Why did we change our playing style this season?

[Benjani]

A lot of people say we are playing the long ball game because of the loss of Kante . 

But think back to the first game of last season vs Sunderland. We played some absolutely sensational football without Kante . And what about the football we played the season before under Pearson. We were playing some great enjoyable football at times with Kante not even at the club. It is so frustrating to know we are capable of entertainment and playing great football and doing this long ball stuff. So why is ranieri doing it? 

[Guest Sharpe's Fox]

Same thing happened with Chelsea last year. Played great attacking stuff in the first half of a title winning season then switched to safe, defensive football to seal it. When the next season started, however, they couldn't get out of that defensive mentality and with nothing to play for anymore it all went tits up.

[StanSP]

because other teams set up more defensively and differently than they did last season?

[fuchsntf]

17 minutes ago, Benjani said:

A lot of people say we are playing the long ball game because of the loss of Kante . 

But think back to the first game of last season vs Sunderland. We played some absolutely sensational football without Kante . And what about the football we played the season before under Pearson. We were playing some great enjoyable football at times with Kante not even at the club. It is so frustrating to know we are capable of entertainment and playing great football and doing this long ball stuff. So why is ranieri doing it? 

I think too many people at and around the club, and on this forum imploded with Kante going to Chelsea..

You remembered We played some good football in th BK days, and had misses last season, the players have

a mental block...

[lgfualol]

2 minutes ago, StanSP said:

because other teams set up more defensively and differently than they did last season?

Pretty much this. Teams are giving us more respect and we're getting predictable because we don't have the quality to find goals when teams drop back and don't let us counter. Pretty much every pass went to Mahrez today because he is more likely to make a bit of magic.

[Wymsey]

Changing priorities?

 

Certainly CL is exciting and performances in that competition are not worse than this thus far, hence using more energy in those games. Perhaps fatigue is maybe another factor?

[st albans fox]

It takes two teams to make a game and the other teams aren't allowing us to play the way we might like  to. 

 

Add to this that the period you refer to was with de laet and schlupp as full backs and you have two reasons 

[Jimmy]

simply put because we don't have Kante to win the ball on halfway, we tend to get it deeper and have no one in central midfield that will run with the ball for 15-20 yards opening up more dangerous passes, unless Mendy will drive with the ball when he's fit we have no one that will

[Benjani]

10 minutes ago, StanSP said:

because other teams set up more defensively and differently than they did last season?

But how can we have such heavy away defeats when they are setting up more defensively ? We can still play on the counter attack, we could just invite pressure onto us and then break at the right time. But we aren't doing that, we are just booting the ball up to nowhere. I wouldn't mind if we were actually good at this long ball game but we're not. I have no idea what ranieri is doing. 

[fuchsntf]

14 minutes ago, Benjani said:

But how can we have such heavy away defeats when they are setting up more defensively ? We can still play on the counter attack, we could just invite pressure onto us and then break at the right time. But we aren't doing that, we are just booting the ball up to nowhere. I wouldn't mind if we were actually good at this long ball game but we're not. I have no idea what ranieri is doing. 

I dont think its  Ranieri thing..!!!  He shown alot of disappointment and anger on the touchline, when he sees them

Playing too much long ball. Its the players including DD who keep looking for that longball.

One reason Musa is missing out, the balls to him have been just poor. We've seen how like Mahrez he can get down

the Flank, or cut inside, if and when he has backup.

 

[ealingfox]

I wish people would stop comparing playing Sunderland at home in August to literally any other fixture.

[AyewJoking]

it seems like drinkwater is taking it on himself to be the anchorman, shít shoveller and creater in midfield and its not working.

 

we are a dream to play against at the moment as we make it so easy for the opposition defence.

 

surely we could have just vardy on his own up front with a 5 man midfield???

