un posteur de ynwa,knox harrington écrit ceci:
If we allow for these two rather modest things:
a) That the manager can spend what he raises
b) That he isn't shafted from having the freedom to do some deals due to internal politics
(and allowing for them is still obscenely hopeful, but this shouldn't be an ownership discussion)
Then its obvious that a fair few things need to be changed. There are
three aspects of our play that need addressing and while they are
obviously inter dependent:
1) We don't get out high enough.
2) We don't control games anywhere near as much as we used to.
3) Our attacking movement isn't good enough.
There's a fourth aspect which isn't directly to do with play but does impact - our lack of physical presence.
Dealing with 1) It is undeniable that Insua isn't good enough to start.
He can be beaten any way you care to mention. Further, Kyriagkos, while
he's helped our defending of set pieces (and, frankly, our strength of
character) he can't play a high line. As a fourth choice centre back
he's fine. As anything more, no. Carragher and Agger would both look
happier with a better player than the other next to them. Skrtel's
place in the squad was debatable last season. He's a good player but
greatness has always looked beyond him. Since Carragher's doombrain
moment where he's ruined him Skrtel's looked very, very short of what
we need. Means we still need the centre back we could have done with
last summer.
Right back, any concerns over Johnson are churlish, he'll be happier
the higher we are, Kelly's cameo looked good. Degen's too mad.
Aurelio's too finished. Ayala looks like he may have something. We need
a left back.
2) Controlling games. What Alonso did for us with Mascherano looks to
be almost unique. Even Xavi, the finest around, has two centre mid
partners. Barcelona, United, Chelsea, Arsenal (at their best), Inter -
every side who's any good in Europe looks to be playing three centre
mids far more often than not. That doesn't preclude Chelsea, for
example, from playing two up front, but they are almost always playing
three from their raft of centre mids, especially if you include Malouda
who has spent the season tucked in. For us the man who looks most like
he has the attributes to control football matches is Aquilani. He's not
going to do it from where Alonso did it, but then only Pirlo does.
Lampard or Deco run games for Chelsea, Fabregas for Arsenal, Xavi,
obviously, for Barcelona. Seeing Aquilani in the context of these
players makes more sense but also tells us he needs a platform. He
needs options all around him and he needs his water carrying.
Mascherano is clearly good enough. But the bridge between Masch and
Aquilani is a thankless role but one I don't fancy Lucas for, not as
first choice. Gerrard acting as that bridge wastes his talent (which is
important in a financial context - final third players as good as
Gerrard cost a bomb, good centre mid water-carriers don't) but it maybe
needs more talent week in, week out than Lucas can offer. Also, the
numbers issue. We need more centre mid options than we currently have.
A figure who can rotate with Aquilani, a seasoned pro, would be a
massive boost. No coincidence Chelsea can look light up front but deep
in centre mid.
3) Movement. In Aquilani we have a class act who should start games,
who looks to be able to keep us ticking and probe. Who he probes to is
what will decide how much attacking quality we have. Therefore Gerrard
and Torres go without saying. Movement, class, intelligence, pace,
size, goals. We haven't another player who offers all of those. Each of
Yossi, Maxi, Babel and Kuyt fall short. None can be our first choice
and they need to be sacrificed to get us close to another who is good
enough. Even that's a gamble. Proven final third quality is far more
likely to be 20m plus than proven centre mid quality; another reason to
keep Gerrard in a more attacking role - why take two gambles? But
leaving Gerrard alone to link shouldn't be an option either. Again,
three centre mids offers liberation to have two behind rather than just
one. This season our 4231 which looked great last season has too often
become 4411 or even 442 (again, see control and defending too deep) and
is ugly and dysfunctional. Take the liberty, play 4321 or 433 and let
those flanking or supporting Torres focus on that. There's an
obsession, shared by Chelsea and United, to get lads behind the ball.
Barcelona don't do that. Messi works but he often presses from the
wrong side - once the ball goes past him he's happy to stay up and he
keeps people back and if the ball comes back he presses again. Messi's
brilliant so he needs watching. Dirk, Babel, Maxi and Yossi just aren't
going to provoke the same concern from full backs and centre backs.
Gerrard does. Another of him to do likewise would make a massive
difference and allow them to interchange and hurt sides with
intelligence and movement.
