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Matt Morriss

Howson!!!

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The culmination of Hughton''s negative, defensive tactics is epitomised most with whats happened with Johnny Howson.

I noticed something strange about him at the Borussia game and of course again v Fulham. And it seems to me the training and instruction given to Howson is the fulcrum of our failings and focal point for me. He looks a shadow of his former self and a totally different player.

He''s obviously been instructed by Hughton and Calderwood to totally abandon his natural game, not play to his strengths whatsoever and been told to ''not cross the halfway line, your now a holding midfielder''.

Its literally like Hughton has said to him, Johnny I dont want you to play as you did last season or as we all know you can, I dont want you to bomb forward and try to win the game for us by scoring or creating any chances. I want you to never cross the half way line and sit in front the of back four with Bradley and just play the simple pass. Dont take any chances at all and dont you dare try and take on a few players and bang one in the top corner, or play a 45 yard pass out to the wing and then bust a gut to get in the box and score a goal. Even tho I know you could do that, I dont want you to.

No Johnny, YOU WILL SIT IN FRONT OF THE BACK FOUR AND DEFEND WITH BRADLEY.

This along with the isolation of Holt are the biggest errors for me so far from Hughton. The team should be built around Howson and Holt. We need the ball to be near Grant Holt as much as possible as his hold up play and link play is excellent and the reason we have had the success we have. He brings others into the game, gives the defense a rest and above all else keeps the ball away from our goal! The longer the ball stays in their final third the more chance we have of pushing the defense up and getting midfielders around Holt and the ball, this then equates to increased possession and ball time spent in their box rather than ours.

Playing Holt on his own up front and shackling Johnny Howson, the man selected to link defense and attack, is a recipe for disaster, and Delia wont be amused.

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I saw him getting forward?

And also, Howson was at his best last season when he wasn''t bombing forward. His contribution in the middle, rather the final 1/3 was what he did best.

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I thought Howson was at his best last season when he utilised in a deeper role. Effectively acting as a deep lying playmaker picking the ball up off the back four. But we just overwhelmed in midfield so he was never able to to do that today.

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No, everyone was poor yesterday.

What is his natural game? Last season he was best when he held the middle, he can get forward and he can sit in-front of the defence. But he is best when he plays a mixture of the three. Yesterday he didn''t just sit in-front of the defence. But everyone was rubbish.

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[quote user="Gingerpele"]I saw him getting forward? And also, Howson was at his best last season when he wasn''t bombing forward. His contribution in the middle, rather the final 1/3 was what he did best.[/quote]

 

Sorry GP .... but the other posters and commentator are right .... yesterday he looked very unfit. The commentator often said "Howson is just standing again with his hands on his hips " and during the Borussia game , he was missing for 15 minutes at a time ,,, not even touching the ball .Something has  gone badly wrong over the summer, we can surmise all kinds of reasons,,,, its nonsense to say that the  poor showing during pre season were" not important" and that " pre season is purely  for fitness and tactics training " .....but the fact is that after yesterdays showing it would seem that none of that actually happened ! Howson was not the only one who stood out as poor and hapless .... but the others have no defense against just criticism either.

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Agree totally on the fitness point.So rather than presume allsorts, could we give him the benefit of the doubt, and consider his is carrying a small injury / isn''t fully fit yet?Maybe?

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[quote user="Huckerbys Boots - Matt"]The culmination of Hughton''s negative, defensive tactics is epitomised most with whats happened with Johnny Howson.

I noticed something strange about him at the Borussia game and of course again v Fulham. And it seems to me the training and instruction given to Howson is the fulcrum of our failings and focal point for me. He looks a shadow of his former self and a totally different player.

He''s obviously been instructed by Hughton and Calderwood to totally abandon his natural game, not play to his strengths whatsoever and been told to ''not cross the halfway line, your now a holding midfielder''.

Its literally like Hughton has said to him, Johnny I dont want you to play as you did last season or as we all know you can, I dont want you to bomb forward and try to win the game for us by scoring or creating any chances. I want you to never cross the half way line and sit in front the of back four with Bradley and just play the simple pass. Dont take any chances at all and dont you dare try and take on a few players and bang one in the top corner, or play a 45 yard pass out to the wing and then bust a gut to get in the box and score a goal. Even tho I know you could do that, I dont want you to.

No Johnny, YOU WILL SIT IN FRONT OF THE BACK FOUR AND DEFEND WITH BRADLEY.

This along with the isolation of Holt are the biggest errors for me so far from Hughton. The team should be built around Howson and Holt. We need the ball to be near Grant Holt as much as possible as his hold up play and link play is excellent and the reason we have had the success we have. He brings others into the game, gives the defense a rest and above all else keeps the ball away from our goal! The longer the ball stays in their final third the more chance we have of pushing the defense up and getting midfielders around Holt and the ball, this then equates to increased possession and ball time spent in their box rather than ours.

