Shuddersfield under the lights.

[The Blobster]

Here we go again and unfortunately I predict our first away defeat of the season to a crap team that have showed an upturn in form lately , let's hope that Byers isn't on the bus and Grimes has his boots on the correct feet , Borja must start as I can't see anyone else hitting a barn door , never mind the back of the net ! Peterson deserves an extended run in the team but Cooperman will probably leave him on the bench .

 

[Yankee_Jack]

I would start Roberts and Fulton in midfield in place of Grimes and Byers. Couldn’t possibly be any worse. Passing would be better. We would have true box to box energy with Roberts. We would compete for the second ball.

 

[CroJack]

Borja, Surridge and Peterson are wasted on the bench. We can play them all, but Cooper is clueless so there is no hope.

4-4-2 with Surridge and Borja up front. Peterson on the left and Roberts on the right wing. Fulton and Ayew in midfield. John and Naughton as full-backs. Wilmot and Hoorn as centre-backs.

 

[ivoralljack]

Borja, Surridge and Peterson are wasted on the bench. We can play them all, but Cooper is clueless so there is no hope.

4-4-2 with Surridge and Borja up front. Peterson on the left and Roberts on the right wing. Fulton and Ayew in midfield. John and Naughton as full-backs. Wilmot and Hoorn as centre-backs.

That seems a sound lineup to me. Borja, Surridge and Peterson will be busting a gut to get a chance and, if they do well, the likes of Byers and Grimes etc will realise that they need to up their performances big time to stay in the starters when they next get a chance. Certainly the regulars need a bloody big shake-up because they've been phoning in a lot of their performances and that is totally, utterly and completely unacceptable when we are so well placed to figure near the top at the end of the season.

It has become a matter of character, attitude, effort and ambition and if there's anyone who can't, or won't, deliver ALL those things then they can piss off as far as I'm concerned.

 

[CroJack]

That seems a sound lineup to me. Borja, Surridge and Peterson will be busting a gut to get a chance and,

Not only that, we would also get much needed physicality and height. Imagine Borja, Surridge, Peterson, Fulton, Ayew, Hoorn and Wilmot in opposition box at set-pieces? Imagine all of them defending set-pieces? Imagine Borja, Surridge, Peterson, Ayew and Fulton attacking crosses? Surridge is a big lad and he can also drop back when needed to help in the midfield and give us physical presence there. And we all know that both Fulton and Ayew work hard. No more pussies around. But I'm afraid the pussy in the dugout doesn't have balls and brain to make some radical changes.

 

[Yankee_Jack]

Borja, Surridge and Peterson are wasted on the bench. We can play them all, but Cooper is clueless so there is no hope.

4-4-2 with Surridge and Borja up front. Peterson on the left and Roberts on the right wing. Fulton and Ayew in midfield. John and Naughton as full-backs. Wilmot and Hoorn as centre-backs.

This the Three #9s of Cooper. Just because you position them nicely on a sheet of paper doesn't necessarily transfer to grass - players play what they are. Ayew does not have the discipline to play anywhere other than as the #9, and he doesn't share his toys, so how well Ayew would combine with Surridge and not see them both get in each others way is doubtful. Perhaps you could play Borja as a #10 with a deeper remit, tough to say.

We need to stand down the midfield trio (Celina, Grimes, Byers) of the past few weeks. They've all been living on borrowed time and the sand ran out of the timer against Millwall. So what do we do?

Routs and Dyer were ok, but used the wrong way and were never really brought into the game to do what they do best out wide. Use Peterson, Routs, Dyer as a line behind a #9 and let them interchange with the plays on the outside playing wide. Routs and Dyer know the West Brom drill; I'm sure they could explain it to Peterson .... Cooper can't.

That leaves us with two other midfield positions. We've lacked bite, energy and quality. This is where Fulton and Roberts combine.

As for the #9 ... pick anyone but only one out of Borja, Ayew, or Surridge. Perhaps it's Borja's turn? Perhaps it's Surridge? I don't see the difference.

 

[CroJack]

This the Three #9s of Cooper.

Cooper has never played them from the start.

