|
Post by Deleted on Feb 18, 2013 15:26:12 GMT
It could be Martinez I guess, just recall them finding the likes of Palacios and Valencia under Bruce and Jewell so they must have some decent scouts. Always wondered how Martinez gets this reputation that sees him linked to big jobs when he isn't doing any better than his predecessors. Dan, Espinoza looks a wicked player. Rob I think it's worth noting the way Wigan play and that is another reason for his plaudits. They do play some great stuff. Do they really though? Conceding a lot, not scoring very many and being in the bottom three throughout the season doesn't seem especially 'great' however many pretty passes they play. Entertainment is important but not at the expense of results.
|
|
|
Post by scfcbiancorossi on Feb 18, 2013 15:33:04 GMT
Dan, Espinoza looks a wicked player. Rob I think it's worth noting the way Wigan play and that is another reason for his plaudits. They do play some great stuff. Do they really though? Conceding a lot, not scoring very many and being in the bottom three throughout the season doesn't seem especially 'great' however many pretty passes they play. Entertainment is important but not at the expense of results. Disagree slightly there mate. Wouldn't you prefer to finish 15 th playing decent entertaining, unpredictable football, or would you prefer to finish 11th playing dour hoofball? I know which one I'd go far. Results aren't the be all and end all. Being entertained is surely the least a fan should demand off players earning 30 k a week and more. My point is Martinez imo with a budget like ours, would keep us up comfortable enough but we would see much better football. Surely that's something you would be interested in Rob?
|
|
|
Post by onionman on Feb 18, 2013 15:40:51 GMT
At any given time over the past two or three years, Wigan have had at least five or six players who everyone agrees are miles better than ours, whether it's because of Martinez's cleverness in the transfer market, or their brilliant scouting system.
So for Wigan to be consistently miles behind us in the league table, especially when we're hardly pulling up any trees, suggests Martinez must be doing something bloody terrible with his tactics? Or maybe, as well as signing these brilliant players we all wish were at Stoke, he's also signing some pretty crap players?
He probably has strengths and weaknesses just like virtually every manager in the Premier League.
Swapping Pulis for Martinez would be a bit like a bloke who has a korma every Friday night deciding, for a change, to get a vindaloo. Just because it's the complete opposite of the thing you're a bit bored of, doesn't make it the right choice.
Certainly, a bhuna would be more sensible.
|
|
|
Post by bayernoatcake on Feb 18, 2013 15:41:55 GMT
At any given time over the past two or three years, Wigan have had at least five or six players who everyone agrees are miles better than ours, whether it's because of Martinez's cleverness in the transfer market, or their brilliant scouting system. So for Wigan to be consistently miles behind us in the league table, especially when we're hardly pulling up any trees, suggests Martinez must be doing something bloody terrible with his tactics? Or maybe, as well as signing these brilliant players we all wish were at Stoke, he's also signing some pretty crap players? He probably has strengths and weaknesses just like virtually every manager in the Premier League. Swapping Pulis for Martinez would be a bit like a bloke who has a korma every Friday night deciding, for a change, to get a vindaloo. Just because it's the complete opposite of the thing you're a bit bored of, doesn't make it the right choice. Certainly, a bhuna would be more sensible. Gary Caldwell.
|
|
|
Post by Deleted on Feb 18, 2013 15:49:52 GMT
Do they really though? Conceding a lot, not scoring very many and being in the bottom three throughout the season doesn't seem especially 'great' however many pretty passes they play. Entertainment is important but not at the expense of results. Disagree slightly there mate. Wouldn't you prefer to finish 15 th playing decent entertaining, unpredictable football, or would you prefer to finish 11th playing dour hoofball? I know which one I'd go far. Results aren't the be all and end all. Being entertained is surely the least a fan should demand off players earning 30 k a week and more. My point is Martinez imo with a budget like ours, would keep us up comfortable enough but we would see much better football. Surely that's something you would be interested in Rob? 'Better football' is in the eye of the beholder though isn't it Nick? I didn't enjoy the football under Boskamp any more than I did under Pulis for example. Plenty of people did, but I didn't. On a similar note, there's acres of middle ground between the Pulis way and the Martinez way. I reckon there are Wigan fans who wish their team had a bit more backbone at times and managed to start playing before the turn of the year. That's what I'd like -somewhere between the two, some grit and some flair. I remember a couple of journos touting Mowbray for manager of the season in our first season up because he 'stuck to his principles' while they went down with nary a whimper. It seemed ridiculous then and it still does now.