Jovanovic is supposed to be a player who can play off towards the left
so he covers there for no transfer fee, Maxi's come in and looks a
clever, clever footballer and looks reasonably priced. This makes all
of Kuyt, Yossi and Babel vulnerable and I'd take the gamble given how
tight money is. Yossi's the one I'd look to keep hold of if possible
but nonetheless...
N'Gog should go and someone big and quick should come in. Doesn't have
to be a worldbeater, just has to make the opposition worried about what
could happen behind them.
Means looking like this:
Johnson -- xxxx1 -- Agger -- xxxx2
- Kelly - Carragher - The Greek -
------ Mascherano - xxxx3 -------
--------------- Lucas ----------------*
-------------- Aquilani ------------
---------------- xxxx4 -------------
--------- Gerrard ---- xxxx5 ----------
---------- Maxi ---- Jovanovic ------
---------------- Torres ---------------
----------------- xxxx6 ----------------
* I'd like another centre mid, but...
Youngsters such as Nemeth, Pacheco and Ayala can come in.
We've a fighting chance. With the right additions - mostly tall ones,
if xxxxs 1-3 are all six footers then we can pick a minimum of nine six
footers in our first eleven - we can be solid but have more quality in
the first eleven. These players who have featured for the first team to
go:
Cavilari, Degen, Skrtel, Aurelio, Insua, Spearing, Plessis, (Lucas if
the price is right), Kuyt, Babel, Benayoun (maybe, depends on price),
Riera and N'Gog.
The money therefore might stretch to a very good centre back, someone
with the potential to be very good to be alongside Gerrard, a good
centre mid who can put it about and solidity elsewhere. I'd try and
tempt Riquelme to cover Aquilani. But everyone will slaughter that. So
get Gary Mac out of retirement.
Lastly, I don't think the manager is miles away from something like
this. When he buys Aquilani he knows he's not buying Alonso. He said as
much. He's always been about a high line and pressing. Question mark is
if he'd let three stay ahead of the ball. Having said that, three ahead
of the ball may be a luxury too far in this league. Getting out and
getting control have to be the priorities. If we do that, the rest
should come.
The Chuck Norris of PC
If we allow for these two rather modest things:
a) That the manager can spend what he raises
b) That he isn't shafted from having the freedom to do some deals due to internal politics
(and allowing for them is still obscenely hopeful, but this shouldn't be an ownership discussion)
Then its obvious that a fair few things need to be changed. There are
three aspects of our play that need addressing and while they are
obviously inter dependent:
1) We don't get out high enough.
2) We don't control games anywhere near as much as we used to.
3) Our attacking movement isn't good enough.
There's a fourth aspect which isn't directly to do with play but does impact - our lack of physical presence.
Dealing with 1) It is undeniable that Insua isn't good enough to start.
He can be beaten any way you care to mention. Further, Kyriagkos, while
he's helped our defending of set pieces (and, frankly, our strength of
character) he can't play a high line. As a fourth choice centre back
he's fine. As anything more, no. Carragher and Agger would both look
happier with a better player than the other next to them. Skrtel's
place in the squad was debatable last season. He's a good player but
greatness has always looked beyond him. Since Carragher's doombrain
moment where he's ruined him Skrtel's looked very, very short of what
we need. Means we still need the centre back we could have done with
last summer.
Right back, any concerns over Johnson are churlish, he'll be happier
the higher we are, Kelly's cameo looked good. Degen's too mad.
Aurelio's too finished. Ayala looks like he may have something. We need
a left back.
2) Controlling games. What Alonso did for us with Mascherano looks to
be almost unique. Even Xavi, the finest around, has two centre mid
partners. Barcelona, United, Chelsea, Arsenal (at their best), Inter -
every side who's any good in Europe looks to be playing three centre
mids far more often than not. That doesn't preclude Chelsea, for
example, from playing two up front, but they are almost always playing
three from their raft of centre mids, especially if you include Malouda
who has spent the season tucked in. For us the man who looks most like
he has the attributes to control football matches is Aquilani. He's not
going to do it from where Alonso did it, but then only Pirlo does.
Lampard or Deco run games for Chelsea, Fabregas for Arsenal, Xavi,
obviously, for Barcelona. Seeing Aquilani in the context of these
players makes more sense but also tells us he needs a platform. He
needs options all around him and he needs his water carrying.
