[Albion] We have been sussed

[Shropshire Seagull]

It's quite well known that we struggle to break down the low-block.
Even harder to break down is when a black and gold bus is parked in the goal-mouth.
Here is graphic evidence of the Wolves 11-man bus.
No doubt they'd call it zonal defending but ELEVEN defenders within 12 yards of their own goal-line.
No man-marking - just park the bus ....
Suggests we did well to score nil !!

 

[Me and my Monkey]

Oh, for goodness sake! Haven't we had this thread too just recently??

 

[Forster's Armband]

Pathetic isn't it? I was in row B and felt compelled to remind them they were at home. Fulham will do the same tomorrow. Lets hope we can work something out.

 

[Stato]

Don't gift them a goal in the first two minutes and it wouldn't have been so easy for them to take that approach.

 

[Da Man Clay]

Yes. About a year ago.

 

[Zeberdi]

There’s been a few threads on this - one started after the match last week in how we break down when teams park the bus like that so I think I’ll just repost the comments made on that thread:

[Albion] - Low Block is our Achilles heel

We have a serious problem when teams play a low block against us. It is obviously the successful way to play against us. How do we get over it? Play quicker? Plan b? More direct? Sit deep and let other teams have the ball and we play on the counter? Whatever solution, it is a pattern and we have...

www.northstandchat.com

1. “I was watching Citeh’s first goal against Luton tonight - de Bruyne in a wide position gets up very high behind the defenders after a beautiful cut in from Nunez, before putting in the assist and catching Haaland who’s made a breakthrough run into the 6 yard box - I realise Luton weren’t defending low but isn’t this one of the ways to deal with a low, central block such as Wolves - no point our inverted wingers cutting inside only to run into a bunch of defenders in the 18 yard area - staying wide and getting behind the lines before putting in the cross surely is more effective ?

2. Wolves barely came out of their own half for the last 30 minutes bar a few counter attacks but on the few times they do counter from the block, when we win back possession high in our own half then we needed to be much much quicker on the transition and not give them time to get back into shape - we were too slow.

3. Oh - yes - and, at the risk of stating the bloody obvious - score first or at least don’t concede first ”

 

[Weststander]

Don’t concede first against low block teams with very, very avoidable goals. Not just this week, the tale of much of the Potter and RDZ years. We give ourselves a mountain to climb.

 

[Shropshire Seagull]

Sorry folks - didn't mean to do a "fixtures".
Probably should have just posted the evidence picture I pulled from the iPlayer on to an existing thread.

 

[Neville's Breakfast]

It is obligatory in these threads to include a several page debate about Steele in goal. I will pop back later when that bit has run its course.

 

[Drebin]

I miss long shots. It’s a dying art. There were much more in the 90s/00s. I feel like more teams are drilled to play risk free football (both defensively and in attack) and the consequences of losing the ball cheaply are higher now that players break away quicker than before.

A decent long shot now and again would force players to come out of their low block and close them down.* Hopefully Enciso can pick up where he left off last season.


*I have sent a copy of this tactical masterclass to the club.

 

[Thunder Bolt]

Don’t concede first against low block teams with very, very avoidable goals. Not just this week, the tale of much of the Potter and RDZ years. We give ourselves a mountain to climb.

I missed the start of the game because I was out but when I saw the replay, it wasn’t such a howler as people were making out. The ball was high so Steele was at full stretch, even jumping, so only getting his fingertips to the ball, which unfortunately deflected it, and he didn’t have time to adjust after landing to cover the rebound kick.
I was really surprised as I thought it was almost an own goal, or at the least, he’d been nutmegged by the reactions I read on here. Van Hecke was more at fault for losing the player beforehand.

 

[dejavuatbtn]

Maybe we just might treat these defences like we would a free kick and try a few long shot dippers whilst the goalie is unsighted. We do rather overplay it most of the time.

 

[Coldeanseagull]

I missed the start of the game because I was out but when I saw the replay, it wasn’t such a howler as people were making out. The ball was high so Steele was at full stretch, even jumping, so only getting his fingertips to the ball, which unfortunately deflected it, and he didn’t have time to adjust after landing to cover the rebound kick.
I was really surprised as I thought it was almost an own goal, or at the least, he’d been nutmegged by the reactions I read on here. Van Hecke was more at fault for losing the player beforehand.

Bart supporters always blame Jason for things. He was a bit flappy at it, but yeah, JPvH losing the ball didn't help much!
It's the way we play, we'll concede annoying goals

 

[Weststander]

Anyone able to find first goal conceded eg first 20 minutes stats. For the 20 clubs this season.

Glancing online on match-days so often it’s us who concedes early, it appears. Liverpool do with risk-reward football, but have the firepower.

You just don’t seem to see Villa or Wolves going an early goal down, for example.

 

[WATFORD zero]

You're telling us that a lot of Premier league teams going a goal up will then adopt a low block against a better footballing team ? Shit, it's not just us that have been sussed, it appears it's the whole of the premier league

 

[pasty]

Anyone able to find first goal conceded eg first 20 minutes stats. For the 20 clubs this season.

Glancing online on match-days so often it’s us who concedes early, it appears. Liverpool do with risk-reward football, but have the firepower.

You just don’t seem to see Villa or Wolves going an early goal down, for example.

Goals scored / conceded per 15 mins

Premier League - Goal time statistics

Goals scored and conceded per 15 minutes in English Premier League

www.soccerstats.com

 

[Thunder Bolt]

Bart supporters always blame Jason for things. He was a bit flappy at it, but yeah, JPvH losing the ball didn't help much!
It's the way we play, we'll concede annoying goals

He didn’t flap, which was the whole point of my post. It was just out of his reach.

 

[Zeberdi]

Bart supporters always blame Jason for things. He was a bit flappy at it, but yeah, JPvH losing the ball didn't help much!
It's the way we play, we'll concede annoying goals

A ‘bit flappy!?’ Surely Steele punching the ball off his goal line straight into the path of Lemina is enough justification to blame him for the early goal - it was an expensive, glaring error. (I’m not a Bart supporter or a Steele supporter btw - I support the whole squad but players make mistakes - at least Steele saves goals better than scores them from 6 yards out

For those that missed the beginning of the match/us conceding in the first 3 minutes of play

 

[Coldeanseagull]

He didn’t flap, which was the whole point of my post. It was just out of his reach.

I'll rewatch (when we next win!) then reword as necessary

 

[Justice]

He didn’t flap, which was the whole point of my post. It was just out of his reach.

What? He hardly jumps it was a routine catch.