|
|
|
Post by lordb on Feb 18, 2013 15:52:07 GMT
Would our crowd tolerating long losing streaks like Martinez has had?
this isn't a criticism of Martinez by the way
|
|
|
Post by onionman on Feb 18, 2013 15:53:35 GMT
At any given time over the past two or three years, Wigan have had at least five or six players who everyone agrees are miles better than ours, whether it's because of Martinez's cleverness in the transfer market, or their brilliant scouting system. So for Wigan to be consistently miles behind us in the league table, especially when we're hardly pulling up any trees, suggests Martinez must be doing something bloody terrible with his tactics? Or maybe, as well as signing these brilliant players we all wish were at Stoke, he's also signing some pretty crap players? He probably has strengths and weaknesses just like virtually every manager in the Premier League. Swapping Pulis for Martinez would be a bit like a bloke who has a korma every Friday night deciding, for a change, to get a vindaloo. Just because it's the complete opposite of the thing you're a bit bored of, doesn't make it the right choice. Certainly, a bhuna would be more sensible. Gary Caldwell. He's solely to blame for Wigan consistently being down the bottom? ;D If Pulis handed over a solid but unspectacular team to Martinez, could he build on it from a creative point of view? The way Wenger built on the solid but unspectacular team he inherited from George Graham. Or would he do something crazy like sell Huth and replace him with a random long-haired centre-back from Ecuador who likes to dribble the ball out of defence? That would be my concern.
|
|
|
Post by bayernoatcake on Feb 18, 2013 15:54:26 GMT
He's solely to blame for Wigan consistently being down the bottom? ;D If Pulis handed over a solid but unspectacular team to Martinez, could he build on it from a creative point of view? The way Wenger built on the solid but unspectacular team he inherited from George Graham. Or would he do something crazy like sell Huth and replace him with a random long-haired centre-back from Ecuador who likes to dribble the ball out of defence? That would be my concern. He's that shit. Forgot the wink. ;D
|
|
|
Post by scfcbiancorossi on Feb 18, 2013 15:55:16 GMT
Disagree slightly there mate. Wouldn't you prefer to finish 15 th playing decent entertaining, unpredictable football, or would you prefer to finish 11th playing dour hoofball? I know which one I'd go far. Results aren't the be all and end all. Being entertained is surely the least a fan should demand off players earning 30 k a week and more. My point is Martinez imo with a budget like ours, would keep us up comfortable enough but we would see much better football. Surely that's something you would be interested in Rob? 'Better football' is in the eye of the beholder though isn't it Nick? I didn't enjoy the football under Boskamp any more than I did under Pulis for example. Plenty of people did, but I didn't. On a similar note, there's acres of middle ground between the Pulis way and the Martinez way. I reckon there are Wigan fans who wish their team had a bit more backbone at times and managed to start playing before the turn of the year. That's what I'd like -somewhere between the two, some grit and some flair. I remember a couple of journos touting Mowbray for manager of the season in our first season up because he 'stuck to his principles' while they went down with nary a whimper. It seemed ridiculous then and it still does now. Yeah fair enough. Its all about interpretation. Either way, we can certainly agree that the football should improve, after spending 100 million squid. I thought that team under Mobray really did lack "incision". Very dull on the eye despite their "sidewards passing" principles.
|
|
|
Post by onionman on Feb 18, 2013 15:59:30 GMT
Disagree slightly there mate. Wouldn't you prefer to finish 15 th playing decent entertaining, unpredictable football, or would you prefer to finish 11th playing dour hoofball? I know which one I'd go far. Results aren't the be all and end all. Being entertained is surely the least a fan should demand off players earning 30 k a week and more. My point is Martinez imo with a budget like ours, would keep us up comfortable enough but we would see much better football. Surely that's something you would be interested in Rob? 'Better football' is in the eye of the beholder though isn't it Nick? I didn't enjoy the football under Boskamp any more than I did under Pulis for example. Plenty of people did, but I didn't. On a similar note, there's acres of middle ground between the Pulis way and the Martinez way. I reckon there are Wigan fans who wish their team had a bit more backbone at times and managed to start playing before the turn of the year. That's what I'd like -somewhere between the two, some grit and some flair. I remember a couple of journos touting Mowbray for manager of the season in our first season up because he 'stuck to his principles' while they went down with nary a whimper. It seemed ridiculous then and it still does now. How do you think Martinez would do if he inherited a Stoke side with a back four of Shawcross, Huth, Wilson and Wilkinson, all signed up on long-term contracts? His job would be to keep that back four and build on the creative aspect. Could he succeed, or would he somehow dismantle the positives of the side put together by Pulis?
