BarcelonaCanary

Perfect time and run of fixtures to go on a run. Time to replace Todd with Mario though

Nice to see Buendia in and adding to the overall fear/hesitancy of the opposition. With Vrancic instead of Cantwell (the ineffective show pony) I think we can stay up and get 6 wins at home. Mario is the reason we went on the run this time last year and he’s by far more dangerous and durable than Cantwell.

Krul Aarons Zim Hanley Lewis Godfrey McClean Buendia Vrancic Duda Pukki Rest Cantwell (Vrancic & Buendia deserve), Tettey (quality), Rupp (Delivery)

TEAM FOR TOMORROW: Krul Aarons Godfrey Zimmerman Hanley Byram McClean Tettey Vrancic Buendia Pukki 5311 Thoughts? - 5 at back so we always have 3 backtracking if wing back bomb on. Godfrey for pace in the 3. - Only width needed from full backs but they should be defensive minded. - Cantwell too lightweight and indirect so out - Vrancic deserves it and can unlock them. - Aim to release Buendia and Pukki on break. Get ball to Vrancic/Buendia as soon as possible - Sit deep and use the break and break with optimal pace and most direct route. Pukki on last defender for entire 90.

Good to see that we have enough strength in depth to let a player of his quality leave. He’d be in my squad ahead of Marco S all day though as back up number 10 / advanced 8. Seems to be another case of Nelson Olivera ego battle though.... and on that note could Nelson have been the difference between us being 17th or above at this stage if Herr F managed egos better?

It’s come at a good time!! Have to aim for 4 points from next 2 games!!

Vrancic has to start. Cantwell is a number 10 not a winger. We need direct quick breaks with solid strong players to stay up. Hernandez proved a really strong outlet at Burnley, but we need strong deep lying midfield to support him as he’s a woeful defensively, as is Cantwell. Buendia and Vrancic are magic and just need to play through them and Pukki, with rest of team supporting them... that’s the formula for 7+ more wins

Krul Aarons Zimmermann Hanley Byram McClean Trybul Vrancic Buendía Hernandez Pukki

Brilliant performance. Vrancic transforms us. We can stay up playing like that and with Pukki, Cantwell, Godfrey and Buendia to come in! Got to target 3 points at Newcastle

Imagine where we would be if we had the culture and killer edge to kill teams off. Our best team is 3 in midfield with Vrancic, Trybul/Tettey, McClean. Then two or three ahead of them depending on the opposition with 4 or 5 at back.

I thought we lacked the quality again to see them off. Duda and Rupp aren’t special at this level. Cantwell looked our best player, but his tracking back on second goal was criminal. Pukki should have put us 2-0 up. Opportunity squandered again. Going down unless there is a remarkable tactical switch

I’d love to see 5 at the back and two deep midfielders to grind out a draw, maybe even snatch 3 points, but it will probably be another repeat of the Man Utd away performance, if we base the forecast on the recent past. Spurs play along the flaw with 3 quick forwards, without Kane, so that’s prime slow defenders over exposed mode 🤯

Krul Aarons, Zimmerman, Hanley, Amadou, Lewis McClean, Tettey, Duda Cantwell Pukki

Totally agree with this, but would that 60 min slump happen with 5 at back, 2 in holding midfield and then 2 behind and Pukki as the outlets? 3 attacking midfielders isn’t needed and would be better putting another at the back so wing backs have cover to bomb on, especially now Hanley will probably come back in who needs support, especially on oppo breaks?

I agree it certainly is

Amen. Any other manager would be gone by now with this seasons results and most important lack of tactic quality, which has given away 14 points from leads and taken NO points from a losing position. Farke has no plan B. Yes we’ve brought through £100m + of talent and yes we can play sexy football going forward at times, but this is schoolboy management. I’d like Webber to remain and even have Farke stay as coach (as he’s a nice guy and clearly gets on well with players), but tactical decisions are woeful and we need a manager with a plan B.

We can blame VAR as much as we like but the simple facts are that the owners don’t support the club enough to achieve the required player quality, while Farke (another punt which has paid off in the championship) lacks the tactics required to deliver in the premier league. Maybe £100m in from transfers this summer + parachutes will allow the club to go up and stay up, but every time we go up, we don’t stay up as the managers arent good enough tactically so get schooled.

It must be so easy planning to play against Norwich as an oppo manager. Strikers must think its Christmas again playing against Hanley in the Premier League. Definitely not going to stay up with these tactics and lack of quality. Reliant on one striker in the squad and have the likes of Hanley and Tettey in the team who are championship level at best. I do worry that although we will make £100m in transfers Farke lacks the tactics to shut up shop and concede less than we score. I think we need an experienced premier league manager, perhaps its time to look at Allardyce or Houghton.

Really lacking in the right tactics and the required quality today. Hanley is a donkey and Tettey is poor quality. Should Hernandez been given a chance as a number 9 today?

