Formation

[Foreveram]

1 hour ago, May Contain Nuts said:

Rotherham's chances are always slim, but Steve Evans kept them up in 2014/15, Neil Warnock saved them in 2015/16 and Matt Taylor kept them up in 2022/23.

Granted the last one was given decent head start by Warne but there's no guarantees they wouldn't have suffered a late season slump had he stayed.

This isn't actually a dig at Warne but it's also 3 relegations not 2. You can't just discount 2016/17, he had 5-6 months in charge.

Warne never had a big budget or an extensive / deep squad but along the way the club did sign / he did work with quite a number of players who've gone on to establish themselves at Championship level. Probably just not enough all at the same time.

People who moan about Paul Warne should be made to watch a Steve Evan’s team for a season 😳

[Ambitious]

2 minutes ago, Foreveram said:

People who moan about Paul Warne should be made to watch a Steve Evan’s team for a season 😳

If you want to see the keeper pass the ball to the centre back and keep recycling possession, patiently waiting for openings then I would imagine Warne/Evans aren't the managers you want. Nevertheless, both do want their teams to play fast attacking football but equally don't place much emphasis on passing the ball out from the back. 

Watch Oxford in their latest friendly, for example, I do find it odd that this constitutes a footballing side and if you don't do it then you're simply anti-football. It's like common sense is being ignored in place of a total-football ideology. 

 

[May Contain Nuts]

There's a certain irony at play comparing Warne to Evans though.

We've just had a season of picking up points in spite of some poor performances and uninspiring football, but this has justified as 'what you need to do' to get out of the league. 

Evans' football may (or may not, I've had limited exposure) be worse to watch, and I'm sure there are many who think Warnock's would be too, but both have achieved something with their brand of football Warne is yet to do with his, at the same club, with the same level of resources and/or taking over in more difficult circumstances.

[Foreveram]

52 minutes ago, May Contain Nuts said:

There's a certain irony at play comparing Warne to Evans though.

We've just had a season of picking up points in spite of some poor performances and uninspiring football, but this has justified as 'what you need to do' to get out of the league. 

Evans' football may (or may not, I've had limited exposure) be worse to watch, and I'm sure there are many who think Warnock's would be too, but both have achieved something with their brand of football Warne is yet to do with his, at the same club, with the same level of resources and/or taking over in more difficult circumstances.

 

Comparing Warne to Evans is like comparing Iniesta to Vinnie Jones.☺️

[i-Ram]

2 minutes ago, Foreveram said:

Comparing Warne to Evans is like comparing Iniesta to Vinnie Jones.☺️

You must be able to do better than that! If you can’t, go to GoCompare.com

[Foreveram]

56 minutes ago, i-Ram said:

You must be able to do better than that! If you can’t, go to GoCompare.com

Ok I was being flippant, but Evans off the field compares favourably with Jones on it.

[Tombo]

2 hours ago, Ambitious said:

If you want to see the keeper pass the ball to the centre back and keep recycling possession, patiently waiting for openings then I would imagine Warne/Evans aren't the managers you want. Nevertheless, both do want their teams to play fast attacking football but equally don't place much emphasis on passing the ball out from the back. 

Watch Oxford in their latest friendly, for example, I do find it odd that this constitutes a footballing side and if you don't do it then you're simply anti-football. It's like common sense is being ignored in place of a total-football ideology. 

 

I think a conversation needs to be had about what exactly constitutes "attractive football" anymore.

Do Pep's City play "good football"? I don't think so, I think it's dull and negative and just suffocates the game into submission until you win.

Do fans want to see their team play it around the back and keep the ball away from the pressing attackers?

A team who move the ball fast on the counter and try to beat the defensive line and get in behind is much better to watch, even if it means that they have to play very direct football to get it into the attacking third as quickly as possible.

There's more to enjoying watching your team play than just "I hope they don't pass it more than 5 yards at a time otherwise we'll get called hoofball merchants"

[Saturn5]

I'd just like to see us keep possession more than six passes and actually make it difficult for the opposition to win the ball back not just give the ball away all the time 

[Anag Ram]

Some first time passing would be nice.

Nothing opens up opposition defences more efficiently and pleasingly than a succession of quick, accurate, first time passes.

Better than a willing runner with little footballing talent.

So let’s not fill the team with middle distance runners and little else.

We need our Wilsons, Wards and Goudwijns this year.

[duncanjwitham]

11 minutes ago, Tombo said:

I think a conversation needs to be had about what exactly constitutes "attractive football" anymore.

Do Pep's City play "good football"? I don't think so, I think it's dull and negative and just suffocates the game into submission until you win.

Do fans want to see their team play it around the back and keep the ball away from the pressing attackers?

A team who move the ball fast on the counter and try to beat the defensive line and get in behind is much better to watch, even if it means that they have to play very direct football to get it into the attacking third as quickly as possible.