|
|
|
Post by bayernoatcake on Feb 18, 2013 16:00:56 GMT
'Better football' is in the eye of the beholder though isn't it Nick? I didn't enjoy the football under Boskamp any more than I did under Pulis for example. Plenty of people did, but I didn't. On a similar note, there's acres of middle ground between the Pulis way and the Martinez way. I reckon there are Wigan fans who wish their team had a bit more backbone at times and managed to start playing before the turn of the year. That's what I'd like -somewhere between the two, some grit and some flair. I remember a couple of journos touting Mowbray for manager of the season in our first season up because he 'stuck to his principles' while they went down with nary a whimper. It seemed ridiculous then and it still does now. How do you think Martinez would do if he inherited a Stoke side with a back four of Shawcross, Huth, Wilson and Wilkinson, all signed up on long-term contracts? His job would be to keep that back four and build on the creative aspect. Could he succeed, or would he somehow dismantle the positives of the side put together by Pulis? I think he'd do what every other manager in the league would, buy two full backs who could pass a ball and leave the centre halves alone.
|
|
|
Post by scfc75 on Feb 18, 2013 16:02:14 GMT
'Better football' is in the eye of the beholder though isn't it Nick? I didn't enjoy the football under Boskamp any more than I did under Pulis for example. Plenty of people did, but I didn't. On a similar note, there's acres of middle ground between the Pulis way and the Martinez way. I reckon there are Wigan fans who wish their team had a bit more backbone at times and managed to start playing before the turn of the year. That's what I'd like -somewhere between the two, some grit and some flair. I remember a couple of journos touting Mowbray for manager of the season in our first season up because he 'stuck to his principles' while they went down with nary a whimper. It seemed ridiculous then and it still does now. How do you think Martinez would do if he inherited a Stoke side with a back four of Shawcross, Huth, Wilson and Wilkinson, all signed up on long-term contracts? His job would be to keep that back four and build on the creative aspect. Could he succeed, or would he somehow dismantle the positives of the side put together by Pulis? Part of the reason for our defensive success is the cover afforded right the way through the team. I would suspect that a more expansive team would naturally score more but would also ship more goals. Not sure whether this would be a good or bad thing but it would certainly be better to watch!
|
|
|
Post by onionman on Feb 18, 2013 16:02:55 GMT
How do you think Martinez would do if he inherited a Stoke side with a back four of Shawcross, Huth, Wilson and Wilkinson, all signed up on long-term contracts? His job would be to keep that back four and build on the creative aspect. Could he succeed, or would he somehow dismantle the positives of the side put together by Pulis? I think he'd do what every other manager in the league would, buy two full backs who could pass a ball and leave the centre halves alone. Potential problem, for me, is if he goes too far and signs some flamboyant full-backs who can't defend. We've seen in recent weeks how Huth and Shawcross don't look so brilliant when the full-back positions are compromised.
|
|
|
Post by bayernoatcake on Feb 18, 2013 16:05:02 GMT
I think he'd do what every other manager in the league would, buy two full backs who could pass a ball and leave the centre halves alone. Potential problem, for me, is if he goes too far and signs some flamboyant full-backs who can't defend. We've seen in recent weeks how Huth and Shawcross don't look so brilliant when the full-back positions are compromised. That's a problem You can have with every manager and as You say is a problem with TP. Except our defensively weaker full backs can't attack.
