Our last 3 winning games show the best and the worst side concerning our defence. This is nothing new by a long stretch and like it or not, we are long used to our situation by now. I even have sympathy towards the doomers and gloomers because i am one of them every now and again. We have a run of games that will be the ultimate test, and it will tell us everything we want to know about Fulham and how good we really are. Arking back to the QPR game, our defence was a shambles most of the first half and i could easily have wrote of Tim Ream forever, he was terrible! If that goal had gone against us from his clearance or pass-back? You would need to ask him about that one, it could have all been so different. Forward to the Derby game and Reamy looked majestic with Mawson etc. Our understanding and getting to know about each other has taken longer than we expected, but is this unusual? Perhaps not, and harking back to our quick visit to the prem, we even had less time to gel and bed in our defence. The speed and pace of the prem with the quality and know-how of the top teams, don't allow you that time you need. The dynamics from coming off the internationals and the ajust to the QPR saw the worst side of Reamy. Roll on to Derby and boy' what a difference a few days make. We still have that fragility and no doubt we always will as our history shows, but now this time around, we are finally getting to know each other. The question is now, do we need a another central defender in January?
Replies
Cameo appearances by the central defenders don't cut it. The pairing is simply not good enough. Try using Hangeland and Hughes as a yardstick and get back to me.
posted by The Arizonan - Sunday 01st December 2019, 2:22 AM
Spot on. Cameo appearances are not what’s required, it’s about consistency. Look at Hangerland, Hughes, Coleman and more, all of these had good stats, these guys haven’t achieved this yet. I feel we will definitely need additional defenders in January. The centre backs have improved over the last three games but there is still a lot work to be done. Additional players mean competition within the squad and that will improve consistency. Also defenders get a considerable amount of red and yellow cards, injuries and drops in form, it is important that we have players who can step in without too much changes to how we play.
posted by Gaz (Guest) - Sunday 01st December 2019, 12:54 PM
The unit we have now i assume they are our chosen squad of 4 what works reasonably albeit not flawless. Odoi Mawson Ream and Bryan. Mawson needs the game-time and stability around him now he has gotten over his injuries. These 4 as a unit need to play and get each others game week in week out. The new guy we have is in, in January. Christie covers Odoi, Le Marchand covers Joe Byan and we have Sess.
I was not a big fan of Christie's but arguably, he gets the gist when he is dropped and he looks like he improves when he is on. Steve Sess is up and learning and he will figure. That leaves Le Marchand? Do we get rid? Our main 4 can and should be capable of building up a good run of games unbeaten. It will be impossible not to concede within this squad and my point is why worry about details like that. Scott Parker is going with the theory and tactics which clearly is risky but it brings results. Those days of iron-clad stone-wall defences are long gone. Rodak instils more confidence in our shaky defence much more than Betonelli which will heap more confiidence our our chosen first team unit. I am having less heart in my mouth moments and i am resign to the fact that we will concede goals every now and again. Just like a mole on a part of your body you have to get used too, we should get used to our flaws too. Keep-ball and going forward is a big part of our defence...
posted by OWEN (Guest) - Sunday 01st December 2019, 2:29 PM
Sorry Owen, don’t worry about us conceding? How would you feel if we didn’t get up because of goals conceded? Every successful club or manager builds their teams from the back.
posted by Gaz (Guest) - Sunday 01st December 2019, 3:31 PM
Never mind the waffle, read my post again.
posted by The Arizonan - Sunday 01st December 2019, 3:35 PM
Arizonan is 100% right. If we go up, we will need an entirely new back 4 to stay up. This group of Ream, Mawson, Odoi, Bryan are all solid subs in the Prem. They can fill in for injuries, they can play in the Carabao and FA Cups. But that’s it. We get promoted, we sell Christie and Le Marchand and loan out Steven Sess, and BUY proven Premier League players. Freddo and Targett for starters?). No more Ligue 1 mercenaries!
posted by Drago (Guest) - Monday 02nd December 2019, 7:11 PM
Drago' remember what happened when we brought in a load of players back in the prem? It didn't work mate, and we need to be careful to not upset the balance too much again. An entirely new back 4 might not work out that well? I might be wrong but i have a theory that the likes of Alfie Mawson needs security and stability. Mawson is a slow burner, and he is just about getting used to everyone around him now. Ream is Ream and he is ageing, but for now he is okay. Our big cunumdrum at Fulham in this team is we have left and right defenders who like to go forward which is the modern way. Unfortunately, Bryan and Odoi will always have mistakes in them and we need to accept that. To compare them to the likes of Hangerland etc is pointless because hands down they lose out in their defensive duties. Scott Parker did say something that makes sense, and that was to keep hold of the ball much more than the opposition and wear down the opposition is a big part of our defending. Not sure his exact words but you get the gist. We need to be careful, especially in January. Bring in too many players to cover whoever might upset the apple-cart. If we decide that the likes of Christie is not good enough, we need to ship him out in January. Thats my thoughts on this very interesting subject. Sure beats talking about Bristol and Brentford...
posted by OWEN (Guest) - Monday 02nd December 2019, 7:55 PM
What balance would that be? We are chaotic at the back for most of every game, odd cameo apperanaces apart. Ream does not command the center, neither does Mawson, who hasn't made the hoped for impact. The full backs have their problems but goals are scored from the center and the central pair are prone to ball watching and too slow to react when the ball is behind them. They repeatedly let opposition players get between them and the ball and lose more headed challenges than they win. Simply not good enough. Change the central pair in January and the full backs in the summer and try and find a balance that creates confidence in the midfield going forward. This is hardly a new or unexpected problem; watch last year's videos for evidence of that.
posted by The Arizonan - Monday 02nd December 2019, 8:21 PM
Arizonan' we will never be the best defensively and every team knows that now. I was Parkers biggest critic and i might be so again if things go badly after these 6 games. Maybe i am hoping and wanting us to find a balance too much? Maybe that balance was being shown playing against Derby? We will never be perfect and we will always have that defensive flaw, and maybe Parker has found that balance which is a combination of quick-tempo attack and keep ball? Knowing that the more we keep it, the opposition is limited. Okay this is nothing new and it sounds almost laughable, but throw into the mix Bobby Reid from the start and one AK-47, which might add to the balance we are trying to work out. I would like your thoughts on Kamara now he has found his feet. Did it surprise you when Kamara turned up at QPR with 2 goals and MOTM? Again Derby did not know who to mark on either side. Alfie Mawson will be awesome, he just needed a lot more time with too many injuries.
posted by OWEN (Guest) - Monday 02nd December 2019, 9:10 PM