Starting 11 v Oxford

[sage]

2 hours ago, TheHomunculusLives said:

Jason Knight plays in midfield regularly for a very competitive international team in the Republic of Ireland yet he's a utility player for a third tier club team. He may be versatile but surely he shouldn't be wasted out of position when he's clearly a superior midfielder to a guy like Smith who is no more than a decent journeyman?

The problem for Knight is he doesn't really fit in a 4231 but being a good pro he will do his best wherever. 

He is an 8 in a three man midfield or a RM in a 442 that has an out and out winger on the left 

[Dimmu]

Most likely our starting line-up is the same we started against Leicester. Personally, I would've liked to see us try three at the back in some friendly. Something like this:

                   Wildsmith

          Chester   Davies   Cashin

NML    Bird  Knight  Hourihane   Barkhuizen

               McGoldrick  Collins

[Crewton]

15 minutes ago, Dimmu said:

Most likely our starting line-up is the same we started against Leicester. Personally, I would've liked to see us try three at the back in some friendly. Something like this:

                   Wildsmith

          Chester   Davies   Cashin

NML    Bird  Knight  Hourihane   Barkhuizen

               McGoldrick  Collins

Their respective clubs tried to turn NML and Barkhuizen into wing-backs last season. It didn't work because it's not a role they were comfortable with, so I'd be very surprised if LR asked them to revisit the experiment. 

[vonwright]

39 minutes ago, sage said:

The problem for Knight is he doesn't really fit in a 4231 but being a good pro he will do his best wherever. 

He is an 8 in a three man midfield or a RM in a 442 that has an out and out winger on the left 

I broadly agree but it feels like there should be some way of picking a midfield of Bird/Knight/Hourihane, with two wingers and a striker ahead of them, that worked. 

LR seems to want two sitting midfielders, which is his prerogative of course, but he looks set to lose his best one (Bielik) and it is a system that leaves no obvious spot for one of his better players (Knight).

Two sitting midfielders made more sense to me in the Championship, where we were often on the back foot and needed more stability.

I'm not Knight's biggest fan (ie I think he's a good Championship player but maybe not much more), but he should definitely be a regular starter in a position that suits him in League One!

(It's possible LR is resigned to Knight leaving before the window closes, of course - that would make more sense.)

Edited July 25, 2022 by vonwright

[YorkshireRam]

55 minutes ago, Chris_Martin said:

just swap Sibley for Bird and you've still got the 2 older heads?

Suppose it depends if we're playing with 2 #4s and a #10, or a #4 and 2 #8s. 

McGoldrick and Sibley rotating as the #10 gives us 2 solid players with very different traits. 

Bird does need to be in the team somewhere... the fact we're having these discussions already suggests our recruitment so far has been very good. From 3 contracted players to arguing over who's best to start in midfield in the space of a few weeks!

[Jourdan]

Wildsmith

Oduroh - Davies - Cashin - Forsyth

Bird - Smith - Hourihane

NML - Collins - Barkhuizen

-I know our squad is small, but we have enough players to play people in their natural positions, so Oduroh in.

-Davies and Cashin is our most established partnership. They don’t need time to gel. So vital in the centre back position.

-Forsyth should be first choice if he signs up. Roberts will be if not.

-At home, we want to control the game and keep possession. A midfield of Bird and Smith will help us to do that.

-Hourihane can produce something from nothing, so he has to be in, especially if McGoldrick is not fully fit.

-Knight, Sibley and McGoldrick to come off the bench and go after a tired defence could be useful if Oxford prove stubborn.

Edited July 25, 2022 by Jourdan

[May Contain Nuts]

We never really played with 2 proper wingers under Rooney so I'm thinking the line-up may be a bit different to what people are expecting based on pre-season, with only one of Barkhuiszen & NML starting the game.

Hourihane may have played deeper and controlled games a few years ago for Barnsley & Villa but he's looked far from great there in pre-season, well off the pace, I wouldn't be surprised to see him start out wide (just let him do what he does best without the physical burden for now) with Smith taking up the role closest to Bird.

Edited July 25, 2022 by Coconut's Beard

[Ram1988]

I don't see why Knight can't play in CM as a box to box midfielder with Bird sitting deeper spraying balls around and Hourihane drifting around. Or at times in the game a 4231 can soon change into a 433. He can also do a job outwide on the right but for me is isn't a right back and we shouldn't be wasting him out there.

[jono]

7 hours ago, Ram1988 said:

I don't see why Knight can't play in CM as a box to box midfielder with Bird sitting deeper spraying balls around and Hourihane drifting around. Or at times in the game a 4231 can soon change into a 433. He can also do a job outwide on the right but for me is isn't a right back and we shouldn't be wasting him out there.

I’d certainly try that. Knights energy over 90 minutes is exceptional. 
 

I am no tactician, I also like what I’ve seen of Smith and Roberts so not hard and fast as a line up but if we shape up like this it seems reasonable, but someone has to get close to Collins.

                                         Wildsmith 

             Oudh            Cashin                      Davies        Fozzy

                                               Bird

                                Knight.                  Hourihan

             Batman                    Collins                         NML