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Reply | Bristol City v Swansea City : Match day thread
at 10:38 6 Feb 2025
Not adverse to one of the wingers getting close to the centrefoward to react to what scraps can be had off the centreforward centrebacks battle, both Ronald and Bianchini where sniffing around against Norwich but with Cullen as centreforward we were very unlikely to get any scraps from high balls down the middle.
To be fair to Pearl-Harris he does make things awkward for defenders under the high ball, he caused the rightback Norrington-Davies of Sheff United no end of problems under the high ball and he was removed at the beginning of the second half having been booked in the first and the giving us a good call for a penalty. |
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Reply | Coventry v Leeds
at 09:15 6 Feb 2025
The midfield has been one of our main weaknesses for quite some time don't necessarily think that is 100 percent down to the players as our setup has not helped . Any weakness in other parts of the pitch is amplified when the midfield isn't right. [Post edited 6 Feb 10:39]
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Reply | Bristol City v Swansea City : Match day thread
at 08:36 6 Feb 2025
Tymon and Key have both pushed on because that is what Wing backs are told and expected to do but doesn't work and is pointless if you persist in playing wingers, compounded when you ask both the wingbacks and wingers to stay on the touch line to provide width leaving the middle of the park an area which is is a vast wasteland devoid of our players and because of the fullbacks pushing up leaving our centrebacks to cover the equally empty flanks, Grimes then dropped back further expanding that empty midfield wasteland.
So what has Williams done asked both fullbacks to go into the midfield to cover Grimes but both of them are too inexperienced and by doing so leave the flanks further exposed.
We played 5 at the back against Norwich but that left Fulton and Franco too much to do, we insist on leaving areas of the pitch expose. If teams try to play through the middle you get players such as wingers back behind the ball to help out in the middle, if teams try to go down the flanks those wingers have to again get behind the ball, in both case the bare minimum while defending is eight players getting back behind the ball with two up top holding their defensive line back, once we have won the ball back those players playing on the flanks or in the middle can then get forward quickly to support the two to try and get in behind the opposition defence early. Does help if one of your front two is quick, the other can supply balls off the central position and both are goal scorers but that is not the case at the moment given that almost 100 percent of our attacks are down the flanks and slowly at that.
In many respects we are too rigid and cannot adapt easily pulled out of shape seeing the headless runs made by our Centreforwards to try and close down the play out from the back is pitiful to watch, we really haven't worked out how to stop teams playing out from the back and rubbed our hand as QPR got it equally totally wrong against us and yet we still persist in similar methods that don't work at times.
Midfield and fullbacks dropping back to play out from the back is part of the game but doing it while under pressure is stupid especially if the pressing team are leaving gaps elsewhere to be exposed but that is up to the goalie or man on the ball to be in a position and have time to spot. |
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Reply | Recall ! Forget the window let’s get this lad home asap
at 06:25 6 Feb 2025
Totally agree
If you look at Steve Cooper he had his good points he did try and develop some youngsters obviously Guehi he knew and persevered with but he also assisted the likes of Connors Roberts and Fulton. The latter needed to get his marking closer to the opposition players to stop him diving in giving away stupid free kicks, he did improve that part of his game but let the occasion of the play off final get the better of him with the stupid sending off, now Fulton is half the player he was under Cooper.
Cooper was not use to club football as a manager and you initially could set your watch for his substitutions and did get a bit stuck persisting with things that kind of half worked but maybe with better players would have worked better.
You would expect a good manager/coach to help players with their weaknesses while preserving their good points and even the coaches need to learn and gain from their mistakes.
Players have their abilities and need to be encouraged to improve them but being asked to play to a standard much higher than their experience allows them can be differcult but punishing them by total exclusion from playing at a higher standard leads to no growth for a younger player..