|
|
|
Post by scfcbiancorossi on Feb 18, 2013 16:09:35 GMT
'Better football' is in the eye of the beholder though isn't it Nick? I didn't enjoy the football under Boskamp any more than I did under Pulis for example. Plenty of people did, but I didn't. On a similar note, there's acres of middle ground between the Pulis way and the Martinez way. I reckon there are Wigan fans who wish their team had a bit more backbone at times and managed to start playing before the turn of the year. That's what I'd like -somewhere between the two, some grit and some flair. I remember a couple of journos touting Mowbray for manager of the season in our first season up because he 'stuck to his principles' while they went down with nary a whimper. It seemed ridiculous then and it still does now. How do you think Martinez would do if he inherited a Stoke side with a back four of Shawcross, Huth, Wilson and Wilkinson, all signed up on long-term contracts? His job would be to keep that back four and build on the creative aspect. Could he succeed, or would he somehow dismantle the positives of the side put together by Pulis? Thats a fair point and i'd agree that in that sense, employing the likes of Martinez could be a great move. Hes got proper defenders to work with...it would then be up to him to sort out our attacking woes. Bringing in the "3 M's" and Espinoza would be a good start. Then all we would need him to do is swiftly fuck Walters and Whelan off.If rumours are to be believed Martinez is a fan of Jerome and Pennant too (given his interest in both last year), so it could be a pretty exciting set up. Presuming he kept his back 3 philosophy, Imagine something along the lines of... Bego Huth Shawcross Wilson Espinoza Nzonzi McCarthy Shea Pennant Jerome Maloney Fucking orgasmic.
|
|
|
Post by Deleted on Feb 18, 2013 16:18:24 GMT
'Better football' is in the eye of the beholder though isn't it Nick? I didn't enjoy the football under Boskamp any more than I did under Pulis for example. Plenty of people did, but I didn't. On a similar note, there's acres of middle ground between the Pulis way and the Martinez way. I reckon there are Wigan fans who wish their team had a bit more backbone at times and managed to start playing before the turn of the year. That's what I'd like -somewhere between the two, some grit and some flair. I remember a couple of journos touting Mowbray for manager of the season in our first season up because he 'stuck to his principles' while they went down with nary a whimper. It seemed ridiculous then and it still does now. How do you think Martinez would do if he inherited a Stoke side with a back four of Shawcross, Huth, Wilson and Wilkinson, all signed up on long-term contracts? His job would be to keep that back four and build on the creative aspect. Could he succeed, or would he somehow dismantle the positives of the side put together by Pulis? I think he'd struggle - does he still play three at the back? Would he want his defenders to bring the ball out of defence? It could be a clash too far.
|
|
|
Post by Deleted on Feb 18, 2013 16:19:54 GMT
Has Espinoza been any good in their other games?
|
|
|
Post by scfcbiancorossi on Feb 18, 2013 16:20:34 GMT
How do you think Martinez would do if he inherited a Stoke side with a back four of Shawcross, Huth, Wilson and Wilkinson, all signed up on long-term contracts? His job would be to keep that back four and build on the creative aspect. Could he succeed, or would he somehow dismantle the positives of the side put together by Pulis? I think he'd struggle - does he still play three at the back? Would he want his defenders to bring the ball out of defence? It could be a clash too far. Doesnt that go back to our defenders not being good enough on the ball? To be fair Huth is ok and lets be honest hes played at the highest level so I cant see many problems there..same with Wilson. The issue would be Shawcross...I genuinly think Martinez or a manager of the sort would drop him, (and sell him).
|
|
|
Post by scfcbiancorossi on Feb 18, 2013 16:21:46 GMT
Has Espinoza been any good in their other games? I didnt watch the Huddersfield or Southampton games that he started in but seeing as they scored 6 goals i'd imagine he did something right. Could be wrong. He looked brilliant for Honduras against the US. Albeit the US.
|
|
|
Post by Deleted on Feb 18, 2013 16:24:02 GMT
I think he'd struggle - does he still play three at the back? Would he want his defenders to bring the ball out of defence? It could be a clash too far. Doesnt that go back to our defenders not being good enough on the ball? To be fair Huth is ok and lets be honest hes played at the highest level so I cant see many problems there..same with Wilson. The issue would be Shawcross...I genuinly think Martinez or a manager of the sort would drop him, (and sell him). Yes it goes entirely on that. They're terrific at what they do and Martinez asking them to do that would be as daft as the things we've expected the likes of Adam to do.
|
|
|
Post by mcf on Feb 18, 2013 16:35:33 GMT
fuck me
this wigan team must be good with all of those brilliant players they have.
which league are they in?
i couldn't see them in the top half with us so are they in some super duper, broke off from the Prem in a European super league?
|
|
|
Post by Davef on Feb 18, 2013 16:40:32 GMT
fuck me this wigan team must be good with all of those brilliant players they have. which league are they in? i couldn't see them in the top half with us so are they in some super duper, broke off from the Prem in a European super league? Yeah, we don't want to be doing anything daft like signing players from teams who may end up getting relegated or actually do get relegated do we?
