29 Wed UEFA Champions League A Manchester United 19:45

[sabret00the]

Fabregas was s**t at the start of the season because he was s**t while carrying an injury, it had f**k all to do with his partner who generally outperformed him game after game.

Try reading my post sabre. I said Cesc was sh*t, but he wasn't helped by having Denilson alongside him. I wasn't blaming Cesc's sh*tness on Denilson.

So then why mention it? What does one player being **** have to do with another? Adebayor was **** last night because he was ****. Not because he never had enough service, but simply because he looked like he was playing in the Emirates cup rather than the Champions League.

 

[Mbaki Mutahaba]

Ade upped his effort as the game progressed but it became quite clear that vidic and rio were out of his league. Wenger needs a striker to go with the cm and cd he needs. This team needs work. I think we are quite alarmingly far away from competing for the league. Wenger thinks he can 'cheat' his way to a trophy through the cup competitions but this season has seen that strategy fail because we'v come up against quality opposition.

eduardo would be a far better option alone up front. unlike adebayor, he is actually able to link up with the midfielders and provide the midfielders with a viable passing outlet up front.

Eduardo, the loneman..cmon now.Bentdner is the only other option after Ade. Eduardo is a finisher and its stops there.

 

[Mbaki Mutahaba]

There was nothing wrong with Wenger's tactics or team selection.

He failed to make a real impact from the subs bench though, as is often the case.

Well substitutions are a very important part of match tactics as well as setting out a particular team for a particular purpose- That's why Hiddink will win the CL and Wenger won't.

So Hiddink is tactically better because Chelsea got a lucky 0-0 where as we got a lucky 1-0.

That makes no sense both of our teams could have easily got blown off the pitch irrespective of the 'particular reason' that they entered it for.

On this forum, a successful tactical formation is based on the day's results which shows the level of understanding we have of this game. Chelsea could not string 5 passes together and it wasnt due to the pressure of Barca. Drogba was as isolated as anything with Pique/Marque as the CBs. But at A-M, Hiddink is a genius and Wenger an idiot. We put so much emphasis on tactics like as if this is a robotic game where you set formation/tactic then everything else stays the same. Cmon, there is much more in a win/loss than TACTICS. Much much more. It starts with 11 players implementing what they are told.

 

[Anzac]

It starts with the manager getting his match day formation, selection & game tactics right.

 

[asajoseph]

No, it starts with the tactics, and it starts with coaching, and it starts with selection.

If you get that bit right, then you talk about whether the players picked on the day did their jobs.

I don't think the 4-5-1 is, as a concept, an awful formation. But we really, really don't have the players to execute it, and nor did we seem particularly well coached to deal with the way that Utd played.

 

[Anzac]

No, it starts with the tactics, and it starts with coaching, and it starts with selection.

If you get that bit right, then you talk about whether the players picked on the day did their jobs.

I don't think the 4-5-1 is, as a concept, an awful formation. But we really, really don't have the players to execute it, and nor did we seem particularly well coached to deal with the way that Utd played.

Actually yeah it DOES start LONG before we get to Match Day - and I've been saying the fundamentals have been unbalanced for as long as I've been here.

 

[hackajack]

We just watched as they flooded Song and Nasri, pushing 3 CMs right on to them. Cesc need to drop deep and match it up until we saw off their opening burst.

 

[patrick42uk]

Ade upped his effort as the game progressed but it became quite clear that vidic and rio were out of his league. Wenger needs a striker to go with the cm and cd he needs. This team needs work. I think we are quite alarmingly far away from competing for the league. Wenger thinks he can 'cheat' his way to a trophy through the cup competitions but this season has seen that strategy fail because we'v come up against quality opposition.

eduardo would be a far better option alone up front. unlike adebayor, he is actually able to link up with the midfielders and provide the midfielders with a viable passing outlet up front.

Eduardo, the loneman..cmon now.Bentdner is the only other option after Ade. Eduardo is a finisher and its stops there.

I see where Kel's coming from. I dont think you ncecessarily need a tall striker as the lone forward, especially when said striker cant keep the ball when its played up to him. Bendtne is even worse. Eduardo is great at making himself available for the ball and adept at maintaining posession. Even in the 10 or so minutes he was on for, we saw this.

 

[asajoseph]

Bendtner has put in a lot of better performances than Ade did last night.

But what was he supposed to do when he kept having the ball knocked in to him without a supporting player in sight?

There's a lot more to this than just a few players having an 'off night'.

