I'm beginning to doubt myself here. From where I was sat he was up front in a 442 diamond for about 40minutes of the first half. Left wing for about the next 40 minutes and then up front for the remainder. Please someone confirm for my own sanity. For me the Two biggest factors that contributed to our loss today were 1) Sheff U put in a massive shift closing down our centre backs, massively limiting our ability to pass the ball through midfield. Compare and contrast to Preston who gave us much more time. 2) Poor defending of set pieces. Very surprised to see this, we've generally been good. In no means want to be overly critical of the young keeper but I do feel he wasn't commanding enough and that uncertainty was crucial.
Wasted on the left wing O Grady stylie again. http://www.soccerbase.com/players/player.sd?player_id=56211 1 goal in 12. 8 goals in 8. 1 goal in 11. His season has been more on and off than most. One rich vein of form but two in twenty three games in the game either sides of it.
Is Winnall capable of leading a line by himself though? The 4-4-2 diamond was a disaster and we don't have a perfect partner for Pearson in a normal 4-4-2. From what I saw today, Sam works very, very hard and relies mostly on his brain and pace. I don't see why he couldn't play out wide in a role similar to that of Welbeck for England or Walcott for Arsenal, where he cuts inside behind the opposition from out wide.
That's exactly where Winnall played. Reasons for losing today; Midfield set up in the first half offering us a complete lack of width which inlcuded Stewart playing inside left centre, being bullied by a Sheffield United team intent on long balls, Jabo not offering the same protection from the front as in previous games, Hourihane having a shocker, the majority of the team just not being at the races. All in all a disappointing effort, but the run would end eventually. I'm just upset that it's ended after a game of football that saw very little quality from either side.