Team for Cardiff

[Davefevs]

6 minutes ago, ExiledAjax said:

I've not read the thread you refer to, but the extent to which a manager changes his team is spectral in nature. As with most spectrums, the two extremes are normally to be avoided and so the best place to be is likely somewhere in between "change everything in order to counter every aspect of the opposition" and "change absolutely nothing, whoever we play". You also have to ask whether you should make a proactive or reactive change. In this thread we are discussing proactive change - we see potential problems in the way Cardiff play, we anticipate those, and we're putting forward theoretical ways to counter them.

That's contrary to what I saw Johnson do - which was reactive change. He would make changes based on the performances or result in the previous game. For me it's that aspect of his changes and tinkering that was grating - if there's one thing worse than making changes because you're worried about the next game - it's making changes because of you're worrying about what just happened.

Realistically you want a balance. You want your own team that has it's strengths, and you want to be able to use those strengths in every match. However, you do also need to be conscious of the other team's strengths and weaknesses, and if countering or exploiting those would require you to make alterations to your 'default' set up - then it may be advisable to make those changes. At the same time, if someone really does have a shocker, or comes to you saying "Gaffer I'm sorry, that last game has wrecked my confidence, I need a week out" then you need to be prepared to deal with that.

As an aside, I don't think we will actually see much change on Saturday, almost certainly not as drastic as switching to 3 at the back. Of course we are likely to see one or two personnel changes, but I think Pearson is more of a "play our own game and trust the process" than Johnson was.

 

You can also picky he same eleven, same formation, but play different tactics or players have slightly different roles.

I still remember Preston a few years ago when Lukic played and LJ said post game (1-2 defeat) that he matched them up.  The bizarre thing was he didn’t, because Preston changed their system.  It was bullshit like that where he thought he could bluff us fans that really pissed me off.

[ExiledAjax]

7 minutes ago, Davefevs said:

You can also picky he same eleven, same formation, but play different tactics or players have slightly different roles.

Absolutely. That's an example of what I mean when I say you want your own game but tweak it if you want to counter or exploit specific aspects of your opponent's game.

An example might be if we stick with 4411/4231 but switch Kalas in at RB because we want all of Baker, Kalas and Atkinson on for set pieces.

Johnson made changes if we lost and didn't if we won. By the end it was mad. The only time I can honestly remember him making proactive changes was when he came back from his Leipzig holiday and we did that 4222 'magic box' thing. IIRC it worked for one game so he of course used it in the next, and it failed.

[Rich]

On 25/08/2021 at 10:08, DaveF said:

Might be wise to go with Baker and Vyner at full back to help defend set pieces, though its going to be difficult regardless!

It worked a few seasons back, when we had Magnússon at LB and Bailey Wright at RB. Not as mobile but solid as a rock until it got changed to accommodate Fammy coming back from injury, when the whole team seemed to change.

[Son of Fred]

1 hour ago, RobintheRed Red said:

Cods still up Bupa .

Who's she??

[RobintheRed Red]

14 minutes ago, Son of Fred said:

Who's she??

She thats suppose to be our wide man .

[Davefevs]

2 hours ago, ExiledAjax said:

Absolutely. That's an example of what I mean when I say you want your own game but tweak it if you want to counter or exploit specific aspects of your opponent's game.

An example might be if we stick with 4411/4231 but switch Kalas in at RB because we want all of Baker, Kalas and Atkinson on for set pieces.

Johnson made changes if we lost and didn't if we won. By the end it was mad. The only time I can honestly remember him making proactive changes was when he came back from his Leipzig holiday and we did that 4222 'magic box' thing. IIRC it worked for one game so he of course used it in the next, and it failed.

I’m firmly of the belief that it only worked for 25 mins, until novice caretaker manager of WBA, James Shan realised Webster was playing in midfield.  He then changed his system to a back 3, and bar some counter-attacks we held on for dear life for a 3-2 win.  I

l give him credit for trying it, racing to a 3-0 lead, but then he did not really having a clue how to counter WBA’s change.

[hinsleburg]

On 25/08/2021 at 10:43, RedRoss said:

I'm sorry I know its your opinion but that team is awful. That looks like an LJ experiment (square pegs in round holes to nullify the opposition)

Hmmm, wasn't that bad of a team was it in the end...

[RedRoss]

10 minutes ago, hinsleburg said:

Hmmm, wasn't that bad of a team was it in the end...

Where was Palmer? Haha you did mostly get it bang on to be honest. Fair play! Love you've had that in the back of your mind though.