|
|
|
Post by mcf on Feb 18, 2013 16:42:57 GMT
we handpicked the best one* from each team - not took on half the fucking playing staff *possibly
|
|
|
Post by scfcbiancorossi on Feb 18, 2013 16:58:56 GMT
Doesnt that go back to our defenders not being good enough on the ball? To be fair Huth is ok and lets be honest hes played at the highest level so I cant see many problems there..same with Wilson. The issue would be Shawcross...I genuinly think Martinez or a manager of the sort would drop him, (and sell him). Yes it goes entirely on that. They're terrific at what they do and Martinez asking them to do that would be as daft as the things we've expected the likes of Adam to do. Like I say though Rob, regardless of whether its Martinez, Holloway or whatever...what would you take...15th and entertaining, unpredictable football. 11th and absolutely awful football? I think I know which one Agreed though, it would be nice to find some middle ground. Realistically though its pretty hard to find a manager who will keep you mid table for the entirity of the season and playing better football. Laudrup wouldnt come here so thats not an option. Moyes is on to bigger things apparently. Clarke has a lot to do yet before he can consider himself a midtable manager. In fact the only one i'd take out of the managers who play better football, but not consistantly entertaining like a Holloway, would be Houghton. I think he'd be a decent option. Not sure someone like Bruce is the answer either (although the football would be slightly improved). In saying that, you only live once so why dont we just go wild in the summer and bring in Holloway. Wonder if QPR went down we could tempt 'Arry? Probably not.
|
|
|
Post by bayernoatcake on Feb 18, 2013 17:11:10 GMT
Tbf Wigan in their time have always had good players and always seems to struggle. Their problem has been thye haven't got the best defensive players, their centre backs are pretty wank and they haven't really got a defensive midfielder. Also their strength in depth is pretty weak which doesn't help them over the season. I wouldn't want Martinez here it has to be said but I do think McArthur, McArthy, Figeuroa and Kone would get into our side or on the bench at least. I also like that Stam fella but I don't know how good he really is because against us he looks like Cafu and I'm sure he can't be that good all of the time!
|
|
|
Post by fortressbritannia on Feb 18, 2013 17:18:12 GMT
The problem I have with Martinez is that for the 3 and a bit seasons he's been at Wigan twice they've finished 16th and under Martinez there highest League position is 15th, which suggests Wigan have become stagnant under him and ain't progressed. Those who think that Wigan score more goals (I found this surprising) since Martinez appointment in the summer of 09 they've only scored 3 more goals the same period (league only) whilst conceding a shit load more than us. Which brings me on ti my next point. It doesn't take a genius to work out Wigan concede to many goals (202 in the league under Martinez) and has been their problem for years, so why hasn't Martinez fixed it? Does he not think its a problem? or Can't he spot a good defender? It's alright saying we've got Huth, Wilko, Shawcross and Wilson tied up to long term deals but what if Man United come calling for Ryan or Wilson picks up another long term injury or Huth decides to retire or Wilko gets suspended, I wonder rather like TP with a goal scorer can Martinez spot a defender. Plus as pointed out above would the crowd turn on Martinez if he has a losing run like he has done at Wigan, I think TP's longest losing streak in the PL is 4 (even then people are calling for his head) last season they went on an 8 match losing run would we put up with that.
|
|
|
Post by onionman on Feb 18, 2013 17:23:16 GMT
How do you think Martinez would do if he inherited a Stoke side with a back four of Shawcross, Huth, Wilson and Wilkinson, all signed up on long-term contracts? His job would be to keep that back four and build on the creative aspect. Could he succeed, or would he somehow dismantle the positives of the side put together by Pulis? Thats a fair point and i'd agree that in that sense, employing the likes of Martinez could be a great move. Hes got proper defenders to work with...it would then be up to him to sort out our attacking woes. Bringing in the "3 M's" and Espinoza would be a good start. Then all we would need him to do is swiftly fuck Walters and Whelan off.If rumours are to be believed Martinez is a fan of Jerome and Pennant too (given his interest in both last year), so it could be a pretty exciting set up. Presuming he kept his back 3 philosophy, Imagine something along the lines of... Bego Huth Shawcross Wilson Espinoza Nzonzi McCarthy Shea Pennant Jerome Maloney Fucking orgasmic. The problem is once you go with three at the back you dismantle the positives of what we already have. It would be back to square one, except instead of complaining about our lack of creativity, we'd be complaining about our inability to defend. Why not build on our strengths by keeping the organised back four and restructuring the rest of the team to bring a bit more creativity and balance? The best example I can think of is Wenger taking over from the Pulis of the 1990s, George Graham. He kept the back four, including the dour full-backs, and added flair, with brilliant results. It only went wrong for Wenger when he had to replace the old guard because he just doesn't know how to build a solid foundation.
