They don’t get it …

[Yankee_Jack]

Korey Smith | We're frustrated but hard work is the only solution | Swansea

Korey Smith admits Swansea City are frustrated at not getting the points on the board they would have liked, but knows the solution will only come with more hard work.

www.swanseacity.com

According to Korey Smith …

hard work is the only solution

This is the sort of statement that almost always indicates something is wrong. if that’s the thinking then they just don’t get it.

This is the statement you most often hear from players at clubs that are losing, that ultimately get relegated.

Hard work in and of itself never achieves anything. It has to be applied in the right way, at the right time, to the right place. If you’re digging a hole where you’re standing … hard work will just put you deeper in the hole. Are we digging a hole, or building a solution? Is it truly understood what the destination is? Are the players capable of understanding, free thinking, improvising on the spot. Or, are they just dumb robots, incapable of doing anything more than the practice drill that acts as a straight-jacket in a match. Are they not yet submitting the moves of the drill into the rote subconscious as tool so that their thinking minds are free to see and express.

Martin is either failing to get across his message (is there a message) or the Players are not taking it on board. Hard work will get them fitter, it will not by itself get them better.

 

[KVetch]

At least we're not reading about a teammate sleeping with another teammates wife. Or failing a drug test as a result of cocaine. Cardiff will be the test. Massive game to show progress. I'm still giving Martin a chance.

 

[Yankee_Jack]

I said from early on that it would take Martin until the end of October to get it to click ... just like Martinez.

However, when I hear something like this coming out of a player it never augers well. Everybody works hard. Everybody can work hard. There's no competitive advantage in working hard since everybody does it, it's a given to be in the game.

 

[CroJack]

"Hard work" is the usual horse manure phrase the football managers and players use a lot. I think you are putting too much on this, @Yankee_Jack .

I never promise titles, just hard work - Pep Guardiola

Liverpool’s Jürgen Klopp is interested only in hard work not dreams.

 

[Yankee_Jack]

You don't win football games by working hard ... it's a given ... you win football games by solving problems. Little problems, big problems ... the teams and players that solve problems most efficiently most often win the match, win the league.

If part of what Martin is doing is not coaching them to solve problems then we're going to be just like every other team in the league.

 

[ivoralljack]

I think he's working hard on it but it will take time for the players to get fully on board with it. That's down to the average quality of the players we have in the squad. If they had more quality we'd have seen more progress. But I think we're getting there....... slowly.

 

[Behindthegoal]

If our players were clever enough to carry out the Martin Plan they wouldn’t be playing for us. Unfortunately speed of thought, spatial awareness and inventiveness are commodities in short supply.