Clough still doesn't know his best team

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Yes, you could ask people to pick a side, who they think Clough would pick, on here for the Scunthorpe game and i reckon only a handful of people at the most would get the same one as Clough. Last year in the second half of the season especially, we all basically knew the team that was going to be played, this tells you part of the reason of where we've been going wrong this season.
 
As Lowen says, Wallace is the problem and I suspect he'd like to play:



Howard
Brayford, McEveley, Basham, Harris
Flynn, Coutts, Wallace, Murphy
Done
Davies
​


I believe it's pencilled in for Chezzie at home.
 
Clough has a clear week to establish 4-4-2 now that we have 2 strikers plus McNulty as back up.

The perpetual dilemma is who plays the two central midfield positions.

Mind you the right side midfield is now a problem without Flynn and Ryce.

Clough said we are short of creativity in the final third. We are also seriously short of central defenders as Basham is suspended for two games. If Brayford goes centre half we are woefully short of creativity on the right.

Out of the disarray somebody has to rescue the season for us. IMO it could only be Reed or Baxter in a two with Doyle or Coutts with Murphy on the right and Adams out left. Far too positive for Clough but we need to be winning games well as we approach the play-offs.. Clough will play Coutts or Freeman out right.

Anyway what we need is a settled formation, no more switching back to 4-5-1. We need to be bold not scared.
 
With injury and suspension I can't hazard a guess at Saturday's team so Cloughs got no chance
 
Woodwardfan said:
Clough has a clear week to establish 4-4-2 now that we have 2 strikers plus McNulty as back up.

The perpetual dilemma is who plays the two central midfield positions.

Mind you the right side midfield is now a problem without Flynn and Ryce.

Clough said we are short of creativity in the final third. We are also seriously short of central defenders as Basham is suspended for two games. If Brayford goes centre half we are woefully short of creativity on the right.

Out of the disarray somebody has to rescue the season for us. IMO it could only be Reed or Baxter in a two with Doyle or Coutts with Murphy on the right and Adams out left. Far too positive for Clough but we need to be winning games well as we approach the play-offs.. Clough will play Coutts or Freeman out right.

Anyway what we need is a settled formation, no more switching back to 4-5-1. We need to be bold not scared.
Click to expand...

It seems to me that one of his main problems is that he insists on playing certain players regardless and often shoe-horns them into the team rather than a particular formation. Early season it was Ben Davies (although he was probably our best player early on) and I don't think he knows where to play Basham (although I suspect he was bought with midfield in mind). He usually finds a place for Baxter but as debated, where ? Coutts is now another one who will play regardless of whether he's fit, ill, or in which position / formation.

I've said it a few times this season and whilst it's not always his fault, it looks like he's still in pre-season mode tinkering on a game to game basis. I haven't checked, but how many times have we played an unchanged team this season ?
 
Perhaps the best XI against one team is not the same as the best XI against another? Maybe injuries/suspensions/delays in getting a second striker so we can play too many strikers have prevented Clough from playing it if he knows it?
 
Woodwardfan said:
Clough has a clear week to establish 4-4-2 now that we have 2 strikers plus McNulty as back up.

The perpetual dilemma is who plays the two central midfield positions.

Mind you the right side midfield is now a problem without Flynn and Ryce.

Clough said we are short of creativity in the final third. We are also seriously short of central defenders as Basham is suspended for two games. If Brayford goes centre half we are woefully short of creativity on the right.

Out of the disarray somebody has to rescue the season for us. IMO it could only be Reed or Baxter in a two with Doyle or Coutts with Murphy on the right and Adams out left. Far too positive for Clough but we need to be winning games well as we approach the play-offs.. Clough will play Coutts or Freeman out right.

Anyway what we need is a settled formation, no more switching back to 4-5-1. We need to be bold not scared
Click to expand...

Despite having about 15 midfielders, we don't have anyone with the pace and power to play in a midfield two. Maybe J. Wallace and Basham together would work, but I doubt we'll see that this season. Cuvelier also did well there for Walsall, but Clough doesn't fancy him.

Clough's had a mad few weeks. Shipping out JCR, changing to 442 when we were in a good run of form and playing a defensive midfielder on the right wing against Fleetwood.
 
Woodwardfan said:
Clough has a clear week to establish 4-4-2 now that we have 2 strikers plus McNulty as back up.

The perpetual dilemma is who plays the two central midfield positions.

Mind you the right side midfield is now a problem without Flynn and Ryce.

Clough said we are short of creativity in the final third. We are also seriously short of central defenders as Basham is suspended for two games. If Brayford goes centre half we are woefully short of creativity on the right.

Out of the disarray somebody has to rescue the season for us. IMO it could only be Reed or Baxter in a two with Doyle or Coutts with Murphy on the right and Adams out left. Far too positive for Clough but we need to be winning games well as we approach the play-offs.. Clough will play Coutts or Freeman out right.

Anyway what we need is a settled formation, no more switching back to 4-5-1. We need to be bold not scared.
Click to expand...