|
|
|
Post by onionman on Feb 18, 2013 17:25:46 GMT
It's alright saying we've got Huth, Wilko, Shawcross and Wilson tied up to long term deals but what if Man United come calling for Ryan or Wilson picks up another long term injury or Huth decides to retire or Wilko gets suspended, I wonder rather like TP with a goal scorer can spot a defender. Good point, and probably the main reason why we should avoid Martinez.
|
|
|
Post by scfcbiancorossi on Feb 18, 2013 17:26:30 GMT
The problem I have with Martinez is that for the 3 and a bit seasons he's been at Wigan twice they've finished 16th and under Martinez there highest League position is 15th, which suggests Wigan have become stagnant under him and ain't progressed. Those who think that Wigan score more goals (I found this surprising) since Martinez appointment in the summer of 09 they've only scored 3 more goals the same period (league only) whilst conceding a shit load more than us. Which brings me on ti my next point. It doesn't take a genius to work out Wigan concede to many goals (202 in the league under Martinez) and has been their problem for years, so why hasn't Martinez fixed it? Does he not think its a problem? or Can't he spot a good defender? It's alright saying we've got Huth, Wilko, Shawcross and Wilson tied up to long term deals but what if Man United come calling for Ryan or Wilson picks up another long term injury or Huth decides to retire or Wilko gets suspended, I wonder rather like TP with a goal scorer can spot a defender. Plus as pointed out above would the crowd turn on Martinez if he has a losing run like he has done at Wigan, I think TP's longest losing streak in the PL is 4 (even then people are calling for his head) last season they went on an 8 match losing run would we put up with that. Some fair points. Although It goes without saying he hasnt had anything close to what we've had in terms of financial backing. Hes often been forced to search out cheaper alternatives. I think your last point is fair. Every fan will percieve things differently and whilst one might be perfectly happy to see 8 defeats in a row providing the team stuck to their principles and continued to play an entertaining brand of football, another might be angry at the results and call for the managers head. One thing I dont believe we should do and that is keeping Tony Pulis just for the sake of it. Or rather..just for the SKY money. Lets be honest..we could give him 200 million to spend this summer and its hardly going to change his philosophy on football. I think its fair to say as well that the vast majority of fans who now want him gone, dont want him gone simply based on results (hence the frustration even after the victory against Reading). Its the philosophy of the manager, the approach to games, and the all round boring experience that goes with our performances that is really getting to fans. Coates has a really big decision to make this summer. Is anything going to change next season if we keep TP? Of course it isnt...in 30 years of management he hasnt changed his style. Its not going to change now. I cant for the life of me see the logic behind keeping him just on the basis that he will keep us up. Like I say..life is way too short for that.
|
|
|
Post by bayernoatcake on Feb 18, 2013 17:26:31 GMT
Thats a fair point and i'd agree that in that sense, employing the likes of Martinez could be a great move. Hes got proper defenders to work with...it would then be up to him to sort out our attacking woes. Bringing in the "3 M's" and Espinoza would be a good start. Then all we would need him to do is swiftly fuck Walters and Whelan off.If rumours are to be believed Martinez is a fan of Jerome and Pennant too (given his interest in both last year), so it could be a pretty exciting set up. Presuming he kept his back 3 philosophy, Imagine something along the lines of... Bego Huth Shawcross Wilson Espinoza Nzonzi McCarthy Shea Pennant Jerome Maloney Fucking orgasmic. The problem is once you go with three at the back you dismantle the positives of what we already have. It would be back to square one, except instead of complaining about our lack of creativity, we'd be complaining about our inability to defend. Why not build on our strengths by keeping the organised back four and restructuring the rest of the team to bring a bit more creativity and balance? The best example I can think of is Wenger taking over from the Pulis of the 1990s, George Graham. He kept the back four, including the dour full-backs, and added flair, with brilliant results. It only went wrong for Wenger when he had to replace the old guard because he just doesn't know how to build a solid foundation. Maybe my memory is off here but I thought Dixon and Winterburn got forward quite well? I'm too young to remember Dixon here but in the mid to late nineties as a kid I don't remember him being "dour". Our full backs need sodding off and replacing asap.
|
|