What Spurs need to do to beat Everton

[Rob]

Sorry am I'm not supposed to be slightly critical of football whispers sc new overlords?

That's a bit unfair. Be critical if you want but then complaining about someone being critical of your critical comments comes across as a bit, well, hypocritical... (see what I did there )

 

[Bus-Conductor]

This is the sort of feedback we appreciate, so thanks. I wasn't sure how including XG would go down in these sorts of pieces, some are really against the idea of those kinds of stats.

Xg aside (I appreciate that's possibly a tricky one) it would just be nice to read something a little more analytical Or insightful or thought provoking. We may still disagree but at least it might stimulate a bit of discussion.

As someone currently suffering with bloggers cramp, I know it's much harder than it seems to keep churning out articles that strike the balance between entertaining, providing a different perspective that hasn't already been done to death or that won't bamboozle.

Good luck.

 

[dondo]

That's a bit unfair. Be critical if you want but then complaining about someone being critical of your critical comments comes across as a bit, well, hypocritical... (see what I did there )

I'm not bothered by people neg repping me at all but when it's one of the moderators of the site doing it because I slightly criticised a blog sc has just team up with I find it a bit petty tbh.
Insistently the football whispers guy agreed with me that it not a tactical article anyway

 

[Japhet]

"Kyle Walker is one of the most underrated crossers of the ball and has the ability to pick out a team mate when it doesn't seem possible"

If this were true we'd be top of the league now.

About 5 times a season, if we are very lucky, after taking 17 touches to control the ball, Walker manages to get his head out of his arse and actually find the team mate that has been stood in acres of space begging for the ball.

By contrast, I think Trippier has been excellent delivering balls into the box when he's had a chance. Drives me nuts when Walker blows all the momentum out of a move by rolling his studs across the ball or standing still looking for a pass. Trippier can even hit a decent first time cross.

 

[Hoops]

score more than we let in

 

[dontcallme]

score more than we let in

 

[whitesocks]

I really enjoyed Football Whispers 'Why Man U must sign Harry Kane this summer' article.
That really cheered me up.

 

[Jody]

I really enjoyed Football Whispers 'Why Man U must sign Harry Kane this summer' article.
That really cheered me up.

Agree. Although there will be spurs fans writing for them there'll be just as man utd fans etc causing the usual media shit storm around our players and maintaining the status quo.

 

[Everlasting Seconds]

O'right. I'll avoid all the ha-ha jokes, but here is what I think:

The article consists of loads of "fillers" like "Tottenham Hotspur host Everton this weekend knowing a win will give them some breathing space in the race for Champions League football.", "Any opening needs to be punched upon and this weekend is a huge opportunity for Harry Kane and co to do just that.", "Spurs had a slight wobble in the middle of February which saw them lose back to back games against Liverpool and Gent.".

I could provide more examples, but in essence, the first 5-7 paragraphs consists of largely background info that most people clicking on that article headline already know. Are you writing for people who rarely are watching either of the two teams in question (if so, please go on to do so, but ...), or are you writing for people who already are following one of the teams day in and day out? Posting a link to the article on this forum presupposes that you are targeting diehard fans of at least one of the clubs. In which case, all you need of background info is "As we all know, Tottenham and Everton will face each other this weekend". End of background info. Nothing more needed.

Cutting out as much as 7 paragraphs lends space to really getting into the nitty-gritty. Supply really thorough info that most fans probably don't spend the time digging up. For instance, correct me if I'm wrong, but I don't think there is one word in the article about what we can expect from Everton for this specific match? Are they likely to lay low? Are they an all-out attack team no matter what? Do they have specific men suited to close down Kane? I don't know more about that after reading the article than what I did before reading it. How can we know what we must do to defeat Everton without at least one assumption about what they might focus on vs. Spurs?

When it comes to use of graphics, the picture of a fist-clinching Harry Kane is well and dandy, but we can see such things on the pitch or on the telly. What we can't see on the pitch, and rarely on the telly, is informative, instructive graphics using visuals to underline the thoroughly investigated text. Where are heat maps? Line ups showing possible tactical choices? Screen stills as examples of successful moves?

In essence this is an easy, readable article fit for the football fan who has no particular interest in either side. Less than 1.000 words, it probably took at most 90 minutes to crank out start to finish, readily spell checked. If you want to capture an audience that often log into SC several times a day/week, you need to supply info, thoughts and graphics that they don't really already have them selves. Or write for a broader audience, risking little attention from the club-specific fans.

And as a closing thought, remember: the key to successful football punditry is to have specific opinions, and take distinct, bold stances. A football pundit/commentator may or may not be proven correct, that doesn't really matter. What matters is highly intelligent, well thought out views on the topic at hand.

 

[guiltyparty]

This is the sort of feedback we appreciate, so thanks. I wasn't sure how including XG would go down in these sorts of pieces, some are really against the idea of those kinds of stats.

Please do. Football 365 has just done a masterclass of a series on stats with Peter Goldstein and how to use them: http://www.football365.com/news/expected-goals-overperformers-and-underperfomers

In the age of experts like Michael Caley and co, and where every football fan has a "I think this" blog, you need hard data not guesswork to have any authority. These take time and can't be produced in the quantity necessary for traffic, hence why they're still fairly rare

I realize that F365 pretty routinely mocks Football Whispers in Mediawatch, mind, so you may give it a wide berth, and your model may not support such analysis, but without it, I'm not sure you're really adding much

Also the model of "more people write about it, more credence it has" is fundamentally flawed in this day and age, whatever caveats are added. You say it's weighted on source quality, but no doubt Telegraph rates highly on that, when they're now one of the worst click bait farms

 

[davidmatzdorf]

His crossing has improved this season to be fair. He has set up 4/5 goals iirc

Walker had a period of matches where he was delivering excellent crosses and collecting assists. He was doing that by varying his approach. Sometimes he'd do his familiar angled dribble into the box, but sometimes he'd get to the bye-line and smack a low hard one across goal. Sometimes he'd launch one a bit earlier, toward the far post. Occasionally he'd shoot.

The frustrating aspect about his play in the Gent and Stoke games is that he reverted to extreme predictability: a rapid,threatening run into the final third, cut inside into the penalty box, slow down looking for the right moment, miss it, hang onto the ball for 2-3 more touches, then smack it against an opponent.

When he attacks with variety and decisiveness, he creates chances. When he does the same damned thing over and over, he is too easy to defend.