Why on earth, the long ball?

[Tennessee Blue Mike]

I would bench the whole midfield if it was a school team and I have done it before to great effect. I would play all the youngsters. Trouble is with these outrageous wages spent today Moyes's hands are tied.

In preseason and in the first two league games the midfield has been downright awful to put it bluntly confidence or no confidence. Osman has run out of gas. Cahill isn't like himself plus no service for him in the box=non event. Fellaini tries and you can't fault peanuts work rate either but we haven't any one to pull the strings. It will be status quo until either Arteta comes back or a asute signing comes in and helps the cause. I expect bottom half for a while. Yak coming back won't change things if he can't get the ball at his feet.

 

[faddy the blue]

Will fellaini always play the role he plays these days???? i hope not!....cahill is NO effect in the center midfield...bring fellaini there,let him make the tackles and all the physical play...and atleast try and pass it along the ground,its not that hard, even west brom did it last year with the poorest squad so why cant we?? Its in our blood in a way to just hoof the ball in the air and HOPE that fallaini flicks it for saha and saha turns and shoots and then its 1-0...

 

[Fletch]

Ive answered this before as I read an article many years ago by Moyes.

Its basically the perecentage game. If you long ball it down the field then you are in the opponnents half and less likely to concede in your own. 99.9% of goals are scored from inside the opponents half. By then hoofing it to a blue player who could win the ball he has then 40% chance of winning it and then 60% chance of keeping it.

Where we fall down is once we win a ball we dont push up to support the player who just won it.......