clarke/Donaldson.

The former gives us loads of possession and territorial domination and looks quite pretty. I've defended it since November, even as others on here have (rightly, I now think) got frustrated with it. At this point it's simply not working. It gives the opposition time to drop back and defend in organised formation. Absent a moment of magic (thank God for Mark Duffy), we struggle to pick the lock.

The long ball is, in my opinion, even worse. We've had some lucky breaks with it (Villa's comical defending in the first match against them, for example), but most teams at the top end of our division are not troubled by it. It's not the 1980s any more. A defender of John Terry's quality is certainly not going to be troubled by it. We turn over possession and leave ourselves vulnerable to the counter, which is what happened on Tuesday night.

As pointed out in the excellent OP, we've looked most dangerous all season when we combine neat football on the ground with moving the ball quickly and directly, taking risks. When other posters on here talked about how much we missed Coutts I couldn't quite see what they meant, as Lunny and Fleck etc seemed to be playing ok. But now I understand what they were getting at, as it was often Coutts who won the ball back in midfield and offered that dynamic change of pace going forward.

Hopefully Evans or Leonard is now capable of playing that role, otherwise it's set to be a long final third of the season.

 

[Carlton Blade]

Thanks for all that. If we were ever in doubt, it is clear that route 1 is not the way forward, even as Plan B.

I still think a diagonal ball to Clarke from the half way line is something

 

[HodgysBrokenThumb]

I still think a diagonal ball to Clarke from the half way line is something

I should have made it clear that I meant a hit and hope route 1; nothing at all wrong with a 40-yard well-aimed - it just takes great skill from the passer and the receiver.

 

[BushBlade]

We need to find a happy medium between the ultra-patient build up play and the desperate long balls into Clarke/Donaldson.

The former gives us loads of possession and territorial domination and looks quite pretty. I've defended it since November, even as others on here have (rightly, I now think) got frustrated with it. At this point it's simply not working. It gives the opposition time to drop back and defend in organised formation. Absent a moment of magic (thank God for Mark Duffy), we struggle to pick the lock.

The long ball is, in my opinion, even worse. We've had some lucky breaks with it (Villa's comical defending in the first match against them, for example), but most teams at the top end of our division are not troubled by it. It's not the 1980s any more. A defender of John Terry's quality is certainly not going to be troubled by it. We turn over possession and leave ourselves vulnerable to the counter, which is what happened on Tuesday night.

As pointed out in the excellent OP, we've looked most dangerous all season when we combine neat football on the ground with moving the ball quickly and directly, taking risks. When other posters on here talked about how much we missed Coutts I couldn't quite see what they meant, as Lunny and Fleck etc seemed to be playing ok. But now I understand what they were getting at, as it was often Coutts who won the ball back in midfield and offered that dynamic change of pace going forward.

Hopefully Evans or Leonard is now capable of playing that role, otherwise it's set to be a long final third of the season.

Coutts was able to receive a pass when tightly marked and had a quick mind and good vision. He knew when to pass and when to drive forward with the ball and when he did our players would bomb forward in the knowledge he wouldn't give the ball away cheaply. He's very much like Dembele of Spurs in that respect. We could play out from the back by giving it to Couttsy, even if he was being closed down.
As you say, hopefully Evans or Lenny will step up to the plate.

 

[GrayBlade]

I think Clarke’s blocked attempt to thread the ball through late in the game when he was in a decent position to take on a shot himself sums up our current problem.

We don’t seem to have many if any players with the confidence to take on a shot from distance or a genuine free kick specialist for that matter but that could all change once the likes of Leonard, Evans and Holmes settle in, all three of them come with decent reputations of scoring goals from distance and just as important good dead ball takers. The corner that Evans took when O’Connel hit the bar was probably the best I’ve seen from us all season and I’m sure Wilder’s hoping all three will help rectify the current problem.

 

[Woodwardfan]

Credit the opposition second half. They pushed on to our midfield and stemmed the flow of progressive moves at source.

As you say,first half not much wrong Bergen Blade. Second half different game.

