The building blocks are there

[jono_t2000]

Plenty of things to build on from that performance.

Alot more positives than negatives for me.

Well done CW for bringing the fight back to the shirt... However the key is to make it last.

 

[steve26272]

Had we played like that all season we would probably still be in relegation zone, but we wouldn’t have been dicked 0-8, 5-0, 5-0 etc

Get the young lads able to compete 90 mins so we don’t need to bring Fleck & Norwood on and the future is bright

 

[Bergen Blade]

Enjoyed that. Change of formation, stronger midfield, more mobility, more youth, five pacey players with the ability to carry the ball, finally we got to see Hamer & Souza as a duo in central midfield, less backwards passing. I think Hecky will have looked at that and regret he didn't dare to make a few of those decisions himself.

Two slightly controversial goals was what seperated us from Liverpool in the end. I would have been surprised to be told that a week ago. Despite the defeat, this should give us some belief that it's still possible for us to compete at this level.

 

[Weasel]

Enjoyed that. Change of formation, stronger midfield, more mobility, more youth, five pacey players with the ability to carry the ball, finally we got to see Hamer & Souza as a duo in central midfield, less backwards passing. I think Hecky will have looked at that and regret he didn't dare to make a few of those decisions himself.

Two slightly controversial goals was what seperated us from Liverpool in the end. I would have been surprised to be told that a week ago. Despite the defeat, this should give us some belief that it's still possible for us to compete at this level.

The thing is, it's not rocket science is it. If you asked most Blades fans how they could improve things they would probably have broadly gone along with what CW did tonight re playing players in their natural positions, bringing some legs into the team, dropping Norwood, having Archer playing of a front man... All pretty much common sense but for some reason PH just didn't seem able to see the woods for the trees.

 

[IdLiketoRogerMoore]

The thing is, it's not rocket science is it. If you asked most Blades fans how they could improve things they would probably have broadly gone along with what CW did tonight re playing players in their natural positions, bringing some legs into the team, dropping Norwood, having Archer playing of a front man... All pretty much common sense but for some reason PH just didn't seem able to see the woods for the trees.

Absolutely. Who'd have thunk sticking a couple of athletes on the pitch would make us instantly better!m?!?!

Thought Brooks and Osula were excellent.

Without the ball we were much better. With the ball though, wow. That wasn't good at all...

 

[Sheffsteel]

The thing is, it's not rocket science is it. If you asked most Blades fans how they could improve things they would probably have broadly gone along with what CW did tonight re playing players in their natural positions, bringing some legs into the team, dropping Norwood, having Archer playing of a front man... All pretty much common sense but for some reason PH just didn't seem able to see the woods for the trees.

We were all saying on the Kop.

Archer has been very isolated up top, sometimes played as loan striker/ target man.
Norwood pumps it long to his head and 5ft 8 Archer is always beaten in the air by the opposition 6 ft 3 defenders.
Archer doesnt stand a chance and his body language is poor. We keep trying this tactic over and over and over.

Wilder has been in charge 24 hours and instantly plays Archer deeper, closer to the midfielders
who are told to try short passes to Archers feet and instantly Archer has his best game for us.
He was live wire tonight and looked hungry wanting the ball, his downfall was he kept getting difficult chances on his left foot
and instead of trying a left footed shot, he feinted to bring it on to his better right foot but was crowded out and never got a shot off.
At least you could see his potential quality tonight.

Thought Brooks had some mazy runs too, lost the ball a few times trying difficult stuff but at least he's trying things
played with confidence, looks a good prospect.

 

[cooperblade]

I think Hecky will have looked at that and regret he didn't dare to make a few of those decisions himself.

I also wonder if Wilder had a brief moment where he thought "I should've tried more things in 20/21". It's amazing how a fresh start makes people willing to try different things. I was reading an article this week about how well certain marketing campaigns work if people receive them on, for example, their birthday. Something in people's psychology needs them to have an 'excuse' for changing things and it's maybe why some managers get stuck with a certain system or players.

Last night was a free hit to a certain extent. I'm fascinated to see how Wilder approaches things if the relegation battle gets closer or if we go on a run of defeats. Hopefully he continues to prioritise athleticism and ball carrying and keeps trying things that might not work (like changing Archer's role).

 

[scouseblade]

One thing i would like to see more of - SHOTS! 3 times Archer could and should have pulled the trigger earlier. The final pass is something to work on too - perhaps having 3 young forwards with little PL experience makes a massive difference. Archer should have played McAtee is much earlier. Archer should have shot when he got through first half, Osula should have passed earlier to Archer 1st half and second half Archer should have shot when on his left foot. We need to be more confident and clinical in final 3rd. But one word - ENCOURAGING. Play like that against lesser teams and we might sneak a win or two.

 

[Badger Blade]

For the first time in a long time, before Wilder's first stint in charge, we looked a threat on the counter with some pace that this team has desperately lacked for years. Just lacked composure when it came to deciding what to do when we got near the goal.

Could do with someone pacy and is 6 foot tall but most of the decent ones play for better teams than ours.

If there's one thing that Archer needs to learn is that his left foot isn't just for standing on!

The one thing that Liverpool did really well was that as soon as we got a sniff of the ball, there were 3 blokes immediately surrounding whoever had possession and snuffed anything out immediately. Their players are thinking 3 steps ahead, like a snooker player, while ours are like "oh shit, the ball, now what?" and that's what separates good footballers from top ones that win trophies.