A bit dull

[Posh]

After the barnstorming attacking end to last season I had hoped we’d learned that starting on the front foot at home and playing attacking football makes it exciting, attracts fans and gets you points.

Instead 2 home games, 0 shots on target and 0 goals.

Midfield just isn’t working with two wingers and nothing in the middle. Would like to see 3-5-2 with wing backs, three in midfield and Stockton and Miller up front. Otherwise it will carry on being all a bit dull.

[BerlinWaller]

To be fair to the lads, Andrew Tutte tested their keeper in the 95th minute.185minutes of footy at the Globe and 1 shot on target.

[Ego Tripping]

We played 3-5-2 in the 2nd half. 4-4-2 in the first half. Could have done with someone dropping a bit deeper to be honest as far too much room between front 2 and midfield. Tough in that wind though

[BerlinWaller]

Very similar to the last home game but shows that we had a bit of a go in the dying minutes. Pretty grim reading though

https://experimental361.files.wordpress ... tenham.png

[tim-sanchez]

Instead 2 home games, 0 shots on target and 0 goals.

That's harsh, Tutte had a shot from outside the box in stoppage time

Don't disagree with the rest though, underwhelming performance. No width and full-backs didn't overlap, not that I blame them necessarily because I thought they were fine defensively. Kenyon did a great job in midfield breaking up their possessions, but he's not the creative midfielder and we don't expect that from him. He needs someone to pass the ball to who can turn midfield into attack, and Tutte wasn't that today. I think he gave the ball to the opposition more than he did to us!

For much of the game we were bypassing the midfield entirely, lumping it up to nobody and not winning the second ball. And the midfield (other than Kenyon) never seem to win the ball back, and when Kenyon does win the ball he ends up passing it back to the defenders. I feel like we have the strikers to take our chances, but we just don't create any. That said, I felt the movement of the front 3 was poor, the only time they caused Cheltenham problems was when Alessandra hit the crossbar. Other than that it was a pedestrian day for their defence, I'd have been overjoyed marking the statues we had up front.

[Andy D]

4-2-3-1 formation doesn't suit us at home.


Fans at home want to see Goal mouth action(so they return) we look better with a proper front two partnership.


4-4-2 at home please!

[Ego Tripping]

We played 4-4-2 1st half!

[Redalert1970]

Still a much much better start to the season compared to last season

LAST SEASON

Crewe (a) LOST 0-6
Preston (a) LOST 1-3
Exeter (h) LOST 0-2
Stevenage (a) LOST 0-1

Scored 0 Conceded 12 and out of carabao cup in 1st round

[Andy D]

We played 4-4-2 1st half!

Must have been watching different games.

----------Tutte -- Kenyon
Sullivan - Allasandra - Ellison
-------------Stockton

[BerlinWaller]

Stockton and Miller will score goals. They have in the past and could do now. They are not the problem. The problem is there is no intention to get on the front foot and attack. It is a problem we have had under Jim for 4 or 5 years with the last dozen or so games of last season being the exception. There is no formula in place for us to try and score goals. What was the plan for scoring today? Did we try and get it wide and cross the ball in? Did we try and get the ball in to Cole with Lewis and Kev close to him? Were there any bursts from midfield?

[MFC-Manc]

I posted this on the match thread:

Wildig was a massive loss....
today it was..... Roche hoof..... kenyon hoof.... old hoof.... lavelle hoof..... all to the opposition
And why don’t we leave anyone on the half way line on an opposition corner....

[Little Shrimp]

4-2-3-1 is similar 4-4-2 in the way we play it. Two wingers, and two forwards (No10/No9). Yes, there are differences in orientations, but the way we play it is more akin to 4-4-2 with Alessandra in behind.

Perhaps a 4-4-2 with Alessandra on the wing with Miller/Stockton up front is the way forward. But then would you be restricting Alessandra out wide? Although this could be countered by Miller being happy to drift a bit and swap with him.

I would imagine Jim might be wanting to drift towards a 3-4-1-2, with Alessandra behind a front two. But then we have a lot of decent wing talent wasted. Tricky conundrum. We have a lot of depth and a lot of options but not necessarily targeted towards a definitive formation.

[BerlinWaller]

Most teams line up with 3 CM's so I can understand why Jim is reluctant to line up with just 2 against them especially with the lack of quality we have. Wildig is quality but unreliable, Tutte is unfit and unreliable and Alex isn't good enough to be pulling the strings for a League 2 side. Gomes and Jiagne are raw but have shown real glimpses and I think it is time they are given a real run in the side.

[MfcChris]

What has Jim learnt from the last half of last season? Gone back to how we were in the first half of last season and many season before. Boring football & negative formations. We are good at hoofing, not making simple passes and giving away possession though. Roll on the January saviours again.

Most teams line up with 3 CM's so I can understand why Jim is reluctant to line up with just 2 against them

Why do we have to always worry about the opposition and match them though, at home. Can we not let them worry about us? We know we are good enough on our day.