Another point, if we lost our way, what did they do? If it had been a points on merit decision we would have won it hands down. They are the form team of the division and looked laboured through midfield all evening. Why? because we hounded them down and didn't let them play. Again, they did do better second half, especially when Evans had been withdrawn.

Part of the analysis should be the two formations employed by the teams. They played 4-5-1 against our 3-5-2. They over-populated us the further up-field we went. They were also excellent defending their own penalty area where we put them under considerable pressure. Fact is they did get players behind the ball all evening and rarely had much ambition to win the game, which somehow they did ironically.

Few teams dominate the opposition for the full 90 minutes. No teams can play top pace all game. I think some of the slower build-ups are needed to take a breather and preserve energy. Unfortunately the 'fresh legged' subs added nothing.

 

[Rudders]

There is some interesting analysis doing the rounds on Twitter about Utd conceding a high number of goals from a low number of shots from outside the box. Think Gagey has retweeted. Think the bloke has said how unlucky we have been. To me The obvious conclusion is that both our keepers concede far too many long shot goals. Some aren't even that good efforts but easily beat Moore and Blackman. Perhaps they should practice this more than accurate kicking.

 

[EzxaBlade]

Having failed to score for three home league games I think it's time to focus on our attacking. I rewatched the extended highlights from the Villa game and these were the chances showed:

1. O'Connell's header from a corner. Hit bar.
2. Clarke shot after break. Leonard intercepted, Baldock hit a long through ball to Clarke whose shot was saved.
3. Baldock shot after break. Leonard picked up ball in own box, found Fleck who played it in behind to Clarke. Baldock nipped in and shot at goal. Saved.
4. Wilson scissor kick. From a throw in the ball bubbled around in the box. It fell to Baldock on the right who crossed to Clarke at the back post. Clarke's header found Wilson, whose scissor kick was just wide.
5. Baldock shot from left hand side. Ball was bubbling in the box after a corner. Villa headed clear, Stearman's touch found Fleck, who skipped past one man and played it through to Baldock, His shot was saved.
6. Fleck's shot from outside area. Holmes helped regain possession high up. Baldock ran with it, but passed it back to Stevens. Then Stevens ran with it and passed it back to Baldock. Baldock passed it back to Fleck whose clever low shot was well saved.
7. Clarke header from corner, tipped over by the goalkeeper.

There may have been the odd one that was missing from these highlights.

So this was

• 2 corners
• 2 counter attacks (won the ball in own half)
• 3 situations after regaining possession high up

We passed it well in the first half and we should be pleased with the way the performance. Second half we struggled more and we looked to run out of ideas. One thing to notice is that the long passing moves didn't lead to any chances. When they had players back, ready and anticipating, we struggled to carve through them.

Shots are being blocked, crosses (when they eventually come in) are being cleared, if we get on the end of something finished are often hurried and well challenged. We don't seem to quite have the individual brilliance that sees Man City usually overcome deep defending at their level and that saw us do the same in League One last season. It's been the case for a while, and Sunderland apart, we haven't managed more than the odd home goal since Fulham in November. We simply do not score enough goals at home.

Maybe we can learn something from the way we created chances yesterday. Not by hoofing it forward at every opportunity, but by taking advantage more often when the opposition's guard is down, when they've pushed forward and have fewer players back. Maybe it'll mean we waste a few balls. Possibly a little less possession. Not as many 'safe' backwards and sideways passes, but more early forward ones and more running on the ball, more attempts to beat a man. More wholehearted counter attacks and more risky passing when the chances are on.

For example more like this:

View attachment 36455

and less like this:


View attachment 36456

Really, when comparing what we did to what we ought to do it should be the same photo to show that there were opportunities to pass it forward but the player took the easier sideways/backwards option.

 

[Bergen Blade]

Really, when comparing what we did to what we ought to do it should be the same photo to show that there were opportunities to pass it forward but the player took the easier sideways/backwards option.

The screenshots are a couple of seconds apart.