 

                                                             amartey

                                                drinkwater   king(mendy)

                                         mahrez                           gray

                                                             vardy

 

 

[sylofox]

57 minutes ago, Benjani said:

But how can we have such heavy away defeats when they are setting up more defensively ? We can still play on the counter attack, we could just invite pressure onto us and then break at the right time. But we aren't doing that, we are just booting the ball up to nowhere. I wouldn't mind if we were actually good at this long ball game but we're not. I have no idea what ranieri is doing. 

Have you seen how we defend this season. To invite pressure on ourselves would be suicide.

[EastAnglianFox]

It just seems to be the easy/lazy way out at the minute, rather than work hard and drive forward and pass and move, so many of them just seem to now get rid and launch it forward in the hope somebody else provides the spark.

 

I understand it could be hard to motivate yourself after last season, but then again im not on 80k a week!

[weller54]

51 minutes ago, fuchsntf said:

I dont think its  Ranieri thing..!!!  He shown alot of disappointment and anger on the touchline, when he sees them

Playing too much long ball. Its the players including DD who keep looking for that longball.

One reason Musa is missing out, the balls to him have been just poor. We've seen how like Mahrez he can get down

the Flank, or cut inside, if and when he has backup.

 

So what's ranieri telling them during training for days on end.. Surely Drinkwater is playing the way he is told to and cannot be a complete suprise to ranieri during the 90 minutes match time? 

I don't buy your theory! 

[steflcfc]

I feel it's a mixture of constant player changes with regards to CL games and I think with having Slim in the team it's like we look for route one to his head a lot of the time.

 

When we had Vardy and Oka we had to keep the ball on the floor as they wont win many headers all game.

 

We seem a bit lost when it comes to a game plan/creativity at the minute, and it's fustrating to see.

 

Were too predictable, tonight lost count how many long balls/cross field attempts we hit. 

WBA full backs knew they were coming 90 percent of the game.

[jammie82uk]

The problem is I think we are playing to slowly and not getting the ball forward enough and the reliance on Drinkwater to do everything is just not working 

personally im fed up with the triangles being played between defence and Drinkwater 

 

I've looked at the passing stats today 

Unsurprisingly Drinkwater made the most passes on our team 

 

He completed 69 of 89 passes 

Out of the 69 passes completed 33 of them was to the back four or goalkeeper 

 

Top 2 passes to Out of the other 36 completed passes 

16 was to Mahrez and 7 to King 

not one pass was completed to Vardy from him 

Infact he only completed 6 passes to strikers 3 to Slimani 3 to Okazaki 

 

as a team in general 381 (348 short, 33 long) completed passes in total 193 of them was either backwards (118) or square (75)

 

[Merging Cultures]

I dont think its  Ranieri thing..!!!  He shown alot of disappointment and anger on the touchline, when he sees them

Playing too much long ball. Its the players including DD who keep looking for that longball.

One reason Musa is missing out, the balls to him have been just poor. We've seen how like Mahrez he can get down

the Flank, or cut inside, if and when he has backup.

 

If a player is consistently not playing how Ranieri wants, then I assume Ranieri would drop him.

We are playing terribly at the moment, Ranieri has to take the blame for the poor timing of substitutions, the lack of a plan b, and the unmotivated players.

[fuchsntf]

11 hours ago, Merging Cultures said:

If a player is consistently not playing how Ranieri wants, then I assume Ranieri would drop him.

We are playing terribly at the moment, Ranieri has to take the blame for the poor timing of substitutions, the lack of a plan b, and the unmotivated players.

Title winners unmotivated...Then you agree it really is the players fault.!!!! 

Ranieri has said a few times we are missing that fight and spirit from last season.

Poor substitutions, jesus how many times !!!  

We have been crowing for 12 months how good his timing on subs has been, now the team the squad are

forgetting their responsibilities on the pitch, lets kick the manager...

 

We are poor, we have been abysmal even. But as much as this squad needs scolding, and not be allowed to hide

behind the protective shroud of the manager, and we feel let down, not by the losses but by the performances,

and the players have left the fearless and stubborn spirit back in the changing rooms.

We the fans either stand down, or support with more vocal support hoping the dream as only a short interruption.

