26 replies to this topic

[blueboy]

I've watched Scotland play for many years now, and recently I've noticed that we have a really, really, really bad habit, and it's a major fundamental flaw. We need to change this now or we'll never get to qualify for a major championship again.

We ALWAYS stand off the opposition when they are in possession and give them far too much room and time. We used to get right in at them, biting and nibbling away with tackles and not giving the opposition the time to think about, or the space to deliver, the killer pass.

That is one reason we struggle against not just good, but average, as well as the so called minnows in any qualifying group. It's bad enough to sit back and give players of average ability time on the ball because even they will end up hurting you....but to give the time and space that we give to the very talented players such as Spain, then that is just suicide!

The stripes that had been mown across the pitch tonight were 6 yards wide, and we were leaving a stripe's width at least between our players and the Spanish when they had the ball. With that amount of room and time they could pick wnatever pass they wanted to play with no problem. It's almost as if we have entered into a non-contact agreement and we constantly fall back and back-off, running with our backs to our own goal whenever the opposition are attacking. However, conversely, the Spanish were right on top of us when we were in possession and as a result, they were able to quickly re-gain the ball from us. A lesson learned by us for the future you would hope....but I somehow doubt it. I've seen us do it now for far too long, in game after game after game after game.


We need to get back to basics. We need to get back to the days of Billy Bremner and Co. and get some tenacity and guille back into our team. Get some tackles in early on and get right into the opposition from kick-off, and don't let them control the games. This is a fundamental issue that needs to be addressed NOW. It should be easy to change you would think, and God knows we need to do it, otherwise we will always come up short.

Lets' get into them from the start whoever they may be. If we don't give them time and space on the ball then they won't be making killer passes or having as much quality possession, because you just can't do that when you are being harrassed and hurried, no matter how good a footballer you are. We need to learn that.

It's a simple alteration we need to carry out....but a very effective one.

Bring on the next qualifiers!!

[arbroath55]

This makes sense to me but spoken as a middle aged guy who plays once a week and looks good on the ball until someone chases/bites/gets in my face....

[ParisInAKilt]

Good post

I thought we might have learned this after the first Spain game

[chaff]

Good post.

But someone invented zonal marking

[Hampden View]

My Boss, an ex-Junior player has been saying all week "We need to get in about them, the best Junior teams have 3 or 4 skillful players, 3 or 4 who run their arses off and 3 or 4 who basically kick the other team off the park"

[colonel]

Barcelona and Spain's midfield players hunt in packs when they don't have the ball until they win it back. Our players are nowhere near as fit as they should be in order to do this.

[durtyweeker]

Said exactly this last night during the game. You see it anytime Rangers or Celtic drop points in the League it's nearly always because whoever there playing gives them no time on the ball and is constantly on there heels niggling. Obviously different skill levels but if a team is generally better than you, you have to keep harassing them not standing off and giving them time and space to play. Although to be fair we still would of got beat and i think we did alright considering

[thistle do nicely]

Said exactly this last night during the game. You see it anytime Rangers or Celtic drop points in the League it's nearly always because whoever there playing gives them no time on the ball and is constantly on there heels niggling. Obviously different skill levels but if a team is generally better than you, you have to keep harassing them not standing off and giving them time and space to play. Although to be fair we still would of got beat and i think we did alright considering

We had a few up front harrying them at points last night, but CMS didn't back them up in the centre (too busy walking about grinning), so all they did was waste energy. I don't know if it was the plan to close them down but then fear made them stop as defence became more important in some peoples minds....

[Alan]

Best post of the past few days. Don't dive in. Don't foul. Hassle, pressure, harry. Put them off their stride. It is also traditional Scottish play.

[Charlie Endell]

Best post of the past few days. Don't dive in. Don't foul. Hassle, pressure, harry. Put them off their stride. It is also traditional Scottish play.

Macbeth?

Edited by Charlie Endell, 12 October 2011 - 09:04 AM.

[RenfrewBlue]

Best post of the past few days. Don't dive in. Don't foul. Hassle, pressure, harry. Put them off their stride. It is also traditional Scottish play.

Couldn't agree more. My exact comment last night was "when are we going to crunch somebody?". You don't have to be dirty to be hard. The only solid challenge put in by any Scottish player last night was by Goodwillie, although he then got booked for it. Do a couple of yellow cards matter if you stop the Spanish taking the proverbial?

[Dalgety Bay TA]

Barcelona and Spain's midfield players hunt in packs when they don't have the ball until they win it back. Our players are nowhere near as fit as they should be in order to do this.

Thing is though Barca have developed this style all through the club over the space of a number of years. All their players are taught it and you can see they pressurise as a unit - which is the important thing. Arsenal are trying to do it but you could see last year in their games v Barca that they were getting close to it but it was still a bit unco-ordinated. Getting us to do it, at international level, would be extremely difficult as the manager doesn't have the time with the players that a club side does, plus the players don't play that style at club level. Arsenal have proved how hard it is to "switch" that style of play on despite being able to train at it week on week. I think it would ne nigh on impossible for us to now implement it at internaitonal level. I don't think fitness is the issue however.

Couldn't agree more. My exact comment last night was "when are we going to crunch somebody?". You don't have to be dirty to be hard. The only solid challenge put in by any Scottish player last night was by Goodwillie, although he then got booked for it. Do a couple of yellow cards matter if you stop the Spanish taking the proverbial?

You have answered your own question. Football has changed over the years. Now any overly physical challenge is both a foul and probably a card. Goodwillie proved that last night. The last thing your wanting is 5 of our players on cards within 1 half of football. Because then one more badly timed challenge could see you down to 10 or even 9 men, and thats a hiding to nothing after that.

Also, as you can see with Barca players anyway, a few boots up in the air doesn't stop them, they just get back up and get on with it with the other teams player now on a card.

[RenfrewBlue]

Thing is though Barca have developed this style all through the club over the space of a number of years. All their players are taught it and you can see they pressurise as a unit - which is the important thing. Arsenal are trying to do it but you could see last year in their games v Barca that they were getting close to it but it was still a bit unco-ordinated. Getting us to do it, at international level, would be extremely difficult as the manager doesn't have the time with the players that a club side does, plus the players don't play that style at club level. Arsenal have proved how hard it is to "switch" that style of play on despite being able to train at it week on week. I think it would ne nigh on impossible for us to now implement it at internaitonal level. I don't think fitness is the issue however.




You have answered your own question. Football has changed over the years. Now any overly physical challenge is both a foul and probably a card. Goodwillie proved that last night. The last thing your wanting is 5 of our players on cards within 1 half of football. Because then one more badly timed challenge could see you down to 10 or even 9 men, and thats a hiding to nothing after that.

Also, as you can see with Barca players anyway, a few boots up in the air doesn't stop them, they just get back up and get on with it with the other teams player now on a card.

I know what you are saying but I wasn't talking about being dirty or even fouling them. There were numerous chances for 50-50 challenges and the Scots just let them have the ball. If the other team know you'll really go for the ball then they are morelikely to let you have it in a 50-50.

I'm speaking from experience in the Juniors and obviously the standard last night was a wee bit better but it's human nature to think twice if the guy coming at you has already taken a bite!

[colonel]

I don't think fitness is the issue however.

Charlie Adam looks about as fit as me.................................

[blueboy]

I honestly don't think it's down to fitness either. If anything we would be wasting more energy chasing after the ball than we would be by pressing and harrassing the opposition, and maybe even winning the ball off them to give us a chance to try to dictate the pace at times. It's not rocket science here. It's just a fundamental change of mindset we need to see implemented. Not asking for much, eh?