Mascherano is clearly good enough. But the bridge between Masch and
Aquilani is a thankless role but one I don't fancy Lucas for, not as
first choice. Gerrard acting as that bridge wastes his talent (which is
important in a financial context - final third players as good as
Gerrard cost a bomb, good centre mid water-carriers don't) but it maybe
needs more talent week in, week out than Lucas can offer. Also, the
numbers issue. We need more centre mid options than we currently have.
A figure who can rotate with Aquilani, a seasoned pro, would be a
massive boost. No coincidence Chelsea can look light up front but deep
in centre mid.
3) Movement. In Aquilani we have a class act who should start games,
who looks to be able to keep us ticking and probe. Who he probes to is
what will decide how much attacking quality we have. Therefore Gerrard
and Torres go without saying. Movement, class, intelligence, pace,
size, goals. We haven't another player who offers all of those. Each of
Yossi, Maxi, Babel and Kuyt fall short. None can be our first choice
and they need to be sacrificed to get us close to another who is good
enough. Even that's a gamble. Proven final third quality is far more
likely to be 20m plus than proven centre mid quality; another reason to
keep Gerrard in a more attacking role - why take two gambles? But
leaving Gerrard alone to link shouldn't be an option either. Again,
three centre mids offers liberation to have two behind rather than just
one. This season our 4231 which looked great last season has too often
become 4411 or even 442 (again, see control and defending too deep) and
is ugly and dysfunctional. Take the liberty, play 4321 or 433 and let
those flanking or supporting Torres focus on that. There's an
obsession, shared by Chelsea and United, to get lads behind the ball.
Barcelona don't do that. Messi works but he often presses from the
wrong side - once the ball goes past him he's happy to stay up and he
keeps people back and if the ball comes back he presses again. Messi's
brilliant so he needs watching. Dirk, Babel, Maxi and Yossi just aren't
going to provoke the same concern from full backs and centre backs.
Gerrard does. Another of him to do likewise would make a massive
difference and allow them to interchange and hurt sides with
intelligence and movement.
Jovanovic is supposed to be a player who can play off towards the left
so he covers there for no transfer fee, Maxi's come in and looks a
clever, clever footballer and looks reasonably priced. This makes all
of Kuyt, Yossi and Babel vulnerable and I'd take the gamble given how
tight money is. Yossi's the one I'd look to keep hold of if possible
but nonetheless...
N'Gog should go and someone big and quick should come in. Doesn't have
to be a worldbeater, just has to make the opposition worried about what
could happen behind them.
Means looking like this:
Johnson -- xxxx1 -- Agger -- xxxx2
- Kelly - Carragher - The Greek -
------ Mascherano - xxxx3 -------
--------------- Lucas ----------------*
-------------- Aquilani ------------
---------------- xxxx4 -------------
--------- Gerrard ---- xxxx5 ----------
---------- Maxi ---- Jovanovic ------
---------------- Torres ---------------
----------------- xxxx6 ----------------
* I'd like another centre mid, but...
Youngsters such as Nemeth, Pacheco and Ayala can come in.
We've a fighting chance. With the right additions - mostly tall ones,
if xxxxs 1-3 are all six footers then we can pick a minimum of nine six
footers in our first eleven - we can be solid but have more quality in
the first eleven. These players who have featured for the first team to
go:
Cavilari, Degen, Skrtel, Aurelio, Insua, Spearing, Plessis, (Lucas if
the price is right), Kuyt, Babel, Benayoun (maybe, depends on price),
Riera and N'Gog.
The money therefore might stretch to a very good centre back, someone
with the potential to be very good to be alongside Gerrard, a good
centre mid who can put it about and solidity elsewhere. I'd try and
tempt Riquelme to cover Aquilani. But everyone will slaughter that. So
get Gary Mac out of retirement.
Lastly, I don't think the manager is miles away from something like
this. When he buys Aquilani he knows he's not buying Alonso. He said as
much. He's always been about a high line and pressing. Question mark is
if he'd let three stay ahead of the ball. Having said that, three ahead
of the ball may be a luxury too far in this league. Getting out and
getting control have to be the priorities. If we do that, the rest
should come.
The Chuck Norris of PC