HOOF BALL!!

[hantsred]

seriously what was the point in that tactics tonight? Took our football back 30 years and that is coming from a LJ supporter. We have footballers through the team from goalkeeper to front men and yet we ask them tonight to launch long ball after long ball to the shortest strike force in the division (with one of our tallest on the bench)! I really just did not get it tonight and we were lucky to get a draw out of it.

[Davefevs]

1 minute ago, hantsred said:

seriously what was the point in that tactics tonight? Took our football back 30 years and that is coming from a LJ supporter. We have footballers through the team from goalkeeper to front men and yet we ask them tonight to launch long ball after long ball to the shortest strike force in the division (with one of our tallest on the bench)! I really just did not get it tonight and we were lucky to get a draw out of it.

First half we tried to play, and at times we did it well.  I think the start Villa had to the second half meant we lost a bit of composure and we were too keen to play long.

[BobBobSuperBob]

6 minutes ago, Davefevs said:

First half we tried to play, and at times we did it well.  I think the start Villa had to the second half meant we lost a bit of composure and we were too keen to play long.

Was interesting after our discussion Dave !

Our lack of composure when pressed this season is surprising

I think as good as LK is looking (Thought He was good tonight - sounds daft but looked as if he’d gained a few pounds or a tad extra strength and grown up even from the Wigan game !) we miss the JB outlet on that side 

For any weaknesses Joe had I thought he was good in tight areas and also played a lot of give and go down that side to give us momentum at times

For all his qualities , as I said earlier I’m not sure going forward is Lloyd’s forte atm (Definitely growing and at a progression that I’d be thinking almost ready for a central spot / try at some point )

* As a side note I think we play too many 3/4 long balls - There were times today we played aerial long balls towards Weimann or Matty (Pretty unrealistic) when I would have preferred if we were not playing short (Panic Rather than instruction I’d suggest) I’d like to see us have put the ball over the top , in behind them, turn them and press - especially in that post half time spell when we couldn’t get in their half

One time we did go long behind them I was stunned when we didn’t press but slouched out to the ridiculous degree that they had time to retrieve the ball and play it back to the edge of our own box !, which was as far as the back four had ‘advanced’ - Incredible  

[Major Isewater]

They did play too many long balls , it becomes a bit of a habit once you've done it two or three times in a match.

I think the idea was to get behind the , supposedly, slow back line .

However their defenders were bigger than our defenders and dealt comfortably with the aerial attacks.

The other reason , I'm sure , was to by pass Grealish and McGinn , which mostly worked  at the expense of bypassing our midfield !

A point was a fair result and it stops a run of losses .

Onto Weds ! 

[steveybadger]

6 hours ago, BobBobSuperBob said:

Was interesting after our discussion Dave !

Our lack of composure when pressed this season is surprising

I think as good as LK is looking (Thought He was good tonight - sounds daft but looked as if he’d gained a few pounds or a tad extra strength and grown up even from the Wigan game !) we miss the JB outlet on that side 

For any weaknesses Joe had I thought he was good in tight areas and also played a lot of give and go down that side to give us momentum at times

For all his qualities , as I said earlier I’m not sure going forward is Lloyd’s forte atm (Definitely growing and at a progression that I’d be thinking almost ready for a central spot / try at some point )

* As a side note I think we play too many 3/4 long balls - There were times today we played aerial long balls towards Weimann or Matty (Pretty unrealistic) when I would have preferred if we were not playing short (Panic Rather than instruction I’d suggest) I’d like to see us have put the ball over the top , in behind them, turn them and press - especially in that post half time spell when we couldn’t get in their half

One time we did go long behind them I was stunned when we didn’t press but slouched out to the ridiculous degree that they had time to retrieve the ball and play it back to the edge of our own box !, which was as far as the back four had ‘advanced’ - Incredible  

There were a couple of corners that were cleared on their right which we allowed them to run right back, poss as LK was still in the middle. Think somebody needs to be shouting at him to get out there if he's playing Left back

[RedM]

54 minutes ago, Major Isewater said:

They did play too many long balls , it becomes a bit of a habit once you've done it two or three times in a match.

I think the idea was to get behind the , supposedly, slow back line .

However their defenders were bigger than our defenders and dealt comfortably with the aerial attacks.

The other reason , I'm sure , was to by pass Grealish and McGinn , which mostly worked  at the expense of bypassing our midfield !

A point was a fair result and it stops a run of losses .

Onto Weds ! 

I saw it as this too, keep the ball away from their midfield but as you said it meant ours didn’t get it either. Probably didn’t start of as a tactic but developed into one. Lobbing it up worked no better when aimed at a Diedhiou than it did at Taylor, but by the boos at the end we were more pleased with the point than they were. 

[grifty]

Playing long ball to short strikers is fine if you pick up the knock downs, but we didn't and that was the problem, especially for the first half of the second half.

[Cowshed]

15 hours ago, hantsred said:

seriously what was the point in that tactics tonight? Took our football back 30 years and that is coming from a LJ supporter. We have footballers through the team from goalkeeper to front men and yet we ask them tonight to launch long ball after long ball to the shortest strike force in the division (with one of our tallest on the bench)! I really just did not get it tonight and we were lucky to get a draw out of it.

It can be a case of not as yet being versed or wholly committed to a model of play v a style of play.

14 hours ago, BobBobSuperBob said:

Was interesting after our discussion Dave !

Our lack of composure when pressed this season is surprising

I think as good as LK is looking (Thought He was good tonight - sounds daft but looked as if he’d gained a few pounds or a tad extra strength and grown up even from the Wigan game !) we miss the JB outlet on that side 

For any weaknesses Joe had I thought he was good in tight areas and also played a lot of give and go down that side to give us momentum at times

For all his qualities , as I said earlier I’m not sure going forward is Lloyd’s forte atm (Definitely growing and at a progression that I’d be thinking almost ready for a central spot / try at some point )

* As a side note I think we play too many 3/4 long balls - There were times today we played aerial long balls towards Weimann or Matty (Pretty unrealistic) when I would have preferred if we were not playing short (Panic Rather than instruction I’d suggest) I’d like to see us have put the ball over the top , in behind them, turn them and press - especially in that post half time spell when we couldn’t get in their half

One time we did go long behind them I was stunned when we didn’t press but slouched out to the ridiculous degree that they had time to retrieve the ball and play it back to the edge of our own box !, which was as far as the back four had ‘advanced’ - Incredible  

There is a point here.

When City get pressed what happens? It should be an opportunity to penetrate the opposition v launching it. That opportunity is created by offering the players in possession constant support (options). A player like Joe Bryan is near perfect (for this level) for a model of play that requires players to be calm and composed in tight spaces, able to play one two's but also to provide that constant support. 

At present City look a bit like a team that is wanting to play a style of football versus a model which is ingrained into the team in all positions.