Strongest XI

[dereks no1]

What is our strongest XI when everyone is fit? What should our starting XI be tomorrow? Is it worrying we are this far into the season and we don't know our strongest XI?

[reddogkev]

9 minutes ago, dereks no1 said:

What is our strongest XI when everyone is fit? What should our starting XI be tomorrow? Is it worrying we are this far into the season and we don't know our strongest XI?

 I'm sure that Lee knows our strongest City team.

His preferred choice of 11 tomorrow will be the strongest team available to him.  I'm a 4-4-2 kind of guy, so mine would be this:

(excuse the abbreviations)

                     FF

Little Magnuss    Flint   Golds

Paterson Pack   O'neil  Freeman (*)

                  Tomlin

                 Tammy

(*) Quite possibly, I could change Freeman for Bryan, after sleeping on it!

[Big C]

37 minutes ago, reddogkev said:

 I'm sure that Lee knows our strongest City team.

His preferred choice of 11 tomorrow will be the strongest team available to him.  I'm a 4-4-2 kind of guy, so mine would be this:

(excuse the abbreviations)

                     FF

Little Magnuss    Flint   Golds

Paterson Pack   O'neil  Freeman (*)

                  Tomlin

                 Tammy

(*) Quite possibly, I could change Freeman for Bryan, after sleeping on it!

Don't lose any sleep over it Bryan can't play tomorrow 

[spudski]

The strongest 11 depends who you are playing against.

You find the oppositions weaknesses, and use the best possible players in the squad to exploit them.

For example...in very simplistic terms...if they lacked pace wide, you'd use your fast wingers.

If they were hopeless in the air at the back, you'd use your best forwards that can head.

Then you have examples like tomorrow, where the manager feels he needs to make changes, because we are in a slump. Plus he's said we may need more experience or a change of formation. So you put the best 11 out that you feel could make a difference.

For those reasons given...for a bit of fun...I'm going for this....

------------------------------------Fielding-------------------------------------

Liitle/Matthews----------Flint-----------Magners------------Goldborne

------------------------------------GoN------------------------------------------

----------Smith-------------------------------------------Freeman-------------

-----------------------------------<Tomlin>----------------------------------------

--------------------Tammy---------------------Gustav/Wilbs-------------------

 

+++++ Note....that's a formation with 2 up front and Tomlin in the side...Gulp ;-)

[Rossi the Robin]

I'm wondering whether he'll have the balls to drop Tomlin tomorrow 

invisible v Reading but home games should be different 

[The Bard]

Fielding

Moore Flint Maggers

Brownhill  Reid Smith   Bryan

           Tomlin

Wilbraham  Abraham

 

 

[Ivorguy]

1 hour ago, spudski said:

The strongest 11 depends who you are playing against.

You find the oppositions weaknesses, and use the best possible players in the squad to exploit them.

For example...in very simplistic terms...if they lacked pace wide, you'd use your fast wingers.

If they were hopeless in the air at the back, you'd use your best forwards that can head.

Then you have examples like tomorrow, where the manager feels he needs to make changes, because we are in a slump. Plus he's said we may need more experience or a change of formation. So you put the best 11 out that you feel could make a difference.

For those reasons given...for a bit of fun...I'm going for this....

------------------------------------Fielding-------------------------------------

Liitle/Matthews----------Flint-----------Magners------------Goldborne

------------------------------------GoN------------------------------------------

----------Smith-------------------------------------------Freeman-------------

-----------------------------------<Tomlin>----------------------------------------

--------------------Tammy---------------------Gustav/Wilbs-------------------

 

+++++ Note....that's a formation with 2 up front and Tomlin in the side...Gulp ;-)

Agree. Side is chosen for a specific game from a squad these days.  The idea of a best 11 is very old school

 

[BCFC OF SWEDEN]

Lucic

K. Smith, Moore, Hordur, Goulbourne

Freeman, O'Neil, Reid, Bryan

Tomlin

Abraham

 

I Know Bryan cant play tomorrow, but this is my dreamteam!

[Roe]

It's funny, this time last season everyone moaned when Cotterill often put out the same team (his perceived strongest 11) and 12 months on some are complaining the opposite about LJ.

6 minutes ago, BCFC OF SWEDEN said:

Lucic

K. Smith, Moore, Hordur, Goulbourne

Freeman, O'Neil, Reid, Bryan

Tomlin

Abraham

 

I Know Bryan cant play tomorrow, but this is my dreamteam!

Your dream team includes a keeper we've never seen play a league game, a midfielder at right back, and our main centre back replaced with a novice?

[Roe]

Personally my view is that our strongest 11 at this point looks something like this:

Fielding
Little, Flint, Magnusson, Golbourne
Pack, O'Neil
Patterson, Tomlin, Reid
Abraham

Which is pretty close to the team that Johnson has been putting out recently.

[And Its Smith]

3 hours ago, spudski said:

The strongest 11 depends who you are playing against.

You find the oppositions weaknesses, and use the best possible players in the squad to exploit them.

For example...in very simplistic terms...if they lacked pace wide, you'd use your fast wingers.

If they were hopeless in the air at the back, you'd use your best forwards that can head.

Then you have examples like tomorrow, where the manager feels he needs to make changes, because we are in a slump. Plus he's said we may need more experience or a change of formation. So you put the best 11 out that you feel could make a difference.

For those reasons given...for a bit of fun...I'm going for this....

------------------------------------Fielding-------------------------------------

Liitle/Matthews----------Flint-----------Magners------------Goldborne

------------------------------------GoN------------------------------------------

----------Smith-------------------------------------------Freeman-------------

-----------------------------------<Tomlin>----------------------------------------

--------------------Tammy---------------------Gustav/Wilbs-------------------

 

+++++ Note....that's a formation with 2 up front and Tomlin in the side...Gulp ;-)

You've changed your tune since two days ago!