Just because you position them nicely on a sheet of paper doesn't necessarily transfer to grass

Every line-up looks nice on a sheet of paper. We've never tried what I am proposing, so we don't know if it would transfer to grass.

Ayew does not have the discipline to play anywhere other than as the #9, and he doesn't share his toys,

We've never tried him in midfield. He likes to run around and imho that would be his ideal position. Just like Henderson and Millner at Liverpool. Grafters. And Ayew is a grafter.

so how well Ayew would combine with Surridge and not see them both get in each others way is doubtful.

Not if Ayew plays in midfield. I would play Surridge and Borja up front either in 4-4-2 or 4-4-1-1 formation. Ayew can pass the ball, and he can be creative, so him behind Surridge and Borja is perhaps not a so bad idea.

 

[Yankee_Jack]

@CroJack ..."Cooper has never played them from the start" And for this we are eternally grateful.

As for the rest of it ... it's all dependent on Ayew listening, taking it in, translating it in his brain, and executing. I'm not going to put my last penny on that.

 

[CroJack]

@CroJack ..."Cooper has never played them from the start" And for this we are eternally grateful.

Well, I disagree. We would still have two wingers and two full-backs to provide crosses. And we would have two grafters in midfield. We would be an aerial threat at set-pieces and we would have height to defend set-pieces. We would have physicality we don't have now. What's not to like? Why do you think it wouldn't work out?

What aerial threat do we possess with Grimes, Byers, Dyer, Routs and Celina in the starting XI? They obviously don't have skills to play pass & move football, so maybe it's time we introduce some physicality and bench them. Let's be good at set pieces and let's convert some crosses into goals if we can't outplay our opponents. Let's give them some bruises and fight.

 

[ivoralljack]

I see both sides of this debate but the thing is what we've been doing is starting to fall apart and not working. Perhaps it's not a bad idea to try something radical that may not look a good idea at first. But we all know about managers who've been forced into radical decisions due to injuries and or suspensions in their teams. And to their delight, not to say surprise, they hit on a winning formula. Our players have ability at their best but it's just not being harnessed in the right way.

 

[CroJack]

I see both sides of this debate but the thing is what we've been doing is starting to fall apart and not working. Perhaps it's not a bad idea to try something radical that may not look a good idea at first. But we all know about managers who've been forced into radical decisions due to injuries and or suspensions in their teams. And to their delight, not to say surprise, they hit on a winning formula. Our players have ability at their best but it's just not being harnessed in the right way.

Our poor home form is the result of us not being able to break down opposition that parks the bus. Millwall, for example. We need pragmatism, not thinkering. We don't have Manchester City's creativity to find a solution. So, bomb them with crosses and score from set-pieces. In away games we can have a different approach with more pace and counter-attacking.

My point is that we are being bullied at home turf.

 

[ivoralljack]

So, bomb them with crosses and score from set-pieces.

With this in mind I'd be more than happy to have Keifer Moore in our team and I don't think he'd cost a fortune to sign in the next window.

 

[CroJack]

With this in mind I'd be more than happy to have Keifer Moore in our team and I don't think he'd cost a fortune to sign in the next window.

We have Borja, Surridge, Peterson, Ayew, Fulton,Wilmot, Hoorn.

I like Moore, but he is not Swansea player. Why don't we use players we already have?

 

[ivoralljack]

We have Borja, Surridge, Peterson, Ayew, Fulton,Wilmot, Hoorn.

I like Moore, but he is not Swansea player. Why don't we use players we already have?

I was thinking that Borja might be moved on, particularly if we drop behind in the promotion race and Wilmot and Surridge are loan players who will probably go back to their parent clubs at some point. If we signed Moore he'd be our player and he's a Borja type player with more strength and possibly more mobility. In addition to that he's getting some invaluable international experience and I wouldn't be at all upset if he came here. Academic thought, though, as the owners probably wouldn't shell out for him.

 

[CroJack]

I was thinking that Borja might be moved on, particularly if we drop behind in the promotion race and Wilmot and Surridge are loan players who will probably go back to their parent clubs at some point. If we signed Moore he'd be our player and he's a Borja type player with more strength and possibly more mobility. In addition to that he's getting some invaluable international experience and I wouldn't be at all upset if he came here. Academic thought, though, as the owners probably wouldn't shell out for him.

