Match Report: "It's good but it's not right"

[SR1]

3 minutes ago, Mr Popodopolous said:

Apologies also- I take this board a bit too seriously at times.

Norwich, well I'll take your colleagues word for it bit they still play good football I reckon-would be surprised if they've gone full Warnock ball- I haven't got stats to hand (for once)! but if their possession has dropped to average of mid 40's, well it'd surprise me.

Agree though about us, we have at  varied times been too ponderous in possession and top slow to shoot last 2 games especially.

They had 43.6% at Swansea yesterday.

In fact statistically they had the worst of it in most areas except scoring goals....

[Mr Popodopolous]

5 hours ago, Maesknoll Red said:

I have no agenda to remove LJ, indeed I wish he had the team 6 points clear at the top, but to say we are playing some really nice football and then say we are toothless in the final third is surely a contradiction at best.  If we retain possession in our defence area and the centre ground, have 95% of it say, complete 95% of passes and then it all falls down in the final third, that doesn't for me make it nice football.

I'm probably not a purist, I've done no badges, I'm not particularly fond of European tippy tappy football, as tactically brilliant as it might be, I like a solid defence, a quick and incisive midfield, hopefully with fast wingers who can pass/cross a ball well and strikers who make themselves space, have a knack for being in the right place at the right time.  I like my football to excite, get me off my seat, get me vocalised, to whip up the crowd.  Now I appreciate that doesn't suit everyone, those who think it more like a game of chess, but if I wanted to watch chess, I could, I want a bit of blood and guts desire, flair and taking a few chances.  Maybe modern football isn't for me, but then again, I watch Man City on the box and they are technically proficient, tactically aware, yet still play in a style that excites, they are, I appreciate an exceptional team, but watching yesterday, we had nothing to excite, nothing to endear a neutral, a first timer or anyone wavering on still coming along.

Something needs to change, how long will fans be content at a mid table finish, its a perpetual treadmill if we sell our best players every year and don't replace like with like (and I have commented before, that if players want to leave, then they have to go, so I am not saying we are a selling club for necessity, just that we aren't meeting the aspirations of our top players, year on year).  Maybe some fans are content with a middle of the road team, an occasional foray into the 4th or 5th round of a cup, but that's not the message that the club has put out, but unless we have a very lucky year and get an academy year like Man U had once and we get a Class of 20XX then where is the improvement coming from.

There are no doubt issues of FFP, clubs with parachute payments, SL's willingness to push the boundaries of the rules and regs - maybe having a financial man in charge make it more unlikely he'd bend financial rules, like plenty of others have done to achieve results.

On that note.

Only time will tell, but if clubs who have surely flouted get docked points this or next season (you can laugh) then our strategy in FFP sense well and truly vindicated.

If they don't, then yeah **** it break the rules- you may as well do away with them in that instance.

You can also buy/develop, sell, reinvest, redevelop very well but recruitment, ability to improve and tactically to get the best out of the remainder need to be at least 9/10, 90% in all areas.

I'd say we average 5 or 6, 50-60% across the 3.

[exAtyeoMax]

 

Took me a while… 

[Mr Popodopolous]

17 hours ago, SR1 said:

They had 43.6% at Swansea yesterday.

In fact statistically they had the worst of it in most areas except scoring goals....

Okay, that was one game- though they had more shots on target.

Having crunched the numbers, they won last 6 and had an average of 52.38% possession over those- if you're talking their prior 6 games which indeed they got 13 points form it was an average of 60.23%.

Could say therefore their great form came with an average of 56.3% (roughly).

First 6 games?

54.05%, from which they got 5 points.

So there's no real vast divergence tbh- certainly not Warnockball.

Entirely possible they get the ball forward quicker now, but still on the possession front averaging 50%+.

@BTRFTG Took a look at Norwich, they don't tend to start both. It maybe the case that one or the other comes on and fills the role you mention, but they don't tend to start both.

In fact, it's the inverse to what you say- they started both at the start of the season- when their results were less than impressive...could be coincidence but.