Are We Too Risk Averse?

[Bus-Conductor]

OK BC, let's stop rewriting history here. You said in a reply to me recently that your opposition to signing Wanyama was based on your fear of us playing 4-2-3-1, but that's BS.

You called him a 'wanker' and suggested we should promote Lesniak instead (who, by the way, cannot make it into the squad of FC Slovan Liberec).

You said he was a 'very limited footballer', 'just an athlete' and suggested he has no brain - and you compared his signing to that of Stambouli.

So please stop pretending your opposition to Wanyama was based on our formation, you clearly thought he was an average player, and at the moment he looks anything but that.

Let's not engage in s mutual rewriting fest. You know all last year I was saying Dier and Dembele was not the wonder bread everyone else did and repeatedly stated we could and should have at least one more ambitious or risk averse cm in there on many occasions and that changing shape to a 433 could offer the structural compromise to accommodate this.

I hold my hand up unreservedly and admit - again - that Wanyama has been better in a footballing sense than I believed he would be but he was still not the solution to the problem that troubled me throughout last year and what I believed we needed to address most in the summer (especially knowing we were offloading the likes of Bentaleb) if we were just going to play him in a cm2 with Dier and Dembele as we have seen. That we needed a less risk averse, quicker tempo'd more progressive cm in there.

Everyone was pointing out in the summer that Wanyama was being bought as back up for the precious plodding duo, I suggested if that was the case then a back up busy **** remit is one Lezniak could fill and we could spend money on someone like Tolisso who would move us forward in s footballing sense.

Whilst Wanyama is being used to facilitate a change of structure and tactical emphasis on moving the ball with more tempo and less risk aversion by enabling a change in structure, I'm loving the guy, but if we are just going to fucking drop anchor again and have a 4231 with 2 of Dier/Dembele/Wanyama then as much as I really like Wanyama, i stand by my stance in the summer, it's pretty pointless signing that has done nothing to address our risk aversion, tempo or alacrity from CM.

 

[Bus-Conductor]

As you've mentioned, you know my contiuned thoughts re. our central midfield and what I think it could and should be doing, but I don't think it (and our formation) is the biggest issue at the moment. I think further up the pitch is where the biggest problems lie currently. Individually I think they (Eriksen, Alli, Lamela, Sissoko, even Son in recent weeks) are all in varying degrees of poor form, the intent, urgency, energy and that spark just isn't there both with and without the ball. And then collectively as an attacking unit across a 90 minute performance we're just not clicking and reacting harmoniously. That's more of a concern to me currently than a stodgy cm2.

I was desperate for us to add to that area of the pitch too, and there were options this summer too.

But I think the lack of tempo and risk aversion from Poch's cm2 4231 format also kills momentum. So many times I see players move into positions and that pass just doesn't happen because neither Dier nor Dembele see it or are prepared to risk playing it that moment and in a blink it's gone and momentum is lost.

I actually think the new formation did help that, Eriksen will try something that neither Dembele or Dier can or will and in the 433/41221 he will be doing it often in s slightly more forward area than Dier or Dembele would be.

Of course this doesn't solve the fact that Alli, Lamela and Son are all fucking erratic or that outside those 4 (Eriksen Alli Lamela Son) we are really bereft if attacking options with ability or composure to effect games.

 

[mpickard2087]

I was desperate for us to add to that area of the pitch too, and there were options this summer too.

But I think the lack of tempo and risk aversion from Poch's cm2 4231 format also kills momentum. So many times I see players move into positions and that pass just doesn't happen because neither Dier nor Dembele see it or are prepared to risk playing it that moment and in a blink it's gone and momentum is lost.

I actually think the new formation did help that, Eriksen will try something that neither Dembele or Dier can or will and in the 433/41221 he will be doing it often in s slightly more forward area than Dier or Dembele would be.

Of course this doesn't solve the fact that Alli, Lamela and Son are all fucking erratic or that outside those 4 (Eriksen Alli Lamela Son) we are really bereft if attacking options with ability or composure to effect games.

And I don't really disagree with any of that, truth be told I'd have hauled Dembele off after about half hour at the weekend after watching him for the 5th time beat a layer of their defensive structure only to give some pathetic sideways pass that allowed the previously mentioned defensive structure to get back behind the ball.

My interpretation of what you are saying though is that it is more focused on and affects what we are doing in the middle of the pitch, not the final third, and certainly not in the 'danger zone' in and around the penalty area. Now I accept that quicker, more progressive passing may make life easier in terms of time and space for our attacking players to do damage, but currently we have almost non-existent combination play and cohesiveness of what we do in the final third. I don't think better service through the middle of the park solves a lot of the issues currently.

 

[MightySpurs]

Blablabla, 4231, 433, 41221, 4141- think some of you here put WAY to much meaning in the numbers here.

I think it's a over-coaching problem, with little to no freedom in what players can and can't do - and it almost doesn't matter what formation we come up with.

Last year I feel the team had little to fear, because no one (before the season started) predicted us in the top 4- and therefore we often took the bull by its horn, and gave it all. Fearless.

This season we suddenly had the top 4 mark on us, since finishing 3 last season, and it seems to me Poch now feels he has something to loose, rather then everything to win- and that is why we are being to risk averse.

My 2 cents

 

[Bus-Conductor]

And I don't really disagree with any of that, truth be told I'd have hauled Dembele off after about half hour at the weekend after watching him for the 5th time beat a layer of their defensive structure only to give some pathetic sideways pass that allowed the previously mentioned defensive structure to get back behind the ball.

My interpretation of what you are saying though is that it is more focused on and affects what we are doing in the middle of the pitch, not the final third, and certainly not in the 'danger zone' in and around the penalty area. Now I accept that quicker, more progressive passing may make life easier in terms of time and space for our attacking players to do damage, but currently we have almost non-existent combination play and cohesiveness of what we do in the final third. I don't think better service through the middle of the park solves a lot of the issues currently.

The bottom line is both. What I wanted in the summer was for us to improve the IQ and/or creative options of our AM group (and there were a plethora of players floating around the departure gate (most of them bought by Dortmund but others too) and if Bentaleb was going then I wanted someone like Tolisso for the CM area, who at 22 would have fit the profile (industrious and clever) to a tee.

But I think the bigger problem, in terms of tempo and transition is the CM, especially when applied in that CM2/4231 format with two risk averse CM's. The front 4 will still be erratic but they at least all try things, take risk, the biggest problem is getting them on the ball in situations where they can do damage, take risks, too often, IMO, they are getting the ball way to slowly, when the opposition are set and build up stalls or hits a traffic jam.

Eriksen had the 2nd highest assists in the PL last season, Alli and Lamela the joint 5th (same as DeBruyne) those players can all be frustrating but they were all in the top 9 creative players in the league. Suggesting to me that as much as they can all drive us nuts at times (particularly Alli, Lamela) if we put them into better situations more often they will produce and this ludicrous belt and braces approach against bus parkers is killing us. Do what Klopp or Guardiola does, teach offensive players to be defensive (be that without the ball or by keeping the ball), don't keep trying to make defensive players offensive.