 

[Anzac]

Nik ISN'T a lone striker - he's a better link man, he can't keep the ball for himself as his 1st touch in that scenario is way too heavy.

 

[henry79]

to play that formation wether you play fabregas or nasri as an AM you need a killer striker

just because of 30 goals in 1 season doesnt make you wrold class he is a 1 hit wonder as I said last season. we need a world class striker to play that formation the guy drifts off to the left or right when he is supposed to stay central!!!!he never works hard, dont give me the rest of the team we poor thats why he didnt have chances crap regardless of that he should work hard he should make it harder for the defenders.instead he is just static just standing there.

I would rather start eduardo that him to be honest.

 

[Meek]

Damn its been a long time since I posted on Arsenal-Mania. over a year now. It is good to be back though. Not an ideal performance from our team to be fair. but it could have been a lot worse (but for Almunia). I still think we have a good chance in going through.

one thing I will say though. our players need to start taking some action. walcott and adebayor have been doing a lot of talking lately and quite frankly they are not backing up their words on the pitch. wenger to needs to realise fabregas is not an AMC. he MUST move him back to CM. Eduardo should start to and perhaps that way adebayor will have the hunger to come on and actually do something. I hope van persie is fit. a lot of hoping with various things. it is up to wenger to do something.

 

[sabret00the]

I have no idea when you all became brainwashed in the way you are but a strikers primary job is to finish play not link it.

 

[Anzac]

Damn its been a long time since I posted on Arsenal-Mania. over a year now. It is good to be back though. Not an ideal performance from our team to be fair. but it could have been a lot worse (but for Almunia). I still think we have a good chance in going through.

Welcome back - why you been gone so long?????

 

[Meek]

thanks Anzac. to be fair its been a mix of both things. work is one aspect. however, i have not stopped watching arsenal matches. another factor is that a lot of people on here have knee-jerk reactions. i see a lot has changed in the forum set-up though.

 

[Don Pacifico]

I have no idea when you all became brainwashed in the way you are but a strikers primary job is to finish play not link it.

Let's be honest though Sabre, Ade (and any of our other strikers with the possible exception of Eduardo) shouldn't be playing lone ranger. There's nothing wrong with forwards linking play in preference to finishing, so long as we actually have a striker on the pitch that can finish.

 

[Meek]

Damn its been a long time since I posted on Arsenal-Mania. over a year now. It is good to be back though. Not an ideal performance from our team to be fair. but it could have been a lot worse (but for Almunia). I still think we have a good chance in going through.

Welcome back - why you been gone so long?????

by the way- we do have one thing in common. we both public servants. lol.

 

[Anzac]

thanks Anzac. to be fair its been a mix of both things. work is one aspect. however, i have not stopped watching arsenal matches. another factor is that a lot of people on here have knee-jerk reactions. i see a lot has changed in the forum set-up though.

All's good - new upgrade to the site, but it's even better when we have 'old' members returning after a period of absence. I wouldn't let the knee jerk brigade put you off - some of the fights in here are better than the levels of committment we've seen on the pitch these past seasons!!!!!! :wink:

 

[sabret00the]

I have no idea when you all became brainwashed in the way you are but a strikers primary job is to finish play not link it.

Let's be honest though Sabre, Ade (and any of our other strikers with the possible exception of Eduardo) shouldn't be playing lone ranger. There's nothing wrong with forwards linking play in preference to finishing, so long as we actually have a striker on the pitch that can finish.

To be fair, i was always firmly against using a striker as a link up player, even during Bergkamp's reign. But at least then we had two dedicated finishers on the pitch at any one time. Now we don't have a single one.

 

[kel varnsen]

Ade upped his effort as the game progressed but it became quite clear that vidic and rio were out of his league. Wenger needs a striker to go with the cm and cd he needs. This team needs work. I think we are quite alarmingly far away from competing for the league. Wenger thinks he can 'cheat' his way to a trophy through the cup competitions but this season has seen that strategy fail because we'v come up against quality opposition.

eduardo would be a far better option alone up front. unlike adebayor, he is actually able to link up with the midfielders and provide the midfielders with a viable passing outlet up front.

Eduardo, the loneman..cmon now.Bentdner is the only other option after Ade. Eduardo is a finisher and its stops there.

eduardo is intelligent, mobile, quick and technically gifted. a low centre of gravity as well. everything you need in a lone striker.

the point of the "target man", is to be a target. not necessarily hold up the ball and wait for the team to push up. it is to link up with the midfielders. how you accomplish that, can vary.