[BerlinWaller]

What has Jim learnt from the last half of last season? Gone back to how we were in the first half of last season and many season before. Boring football & negative formations. We are good at hoofing, not making simple passes and giving away possession though. Roll on the January saviours again.

Most teams line up with 3 CM's so I can understand why Jim is reluctant to line up with just 2 against them

Why do we have to always worry about the opposition and match them though, at home. Can we not let them worry about us? We know we are good enough on our day.

Would an opposing Manager be concerned playing against a midfield 2 picked from Wildig/Tutte/Kenyon? If we played with 2 in the middle, we would have to expose the flanks and we haven't got the players to do that either. I totally agree that we worry about the other team far too much and never ever get after teams.

[Phoenix Shrimp 2017]

A bit dull?..............A lot dull!!

Driven a long way for the first two home games for one bit of excitement, namely Alessandra's effort which hit the bar today. Other than that there has been zilch really.

We miss Flemmo, we miss Collins and I also feel we miss Mingoia, who was very good for us but has gone to non-league???? Fair enough he's gone back home. We have no real pace up front, no guile in the middle and it shows, we are journeyman FC apart from maybe Lavelle who will probably be snapped up at the end of the season.

Collins has quickly been demoted to non playing sub at FG and I hope he and his agent are living the dream If ever a player was the perfect fit at a club it was him for us at the end of last season where his stock was very high! That may well have continued this season and then it's fast track Collins to the upper reaches. Hey ho, you make you're bed...................and you lie in it.

Doom and gloom I'm afraid with respite away from home at Mansfield x 2.

UTS.

[Redalert1970]

So what we didn't play well today it's not end of the world

Bet every single Bury fan would swap with us

There is always someone worse off and for heavens sake we didn't even lose lol

[Redalert1970]

Football is a funny old game... Man City and Oxford had 53 shots today between them and neither of them won

City 30 attempts only drew
Oxford 23 attempts and lost

[Keith]

City 30 attempts only drew

Morecambe had one shot on target and drew.
I think the City game would have been more entertaining to watch!

There was one passage of play in the first half, in possession three quarters of the way up the pitch, player turned back on the attack and passed backwards. Another pass back. Pass sideways. Pass back to Barry. Big hoof in to the strong wind. Ball doesn't reach halfway line and their lad gains possession.

So bloody frustrating.

[Sakhalin Shrimp]

There was one passage of play in the first half, in possession three quarters of the way up the pitch, player turned back on the attack and passed backwards. Another pass back. Pass sideways. Pass back to Barry. Big hoof in to the strong wind. Ball doesn't reach halfway line and their lad gains possession.

So bloody frustrating.

Nothing new there Keith.

[redrobo]

Fleming has never been one of my favourite players but my goodness how we miss him in midfield. We are absolutely rank bottom in that department as the moment and unless we can find a few pennies from somewhere to bring in someone to take hold of a game then I'm afraid it could be another season of frustration and looking who is below us.

By all accounts newcomer Brewitt played well v Mansfield on Tuesday but could only make the bench for the full 90 plus minutes yesterday. I'm not suggesting that he is the player to get a grip in midfield but for him not even to come on at sometime during the game when we were totally lacking in ideas seems to me a waste.

Both Cole and Shaun need service to deliver the goods but based on what we've seen to date at The Globe we could have a long wait for even a hint of a goal from either.

OK it's only 3 EFL games into the season but the signs of another frustrating season are already gathering despite having on paper a better 27 man squad to pick from.

[Keith]

By all accounts newcomer Brewitt played well v Mansfield on Tuesday but could only make the bench for the full 90 plus minutes yesterday. I'm not suggesting that he is the player to get a grip in midfield but for him not even to come on at sometime during the game when we were totally lacking in ideas seems to me a waste.

Don't forget, the third substitution was forced upon Jim. It may have been that Brewitt would have made an appearance under normal circumstances? Also, we need to consider that Jim knows much more about fitness etc. Brewitt had a great debut but may not have fully recovered since Tuesday?

[sandgrown]

Stockton and Miller will score goals. They have in the past and could do now. They are not the problem. The problem is there is no intention to get on the front foot and attack. It is a problem we have had under Jim for 4 or 5 years with the last dozen or so games of last season being the exception. There is no formula in place for us to try and score goals. What was the plan for scoring today? Did we try and get it wide and cross the ball in? Did we try and get the ball in to Cole with Lewis and Kev close to him? Were there any bursts from midfield?

exactly

[MfcChris]

Has Cranston fallen out of favour? Expected to see him start at left back yesterday (although Tanner was good).

He was also our centre midfield supremo second half of last season!

[Freez]

Jordan should be starting either on the left of midfield for Kev or in the middle, for me. He. Was excellent in the ten men at The Stags last week.
Tanner is decent at left back, if predominantly right footed. Luke will be back next week.