I think fundamentally we have 1 player that appears to be significantly damaged by a loss of confidence and form by Martin's football and what it delivered damage wise last season. And that is THB. He is a shell of the player he was previously. With THB playing as he is, and with Stephens and Manning alongside him, we are absolutely horrendous at the back.
Stephens is just about okay (and in fairness to him, he has been leading on the pitch and does seem to have shrugged off last season), but he is along way from being a great defender even at championship level.
Manning cannot defend at all - and as good as his attacking output can be, what we need right now is a solid left back.
And THB is just an absolute calamity in the middle of defence at the moment.
Way forward?
On paper, we have very good and skillfull attacking players - Fellows, Scienza, Robinson - these are all pacey wingers that enjoy carrying the ball, running at defenders, and who have end product in and around the box. Fraser as well is a solid winger at this level, and i've been impressed with his effort and fitness this season so far.
In front of them, what we do have is pace and movement - Archer and Armstrong obviously, but also Stewart (when fit) is a pretty damn mobile target man.
As a result - our attackers are not best suited to a high line - they want to be running at teams, or running in behind teams - that means we need to not push up as high in general terms, and give teams every opportunity to move up the pitch and leave space in behind.
With respect to midfield - we have 4 quality central midfielders for this level - Charles, Downes, Jander, and Azaz. Between them they are a great mix of creativity, through passing, and general ball recycling. Charles in particular can do a more defensive role and has the making of a very good box to box midfielder in my eyes. Downes as well is perhaps better suited to a defensive role (as opposed to pushing up to support the attack).
The other key issue we're seeing already, is that Azaz is struggling being pushed so far forward in the 10 - he is having bodies happy to mark him out of the game, we aren't finding him with the ball, and he is struggling to influence the game - needs to be player deeper in a central midfield role (if we want to use him as the playmaker) and allowed space to create players and float around - arriving at the box when he wants, supporting wide players when he wants, and dropping deeper to collect the ball and start moves. We've bought a playmaker - trust him and free him to be allowed to play - Jander is similar with regards to his passing and playmaking attributes.
Defensively, our CBs are slow and struggle in the air - with the exception of Quarshie, and this makes him an absolute must start in my eyes. He gives us pace and physicality, and an answer to the long out ball over the top and the aerial threat that keeps upsetting us (think bishop / mcburnie etc.) But we also need a deeper anchor man in midfield to help mop up flick ons from target men and to support the defence in clearing up after the initial challenge.
I would therefore look at one of two formations for us. Either a 4-2-2-2 (with wider wingers, one central defensive/disciplined mid and one deeper lying creative central mid - azaz/jander, and a deeper lying target man (Stewart/downs).
Or, a 4-1-2-2-1 (with a CDM/anchor man - downes, one supporting central midfielder - Charles), and again a deeper creative player in central mid (azaz) allowed to find space/roam and dictate play). Again, i would go with 2 wide wingers - and then pick the striker to suit the opposition.
Within both formations, task the full backs as undertaking a supporting role - not being tasked with getting all the way up to the byline and leaving us open. And free the wingers to do just the attacking - with movement and support coming from central midfield and the striker. Deploy the high press selectively to win back ball, but don't adopt such a high line (thereby not exposing our weaker defence and encouraging teams to step up). Then aim to move the ball quickly up the pitch, let our attacking players run and carry the ball forward, make use of supporting runs to get bodies arriving in the box, and absolutely play to use the counter at all times its on.
I know its pretty basic - but we need to get the basics right ffs.
The problem i have with still currently, is that i'm really struggling to see any patterns of play developing, and he seems blind to what are abundantly obvious defensive weaknesses.
