brightonrock
Dodgy Hamstrings
- Jan 1, 2008
- 2,482
Hats off to them, they did a fantastic job on us. Their scout needs a raise because they played an almost perfect game. Tactically, that was the best I have seen a side defend against us. It wasn't just as simple as kicking us off the park or sitting deep and trying to hit us on the break or score from a set piece, it was thought-out from front to back.
1. Their 14 was all over Bridcutt like a rash. Did not give him a minute's peace, snapping at his heels for 90 minutes and refusing to allow him the time on the ball when he drops in to receive it from the centre backs. Still amazes me so few teams have worked out how key he is to us.
2. Their back four actually played quite deep, with their centre backs taking it in turns to bump and jostle Ulloa, nothing blatant enough to be called a foul, but rarely did he get more than a yard or two of space as they were usually touch (shirt-pulling) tight.
3. Meanwhile, whilst the defence was deep, their wingers and striker pressed very high and with good intensity all game, as some opposing sides have tried, but vitally their whole team's shape was also very narrow. There was room in wide positions if we had time to pick out a switch ball or diagonal, but all the passes were being so rushed by the forward pressure we couldn't move it laterally with pace and accuracy. This meant it was just front to back, and they had Jackson and their other centre mid sitting in the hole between defence and midfield, blocking the route on the deck and crowding the space if Lopez or Vicente tried to drop deeper to pick it up.
4. The two centre mids also shifted across the pitch as a unit to help out their full-back whenever we got it wide to Buckley or Kaz, and much like we did to Zaha, they were happy to funnel them into blind alleys and towards the corner flag without really ever committing to the tackle and getting isolated one-on-one. It was so tight that we had to try impossible little one-touch triangles to get through, and inevitably they had enough numbers for someone to make an interception.
5. Their keeper had a worldie. I can't help thinking if we kept playing until Saturday we wouldn't have scored. Fair play to him.
All this leads me to wonder why Gus didn't want to make a change. With 25 minutes to go Orlandi & Hammond went out to warm up. Bridcutt was walking a bit of a tightrope on a yellow and with a couple of other fouls to his name, and LuaLua, whilst beating his man over and over, had his head permanently down and was just brainlessly smacking it fifteen yards over the bar or lashing missile-like crosses the same distance over Ulloa's head. It was more or less like-for-like, but would have given 'that something different' that Gus always wants. Orlandi, whilst not as quick or skilful as Kaz, is ten times more intelligent as a footballer and has an absolute wand of a left foot to whip some meaningful crosses in. Hammond is not as good at the role LB plays, but would perhaps have coped a little better with their 14 as he's bigger and stronger, and would also have added more height for the 1,286 corners we won. The time ticked away...game over. Job done for Charlton, and for once not a cynical hatchet job; or a sit back and time-waste from minute one, nick a mouldy deflected goal for a 1-0 type job, but a disciplined and tactically superb job. On that evidence I wouldn't mind having at least a look at Powell when Poyet eventually goes. Not as first choice, but perhaps put him on a shortlist.
1. Their 14 was all over Bridcutt like a rash. Did not give him a minute's peace, snapping at his heels for 90 minutes and refusing to allow him the time on the ball when he drops in to receive it from the centre backs. Still amazes me so few teams have worked out how key he is to us.
2. Their back four actually played quite deep, with their centre backs taking it in turns to bump and jostle Ulloa, nothing blatant enough to be called a foul, but rarely did he get more than a yard or two of space as they were usually touch (shirt-pulling) tight.
3. Meanwhile, whilst the defence was deep, their wingers and striker pressed very high and with good intensity all game, as some opposing sides have tried, but vitally their whole team's shape was also very narrow. There was room in wide positions if we had time to pick out a switch ball or diagonal, but all the passes were being so rushed by the forward pressure we couldn't move it laterally with pace and accuracy. This meant it was just front to back, and they had Jackson and their other centre mid sitting in the hole between defence and midfield, blocking the route on the deck and crowding the space if Lopez or Vicente tried to drop deeper to pick it up.
4. The two centre mids also shifted across the pitch as a unit to help out their full-back whenever we got it wide to Buckley or Kaz, and much like we did to Zaha, they were happy to funnel them into blind alleys and towards the corner flag without really ever committing to the tackle and getting isolated one-on-one. It was so tight that we had to try impossible little one-touch triangles to get through, and inevitably they had enough numbers for someone to make an interception.
5. Their keeper had a worldie. I can't help thinking if we kept playing until Saturday we wouldn't have scored. Fair play to him.
All this leads me to wonder why Gus didn't want to make a change. With 25 minutes to go Orlandi & Hammond went out to warm up. Bridcutt was walking a bit of a tightrope on a yellow and with a couple of other fouls to his name, and LuaLua, whilst beating his man over and over, had his head permanently down and was just brainlessly smacking it fifteen yards over the bar or lashing missile-like crosses the same distance over Ulloa's head. It was more or less like-for-like, but would have given 'that something different' that Gus always wants. Orlandi, whilst not as quick or skilful as Kaz, is ten times more intelligent as a footballer and has an absolute wand of a left foot to whip some meaningful crosses in. Hammond is not as good at the role LB plays, but would perhaps have coped a little better with their 14 as he's bigger and stronger, and would also have added more height for the 1,286 corners we won. The time ticked away...game over. Job done for Charlton, and for once not a cynical hatchet job; or a sit back and time-waste from minute one, nick a mouldy deflected goal for a 1-0 type job, but a disciplined and tactically superb job. On that evidence I wouldn't mind having at least a look at Powell when Poyet eventually goes. Not as first choice, but perhaps put him on a shortlist.
