Ive been thinking, I reckon after a few games I've not taken to 5 of our managers since Wagner.
Siewert had a shit show on his hands so I finally lost patience with him at the start of the championship season.
Cowleys- never liked them. Still don't. Heard a lot of bad things
Carlos- I liked how he approached it initially but I was in the cc out camp come the second half of the COVID season. The season he nearly got us up, I must admit I still wasnt much of a fan
Schofield- I wanted it to work but I never would
Fotheringham- need I say more
Warnock- there's one I took to properly, although his summer window screwed us a fair bit
Moore- I was one of the few that never wanted him appointed in the first place. Hindsight suggests I was right
Breitenriter - had one half decent game against Leeds and then downhill afterwards. I thought it was a good appointment but always risky when you've zero players he'd have heard of
Now duff- said the right things in preseason and the start points wise has been decent but I'm yet to be fully convinced by the football. Not taken by this over reliance football has ATM with 3-5-2 either. If done right it's great, but that's he same for any formation.
Moving onto the players.
Nicholls is our best keeper, probably the best in this league but more mistakes have been creeping into his game over the last few seasons
Lees- was average at best in his pomp, he's now slow, past it and never really been able to play out from the back
Helik- slow and incapable of playing out from the back. I don't think he's as good as some fans believe he is tbh, but he still probably starts, although I do wonder who is the best defender between him and Pearson
Lonwijk- not seen enough yet to make much of a judgement
Sorensen- I think he was always going to be an attacking wingback, having someone like Spencer behind him with a bit more pace might actually help him.
Hogg- at some point he has to finish, he's not that Japanese striker who's still playing in his 50's. Now I think two manager in his career have used him right. David Wagner who told him to give the ball to mooy and Carlos who told him to give it to O'Brien. Asking him to do more with the ball other than that is like asking Americans about salads. Pointless. Unfortunately he's slowing down physically that he isn't as effective at breaking up play.
Headley - quick in foot but nothing else. Think he's had two and a half good games. One under Warnock, Morecambe at home and second half at Bolton. Otherwise naddah. Crossing ain't great, passing ain't great, shooting ain't great, defending ain't great. But he is young and the abuse won't help him, look what it did to poor Jackson.
Wiles- I think he's a fair weather player, can do it when the team is doing well, but isn't the sort that can grab a game by the scruff of the neck and change it.
Evans- arguably the same but he does try to tackle more, usually badly, I think he's playing too deep anyway, I'd rather him further forward and try and influence play from there.
Koroma- a lad who's scored a few playing in a position that isn't his best. I still think he needs to cut in from the left and get shots away, I don't think his hold up or link up play will improve that much more.
Marshall - a young lad that is still learning his way in the game probably needs to be up top with someone more experienced, almost feels like he and koroma are too similar in style to play up top together
You could look at the bench but really what we need to say is kane and Hodge probably need to be starting as much as possible.
Now do we stick with 3-5-2, the answer is that duff probably will do and he probably won't change the defence, the changes will be in midfield, the question is who do kane and Hodge come in for, most likely he picks wiles and Evans, but will he chance kasumu in the Hogg role, I think it works if hes told to keep the passes simple, it doesn't if they ask him to drive through the midfield channels. Up top we probably will see ladapo come in.
Alternatively, I'd like us to go 4-3-3, with a back 4 of Sorensen, helik/Pearson, lonwijk, Spencer. Then have Hogg/kas holding with kane and Hodge in front, emphasis on giving them or mainly kane the ball. Then go koroma on the left, probably marshall on the right and ladapo in the middle, not seen him play yet, but he might have a bit more physical presence.
An alternate alternative would be 4-2-3-1, just with Evans in for the holding midfielder and playing the attacking midfield role, still emphasis on keeping it simple and getting the ball to the creative player, the game will come from there
Lord Snooty likes this post
Another day, another door, another high, another low