Of course, I'm with you. Every good player is welcome.

 

[CroJack]

Don't get me wrong guys. I respect our Swanselona legacy and you all know that I have always been a huge fan of techically gifted players and pace. I have always believed that in the long run passing opposition to death (to quote Rodgers), talent, technical ability (Trundle is still my favourite Swansea player), direct passing, triangle and pass & and move are superior to primitive set-pieces football and thugs on the pitch. Brain before physicality.

How come that I suddenly want to send our most gifted players on the bench and implement physicality and set-pieces? Well, there are two reasons why.

1. Our manager is obviously not able to fulfill the promises given during his job interview and press-conferences when he was appointed as Swansea manager, to follow in the footsteps of Martinez, Rodgers, Laudrup and Potter. MaRoLaPo have not been perfect, but their football has been miles ahead of the unorganised dross we are witnessing under our current manager. Under Cooper we have a little bit of everything, but the result of a little bit everything is inevitably more nothing than anything. We don't progress.

2. "Our identity is intensity" - Jürgen Klopp.
The crazy German has understood the very essence of football, and life for that matter. If you are an underdog in terms of technical ability you have to run more and fight more then those who have more talent than you. He has done it with Mainz, Dortmund and Liverpool. All of them had been huge underdogs when he took over, but every of his teams have had four common things: a) intensity, b) pace, c) work rate, and d) team work. A winning formula. Everything else has been the icing on the cake. How else can we explain Liverpool's 4:0 win against Barcelona (3:0 down in the first leg) in the last season's CL semi-final? Without Salah and Firmino? Liverpool's intensity stunned Barcelona at Anfield.

Why I'm saying all of this? Well, if things don't work on the pitch, every clever manager should go back to basics. And that's exactly Klopp's winning formula cut to the bone: intensity and work rate. We have beaten Cardiff and Charlton by playing high intensity football, and against Charlton we have played our best pressing football since that famous FA Cup game against Manchester City under Potter.

At the moment we are not able to play Swanselona style of play either because our manager doesn't know how to implement it or because our players lack passing ability and concentration. We are still in a good position to get promoted, but we have to change things radically. We can't afford being bullied at the Liberty. Other teams have to fear us and lose the game before the ball has been kicked. That's why I am suggesting that we should start playing our big & ugly lads instead of the pussies who don't even have enough strength to kick the ball properly when they shoot from outside the box (Celina). If brain doesn't work then let's unleash some muscle. Let's bully others, at least when they come to play at the Liberty. I'd rather watch a good fight and high intensity football than that slow and uninspiring dross we are being served at the Liberty in almost every game we play.

Rant over.

 

[ivoralljack]

And a damned good rant it was.

 

[Yankee_Jack]

I’m glad he agrees with me . This is why I put Roberts and Fulton in midfield - I’m sure there’s a stat somewhere - we lost against Millwall because we had a weak midfield - weak in energy, physicality, movement and quality. Solve the midfield problem and we are a good way there. In January we need to try to get Allen back. He would all of those missing attributes and make a better captain on the field. Fulton and Allen (or Roberts and Allen) with Grimes moved to #10 would be far superior to what we have now.

 

[Yankee_Jack]

Transfer Market values Allen at 7.2 million going down. Let’s dangle 5 and see if they bite. Allen would be over paid in L1 and clearly Stoke are struggling.

 

[ivoralljack]

Transfer Market values Allen at 7.2 million going down. Let’s dangle 5 and see if they bite. Allen would be over paid in L1 and clearly Stoke are struggling.

Trouble is his value will be dictated by what Stoke want for him and what other teams are prepared to pay - and there's no doubt that he can still perform at Premier League level. As much as I like Joe, I don't see him coming back to us not least because of the tightwads controlling our purse strings. On the other hand, if we sold Borja and or Ayew then we would have funds. If we sold both I'd like to see Joe and Kiefer Moore come in.

That said, it's a matter for Joe really; how much he wants to return to his hometown club and what sort of salary would he accept. It would be great if it happened but I see many obstacles to overcome.