CurryFlavoured
Established Member
Our midfield is so overrated, we regularly are put on the back foot because we're second best in midfield.
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EPL: Crystal Palace v Arsenal, 16/08/15 , 13:30, SS1
- Thread starter RuskyAdam
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Triniboy
Active Member
I agree with this ^^ I feel like each time we have played good passing teams like Dortmund etc we have been second best at controlling the midfield. This is why I think we need to improve on our build up from the defence out. However, we seem to play our best when we counter, so if we can practice a lot more finishing rather than passing etc and become more clinical on the break i think we will improve a lot.
Bould14
Well-Known Member
To be honest besides Cazorla our midfield isn't as highly technical as we like to believe. We should try being more direct with the ball, but with Coq as our only DM it leaves us vulnerable.
Our midfield is definitely no longer as dominant as it once was and we are more counter-attack orientated. I think the tricky part is that we do not have players who we can routinely rely on to counter effectively and efficiently. It is a bit too much of a free-for-all.
If you think about the great PL counterattacking partnerships, e.g. Pires/Henry, Ronaldo/Rooney, Gerrard/Torres, you just need 2-3 players who you know will bury any chance to counter. They need to have an almost telepathic relationship.
Özil should be central to any current partnership but we all know Giroud is too slow, Walcott isn't playing much, Ox hasn't shown enough goal scoring pedigree, Alexis is sometimes too busy for his own sakes so isn't always in position, and Ramsey is better suited to being the 3rd man in a counter, arriving late in the box.
When we counter and Özil is leading, I am not sure when he picks up his head for a pass whether he knows who he expects to see ahead of him and where they are going to be. In contrast, at Real, he knew that as soon as he had the ball in the middle of the park in a countering situation, Ronaldo and Benezema would both be bombing straight passed him, one drifting to the wing, one going straight down the middle.
If you think about the great PL counterattacking partnerships, e.g. Pires/Henry, Ronaldo/Rooney, Gerrard/Torres, you just need 2-3 players who you know will bury any chance to counter. They need to have an almost telepathic relationship.
Özil should be central to any current partnership but we all know Giroud is too slow, Walcott isn't playing much, Ox hasn't shown enough goal scoring pedigree, Alexis is sometimes too busy for his own sakes so isn't always in position, and Ramsey is better suited to being the 3rd man in a counter, arriving late in the box.
When we counter and Özil is leading, I am not sure when he picks up his head for a pass whether he knows who he expects to see ahead of him and where they are going to be. In contrast, at Real, he knew that as soon as he had the ball in the middle of the park in a countering situation, Ronaldo and Benezema would both be bombing straight passed him, one drifting to the wing, one going straight down the middle.
Coolin
Doesn't appreciate the mighty Nacho
This is why we should have Walcott and Sanchez flanking Giroud. No team in the world wants Walcott and Sanchez running the channels on a counter, while Özil's picking up speed with the ball at his feet.
Country: Canada
Disagree. We're regularly put on the back foot because our forwards don't score the goals they should damn well score.
The first half of the CP game was complete midfield control - if we were 2/3-0 in that first 20 minutes as we should have been then it would have been a procession.
CurryFlavoured
Established Member
If they score they score but thats no excuse for our midfield losing control. Saying we'd have stayed in control is a guess, more likely we'd have sat back and invited pressure IMO. We lack physicality (see West Ham) and Coq+Ramsey's aren't always the tidiest when it comes to ball retention.
Country: Canada
PL is all about momentum - we're not Bayern Munich who have almost total control for the entire 90 minutes. When we're dominating an opponent, especially away from home you have to make it count on the scoreboard.
What's wrong with sitting back when you're 2/3-0 up? Every team does it, especially away from home.
What's wrong with sitting back when you're 2/3-0 up? Every team does it, especially away from home.
CurryFlavoured
Established Member
Nothing wrong with it but you've missed my point, and the fact is we lost control of midfield when the game was competitive. Not the first or the last time either. And you don't have to be Bayern Munich to dominate midfield for most of the game against Palace or WH, home or away.
Country: Canada
Yeah I agree to some extent but it's a chicken or the egg situation for mine - we convert our chances, essentially put the game to bed and then we're not having this discussion are we?
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