Boro V Watford (A) 0-1

[boroinbishop 65]

Just because you play one up top doesn't mean it's a defensive tactic, 4-2-3-1, when manipulated correctly is probably the best attacking formation, tough call between that and a 4-3-3, but at the same time, manipulate it another way and it becomes a Defensive tactic, it can even be a possession based formation, there's so many variants to it which is why i love it so much.

 

Ideally we need to be playing the 2-2-4-2 on the ball variation to start scoring goals, we're playing too much backwards and forwards stuff in a 3-2-4-1 variant meaning we're stalling in the final third with the ball ending up out wide every single time, it becomes predictable and is very easy to defend against.

[p_mards 1,365]

Ledesma is a bit of an enigma as he has some games where he looks brilliant and then the next game he looks like a League 1 player that thinks he's far better than in reality he is. Even when he was on a run of scoring goals regularly I couldn't help but feel he was lucky from poor goal keeping errors of not covering their near post sufficiently(Burnley and Charlton).

 

One thing that confuses me is that he looks very uncomfortable running straight on at a player and always looks far more comfortable on the right with the ball to his left cutting across a player. And that's why I fully understand Karanka not playing him in a #10 role.

[2plus2 290]

I love Ledesma's spirit and love of the game. He can definitely offer that moment of magic to unlock a defence. And he'll always give 100% imo. But, given the targets that I imagine AK has in mind, ie. promotion, I think he's probably going to end up being a squad player. And rightly so. But a great squad player nonetheless. Having someone like Ledesma to start a game here and there when injuries have had an impact on our squad is a great option to have. But, as others have alluded to, he's too inconsistent to be considered a first choice option as one of the three behind the striker. And I'm massively enthused by the prospect of those three being specifically Adomah, Tomlin and Carayol anyway.

[p_mards 1,365]

Ledesma must be a managers nightmare as "on his day" he is great and a potential match winner but normally he is unreliable. If (for some god forsaken reason I was a manager) I could never have full trust in Ledesma as he is so unpredictable that you could never have faith in him to perform on a consistent basis. Carayol and Adomah must surely start down the wings for us when fit/not on bad form.

[Humpty 3,261]

I would not be against Carayol leaving for a high price but that's the same for all our players

 

Bizarre. I've never understood this notion. Why would you want to see a player leave thats contributed much so far and has much left to offer? We're trying to build a team and that's not going to happen if we keep dismantling it for quick money.

 

There comes a point where you have to say no to big offers and build instead, just like we did with Leadbitter.

 

In terms of progress I'm happy so far. We've come a long way in a short space of time under a coach that doesn't know the league or the players he's inherited. His philosophy is encouraging. I like the everyone's culpable for their own mistakes approach. It promotes responsibility.

 

This season was never going to be about promotion but developing an understanding of what's required next season. I can't wait for next year.

[ABH 470]

Agree about Ledesma....not sure why he's so inconsistent.

 

Because he is useless with his right foot so when he plays on the right teams just stop him from cutting in onto his left foot

[Downsouth 6,327]

Believe me Ledesma was totally and utterly selfish all he was concerned with was taking a pop at goal from wherever he received the ball.........high wide and handsome does not describe his efforts.

 

He was a man to himself with no thought at all with his team mates and I would suggest Karanka's comments were directed at him.

 

He must learn to be a team player and not rest on his laurels just because he scored a couple of wonder goals

 

I felt sorry for GL because he sprayed some inch perfect balls to him which at the end of the day were worthless

[andrewparkes 12]

Keeper threw it into gibsons back and people are calling him useless? Pathetic.

 

Hardly threw it into his back though did he?

Was a stupid thing to do, as was his tackle for the penalty, was always going to be a foul.

[Will 2,958]

Keeper threw it into gibsons back and people are calling him useless? Pathetic.

 

Hardly threw it into his back though did he?

Was a stupid thing to do, as was his tackle for the penalty, was always going to be a foul.

 

I was going off what le tissier was saying on sky and that is how he described it, having seen it on the football league show it was a stupid thing to do and probably did deserve a yellow. That still doesn't make him useless.

