saintant

Rickie showed in 20 minutes how to lead the line for England in a way that Rooney could never match. He scored one brilliant goal and could have had two others. The chance that hit the post was unlucky because the ball took a nick off a defender just before it reached him. When Rooney plays he is like a school kid chasing all over the place for a touch of the ball and this drags England out of shape. Rickie came on and provided what was needed - a centre forward who holds a disciplined position so that the rest of the team know where he is. Unfortunately I doubt Hodgson will see it that way and he'll continue to pick Rooney who will continue to run around like a headless chicken.

Rickie showed in 20 minutes how to lead the line for England in a way that Rooney could never match. He scored one brilliant goal and could have had two others. The chance that hit the post was unlucky because the ball took a nick off a defender just before it reached him. When Rooney plays he is like a school kid chasing all over the place for a touch of the ball and this drags England out of shape. Rickie came on and provided what was needed - a centre forward who holds a disciplined position so that the rest of the team know where he is. Unfortunately I doubt Hodgson will see it that way and he'll continue to pick Rooney who will continue to run around like a headless chicken.

It seems Spurs are willing to sell Andros Townsend. Thought he looked superb for QPR last season and might be worth a punt.

I really like Ed Chamberlain on the Sky footie stuff and he seems to be getting some of their biggest gigs plus I think he is a Saints fan. Would imagine they'll attract some quality guests on the night as Matt was very well thought of by his fellow pros.

Just seen on the Mayflower theatre website there is a Tribute Night to Matt Le Tissier lined up on Wednesday 10th October. The show will be hosted by Sky Sport's Ed Chamberlain and feature special guests from the world of football both on screen and in the theatre. Sounds like it'll be a good night!

Can't see Nigel surviving if we lose to Swansea, think Cortese will act if it happens.

David Moyes is a hard taskmaster - expect us to feel the backlash following their defeat last night, would have preferred our chances if they'd won. We'll need to match their work rate which is sure to be frenetic. We must get in their faces and not give them the space and time we gave Arsenal. It's not enough to get back in numbers - those numbers must put pressure on the man with the ball and keep tight on the runners especially between the lines. In addition we'll have to show we offer a real threat on the break or they'll just move everyone forward ten yards and keep us camped in our half for long periods. Press the ball, break the play up and be brave enough to attack in numbers when the chances arise.

Have great respect for what Kelvin has done for the club but unfortunately I fear the Premier League is a step too far for him. Unlike the last two seasons we are likely to be under the cosh for long periods so we need a goalkeeper who instills calmness, can be trusted and does not make too many howlers. In this league goalkeeper is one of the most key positions and I just don't think Kelvin fits the bill. Unfortunately we are stuck with what we've got and in my book that is down to the people running the football club. It was a massive mistake not to move heaven and earth to get in a decent 'keeper. Admittedly they're a bit thin on the ground but I'm not sure we were even in the market for someone to step straight in head of Kelvin so it seems the management and coaching staff have faith in him that most of us do not.

Reading lost easily to Spurs for exactly the same reason Arsenal strolled all over us - they had men in numbers both in midfield and defence but those men just stood in space. They did not mark anyone or press the ball. Why pay footballers twenty grand or more a week to mark space? Any of us on this forum can stand in a space doing nothing. It is not rocket science. If it's down to this zonal marking thing I keep hearing about then the quicker we ditch that the better.

Let's lay to rest the myth that ball winners in midfield are needed. That's dinosaur football. How many big brawny tacklers do Barcelona or Spain have? Today's game is not about big tackles in the middle of the park - you don't get away with it anyway with the directives given to modern day referees. What it's about is pressing the opposition when they have the ball and denying them the time and space to play intricate passes. We don't do this anywhere near well enough hence the reason we got tonked yesterday and ended up losing against Utd and City. If we continue not to get tight on opponents in and around the midfield areas we will carry on conceding goals at the current alarming rate. We get back in numbers but are just strung out in static lines and we make the fundamental mistake of allowing the opposition to play between those lines without shifting around to combat this. Teams like Arsenal are set up to destroy anyone who gives them the freedom to play between the lines. We must learn quickly. It is not enough to get bodies back if all they do is mark space.

It's jinxed. We haven't picked up a single point when wearing it. Bring back the red and white stripes!

I mentioned this on the match reaction thread. If he's such a hot prospect he has got to be a better bet than Fox. James Ward Prowse is proving the maxim if you're good enough you're old enough. I think we could do worse than throwing Luke Shaw in to see how he copes.