That fearless faith is what got us going in the 1st place, no need to abandon it, nor should we be shy of showing

we wont accept innept, lack lustre commitment in spirit  to fight on game day.

 

The players accepted fought and proved rightly they earnt the increase in their pay-packet, we have earnt the right

to expect them to show us game day, not tournament commitment. Forget their new found highs, get back to understanding

they still need to slog, and fight for their right to wear the shirt, it doesnt stop at a title win.

If form, or skill goes a missing ok, but never give ground the space to create still has to be fought for..

We have started to stand still when passing, we are not releasing the ball quick enough, it seems we want to prove we

can be the only team relying on 2-3 worldly split passes.We have arrogantly started to go for the easy option, not the

painfull one.

 

WBA , kept their movement going, fought for and commited themselves and believing, every move would bring some

reward, we in contrast forgot to respect what we were doing last season.Our pass and move has been destroyed by

not wanting to run.

So far every critic on this forum is deserved, its the players who have to change the critic over to compliment.

[Corky]

19 hours ago, ealingfox said:

I wish people would stop comparing playing Sunderland at home in August to literally any other fixture.

An even better comparison would be West Brom at home in March. Only Slimani and Musa played of the outfield starting ten that din't play in that match. It was a world away in terms of tempo, quality, ambition and style from us.

[ealingfox]

1 hour ago, Corky said:

An even better comparison would be West Brom at home in March. Only Slimani and Musa played of the outfield starting ten that din't play in that match. It was a world away in terms of tempo, quality, ambition and style from us.

 

Not really. A point was a fair result then and a point was a fair result yesterday. The differences were one costly unforced error which wouldn't have been punished last season and King showing up.

 

West Brom at home is just a fixture we never win.

[Rialto 290352]

Personally I don't think the defence is much worse this season than last.  However they are having to deal with way too much pressure from opponents and thus more errors get made.   Hard to rate the strikers as they get so few chances to actually score!  Slimani seems the best of them.  Musa can score but needs to be more selfish.  Vardy??????  The real problem seems to be midfield.  We desperately need this area strengthened in January even if Mendy can go some way towards replacing Kante?  We need wingers who can actually deliver dangerous balls into the strikers.  More variety is needed in how we attack this would also take pressure off Mahrez.  Above all we must find the motivation to fight for every ball and play at a high tempo again.  If players are on such good contracts that this is beyond them then they need to be moved out even at a loss.  Last season is over and we need a bunch of players who will give 100% win or lose.  

[Fox92]

Too reliant on Drinkwater to do everything. 

[SecretPro]

20 hours ago, steflcfc said:

I feel it's a mixture of constant player changes with regards to CL games and I think with having Slim in the team it's like we look for route one to his head a lot of the time.

 

When we had Vardy and Oka we had to keep the ball on the floor as they wont win many headers all game.

 

We seem a bit lost when it comes to a game plan/creativity at the minute, and it's fustrating to see.

 

Were too predictable, tonight lost count how many long balls/cross field attempts we hit. 

WBA full backs knew they were coming 90 percent of the game.

I can't agree with all of that. We have played more shit long ball football when Vardy has been on the pitch compared to Slim. When Vardy is on suddenly everyone is trying to ping those diagonal balls to him on the last man and it's not working because A. Other teams ain't thick, sussed us out as a one trick pony. B. Vardy looks to have lost a yard IMO. 

 

In most of the games Slim has started we have played better football. His link up play with Riyad and Okazaki has been good and though he didn't do it at the weekend just gone Slim has actually been dropping deep to get the ball, do a lot of donkey work and has started some good forward moves. 

 

Whilst I'm on the subject, another reason we have been shit is I have barely seen us win a second ball all season, nobody in midfield or up top seems to be able to win a header and on the rare occasion we do it goes straight back to the opponent. 

[shade]

confidence. i think for some reason the players are playing with fear this season, as if they're aware they're trying to live up to the champions tag. sack it, they should just play balls to the wall attack and forget where we're gonna finish.