I think it’s tactics. When we don’t have the ball we often seem to drop into a back 5 with Styles coming back as rwb with Brittain tucking in. It’s kind of like the Jordan Williams role. Although he was playing it much better before his injury.
I part wonder if it's just a scrambled brain? In the space of a year we've had 4 coaches, some of which have played multiple formations and styles. Brittain was used in the middle for a bit (grated not very long). Or he's being told to do that. Or not being told to do that but is a bit ill disciplined? But you're right, is those sorts of basics not being met that allows opponents to get in very easily and often have better quality of chances to what we sometimes generate.
I have to query the fact that it was a blue print that got us to the play offs. They got massively lucky with the appointment of Ismael. He played a style of football completely unlike any manager they've appointed before or since at a time when that style took the rest of the league by surprise. If there was really a blueprint they'd have followed up by appointing someone equally motivational who played a style much more akin to that which made the group of players we have successful.
Data analysts who suggested the likes of Woodrow, Styles, Pinnock, Collins to name just a few. None of these had any pedigree to speak of but turned out OK. It will always gonna be a bit of a lottery when you pick players from a lower level than what you are operating at
Woodrow had already played in the premiership and championship before joining us in league one Collins had a great pedigree and had just had a good season in league one with burton free transfer not much of a gamble Styles again a small fee for a then 16/17 year old Pinnock was a gamble at 500k for a non league player but it turned out well. Picking young players from lower leagues isnt the problem plenty of players make the step up from league one two even conference level look at pinnock, marc roberts, lee gregory, jarod bowen, joe lolley the list could go on and on. The problem is buying players and staff from forign poor leagues increases the risk greatly or players who have mostly played u23s football at a not really competitive level.
Think Cayley was something like 1 match in the Prem and 14 games in the Championship with a very limited return on goals, granted is more experience than an U23 league but is hardly compelling evidence to sign someone. Collins I would agree had just had a good season with Burton. The point of my comment was that for as many as you listed there have been successes too using the data approach. If you’d put about data from poor foreign leagues I’d have had more of a tendency to have agreed.
The point i was initially making is we dont seem to use the same data where we would take a league one, 2 or even conference teams exelling player ir captain. The summer was a awful window and im not sure which spreadsheet suggested we sign a player who had played less games than andy carroll in his previous 4 years or a player in burnleys u23s. Or even iseka. Benson may come good but the other 2 i dont hold much hope for nor cole and then its the getting shut of them thats the hard part.....