There's more to enjoying watching your team play than just "I hope they don't pass it more than 5 yards at a time otherwise we'll get called hoofball merchants"

Last season, in the Premier League, Man City:

Scored the most goals
Had the 2nd most shots
Had the most shots on target
Scored the most goals from open play (by a long, long way)
Had the most possession in the final 3rd
Had the 4th most dribbles

[Ambitious]

12 minutes ago, Tombo said:

I think a conversation needs to be had about what exactly constitutes "attractive football" anymore.

Do Pep's City play "good football"? I don't think so, I think it's dull and negative and just suffocates the game into submission until you win.

Do fans want to see their team play it around the back and keep the ball away from the pressing attackers?

A team who move the ball fast on the counter and try to beat the defensive line and get in behind is much better to watch, even if it means that they have to play very direct football to get it into the attacking third as quickly as possible.

There's more to enjoying watching your team play than just "I hope they don't pass it more than 5 yards at a time otherwise we'll get called hoofball merchants"

I would say that in theory is pretty much the blueprint of what Warne wants out of his football team. He's fairly relaxed with players 'having a go' and playing the more riskier passes - unfortunately the talent level means they're more unlikely to come off and in turn can look a bit disjointed. 

In his first season here, we played in such a cavalier way that we were often the team done on the counter and recklessly got players forward against better judgement. I felt he found a balance to that last season and that resulted in us having the best goal difference in the league.  

[Caerphilly Ram]

2 hours ago, Ambitious said:

If you want to see the keeper pass the ball to the centre back and keep recycling possession, patiently waiting for openings then I would imagine Warne/Evans aren't the managers you want. Nevertheless, both do want their teams to play fast attacking football but equally don't place much emphasis on passing the ball out from the back. 

Watch Oxford in their latest friendly, for example, I do find it odd that this constitutes a footballing side and if you don't do it then you're simply anti-football. It's like common sense is being ignored in place of a total-football ideology. 

 

Slightly off topic… but what’s matey doing trying to volley that second chance, he just needed to work his neck muscles and bury the header?! Mansfield so wasteful despite Oxford’s repeated attempts at a “leg up”. 

[May Contain Nuts]

2 hours ago, Foreveram said:

Comparing Warne to Evans is like comparing Iniesta to Vinnie Jones.☺️

But how do their singing voices compare to VJ?

 

 

[Magicman]

He prefers 1 3 5 2 

[Foreveram]

27 minutes ago, May Contain Nuts said:

But how do their singing voices compare to VJ?

 

 

That’ll be the Welsh in him 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿

[vonwright]

1 hour ago, duncanjwitham said:

Last season, in the Premier League, Man City:

Scored the most goals
Had the 2nd most shots
Had the most shots on target
Scored the most goals from open play (by a long, long way)
Had the most possession in the final 3rd
Had the 4th most dribbles

I might be in a minority, but I do enjoy watching Pep teams. They 'suffocate the game' by playing with incredible skill, precision and imagination. They pick teams apart and rarely score a tap in. And all with plenty of goals and shots. What's not to like? 

[Tombo]

1 hour ago, duncanjwitham said:

Last season, in the Premier League, Man City:

Scored the most goals
Had the 2nd most shots
Had the most shots on target
Scored the most goals from open play (by a long, long way)
Had the most possession in the final 3rd
Had the 4th most dribbles

Of course they did. They're a very good team

Do you enjoy watching them though?

[duncanjwitham]

34 minutes ago, Tombo said:

Of course they did. They're a very good team

Do you enjoy watching them though?

Yes, they’re an excellent team to watch.  They play good football, create lots of chances and score lots of goals.

I genuinely don’t understand your argument - you moan about them spending far too long passing the ball around the back, yet they spend more time in the attacking third than any other team in the league.  Last season, we spent more time with the ball in our own defensive third than Man City did.

[Anag Ram]

If Man City are ever ‘boring ‘ to watch it’s because the opposition has parked the bus!

[Ambitious]

2 hours ago, Anag Ram said:

If Man City are ever ‘boring ‘ to watch it’s because the opposition has parked the bus!

In fairness, the way City control the ball it’s very difficult to do anything but park the bus. They move the ball methodically to get the defensive line as high up the pitch as possible, making the distance between all their players close where their technical players can hurt teams. Its been designed and implemented expertly by a person/club who have the ability and vision to put all the parts together successfully. 

As the opposition, you essentially have to put your body between passing lanes and try to get behind the lines as they play so high up the pitch. Teams have been successful against them doing it, but I can’t think for one second any team that has beat them out passing them. 

City are great to watch when they’re on it, because it’s an art form and they’re almost faultless. However, it rarely makes for a good spectacle when they’re just passing teams to death.