I'm of the mind that two striker and two wingers is a bit much. It would probably be better with one genuine winger and one more solid midfielder (but for the love of God not Coutts out there again).
 
This James Wallace business really boils my piss. It may well have been Clough's plan for him to run the show from midfield this season. But Christ alive, the bloke made his debut for Everton in the Europa League in 2009. In the six seasons since then, he has never played more than 19 games in a season due to to injury. In total, he's only made 92 appearances. In six seasons.

What were the odds he was going to do a Jagielka, and play every minute of every game this season? Really ?

If Clough based his season's plans on that, then he's a fool.
 
Hague Blade said:
This James Wallace business really boils my piss. It may well have been Clough's plan for him to run the show from midfield this season. But Christ alive, the bloke made his debut for Everton in the Europa League in 2009. In the six seasons since then, he has never played more than 19 games in a season due to to injury. In total, he's only made 92 appearances. In six seasons.

What were the odds he was going to do a Jagielka, and play every minute of every game this season? Really ?

If Clough based his season's plans on that, then he's a fool.
Click to expand...

Yes, and what makes it worse is that most people in here were making the point at the time....

Plan B was of course scrappy midgets. But unfortunately none of them have created a damn thing all season.
 

Jim Chimmerney said:
As Lowen says, Wallace is the problem and I suspect he'd like to play:



Howard
Brayford, McEveley, Basham, Harris
Flynn, Coutts, Wallace, Murphy
Done
Davies
​


I believe it's pencilled in for Chezzie at home.
Click to expand...
Davies, not Done, was the link man last Saturday
 
Trouble is it took a good manager at Derby to coach them into being a good team.
That and quickly identifying the areas to strengthen, getting 3 key players in from the PL and keeping the same team. Oh and playing them in the right positions, helped!

Chough brought in about 15 and put all the 35 players shirts in the washer, first 10 pulled out got a game.
 
Revolution said:
Yes, and what makes it worse is that most people in here were making the point at the time....

Plan B was of course scrappy midgets. But unfortunately none of them have created a damn thing all season.
Click to expand...

And apparently we didn't need Connor Coady because we had already brought in Wallace (injured) and Basham (a centre back)
 
Agree S11. Some have been going on about us not having 2 strikers on the pitch but haven't since acknowledged that 442 doesn't suit us at all, we have been poor to say the least. Trying to accommodate the extra striker has meant we have been short in other areas of the pitch, most noticeably in the transition between defence and midfield and midfield and up front. Our defenders aren't used to the distance between them and midfield when they have the ball which is why I think they have started to hit it longer because they don't have that deeper lying midfielder to go through.

UTB
 
Best side he's put out by a mile = Howard, Brayford, Collins, Maguire, Harris, Flynn, Doyle, Coady, Scougall, Murphy and Baxter.

Swap out Maguire for Basham and Coady for Reed and Baxter for Done and we might get back to something like last season but I very much doubt it.

We lost a lot at the end of last season (despite the usual "they aren't going to be a loss" that was spouted at the time on here) and I think we need to go back to basics this summer and build from where we were last May rather than where we are now.
 
Jim Chimmerney said:
As Lowen says, Wallace is the problem and I suspect he'd like to play:



Howard
Brayford, McEveley, Basham, Harris
Flynn, Coutts, Wallace, Murphy
Done
Davies
​


I believe it's pencilled in for Chezzie at home.
Click to expand...
Only as a sub though, then Wallace will `concentrate on getting himself right` for next season, only to be replaced in the 12th minute at Ikeston in July. Clough will say, it`s natural to get niggles when you`ve been out for so long, and we wont see Wallace again before Bonfire night etc etc etc :(
 
Davie Blade said:
.


Jeeez Cmon cut him some slack :)

Only 19 débuts this season.

Only 35 players used with 41 players on senior contracts and you expect him to also know his best X1
Click to expand...

It's a wonder if he can remember all their names, but thinking on....................

It just might explain the bizarre team selections and substitutions.
 
Davie Blade said:
.


Jeeez Cmon cut him some slack :)

Only 19 débuts this season.

Only 35 players used with 41 players on senior contracts and you expect him to also know his best X1
Click to expand...

well, there's one thing for sure. Clough can't count. 41 is not 18 (or whatever number he quoted as his desired squad size at the start of the year)
 
robbiez666 said:
well, there's one thing for sure. Clough can't count. 41 is not 18 (or whatever number he quoted as his desired squad size at the start of the year)
Click to expand...

Think you misunderstood when he said he wanted a small squad, he meant no one over 5' 9"

Who said this?
"But we have stressed from day one this would be a squad game this season, it isn't and was never just going to be about 11 or 12 players, when we do need players to come in they have to be ready and they have been to date.

and 3 days later

“I do think the schedule caught up with us a little bit towards the end..
 
Last edited:
Wards said:
It's the Blades fans way, "two up top and gerrit forrard, quick!".
Click to expand...


I think most fans would say " when it gets into the box let's have more than one player in there, and btw let's get in there more than three times per game .play 451, 442, 352 Timbuktu. ,whatever. Let's get players in their box!!"
 

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