Playing Holt on his own up front and shackling Johnny Howson, the man selected to link defense and attack, is a recipe for disaster, and Delia wont be amused.[/quote]I don''t think Howson was shackled  - I think a lot of people are expecting way too much of him ! Howson is merely a decent championship player and nothing more however some fans believe he is better than he actually is and therefore have create a false expectation of him. He hasn''t done himself any favours by publicly announcing he wanted to follow Ruddy into the England team !He is a handy player who is competent in all skill areas, gives 100 percent everytime he plays but lacks the most important ingredient - the ability to break down premiership defences. This was evident when he came into the side in March of last season (as an attacking midfielder), our results declined sharply, shots & goal scoring chances in a game were down to an bare minimum - Lambert needed to reinstate the likes of hoolahan to consolidate results.The state of play against at the Borussia Monchengladbach confirm my concerns about creativity from midfield. When the same midfield pairing was picked for Fulham - my heart said "we had a chance" but my head said "we had no show !"  I have heard people saying a lot of "it''s basically the same team as last year against Fulham - whats gone wrong ?" with an accusing finger on Hughton ! Well its not the same team !. Besides Ruddy in goal & Holt at centre forward - its a completely different team. Midfield (the most important component) - missing are Hoolahan, Fox & Elliot Bennett who were responsible for accummulating most of our points last year. The backline is worse than last year - we have lost Naughton, Whitbread & Drury.Howson have had good games for us at the tail end of last season, playing in a defensive midfield role and playing well alongside Hoolahan when he was in the side. Also I''d like to add that playing in the "hole" is a specialist position - not any Tom, Dick & Harry can play there effectively. I just hope people would stop thinking Howson is the be & end all of our team because when reality sinks in those people are in for a shock !!!But excuses for poor performances such as Hughton wouldn''t let him attack just won''t wash - pull the other one ! Howson simply hasn''t got the necessary attributes for that position !.I suggest to Hughton if he can''t buy anyone that is a lynchpin in midfield, try Hoolahan & Fox when they come back from injury.   

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[quote user="Six Pack"][quote user="Huckerbys Boots - Matt"]The culmination of Hughton''s negative, defensive tactics is epitomised most with whats happened with Johnny Howson.

I noticed something strange about him at the Borussia game and of course again v Fulham. And it seems to me the training and instruction given to Howson is the fulcrum of our failings and focal point for me. He looks a shadow of his former self and a totally different player.

He''s obviously been instructed by Hughton and Calderwood to totally abandon his natural game, not play to his strengths whatsoever and been told to ''not cross the halfway line, your now a holding midfielder''.

Its literally like Hughton has said to him, Johnny I dont want you to play as you did last season or as we all know you can, I dont want you to bomb forward and try to win the game for us by scoring or creating any chances. I want you to never cross the half way line and sit in front the of back four with Bradley and just play the simple pass. Dont take any chances at all and dont you dare try and take on a few players and bang one in the top corner, or play a 45 yard pass out to the wing and then bust a gut to get in the box and score a goal. Even tho I know you could do that, I dont want you to.

No Johnny, YOU WILL SIT IN FRONT OF THE BACK FOUR AND DEFEND WITH BRADLEY.

This along with the isolation of Holt are the biggest errors for me so far from Hughton. The team should be built around Howson and Holt. We need the ball to be near Grant Holt as much as possible as his hold up play and link play is excellent and the reason we have had the success we have. He brings others into the game, gives the defense a rest and above all else keeps the ball away from our goal! The longer the ball stays in their final third the more chance we have of pushing the defense up and getting midfielders around Holt and the ball, this then equates to increased possession and ball time spent in their box rather than ours.

Playing Holt on his own up front and shackling Johnny Howson, the man selected to link defense and attack, is a recipe for disaster, and Delia wont be amused.[/quote]I don''t think Howson was shackled  - I think a lot of people are expecting way too much of him ! Howson is merely a decent championship player and nothing more however some fans believe he is better than he actually is and therefore have create a false expectation of him. He hasn''t done himself any favours by publicly announcing he wanted to follow Ruddy into the England team !He is a handy player who is competent in all skill areas, gives 100 percent everytime he plays but lacks the most important ingredient - the ability to break down premiership defences. This was evident when he came into the side in March of last season (as an attacking midfielder), our results declined sharply, shots & goal scoring chances in a game were down to an bare minimum - Lambert needed to reinstate the likes of hoolahan to consolidate results.The state of play against at the Borussia Monchengladbach confirm my concerns about creativity from midfield. When the same midfield pairing was picked for Fulham - my heart said "we had a chance" but my head said "we had no show !"  I have heard people saying a lot of "it''s basically the same team as last year against Fulham - whats gone wrong ?" with an accusing finger on Hughton ! Well its not the same team !. Besides Ruddy in goal & Holt at centre forward - its a completely different team. Midfield (the most important component) - missing are Hoolahan, Fox & Elliot Bennett who were responsible for accummulating most of our points last year. The backline is worse than last year - we have lost Naughton, Whitbread & Drury.Howson have had good games for us at the tail end of last season, playing in a defensive midfield role and playing well alongside Hoolahan when he was in the side. Also I''d like to add that playing in the "hole" is a specialist position - not any Tom, Dick & Harry can play there effectively. I just hope people would stop thinking Howson is the be & end all of our team because when reality sinks in those people are in for a shock !!!But excuses for poor performances such as Hughton wouldn''t let him attack just won''t wash - pull the other one ! Howson simply hasn''t got the necessary attributes for that position !.I suggest to Hughton if he can''t buy anyone that is a lynchpin in midfield, try Hoolahan & Fox when they come back from injury.   

[/quote]
You make some really good points and your post was overall a good one. However, I disagree.

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Howson didn''t look fit or happy, but did any of the team on Saturday? How many players looked as though they were playing for the manager?

My hunch is that the players are not happy in the way they are being coached in relation the coaching staff of last season. We need to tighten up, that''s for sure, but not to the extent that it suppresses our natural attacking flair we had under PL.

If we have so many unfit players, then why?

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It''s much harder physically to be chasing a game rather than controlling it and it was damn hot on Saturday, I''m sure fitness levels aren''t as bad as they may have appeared.

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