 

[Snowman]

Having failed to score for three home league games I think it's time to focus on our attacking. I rewatched the extended highlights from the Villa game and these were the chances showed:

1. O'Connell's header from a corner. Hit bar.
2. Clarke shot after break. Leonard intercepted, Baldock hit a long through ball to Clarke whose shot was saved.
3. Baldock shot after break. Leonard picked up ball in own box, found Fleck who played it in behind to Clarke. Baldock nipped in and shot at goal. Saved.
4. Wilson scissor kick. From a throw in the ball bubbled around in the box. It fell to Baldock on the right who crossed to Clarke at the back post. Clarke's header found Wilson, whose scissor kick was just wide.
5. Baldock shot from left hand side. Ball was bubbling in the box after a corner. Villa headed clear, Stearman's touch found Fleck, who skipped past one man and played it through to Baldock, His shot was saved.
6. Fleck's shot from outside area. Holmes helped regain possession high up. Baldock ran with it, but passed it back to Stevens. Then Stevens ran with it and passed it back to Baldock. Baldock passed it back to Fleck whose clever low shot was well saved.
7. Clarke header from corner, tipped over by the goalkeeper.

There may have been the odd one that was missing from these highlights.

So this was

• 2 corners
• 2 counter attacks (won the ball in own half)
• 3 situations after regaining possession high up

We passed it well in the first half and we should be pleased with the way the performance. Second half we struggled more and we looked to run out of ideas. One thing to notice is that the long passing moves didn't lead to any chances. When they had players back, ready and anticipating, we struggled to carve through them.

Shots are being blocked, crosses (when they eventually come in) are being cleared, if we get on the end of something finished are often hurried and well challenged. We don't seem to quite have the individual brilliance that sees Man City usually overcome deep defending at their level and that saw us do the same in League One last season. It's been the case for a while, and Sunderland apart, we haven't managed more than the odd home goal since Fulham in November. We simply do not score enough goals at home.

Maybe we can learn something from the way we created chances yesterday. Not by hoofing it forward at every opportunity, but by taking advantage more often when the opposition's guard is down, when they've pushed forward and have fewer players back. Maybe it'll mean we waste a few balls. Possibly a little less possession. Not as many 'safe' backwards and sideways passes, but more early forward ones and more running on the ball, more attempts to beat a man. More wholehearted counter attacks and more risky passing when the chances are on.

For example more like this:

View attachment 36455

and less like this:


View attachment 36456

I can see where you are coming from. What you describe is what I've been referring to as "conversion rate" from Defence to attack through midfield. At speed, it throws the opposition off. Laboured they can get back. A long diagonal ball looks pretty, but it gets nobody turned and in a panic. It takes 3 seconds in the air rather than milliseconds on the ground.

The still example you show is interesting. In the first shot we can see the structure we deploy in the back line (5) absolutely perfectly. Unusually for me, it is `Fleck not picking the available balls. But look where his midfield three have gone following the Wilder subs. Lundstram is behind him moving, eventually into the position he should have been to take the forward pass. (See difference between pic one and two). By that time, Fleck has lost the position to the right and faces a risky ball to the right side line to Baldock. It looks like he takes the easy option of a turn and play to the left. Looking at the other options. On his left he has a couple of options, but nothing really worthwhile. A move forward to Holmes coming back is on but he's not ideally placed. However had Fleck had Evans close, as he did have before he was substituted he would have given a short pass and move option.

Sorry, but I think it was a Trevor Clever Moment from Chris. That's four of them.

 

[Woodwardfan]

Now you've said the shots are a couple of seconds apart, what a good run Holmes made!

Wilder has been expressing his frustration for weeks about our conversion rate to make our dominance count. He has signed 4 players with that in mind and it will take a while for the players to gel together.

All four signings improve our firepower. Whilst Evans is a deep midfielder he specialises in set piece delivery.

 

[boo radley]

I'm with you on the Baldock situation Bergen Blade. He often takes too long to get a cross in. He checks out on to his left and then has to start again. He either isolates himself slightly and does not realise it or he is not quick enough in thought to realise his situation is closing and does not use the support.
Also on about 8 mins in the game he missed the opportunity for a first time shot looking for the perfect one which was then closed.
There were not many crosses coming in from deep whilst they were back peddling. Choosing instead to play wide which with a well organised team defensively is more difficult to get through.
One good one near the end from deep nearly worked. Your midfield needs to be ready for the loose balls that drop in this case.