Being more direct is the way to go?

[davek]

Or the reason was the players were playing crap.

Too many people think they have the definite answer....

Interesting to hear Jagielka, Naismith and Coleman saying in the last couple of days that they the players just weren't doing the right things.

These players know they cant avoid the evidence from last season that shows they have previously performed what's expected of them within Martinez's system and this past couple of months especially simply cant be excused.

 

[orly]

The argument has been we need to stop playing it about at the back so much and get it forward more quickly. We've done that today and in the cup and it's being pointed to as the reason we stopped the rot. However, this lot seems to contradict that view and suggests that playing more patiently across the back serves us better in terms of games won.

Passes in defensive third - 2014/15:

Win
Draw
Loss


v Leicester (A) 124
v Arsenal (H) 106
v Chelsea (H) 96
v WBA (A) 132
v Palace (H) 100
v Liverpool (A) 70
v United (A) 94
v Villa (H) 158
v Burnley (A) 164
v Swansea (H) 80
v Sunderland (A) 65
v West Ham (H) 78
v Spurs (A) 120
v Hull (H) 121
v City (A) 88
v QPR (H) 100
v Southampton (A) 45
v Stoke (H) 99
v Newcastle (A) 60
v Hull (A) 66
v City (H) 52


Average defensive third passes in games won = 126
Average defensive third passes in games drawn= 103
Average defensive third passes in games lost = 85


Thoughts?

The problem is the nature of those games won- I'd rather hope we could get a result at home against villa or QPR with Robles up front a two at the back.


And also lol at how bad we were at Southampton haha

 

[toffeemax]

to me it's not a cut a and dry thing, either be direct or play possession football. You can place an onus on playing a possession game but that doesn't mean you can't get the ball forward quickly at times. Last year we bossed the possession most games but at the right times we did get the ball forward quickly and incisively as well which made us so hard to play against. this year we have passed for the sake of passing at times, which in turn means the front men kinda don't make any runs as they are never expecting the ball to be played up top unless it's to feet, which in turn nullifies the passing style of play.