Injuries don't help with players development but being in a stable team does one where each player knows their role and is capable of doing it. A manager making small changes to try and improve things is sensible but completely changing a style of play seems to smack of desperation, have we seen that with, Duff, Martin and Williams? |
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Reply | Recall ! Forget the window let’s get this lad home asap
at 22:55 5 Feb 2025
Martin liked his young scapegoats meaning very little youth development for the first team, Oko-Flex and Obegeta are others that spring to mind, easier to use the more experienced players but a team camnt be built for the future with experience that can't last a game or loans that wouldn't be hanging around, youth will have weaknesses but the one perceived by some managers seem to be some of their strengths, hope Parker's strengths are seen as such amd not stifled. |
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Reply | Jacob Wright - Man City ...
at 22:18 4 Feb 2025
Don't take my info on the timing of Grimes transfer request and Abdulai signing for Orient as correct, just reacting as a fan to what I see happening, looking at it going by dates looks as if Abdulai deal was on the Wednesday from official Swansea site and Grimes xfer request was handed in on the Thursday given some of the posts so maybe I put two and two together and made five, Whiterockin seems to have a closer and more knowledge of the club which is why had him in my choices for POTY. |
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Reply | Jacob Wright - Man City ...
at 10:31 4 Feb 2025
Which is why I put in the "or" option in.
We have seen the cautious approach but in recent months we had the tinkering phase trying to rectify the loss of the midfield battle with Grimes dropping deep to cover the over committing full backs, with fullbacks in the middle giving the opposition the added bonus of two points to attack, add the loss of Darling to the ban compounded our problem leaving three positions to expose, then losing Grines, tinkering again.
Think letting the likes of Abdulai go was wrong especially if they knew Grimes had put in a transfer request, makes William's comments about him being allowed to go because we had people in the midfield who were keeping Abdulai out of the team just look plain stupid.
Basic 4-4-2 for me win the middle of the park especially away from home. Keep it simple surely even Luke can't get that wrong?
Totally shapeless |
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Reply | Jacob Wright - Man City ...
at 07:49 4 Feb 2025
The turmoil around the club since Luke reply to the West Brom question and the results in games since must have a drastic influence on players views of the club and their future if they came to us. If you were a player looking at the events that have transpired would you want to make your way here?
Time now for Williams to sort the problems out with the squad he has and get on with it, if he can. Hope it doesn't take him as long as Martin did in his final season with us,.
Or Coleman sort out a new manager quickly. |
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Reply | Swansea City v Coventry City : Match day thread
at 10:08 2 Feb 2025
When I saw the team announced I thought initially Key was going to play right in the middle of the midfield, then I looked again and thought no Key will play right wing and Ronald will play left wing that would make more sense.No we are playing five at the back, playing with three centre backs
No Christie, Key and Ronald all more or less playing on the right touchline..
Whose in the midfield just Franco and Fulton it would seem, three up top with Cullen dropping into the midfield and Bianchini and Ronald then trying to tuck into the middle.
To be honest I didn't have a clue, it was reminiscent of affairs after Martin would make his first tactical substitutions, moving players around changing positions, players having no idea where they were supposed to be playing. then changing things back with his next substitution five minutes later.
Shambolic the central midfield out numbered and out manoeuvred.
To be fair Coventry's front pair had quality, an understanding and given the supply of balls made life hard for the backs which we couldn't cope with.
I would say that when Cooper came on his work rate and movement gave players on the ball options that had sorely been lacking from the team earlier , did the same happen when Pearl-Harris came on or by then had Coventry dropped off to keep the he 2 goal lead secure?
Even trying to win the ball in the middle we would crowd it but then have no options but to try and to pass a couple of feet not getting out of the crowded area or play it too long, even decent passses out of the crowded area left the forward or man on the ball isolated because no-one then moved out of the crowded area having won the ball thinking their job had been done, absolute no meaningful movement to support the man on the ball.
Not easy to replace someone who has dictated play for so long but we seem to try and over complicate things. |
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Reply | Apparently he has signed 😂
at 19:56 31 Jan 2025
Seeing the season out with Allen while he is here replacing next season, still could do with another midfielder, hope we get one even if it is a recall. |
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Reply | Steven Gerrard
at 07:56 31 Jan 2025
"Alms for am ex leper!? I mean for the club, Mr Gerrard sir, to buy a few players sir, maybe a talent ,sir get us something tidy, sir, Half a talent then?, No maybe just couple of Shekels sir, we can get a league one player sir."