[otib118]

Fielding

Moore II Flint II Hordor

Matthews II Reid II Pack II Freeman

Tomlin

Engvall II Tammy

[JamesBCFC]

6 hours ago, #roe said:

It's funny, this time last season everyone moaned when Cotterill often put out the same team (his perceived strongest 11) and 12 months on some are complaining the opposite about LJ.

Your dream team includes a keeper we've never seen play a league game, a midfielder at right back, and our main centre back replaced with a novice?

no, Magnusson is right there next to Moore

[spudski]

8 hours ago, RedDave said:

You've changed your tune since two days ago!

Hence my note at the bottom of the thread. Plus I don't think it will work long term ...I've just a gut feeling this is what LJ might do today...not what I'd do ;-)

[bradshaw]

I have a feeling Johnson is gonna try something different... maybe a striker-less formation, i can also see brownhill starting as he's not really had an opportunity lately, something like this...

 

Fielding

Matthews Flint Hordor Golbourne

Pack Smith O'Neil 

Brownhill Tomlin  Reid 

 

[BCFC OF SWEDEN]

8 hours ago, #roe said:

It's funny, this time last season everyone moaned when Cotterill often put out the same team (his perceived strongest 11) and 12 months on some are complaining the opposite about LJ.

Your dream team includes a keeper we've never seen play a league game, a midfielder at right back, and our main centre back replaced with a novice?

Yes, I compare and think we must do something in thoose positions. Because what we have isnt good enough! Im 100% sure for example that Korey is a better alternative than Little and Matthews! Lucic   Will soon be number one, he is a modern keeper and knows about using his feet, been together with Manuel Neuer and i have heard really good about him, dont wait! Moore is a faster defender than Flint thats why i want him in the team as fast as possible! You will se when LJ plays them what i mean!

[spudski]

24 minutes ago, BCFC OF SWEDEN said:

Yes, I compare and think we must do something in thoose positions. Because what we have isnt good enough! Im 100% sure for example that Korey is a better alternative than Little and Matthews! Lucic   Will soon be number one, he is a modern keeper and knows about using his feet, been together with Manuel Neuer and i have heard really good about him, dont wait! Moore is a faster defender than Flint thats why i want him in the team as fast as possible! You will se when LJ plays them what i mean!

I'd like to think that when we have secured safety in this league, that some changes are made on a more regular basis.

I've watched Lucic a few times now...and just in those few times, I saw enough to see imo, that he is a better keeper all round than Fielding and RoD. Especially his distribution and command of the area. He is one of those Keepers that exudes confidence and has an air of commanding his box which breeds confidence to those around him.

I've also been impressed by Moore when I've watched him. Good vision, calm, can play a pass and defends well, plus has an astonishing turn of pace. With Flint and Hordor at CB how are we going to play him more regularly? Half the battle with defence is getting it settled. Is he being thought of and trained to play at RB?

Will the near future defence be Moore, flint, Hordor, Bryan? I know some don't see Bryan as a LB...but I do. He reminds me a lot of Ashley Cole...who in turn also started as a wide attacker and was converted to a LB early in his career. Didn't do him no harm.

[robin_unreliant]

I agree about Moore looking good - at CB, I think he would be much better there than RB from what we've seen so far. Think we could play him in a Chelsea type three at the back. That would allow us to play JB and ML as wing backs, which imho fits their strengths better than FB. GO and MP/KS as a solid central MF and three up front. 

It works for Chelsea and just feels to me like it would fit our squad and allow us to get them into their natural positions.

It would take a lot of work on organisation and could be quite risky. We need to find a way to get our best players on the pitch in a role that suits them all though. 

Maybe it would have to get a whole lot worse before LJ tries something that different.

[LondonBristolian]

Christ knows what the line-up should be but I do think three things.

1) LJ has to try something different as Abraham is getting isolated.  

2) Tomlin shouldn't be dropped.  It's easy to criticise him for not being in the best form but he's literally are only midfielders with a substantial numberof goals or assists this season.  Without him, nobody creates.

3) Paterson probably should be dropped.  I'm still very hopeful he'll come good in the long term but it is not working at the moment.

If pushed I think I might go for a lop-sided 4-3-3/that almost borders on a 4-4-2 with Abraham sort of on the right but actually coming into the centre and Little being used to provide the width.  O'Neill and Brownhill to sit deep and play passes forward.

----------------------------------FF

Little--------------Flint----------------------Mags--------------Golborne

-----------------O'Neill-------------------Brownhill

--------------------------------Tomlin---------------------------O'Dowda

----------------Abraham------Engvall

[LondonBristolian]

1 hour ago, robin_unreliant said:

I agree about Moore looking good - at CB, I think he would be much better there than RB from what we've seen so far. Think we could play him in a Chelsea type three at the back. That would allow us to play JB and ML as wing backs, which imho fits their strengths better than FB. GO and MP/KS as a solid central MF and three up front. 

It works for Chelsea and just feels to me like it would fit our squad and allow us to get them into their natural positions.

It would take a lot of work on organisation and could be quite risky. We need to find a way to get our best players on the pitch in a role that suits them all though. 

Maybe it would have to get a whole lot worse before LJ tries something that different.

Whilst I'm not inclined to go 3 at the back quite yet, I do think there are arguments for it as a short-term fix between now and Christmas.  Moore probably deserves a chance but I would not drop Flint or Hordur whilst neither of our right-backs are entirely convincing so that could be a solution.  That said, I'd not use it today as Bryan is unavailable.