kingfox

As I mentioned in this thread last week, possession is all well and good in the Championship, but recent history suggests it’s probably not the right formula in the Premier League, especially when it comes to newly promoted teams. This was one of our biggest problems this season, despite being tippy tappy last season under Enzo, we were also the most effective team in the Championship for counter attacks, because of course we had Fatawu and Mavididi. We have gone completely against that element this season by constantly fielding our slowest attackers. We have to find a manager who can set a team up that is capable of threatening on fast breaks/counter attacks, otherwise we’ll just continue to go round in circles, either yo-yoing between divisions or becoming a mid-table Championship team.

I’ll post these graphs again that compare Premier League and Championship playing styles… More Premier League teams are drifting towards fast & direct, the Championship must follow suit. If fast & direct becomes the norm in the Premier League, you simply can’t appoint the likes of Russell Martin as a long term project. Unless he changes his ways, his style will become obsolete in the Premier League. As it’s Alan Nixon, despite him getting Ayew right, fingers crossed this is just a boring Sunday bullshit rumour. Part of me thinks Martin will either end up at Rangers or Norwich. But despite what my head says, another part of the brain thinks he is the most inevitable manager in Leicester history.

Spam voting for Danny Ward will probably lead to him getting a new contract.

Supposedly we were interested in the summer… However The Athletic relay that Davide Ancelotti intends to leave at the end of the season. The 35-year-old is believed to be keen to start his own coaching career, and this could be the season he does so.

A 5th World Title incoming for Selby if he plays like this in Sheffield.

If we want to focus on bringing through the likes of Nelson, Alves, Evans, Monga, then we really have to follow a Sunderland type model. Mowbray and now Le Bris have been perfect for them, two managers with history of giving youth a chance. We desperately need a manager who will do similar.

🎵 Don’t worry about a thing, Championship is gonna be alright 🎵 … Unless Russell Martin is our manager

Thanks for that transfer info mate. Their squad very much looks a mixed bag tbf, seeing Rohl rely on numerous players in their 30’s was my only concern really. Numerous managers out there who have a better track records when it comes to youth. But Rohl certainly has a lot going for him.

Just awaiting an essay from @Leicesterpool on how Harry Winks should improve his carbon footprint.

This guy hasn’t been arsed since Enzo left. Bin him off in the summer 🤞🏻

Would be interesting to see what style Rohl would bring if he was appointed, Sheffield Wednesday have been one of the more direct teams in the league under him. He is also extremely tactically flexible, he changes formation frequently. Only concern I’d have is his history with youth. Sheffield Wednesday have one of the oldest teams in the division, while he’s fielded some of the oldest starting 11’s in the Championship this season.

@The Bear

1-0 win, Harvey Barnes Own Goal

I wish for Russell Martin 80% possession football against Oxford United as we lose 1-0.

Roll on the Russell Martin era.

Goallllllllllllllll Rob Huth.

CBA to watch tonight. I’m just waiting for next season to arrive so we can get the Russell Martin era up and running.

In an ideal world, Faes, Coady, BDCR, Kristiansen, Ayew, Daka, Soumare and Vestergaard would all be on the chopping board. Question marks hang over the likes of Okoli, Souttar and maybe a couple of others. One of Hermansen, Fatawu, BEK will definitely go. We may see similar to what happened to Leeds last season, with a few being shipped out on loan, then coming back into the fold. Can see BEK and Okoli both potentially going this way. Ndidi will probably be our other major sale. Then you’ll just be left sweating in hope that some kind gullible teams, will take the players I mentioned at the top off our hands. Unfortunately though I can see Coady, Vestergaard, BDCR and Ayew all sticking around 🤢 If we go with a back three next season though, the thought of Coady and Vestergaard sticking around doesn’t worry me as much, rotating them as the middle man in a back three in the Championship, I’d be content with that. BDCR and Ayew on the other hand though, one must fvck off somehow, I can’t bear the thought of both of them sticking around.

How dare you disrespect our manager for next season

Excellent post Finners 👍🏻 It’s exactly why I said in another post about the Championship method being frustrating. Being possession dominant like we were last season has been the key ingredient for success in the Championship. The top 10 in the Championship right now are pretty much all possession dominant sides. This graph from earlier in the season just shows how many promotion chasing clubs drift towards a more intricate style. But as seen in the Premier League this season, more teams are drifting towards fast & direct over slow & intricate. Liverpool have been an absolute menace on fast breaks, which is probably a big reason why they are top of the league. As you say, maybe the perfect ingredient for staying in the Premier League if this shift of play continues, is to follow the method that Nottingham Forest and a few others have started to show. This is why I personally feel that the style of Championship clubs might have to change. Being slow & intricate when it comes to a newly promoted side, as you say, recent history suggests it’s not the intelligent and effective way of playing. You’re just going to see teams constantly yo-yo between the divisions, because they are not getting on board with the current shift in times. Setting your team up to be a threat on counter attacks/fast breaks is probably the lane that teams need to get in. The only thing I don’t necessarily agree with is the need to be tactically flexible. So many managers have been caught out by being obsessed with one particular style, look at the guy in my display pic for example I read an interview with Liam Rosenior a few days ago, regarding how flexible he was in the way he approached both games against us last season. John Mousinho has done similar at Pompey this season, they were one of the most possession dominant teams in League 1 last season, early doors in the Championship, he realised that’s probably not the right way to go, now they’ve become a more direct team and he’s probably done enough to keep them in the Championship. If you are to attack the Championship by being possession heavy, you have to be flexible enough once you hit the Premier League or you’ll soon get found out.

Barry Hawkins on fire, Shaun Murphy is terrified. 5 centuries from The Hawk this afternoon as he ends the session 7-1 🔥

It will be interesting to see if more counter attacks and fast breaks become the norm in the Premier League. If so then you’ll see more clubs evolving, maybe the three promotion teams got caught out by this shift in change. We certainly did, because we failed to recruit the right type of wingers to make that style effective.

This graph also shows the shift in the Premier League of teams being more fast and direct. But as I posted with an earlier graph, our problem is we’re non existent on the counter attack. But that’s what you get when you appoint Steve Cooper, he gifts you Jordan Ayew and Bobby Reid, then you appoint RVN who persisted with them for a chunk of games just because they did alright against Spurs. It’s no wonder we’ve been shit, when the league has evolved, but we don’t have the right players to evolve with it. We didn’t replace Fatawu with a like-for-like and it’s hurt us massively.