"GO AWAY! You had a new manager last year and a couple of players and you got new owners and you got new money, go and get them playing football now Mr Williams"
"Half a Dinar! That won't get us nothing this season, maybe that would buy us a player we could loan back until next season! Sir"
"How ungrateful to the new chairman he managed to get rid of the deadwood players!"
"Yes That's what the fans said, Sir"
"Teh! No pleasing some people!"
"Alms for New Players, Alms for the club!"
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Reply | January Transfer Thread
at 15:36 30 Jan 2025
Liked what little I saw of Joe Thomas before he was released, played only four games at Newport but could he fit in at right back letting Key move to the midfield instead of trying to do two jobs? |
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Reply | Swansea City : Matt Grimes to sign for Coventry City today : PLUS Transfer News
at 13:24 30 Jan 2025
If you don't get the ball to them then they cannot score, knowing how and when they are going to get the ball is how good forward can make descions about what they are going to do with the ball once they have it, good movement by the forward helps the providing player as to where he expects the forward to be. Works both ways. Good supply and good finishing go hand in hand in a team sport.
When understandings and anticipation are non existent
chances for good play go out the window both in defence and attack.
Yes goal scoring is an art but they cannot do it alone, without support or in the wrong areas of the pitch. |
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Reply | Swansea City : Matt Grimes to sign for Coventry City today : PLUS Transfer News
at 12:22 30 Jan 2025
Do you think the forwards get enough quality ball given to them that allows enough chances to be made?
Not defending Vipotnik but the supply is sparse to say the least, having said that you only need one goal to win a game, so here is the rub we cannot defend a lead
or even getting back on level terms, when we try to push home an advantage without consider the response of the opposition by make sure our defensive shape is solid,we don't.
Lack of concentration or shape directly after we score or minutes before and after half time, even at the start of games, we are not set up to defend leaving ourselves exposed. Then all we seem to be setup for is attack at all cost with no cover. We saw that against Millwall and even 2-0 up against Gillingham in the cup we went all out attack they got one back they should of had two, we scored in the last minute to make the result look respectable but we played some kamikaze football, same against Leeds to our cost and Norwich? |
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Reply | Swansea City : Matt Grimes to sign for Coventry City today : PLUS Transfer News
at 09:54 30 Jan 2025
Our ability to play through the middle quickly has seriously affected the quick supply to the forwards even when we have had players driving through the middle they often hold onto the ball too long instead of offloading quickly to change to point of attack, even when we have seen the quick release in the middle there has been a reluctance to go beyond the last man to give the wingers options through the middle until it is too late and the defence is set up. |
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Reply | Live music?
at 09:18 30 Jan 2025
Some of the legends are charging stupid money. |
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Reply | Swansea City : Matt Grimes to sign for Coventry City today : PLUS Transfer News
at 08:55 30 Jan 2025
When Downes was first here he always looking to turn in the midfield to get us playing towards the opposition's goal he did get caught on the ball through youthful inexperience but in a lot of cases he had a yard of pace and aggression to get himself out of tricky situations while looking for the quick ball away from congested areas very similar to Franco.
But
He ended up playing a more defensive role solely down to the fact he had the pace to cover the defenders forwards run, most noteably Manning, better than the slower Grimes who then caught up to then offer his services one yard away from Downes same as he would offer his assistance to Cabango and Darling.
Grimes needs better players around him to cover him and make him move forward from his default position, seen Allen, Franco, Naughton and even Pearl-Harris play balls into space that forces him forward often catching him by surprise but into enough space that even with his hesitation he can get beyond the oncoming pressing player.
We know he can play well.on the front foot but needs help.that is why Steve Cooper played five across the middle.
Grimes as some good qualities but also has his faults which seems to have been compounded by tactics used.
We know we needed more in the midfield hence bringing in the likes of Downes, Franco and Allen even bringing back Ollie Cooper back Martin brought Fulton out of his intial exile.
Hope we can keep Franco and not lose him like we did Downes. [Post edited 1 Feb 7:52]
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