After the match yesterday I've actually changed my mind. The main issue...

...is Flitcroft, not Hill. What does he do with them in training all week? What videos of the opposition do they watch? Birmingham play that near post corner routine ALL the time - what you need is someone at the front post running forward to make sure they're first to any low ball, and you also want someone marking the near post EVEN IF YOU DON'T NORMALLY HAVE PEOPLE ON THE POST. Either Zigic or Davies look for the near post run all the time so you have someone on him with your first man I mentioned making sure they stay in front of him, then properly man mark each player, with your best three defensive markers - Hassell, McNulty and Stones - picking up Davies, Zigic and whoever that other giant freak was at number 4.

I know it sounds conceited but if i had spent all last week with the defence they'd have been properly organised to defend those set pieces far better than they were on Saturday, regardless of personnel. It was an absolute shambles.

I question what Flitcroft does all week because if it's anything like what he does on Saturday standing on the touchline with his hand up his ar*e then no wonder we're in the mess we are.

 

I honestly think we couldn't do any worse (asssuming we actually do work on our defending through the week) if we just did what we as players did/do on a Sunday morning, i.e. our players pick up the nearest opposition player in relation to size to them, get goalside and tight to them and if the ball comes their way attack it or at least jump with them. And actually tell each other if somebody is unmarked.