2 up front

[Dean Coneys boots 1,531]

I really wish we would play 2 up front.

That is all.

[Iwans Big Toe 382]

Yet more insightful tactical analysis by DCB.Many thanks for your contributions to this message board.

[The gut 0]

If it wasn''t going to happen tonight heaven only knows what will prompt it.

The game was crying out for it tonight. We could have risked a swap with one of our army of defenders for the whole of the game, the second half, the last half hour, last 20, last 15 or at least the last 10. But no. Hard to see what would make him change his tactic.

[Clint 221]

I agree. Plus two wingers.

[The gut 0]

But surely you must agree with the sentiment Iwans big toe?

[Feedthewolf 5,885]

[quote user="Dean Coneys boots"]I really wish we would play 2 up front.

That is all.[/quote]It''s not going to happen. Farke prefers a possession-based philosophy, and putting two up front makes dominating possession a lot more difficult.Tonight was very frustrating I agree, but everyone was complaining that we were getting rolled over too easily and at least we''ve now kept back-to-back clean sheets. Could have made substitutions a little earlier, and maybe gone two up top for the last ten minutes, but there are going to be plenty more frustrations before he gets the balance right I fear.If you change a dozen of your first-team squad and try to implement a completely different style of football, it''s never going to work overnight. We no longer have a ''great'' squad on paper, but most of the overpaid players have gone and there have been decent signs from a fair few of the new signings. Gunn, Zimmermann, Stiepermann, Reed and Trybull have all looked pretty good IMO, Franke wasn''t too bad, only Husband and Vrancic have been really disappointing so far. That''s not a bad return, and Hanley should prove an astute signing.No one is expecting us to finish in the top two this season, so let''s just keep our eyes peeled for signs of improvement and try to support the team we all love, eh?

[Branston Pickle 4,150]

You can play as many as you want up front and still fail to score if the shooting is as rooey as it was tonight: 18 shots, only two on target (though imo those stats are wrong)

[Dean Coneys boots 1,531]

I hear You "feed the wolf" however....

....will you be as measured and patient if we get ripped apart by the top teams in addition to struggling to beat the likes of Burton at home? I really do worry that we will be in big trouble if, at Christmas, we languish bottom half, our better players will want out and the board will need the cash. And then we will look very L1 indeed and could end up there

[Clint 221]

Most of those shots come out of frustration and were not really genuine shooting opportunities.

I''d say maybe 5 at best were clear shooting chances, the rest were more borne out of frustration than anything else as Murphy and Nelson weren''t getting any joy trying to play through the eye of a needle.

[Feedthewolf 5,885]

[quote user="Dean Coneys boots"]I hear You "feed the wolf" however....

....will you be as measured and patient if we get ripped apart by the top teams in addition to struggling to beat the likes of Burton at home? I really do worry that we will be in big trouble if, at Christmas, we languish bottom half, our better players will want out and the board will need the cash. And then we will look very L1 indeed and could end up there[/quote]Everyone''s patience has a limit. Of course we need to see signs of improvement, and a mid-table finish is the absolute minimum requirement for this season. However, he seems to have sorted the defence out, and with Klose back, Martin out and Hanley signing, I think we''ll be a lot less porous. He definitely needs to work on the cutting edge, though – we''re good at keeping possession for the most part, but not quite good enough to use that possession to cut through stubborn defences.I''m happy to keep the faith for a while yet, let''s give the guy a chance.

[AJ 1,359]

The main problem last night was lack of urgency. Half the time when we finally got the ball into the position it needed to be the chance was gone. We lack balance as we have one outlet in Murphy and nothing else. Half the time Wes got the ball he had zero attacking options so had to go backwards or sideways...

I''m not sure a second striker would have been the direct solution, but we''d certainly have been more likely to score with the number of crosses into the box where there was... no-one waiting for it. We absolutely didn''t need 2 holding midfielders last night, which was abundantly clear after the first 15 minutes and should have pushed one of them forwards or switched for an attacker.

We definitely need a right winger. Passing the ball into Oliveira or Murphy, who both seemed to be swamped by at least 2 defenders every time they got the ball, ended up with no results.

The hour mark onwards was just depressing with all those wayward shots. Subs came too late and we ended up out of ideas and in truth, never looked like scoring

[Feedthewolf 5,885]

[quote user="AJ"]The main problem last night was lack of urgency. Half the time when we finally got the ball into the position it needed to be the chance was gone. We lack balance as we have one outlet in Murphy and nothing else. Half the time Wes got the ball he had zero attacking options so had to go backwards or sideways...

I''m not sure a second striker would have been the direct solution, but we''d certainly have been more likely to score with the number of crosses into the box where there was... no-one waiting for it. We absolutely didn''t need 2 holding midfielders last night, which was abundantly clear after the first 15 minutes and should have pushed one of them forwards or switched for an attacker.

We definitely need a right winger. Passing the ball into Oliveira or Murphy, who both seemed to be swamped by at least 2 defenders every time they got the ball, ended up with no results.

The hour mark onwards was just depressing with all those wayward shots. Subs came too late and we ended up out of ideas and in truth, never looked like scoring[/quote]Ever since pre-season, crosses are not part of the way Farke wants to play. Getting in behind and cutting the ball back along the ground (or sometimes in the air) is the way he wants to play, rather that getting past a man and swinging aerial balls in from 20-30 yards out. Putting two wingers and two strikers in the team would be completely the opposite of how Farke wants the game to be played.Like it or not, two up top is distinctly unfashionable; Leicester won the title with it, but it requires a diametrically opposite tactical approach – cede possession to the opponent and look to hit them on the break. Farke just won''t do that, so it''s best to stop hoping for it to happen. He certainly seems to have more nous than Alex Neil, and we gave Neil more than two years in the job to learn. Farke will only get better once he understands the intricacies of the Championship, and once the players better understand the nuances of his tactical style.One final point – was Wildschut not really good when he came on and played from the right last night? Even if it''s only as an impact sub against tiring legs, he has the pace, strength, skill and directness to play a part this season IMO.

[Woodman 92]

I''ve said it elsewhere, but we lack pace at the moment. Only Murphy has genuine speed, Oliveira is ok once he gets going. Wildschut has it too and has done well as an impact sub.

With hindsight, bringing him on at 60-65 mins last night might have brought a better result, and would have enabled Oliveira to play more centrally instead of going searching for the ball out wide or near the halfway line, preventing him from getting into the box.

[Indy_Bones 444]

Oliveira had f**k all reason to be searching for the ball out wide or near the halfway line, his job is to be the focal point so that players like Wes, Murphy, Vrancic, Maddison et al, have someone to actually pass to and who should then be able to finish.A large chunk of the blame for us being toothless last night falls on Nelson''s shoulders IMHO.