Creating scoring opportunities

I think the lack of scoring opportunities is mainly down to team selection and where players are put in the formation. We scored against QPR because a midfielder was prepared to make a run in behind the defence and Simoes took his goal well.

For me, Woodrow has to be moved back up front and then a more creative midfielder such a Simoes or Bahre put at the tip of the diamond. Both Simoes and Bahre are prepared to make runs into the box and cause problems, whereas with Woodrow in the deeper position we just make mostly square passes and lack any kind of penetration. Palmer and Mowatt can provide the solidity in central midfield and be responsible for shutting down counter attacks.

It was incredibly congested in midfield against Millwall, so the other option would be to play Thomas out wide and try to get down the channels more.

As has been said in another thread, the set pieces must improve too and it's time to relieve Mowatt of this duty and give somebody else a chance. We have got to pose more of a goal threat on Tuesday night.

 

Woodrow was playing alongside Brown at the start of both games since restart. With Simoes in the hole. He’s then reverted to the ‘10’ at half time with Chaplin up front.

It’s been a back three too.

Amazed that even after two matches, a lot of fans can’t tell.

 

The point about the lack of penetration is still valid though Andy. Watching yesterday I found myself thinking wistfully about having a midfielder who could play a killer pass and a Hammill-type player playing wide-left. We certainly look more solid, but it will take goals to give us any chance of staying up.

 

Maybe that's because it not been that obvious because Woodrow keeps dropping back onto midfield causing the congestion in that area maybe he needs to be told to start up top and stay there, because the team desperately need an outlet when under pressure and the tippy tappy stuff from the centre halves is causing us problems still, luckily the opposition haven't taken advantage since the restart but its just a matter of time if we persist with it.

 

If we're going to play with wing backs, then they're going to have to produce more opportunities for our front men. I'm not expecting to see the quality of a Nicky Eaden, Neil Thompson, or Darren Barnard. But the lads up front need more than the mere scraps they were provided with yesterday.
Anyway, onto Tuesday evening. Blackburn are going to present different problems than Millwall did. However, their style of football could always provide us with the chance to play to our personal strengths (ie. Woodrow, Brown, Chaplin, Simoes, etc. getting on the ball more & in dangerous positions).

 

In terms of creating opportunities going forward our current wing backs aren't even of the quality of Scott Wiseman which is very worrying.

 

I offered no opinion buddy, on what is needed. Merely pointing out that Woodrow has been up front for half of both games. He was in a forward position when dummying the pass for Simoes to run onto and score at QPR. I also pointed out we've been playing with three at the back because that seems to have been missed by many too.

In terms of an opinion, I reckon we needed to tighten up defensively to stand a chance. It's been a glaring issue all season, conceding goals. I think this system has made us harder to break down from open play. Set-plays still worry me. We haven't created much in the two games, I would accept that. We need to be better going forward. But I would have snapped your hand off for four points from those two games. We never get owt at QPR and Millwall are the sort of side that we've struggled against all season. People forget, but at Millwall, I thought we were very fortunate to win that.

We're in with a chance, however slight.

 

I think you play out if you can, but get rid if necessary. Millwall's high-press certainly caused issues once or twice in the first half, but other than that I thought we looked quite solid. I felt it was out wide where we lacked quality yesterday.

As for Woodrow in the 10 or 'deeper' position, he's not done too shabbily in there.

 

That's the area where I felt we were lacking. But Ludewig was excellent at QPR, we knows he's capable. I'm surprised we haven't seen Clarke on the other side, but I'm loathe to be too critical when we've just got four points from six, five clean sheets from the last seven. We're in the top six on form.

Tuesday night is a big game. As they all are until it's settled one way or t'other!

 

Question is and we'll never know the answer would he have scored more fully up front either with someone like Chaplin or with a big striker like Moore at the side of him

 

We should have won at Blackburn & Boro too. Very unlucky in those games.

 

Unless Clarke is not fit he needs to play over Ritzmaier, who is just not up to speed with the English game. A few times yesterday balls were played past the fullback for him to overlap & he was stood with his hands on his hips. I think in the two games we've shored up the defence, which was crucial. We just need to try & find a bit more cutting edge & this could actually be doable.

 

Your table is a very good one, but sadly it points to a failing as well. There is no doubt that we are tighter in defense than we were under Stendel, but defensively, Stendel's era was chaos defensively, even in League 1. That tightening has come at the cost of goals scored, and that is particularly true in home games, where we have scored just 3 in the last 6 games. A leaky defense was never going to keep up up, but equally, neither is a lack of goals. The balance has to be struck better than Stendel struck it, but equally, we must have an away system that allows us to take advantage of an opponent's open tactics, and a home system that does not rely on an opponent opening up in order to try and win the game, because that is not going to happen. Like it or not, whether we have the players to do it, or not, we have to create more space, we have to use the whole of the field and we have to let our full backs get forward more.

I have hated watching the two games on iFollow because I cannot tell what is happening in the same way as I can when I attend games, so I do not intend to go into great detail here because it is likely to be wrong if I do. However, Struber is unlikely to keep us up in my opinion unless he finds an alternative strategy for home games that works well enough for us to score goals and concede as few we are currently.

 

I liked Kieffer. It’s a shame he wanted to leave. Also a shame we didn’t get a more physical forward in afterwards.

Shame I’ve not got hair as well.

 

Would you gave gone for the new headband look hes favouring if you did have hair? Think he 'll ve going man bun next!!

 

I was referring to the two games since the restart buddy, regards tightening up. Going to a back three, and having Cauley up front. It’s definitely made us look more solid than we did in the two games pre-COVID against Reading and Cardiff.

 

I’ve not seen any of the other games to be honest with you, just the scores. I suppose I’ll see it soon enough when we play them soon. Let’s hope we are still in there fighting.

 

This. Time to bring Odour back into the starting eleven and drop Ritz to the bench. He offers very little going forward. I'd prefer to get our noses in front first, then bring him on later if we need to hold onto a lead.

 

Cavare, pinillos, thiam, wilks, dougall, mcgeehan all players that we could have had available in our fight to survive in the championship. All discarded. If we go down we didn't even give ourselves the best chance. Every single one of those players would either strengthen the bench or certain positions in the starting 11.

 

If we're going to play with wing backs, the two I'd choose would be Oduor & Ludewig. I felt we lacked width when attacking yesterday (meaning little service to our strikers). The game's gone now and we concentrate on Tuesday evening. Four points from two games is a very good return, though, and were we to maintain that for the rest of the campaign then we'll survive. Two clean sheets can't be regarded as a bad thing, either. However, to state the blatantly obvious, wins are needed for us to close the gap and get out of the mire.