elgin eeagle
Member
- Country
Scotland
Sage in or out
- Topic starter DANGERCLOSE
- Start date
There is no reason a backline of Mitchell, Lerma, Richards and Mingueza couldn’t be a reasonably solid back four. Not special but solid. Especially if we screened it properly by playing a bank of midfielders in front of them. Thats what a sensible manager would do.
As it is Sage’s tactics leave the back three exposed all the time. It’s a set of tactics that basically sacrifices the defence to try and occasionally win the ball high up. It’s crazy and the fact Sage used it all and the didn’t change it shows you he’s a poor manager.
We haven't bought well in recent seasons in the forward areas.
Franca, Nketiah,Esse, Johnson, Larsen, McNeil, Guessand.
The jury is out on Gozo and Osorio.
Let's face it, no Premier League team is going to be fearful against that bunch.
The startling thing is the lack of pace and power.
If any of them got the ball with a clear run 40 yards from goal I'm not convinced anything would result - they would be caught up with, dispossessed, overpowered, stop and play the ball backwards, fall over ...
We're a long away from the days of Bolassie, Zaha, Eze and Olise.
Perhaps as Roy once said we've become spoilt.
Franca, Nketiah,Esse, Johnson, Larsen, McNeil, Guessand.
The jury is out on Gozo and Osorio.
Let's face it, no Premier League team is going to be fearful against that bunch.
The startling thing is the lack of pace and power.
If any of them got the ball with a clear run 40 yards from goal I'm not convinced anything would result - they would be caught up with, dispossessed, overpowered, stop and play the ball backwards, fall over ...
We're a long away from the days of Bolassie, Zaha, Eze and Olise.
Perhaps as Roy once said we've become spoilt.
It seems that Mingueza is being ignored, 166 games in la Liga at CB and RB, not WB, Him Richards, Lerma and Mitchell is a decent, not great but decent back 4, Timber, Hughes and Kamada CM, McNeil LW Pino RW and JSL up top, is a decent line up.
I do not believe them 3 are not decent players, Nketiah is an old second forward, which we refuse to play 2 up front, even in the last 20mins of a game, Larsen is IMO far better than Mateta, very good in the air, but we don't cross the ball, McNeil is a left winger, a superb crosser of the ball, but hasn't played there yet though, crazy
Busy catching up and my first thought when reading the post about being 4 players short and thus it make no dufference who the trainer was, was to agree and suggest that by January we probably will be adrift. The above comment is also, a highly likely fact and paying compensation for Sage won't ease the situation either. However, then I saw Lanzo's post about the plaers that we do have fit and i think he has a point. Ergo, we come bacvk to tactics and the ensuing mood and confidence. It's almost as if it is not one or two spquar pegs in round holes but 11 pegs; or 10 not including hendo. One way or another i am already feeling very moody and am fearing contact with anybody at 5 pm my time due to my own mood.
It’s a roll call of very average players. If it wasn’t for Johnson you’d say Franca and Nketiah had a good case for being our worst ever signings.
eaglesdare
Member
- Country
Australia
Like my misses says after games recently....it's only football 😭😭😭
Haha, how thoughts can be sent through the ether. My son and I were looking at our crossing stats. It is appalling. JSL ma not be the strongest physically but he can get on the endof crosses. We simply don't do that style. Most of Eze's super first time strikes were from low flat crosses played to the back of the penalty area so the situation is not new. Now a) we don't seem to have found anybody to replace that threat but neither we cross to the strength of our CF. Tactics again. Or ability?
park the bus
Member
- Country
England
Realistically if another manager comes in this is what he has to deal with, the players available and the mood within the camp, and make a good a go of it as possible. What else is there to do?
Teddy Eagle
Member
- Country
-
Scotland
As time goes by the more I suspect my mum was on to something decades ago when she said, "It's just 22 blokes kicking a bag of air about".
For those with long memories Larsen reminds me of Gareth Taylor.
Tall, with a reputation for being very good in the air, but without much physical strength and one paced.
I just can't see it happening for Larsen at Palace.
He may score in the odd cup game or in Europe, but is that what £44 million buys you?
He loses the vast majority of physical duels and offers minimum link up play.
It's fair to say that we don't throw a stream of crosses his way, but is that likely to change?
Only McNeil and Chilwell offer accurate crossing ability in our current squad.
McNeil never plays in a position to demonstrate this and Chilwell rarely features.
Tall, with a reputation for being very good in the air, but without much physical strength and one paced.
I just can't see it happening for Larsen at Palace.
He may score in the odd cup game or in Europe, but is that what £44 million buys you?
He loses the vast majority of physical duels and offers minimum link up play.
It's fair to say that we don't throw a stream of crosses his way, but is that likely to change?
Only McNeil and Chilwell offer accurate crossing ability in our current squad.
McNeil never plays in a position to demonstrate this and Chilwell rarely features.
My Missus says - "Make yourself happy, support a different team", lol
I beg to differ. A club of Palace's size, the revenue we have compared to most other teams in the division, what we have achieved. Thirteen unbroken years in the top division? Your comment is either naive or just plain thick
Maybe they should make you manager then 🙄
History teaches us that being patient and sticking with a manager can either end in relegation or in rare cases like Alex Ferguson it becomes the start of a dynasty.
I think most of us would settle for somewhere in between.
That has little to do with midfield protection and more to do with Kalaili and Mitchell's failure to get back. And yes, currently Mitchell is just as culpable as Kalaili on this issue
I think most of us would settle for a defeat but one which we show signs of improvement that gives us optimism for the next few games. I thought the Besiktas game was that first sign but that proved a false dawn
But the fact the wing backs are up the pitch is due to the same reason the midfield leaves the back three exposed. Clearly the tactics are to play high up as a team and try and win the ball. That means a simple pass into the wide open space we leave or us losing the ball and we are immediately in trouble. That is exactly what led to the Hoffenheim goal. The obvious answer is to ditch those tactics and get the midfield to screen the back three more.
I agree that there have been times when the back line dont close the space to midfield quickly enough and vice versa. What I cant and wont accept is a lack of midfield protection is the answer. Its not. Thats a cop out.
For me its defensive inadequacies individually that are the number 1 problem.
Of course there are a number of niggly issues that remain but in my own opinion (and unlike others I stress its my opinion and dont claim to be cleverer than Sage) if we got a couple of better central defenders all other issues will fade away