* Get all 3 for that money Mitrovic - £20m + Leitner and Drmic Wanyama £7.5m (perhaps linked to Aarons deal as a sweetener) Worral - £7.5m + throw in a skip full of Delia’s Complete Cookery Course Signed Books

Ay a ay, he’s our midfield maestro Ay a ay, he never gives the ball awayyyyy.... Composed, direct and dynamic Trybul Vs Tettey who is very poor on the ball and prone to mistakes. I would make a showreel of Tettey unforced errors which lead to goals if I had the time, probably with the Trybul song as the theme tune to the video. Yes Tettey does break up play fairly well and he’s definitely improved this season, specially in releasing the ball faster and passing it forward. In terms of footballing quality through I can’t wait to see him leave. Wanyama over Tom and Tettey all day, but will our owners ever sanction a proven top class players coming in? Will that be the failure? Farke has done amazingly with small budgets, finding gems but for me that’s a good approach for attacking flare, but for me there should be no speculation on core defensive players... Get proven rocks in and give the attacking flare the confidence and shield they need. I’d put money on us staying up if we had 5 at the back, Wanyama, another top cb and Mitrovic (Not the £35m it will cost, but money nonetheless). Why not sell Aarons and Cantwell, loan them back for 6 months and get this done?

Our two centre backs get overrun overrun on the oppo breaks and are clutching at straws due to formation primarily, which is why we’ve given away 14 leading points. In terms of quality Godfrey is in a different league to Hanley... Hanley is a mediocre championship player. If we play two at the back this week with Hanley in that two he will get schooled by Man Utd as they play fast break along the floor. Can Hanley mark a donkey with the ball in the air... yes (Wesley and Wickham). I can’t count how many back post headers we have conceded from sub 6ft wing backs not bossing the back post, so lets give that to one of the three cbs. The point of my response was that our cbs need better cover as do our wing backs... A back 5 in defence and 3-5 in attack is the way forward, without a doubt.... The 14 points thrown away are primarily down to tactics and secondly down to individual flaws/mistakes (which are laid bare less by better tactics). Godfrey is one of the best U21 centre backs in the world and definitely England, but yes he does need support and to improve his decision making.

Godfrey - Underrated. Can't rate him higher for his age. Hanley - Very poor other than positionally and in the air. Average Championship level. I'd rather have seen Raggett as a backup. Zimmerman - Very good overall but some poor decisions. Klose - Really top quality, so top quality he can seem nonchalant. Amadou - He was amazing against Man City, ut probably not composed enough to play with 4 at back. We've given away 14 points from winning positions. I feel we should be playing only one deep-lying midfielder as a proper devoted CDM, with 3 center backs and two wing-backs. Leaving 4 to attack, giving the full-backs a better chance to bomb on, with the knowledge they will have 4-5 behind them. Most of our goals conceded have been from back post headers and fast breaks leaving the two center-backs overloaded. For me had we played this formation or even deployed it in a winning position we'd be well away from the relegation zone. The current tactic sees the likes of Hernandez coming on as an "outlet" but within a few minutes, he's forced back to cover their right-winger. We need to play football through our exceptional wing-backs and Vrancic, Buendia and Pukki, as those 3-5 are enough to unlock any team. I find it pretty frustrating Farke hasn't done this yet. My first team would be: Krul Aarons Godfrey Zimmerman Klose Lewis Trybul Vrancic McClean (Or Duda) Buendia Pukki I would also make it a priority signing Wanyama, Joe Worrall and Mitrovic in the Jan transfer window. I wouldn’t have Tettey or Hanley near the squad as they aren't high enough quality and have clear weaknesses (Prone to errors and poor footballing quality vs too slow in recovery). Mitrovic in our squad would make a world of difference as he could come on in the 65th minute to turn the game and make the other team worry, rather than bringing on a weak outlet like Onel. Krul (Butland worth a signing) Aarons Godfrey Worral Klose Lewis Wanyama Vrancic Duda (McClean away from home) Buendia Pukki (or Mitrovic in tough positions) For me, with these defensive tactics, we'd be thinking about getting top 10. "The philosophy" is a little bit blinkered and needs adjusting, a tad. Keen to hear peoples opinions... I know I don't post much and I'm a newbie 😛

I couldn’t agree more. If we’d played this formation from the start of the season we’d be mid table by now. It’s mad that Farke didn’t change to a 541 in recent games after we went ahead, to hold onto the lead. Instead he brought on players like Hernandez as an outlet, who don’t support the defence or worry the opposition too much. Although I love the attacking play, Farke clearly lacks the defensive tactics to grind out key points, while I’m tired of reliance on a predictably weak 4231. 541 in defence and 353 in attack suits us so well, as the only width we need is from the wing backs. Our quality comes down the middle of the pitch through Cantwell, Buendia and Pukki (perhaps also Vrancic in some games). IMO Farke should be focusing on not conceding and supporting the exceptional 3 to do their thing.