[Prowler 197]

Not useless, just an idiot.

[Uwe 3,545]

The most annoying thing is that Watford did absolutely nothing for the entire match and yet that was still enough to beat us :@

[Guest Watford Walter]

Hi Guys

 

My Take. As I predicted it was a very tight game in which we started very poorly offensively and in our passing which gave you some confidence. As people on the forum predicted, you would use the wings and although there was not an abundance of end product Adomah had me worried quite a few times.

 

Fernando Forestieri is a very tricky player but Gibson was silly. Even more so to even up the numbers after Diakite made probably the worst full debut I've ever seen.

 

Sannino has tried, and succeeded, to make us very hard to beat and after the sending offs it was ploy to let you have plenty of the ball, set up our banks of 4 and say come on, come and have a go. It worked.

 

To say we did absolutely nothing the entire match is laughable. Look at the stats. Indeed we had clearer chances than you on the break ways in the 2nd half and should really have put the game to bed.

 

Like you, we are a team/squad that should be doing better. I believe we will challenge for 6th spot and you should not give up also although I do feel you need to address things in the scoring dept. Tomlin should help you in this respect but DG looks as though he is carrying a bit of timber and looks far from the exciting player that made him the championship top scorer when with us.

 

Good luck for the rest of the season especially against Leeds, Ipswich, Forest,Brighton, Derby and Reading.

[richmfc 41]

Just because you play one up top doesn't mean it's a defensive tactic, 4-2-3-1, when manipulated correctly is probably the best attacking formation, tough call between that and a 4-3-3, but at the same time, manipulate it another way and it becomes a Defensive tactic, it can even be a possession based formation, there's so many variants to it which is why i love it so much.

 

Ideally we need to be playing the 2-2-4-2 on the ball variation to start scoring goals, we're playing too much backwards and forwards stuff in a 3-2-4-1 variant meaning we're stalling in the final third with the ball ending up out wide every single time, it becomes predictable and is very easy to defend against.

 

I agree with almost all of this

 

The numbers churned out mean nothing and we all get a bit obsessed with them

A team of

Given

Varga. Woody. Omerou. Friend

Adomah. Leadbitter. Whitehead. Chabaloa. Carayol

Graham

 

Could be

4,2,1 .3

Or 4 ,1,2,2,1

Or 5,2,3,1

Or many others. And even two or three of these during the same game depending on who has the ball and where they have it

 

It isnt as simple as today we play 4,4, ***ing 2 it depends on what the players are asked to do in certain situations

[Guest Dekker]

Maybe Tomlin will be our next Uwe Fuchs - I accept that the system that Karanka plays can be attacking etc - but have we got the players to effect it as it certainly isn't yielding goals. We have decent defenders, a few choices of CM and a couple of old fashioned wingers. BUT the number 10s and strikers we have tried are letting this system down. To be fair to Leadbitter last week it is hardly his position, Emnes - well 'he is what he is' (as Mogga would say). Butterfield has so far been a huge disappointment and it is hardly his position anyway (either way I expected so much more from him). Unlike most on here I'm not really that convinced on Kamara - great start but since then, barring injuries, when he has come on he has not done much in my view. Maybe he will change things. Main puts in the effort but has no real craft or output. At the end of the day systems can only do so much - people score goals and we seriously lack someone who can put the ball in the onion bag. So if we are going to persist with this new format I hope Tomlin fits the bill. In my mind we are out of the play off challengers (and hope to be wrong). I'm looking forward to Saturday though and the visit of Leeds - surely we cannot go 6 games without scoring. We need to lift spirits at the Riverside and battering Leeds would be just the tonic.

EDIT: I'm not saying it has to be 442 or any of the theoretical systems - it is 11 v 11 at the end of the day and nobody gets the moral high ground on quoting theory. I saw a long and very informative debate last week on 442 by Neville and Carragher and both of those had quite a few angles on the same model. I think we don't have the players who can turn the current system into goals.

[jamesp 125]

The most annoying thing is that Watford did absolutely nothing for the entire match and yet that was still enough to beat us :@

until we went down to ten men they did nothing at all, even the chances they had after that were gifted to them by us