This is not really about it being a blip. A blip doesnt last 6 matches and counting, this is an issue that shouldnt have happened.
Instead let's look at this from a logical point of view.
Our squad is not not big nor is it remotely full of stars, the way arteta has played this season, I would be hesitant to call him that either. He has faded more this season from games, than I can ever remembering him doing. He goes missing for large parts of matches. He has a couple of great games, and people forget instantly that he disappears when the going gets tough.
If we take a look at the squad indepth, we can discount around 5 or 6 players, who for the sake of it havent figured much or if at all this season.
AVM, Valente, Graveson, Vaughn (even though injured, he wasnt a particulary ever present player this season), wessels and a couple of other players who are in the squad. Which brings the squad size down to around 15 or 16 first team regulars.
Now out of those regulars, we have around 5 deadwood or those that most definately shouldnt be playing. For example, hibbs, neville, carsley and yobo, you may want to include johnson in that bracket for all he has done this season and last.
A breakdown of abilities of players in the first team on the pitch that gets picked regulary.
RB/ Holding Midfield
Neville, terrible at crossing the ball, and passing ability is below that of even the lower divisions. Never the less he is picked first on the sheet.
Yobo, hoofs the ball and always looks uncomfortable with it.
Jags, plays some excellent football at the back, but is beset with a clown in yobo who hoofs it, no wonder they get mixed up in defence at times.
Lescott, a truley wonderful defender, who has to put up with yobo's hoofball, and has started to show some of that hoofball technique himself which is a little worrying of late.
Arteta plays mostly by going missing in midfield when the going get's too tough for him, plays down either wing if needed.
Cahill, brings the midfield charge when playing, is able to bring the ball to the likes of the yak and johnson, and is able to score himself.
Pienaar I think he does bring an extra dimension to the blues game, but he needs people in the right position, and he needs quality to pass to.
He might be lightweight, but he is a cracking prospect for us, and has had a good season.
Johnson, I think we wasted £8.5 million on this guy, most of the time he is playing in positions he shouldnt be...chasing down lost causes at the corner flag springs to mind. He is a goalscorer, and the fact moyes has turned him into a bloody grafter is not clever.
Yakubu, is great at holding the ball up, but once again he is being turned into a grafter, and not a goalscorer hence his serious lack of goals in the past month or so.
The problem stems from the fact, we have some really bad players on the pitch, who under the 4-5-1 banket can get away with having aweful matches week in and week out, especially when you blanket the midfield and defence, there is always some one there to pick up the ball and take the heat of the **** playing badly. We get away with this largely because cahill is able to break from midfield, and get the ball into the yak or even score himself. Same can be said of arteta. The lone striker really doesnt have anything to do, because he will get service from either cahill, pienaar, arteta, plus these players are able to score themselves.
When we loose the dimension of timmy, what we end up doing is playing 4-4-2, when each of the players need to be accounted for, now granted from time to time, when we have played this formation with a full team, sometimes this has worked out, but the majority of it hasnt, and not because of injuries.
Now because imo we have lost the dimension of cahill, we cant play the preferred 4-5-1 formation because it simply doesnt stack up without timmy making those breaks, barely do you see arteta making those amazing dashing breaks..only on odd ocassions has he done so this season.
What is left in this formation now, are the players who simply arent good enough to be in those positions in the first place. Add to the fact the midfield is so lightweight you could run a concorde through it without a problem.
Carsley is left flapping after making an half arsed attempt at trying to make a tackle or a lunge for the ball.
The wings are exposed, because there is no midfield play, we need the wingers to get the ball into the strikers, but since the strikers are in midfield or in the case of johnson by the corner flag, there is no service period.
Our defence under enormous pressure folds and we hoof the ball up the park, to no one but the opposing keeper, they get the ball back and ditto again, until they score.
My answer is simple. Shore up the midfield, by packing it back up by going 451 again. Add in your midfielders, heck even bring in the young uns if need be, and throw pienaar and many on the wings, and get service to the yak.
Under no circumstances play neville in midfield, he is too much a liability, keep him in rb.
With this patched up team system, we once more have a packed midfield, and our Yak can feed off the scraps he gets. At least playing this formation stops the chances for us loosing significantly, and the goal chance increases, because we dont have johnson running like a headless chicken out of his depth, he is a striker not a winger for christ's sakes.
3 matches to go, and this is the formation I would use seriously.
