Season 26 Week 8 processing...

Thanks Paul. Could I ask a favour please? I lost 2-0 to Schalke in Europe but in friendliest have been beating them pretty easily. I can see a couple of differences as the Euro game was away and friendlies are at home plus the Schalke midfield changes from AL AR DY to AM DR DL. I can't see much other difference. A 2-0 defeat to a 7-1 win seems a big swing and in friendlies the 7-1 or so has been consistent for a few weeks. If possible could you take a look please?

Paul Hemmings wrote:

Email turns all sent out...order sheets will be posted tomorrow.

Thanks Paul!

Rob@Inter wrote:

Thanks Paul. Could I ask a favour please? I lost 2-0 to Schalke in Europe but in friendliest have been beating them pretty easily. I can see a couple of differences as the Euro game was away and friendlies are at home plus the Schalke midfield changes from AL AR DY to AM DR DL. I can't see much other difference. A 2-0 defeat to a 7-1 win seems a big swing and in friendlies the 7-1 or so has been consistent for a few weeks. If possible could you take a look please?

This is worth pointing out to everybody.

Long Ball is far more effective in friendlies because there is no aggression in friendly matches and aggressive defenders like badstuder can badly disrupt the long ball tactic, esp when you play no wide players in Long Ball, dont forget long ball is a 451 formation and uses up to four attacking midfielders to get beyond the CF for the knockdowns. Playing with just a DY getting forward gives the CF no options and long ball gets readable by the defence very quickly ( depending on how clever and aggressive the defenders are ).  You'll notice in the friendly you won 7-1 that nearly all the defenders tackles were avoided, this is because no aggression was added to their tackling, this wont happen in a competitive game.

Also long ball is very susceptible to the offside rule, it is easier for the defence to time their movements cos they can see tha ball in flight for a long time and can judge where it is going and when to step up and catch the recipient of the knockdown offside.

Several of you play a ST alongside the CF in Long Ball and that isn't a "normal" option for long ball, the striker has to be good enough to attract the ball to him so he needs to be a star player and this can also upset the flow of the long ball tactic, sometimes it works sometimes it doesnt, because again it gives the defence time to organise their offside trap.

Also there is no tiredness in friendly matches and stamina drain and greatly affect dynamoes during a competitive game, this in itself can stop the dynamos from getting beyond the CF. 

Top fullbacks who have nobody to zone mark will soon learn they can step inside to double or triple cover the CF if playing against long ball tactic, they get the time to move inside while the ball is in the air.

These are all drawbacks of using long ball against the top teams.

Long Ball was designed originally for teams with players of 'lesser' quality, because the game is so complex sometimes lesser players arent skilled enough to work an opening and create a scoring chance and long ball cuts out much of the "skill" aspect the game and goes straight to the chance creation so giving lesser teams the chances to score ( as is the case in real life ).

Feel free to use it by all means but try to stick to a 451 formation when playing against the top teams with between 2 and 4 attacking midfielders selected from DY DL DR LH RH, anything else and you will get outnumbered or muscled off the ball by 2 or 3 players doubling or triple marking your CF.

Another thing worth noting is that just because a player has CF on his preferred positions doesnt mean he can play there effectively in all tactical systems. Long Ball and Inside Forwards requires a very tall strong centre forward, if the guy you play is short then the system wont work to its best effect.

Thanks Paul. That's really useful. Will now spend my train journey into town pondering tactics.

Rob@Inter wrote:

Thanks Paul. That's really useful. Will now spend my train journey into town pondering tactics.

Tactics is always a bit of a balancing act, you can do what Geoff does at Man City and stick with the best tactic for the players you have, he's often said to me he would prefer to go back to playing wingers but with his squad its not as effective as inside forwards, or you can pick and change your tactics to best counter the opposition or the circumstances. Both are valid choices in the right circumstances but choosing your tactics based on both your players and your circumstances is definitely the better way to go cos to beat the top teams you need a plan B all the time.

Brilliant, thanks Paul.

A few late transfer deals to report...mainly due to data entry errors, leftovers from last week that didn't get actioned and late orders...

Schalke sent Elkeson to Cruzeiro in exchange for Lucas Silva and cash.
AC Milan sold Afellay to Chelsea for £35m then signed Luiz Adriano from Internacional for £30m.
Man United sold Remy Cabella to Blackburn for £12m and bought Ben Arfa from Chelsea for £35m.

So difficult to get any form going because Southampton lose one win one, what to do ?

Very happy to be third in what is a very competitive division. 

Matt@Soton wrote:

So difficult to get any form going because Southampton lose one win one, what to do ?

Friendly games help.

No wonder I didn't win - went down to 9 men just after half time.... Pleased with a point!