Firstly, great performance going forward and really had them on the ropes until the substitutions. Thought until the three front men off we looked the more likely to score the next goal. Danny Fox is not up to it I'm afraid. Never got close to Valencia all game. If Luke Shaw has anything about him even at his young age he surely would do a better job than Fox. Ward Prowse is not looking out of place proving if you're good enough you're old enough. Fox is a complete liability.

Any reason why not?

Can Rodriguez not head the ball?

So why can't he be available for a far post cross when playing the role that Michu does for Swansea? He's an intelligent footballer. If he sees play building on the flank he's going to get himself to the far post. Or can he only do that if he's playing as an out and out front man? That's my point - Michu was in the midfield three on paper but always available as an extra striker as Swansea developed play. He's also scored three goals in two games from that position. Lambert does not have to play centre forward.

So how do you explain the fact that Rickie constantly drops deep to help link up the play? He is rarely seen as an out and out centre forward and certainly not a target man.

Michu mobile? As I said, I didn't see him do much other than stroll around. Didn't show any great mobility. When you talk about mobility in midfield surely you mean players such as Iniesta or Fabregas. Michus is just a tall guy who plays at an even pace and doesn't hustle about the pitch - a bit like Rickie you might say. The boys at Swansea who do all the mobile work are Dyer, Routledge, Britton and De Guzman - they do all the leg work.

Whether Michu is a striker or a midfielder is not relevant as I think Lambert could comfortably play the role I saw him play for Swansea on Saturday against West Ham. He did nothing Lambert can't do. He held the ball up, laid it off, made himself available and supported the attack. He didn't do lots of charging about but kept the ball ticking over between midfield and attack. Lambert seems to spend most of his time in deep lying positions anyway so why not give him a try playing behind RodrigueZ?

Maybe not but Adkins will only play Rodrigues wide if Rickie is playing - that doesn't work.

These two can play together. We need to look at Swansea's model as they manage to combine two strikers, Michu and Graham. Graham plays up front while Michu sits behind. We could have Rodrigues up front with Rickie in behind as part of the 'midfield' three. To do this we need two good wing midfielders to play the role that Dyer and Routledge do. If you watch Swansea their two banks of three are very fluid and switch quickly so they can have five in midfield when defending or trying to retrieve the ball. When they have possession they spring quickly so they have plenty of men from their two banks of three in offensive positions. Michu doesn't do a lot of defensive work but he makes up the numbers, is good on the ball and can bring in other players plus he scores goals. For the Dyer and Routledge roles I guess we'd go for Tadanari Lee and Ramires (assuming he signs) - and there's still talk of Matt Phillips. The two traditional midfielders would be Adam and Schneiderlin or Steve Davis with Ward Prowse and Cork as other options. We cannot spend 7million on a player like Rodrigues and then play him out of position - we may as well have flushed that money down the loo if we persist with him out wide. 433 is obviously the way to go in the Premier League but Adkins needs to get the right players in the right positions to make it work.

Same old England - absolutely no conception of the basic principal of pass and move. England players employ the principal of pass (that's my job done) and stand still. No bravery to commit men forward and press the opposition or create a bit of panic. Goal conceded was schoolboy defending - count the players we had behind the ball, there must have been seven of them strung out like a washing-line and not one of them pressed the French until it was too late. All they managed to do was block Hart's view of the shot. Can it really be so difficult to coach professional footballers to pass and move. Milner is not an international footballer and I'm staggered that he is continually selected yet never contributes much (how did he miss that chance?) Let's start with Defoe and Welbeck up front supported by two quick wingers and try to cause Sweden some problems - we are just too pedestrian and predictable

One thing we mustn't do and that is put a strict low level cap on a maximum wage. That was Lowe's policy and got us relegated as we bought a succession of players who were not good enough but were all we could get because of his wage ceiling. Result - an over bloated squad filled with ordinary players and not enough of the quality needed to compete in the Premier League. Big mistake from a bloke many still claim was an astute businessman. Budget for the Championship (or lower) and that's where you'll end up.

Dobbie looks worth a punt if Swansea are willing to sell. Bags of skill, very tricky and not afraid to take defenders on. Gave us plenty of problems too. Could see him linking up well with Lambert and wouldn't cost a fortune.

Lighthouse hits the nail squarely on the head - Lowe built a huge squad of mainly average players the majority of who just weren't up to it and that was his and our downfall. As a result he still ended up with a fairly high wage bill but very little quality and couldn't seem to grasp that to compete in the Premier you must have a certain number of better players who quite rightly command higher salaries. This meant that the manager had to somehow cobble together a team capable of winning enough games just to achieve survival - no surprise that Lowe's lack of understanding got found out. You must have some higher quality players in your squad. Let's not make the same mistakes again or our stay in the Prem will undoubtedly be a very short one.