Harvey Barnes

[Foxes96]

20 hours ago, Ross 'LCFC' Turner said:

I agree, opens up so much more space for Vardy too, it’s interesting that Vardy hasn’t scored and we haven’t won a penalty since Barnes has been injured. 

 

With Barnes in our ‘strongest side’ who from my above list would miss out as the formation would surely need to change?

Surely he doesn’t need to replace anyone as you’ve only named 10 players? 
 

But agreed I think Justin has been a revelation and looked the most comfortable on the left so for me he has to start in our first choice 11. 
 

i guess we either go 4-2-3-1 so 2 of Ricardo, Castagne and Albrighton on the right, and Fofana or Söyüncü play with Kelechi on the bench.

Or we go with 3 atb and Iheanacho and Fofana / soy come in for Albrighton and Barnes/ Vardy. Either way it’s good to have both options but whilst Barnes and Justin are still out I expect we’ll stick with the 3atb and go more direct with a front 2.
 

[Freeman's Wharfer]

20 hours ago, Ross 'LCFC' Turner said:

I was thinking about this earlier and wasn't sure what thread to put it in or to maybe start a new one.

 

Throughout the season due to our injuries, people have always said 'Will we ever get to field our strongest team' this season. Going into the game this weekend, could we potentially be playing our 'strongest team'? 

 

Kasper

Ricardo

Fofana

Soyuncu

Castagne

Ndidi 

Tielemans

Maddison

Vardy 

Iheanacho

 

Barnes has been arguably one of our players of the season, but in his absence we have been forced into the 5-3-2-1 / 3-4-1-2 due to our lack of depth on the wing. 

 

By bringing Barnes back into the side, this changes our formation back to 4-2-3-1 which forces one of Fofana, Evans or Soyuncu out the side and either Maddison or Iheanacho for another winger. 

 

Would Justin replace either Ricardo or Castagne? To be fair, I think he would replace Castagne based on current form. 

 

Give your head a wobble if you think Evans isn’t in our strongest XI and Iheancho is.

[foxile5]

21 minutes ago, Freeman's Wharfer said:

Give your head a wobble if you think Evans isn’t in our strongest XI and Iheancho is.

You're right on Evans but I think Iheanacho has earnt the right to be in that eleven. 

[tylesta]

14 minutes ago, foxile5 said:

You're right on Evans but I think Iheanacho has earnt the right to be in that eleven. 

To be honest he is looking deadly in front off goal

[lcfc sheff]

Iheanacho and barnes as a front two would be interesting... I still think Barnes’ future is upfront. 

[majaco]

23 hours ago, Ross 'LCFC' Turner said:

I was thinking about this earlier and wasn't sure what thread to put it in or to maybe start a new one.

 

Throughout the season due to our injuries, people have always said 'Will we ever get to field our strongest team' this season. Going into the game this weekend, could we potentially be playing our 'strongest team'? 

 

Kasper

Ricardo

Fofana

Soyuncu

Castagne

Ndidi 

Tielemans

Maddison

Vardy 

Iheanacho

 

Barnes has been arguably one of our players of the season, but in his absence we have been forced into the 5-3-2-1 / 3-4-1-2 due to our lack of depth on the wing. 

 

By bringing Barnes back into the side, this changes our formation back to 4-2-3-1 which forces one of Fofana, Evans or Soyuncu out the side and either Maddison or Iheanacho for another winger. 

 

Would Justin replace either Ricardo or Castagne? To be fair, I think he would replace Castagne based on current form. 

 

Our strongest team is based on form.  We have more than 11 top players.

[majaco]

2 hours ago, Freeman's Wharfer said:

Give your head a wobble if you think Evans isn’t in our strongest XI and Iheancho is.

But this is possibly true.   If all our players are fit, top players would have to be on the bench

[Foxaholic ME]

On 14/04/2021 at 15:42, cruzFOX said:

Barnsey is going to need time to get upto his usual speed even if he is all healed up. Look at Ricardo although out much longer but its a mental thing. JJ will be the same as Ricardo when he comes back. It just takes time thats all. My guess is we won't see Barnes until the very last few games of the season and he probably won't be sprinting, dribbling or shooting anything like he was at peak pre-injury. We need to be patient with the kid and give him space to figure it all out. We are what we are now without him and JJ. Just need to play to our potential every game as a team and not look for individual brilliance to bail out poor performances.

Foxes march on! 

Agreed none of our players coming back after any time out are well below  the form they were before.  They then come back in replacing people who have done well  Allbrightongetting left out is the supreme example 

[srex9]

11 hours ago, lcfc sheff said:

Iheanacho and barnes as a front two would be interesting... I still think Barnes’ future is upfront. 

I'm sure Brendan has already quelled this and I agree that Barnes just doesn't quite have that strikers instinct. He's definitely at his best taking defenders on in wide positions or cutting inside. Vardy at his best does things and has movement that you just can't teach. 

[NewquayFox]

If their is any risk involved in pushing Barnes to play again this season hopefully Rodgers says no and will save him until next season, along with Justin it’s not worth any further injuries, Vardy is doing fine in that left side attacking position...

[volpeazzurro]

As long as we drop the turgid 3 at the back with 2 wing backs that can't play wing back who just contrive to block the midfield aimlessly. Yet again against West Ham we were crap until we changed it, got at em, players seemed more comfortable and scored 2 goals. The slow start with poor tactics/team selection has become so boringly obvious to any opposition manager for weeks now. West Ham without 3 of their best players and we still approached it as if we were playing Bayern Munich. Even Newcastle beat West Ham yesterday!

[The whole world smiles]

8 minutes ago, volpeazzurro said:

As long as we drop the turgid 3 at the back with 2 wing backs that can't play wing back who just contrive to block the midfield aimlessly. Yet again against West Ham we were crap until we changed it, got at em, players seemed more comfortable and scored 2 goals. The slow start with poor tactics/team selection has become so boringly obvious to any opposition manager for weeks now. West Ham without 3 of their best players and we still approached it as if we were playing Bayern Munich. Even Newcastle beat West Ham yesterday!

This is the first post I read on foxestalk this morning. Jesus Cheer up a bit mate we are 3rd in the leauge and about to play in our first fa cup semi final in decades. You obviously didn't get the memo? 

 

We looked fine with 3 at the back before Soy got covid. And beat man United and rattled 5 past Shef United. I would be more than happy to see it again especially with Harvey Barnes still injured. 

[Pliskin]

18 minutes ago, volpeazzurro said:

As long as we drop the turgid 3 at the back with 2 wing backs that can't play wing back who just contrive to block the midfield aimlessly. Yet again against West Ham we were crap until we changed it, got at em, players seemed more comfortable and scored 2 goals. The slow start with poor tactics/team selection has become so boringly obvious to any opposition manager for weeks now. West Ham without 3 of their best players and we still approached it as if we were playing Bayern Munich. Even Newcastle beat West Ham yesterday!

We won’t be dropping the back three. Otherwise, you have to do one of the following.

 

Dont play Madders

Drop Vardy because he isn’t scoring 

or Drop Kalechi for Vardy to accommodate the formation. 
 

Barnes is injured, and Under is bollocks, so it pretty much means we have to play with wing backs to get some width. At the moment, to play to our full capacity, we have to play a back three. Kalechi and Vardy have to play as a pair, Kelch constantly references to Vardy’s movement and ability to create space for him. So, they have to play together. Until Barnes is back, we won’t be going away from a back three. 

[volpeazzurro]

17 minutes ago, The whole world smiles said:

This is the first post I read on foxestalk this morning. Jesus Cheer up a bit mate we are 3rd in the leauge and about to play in our first fa cup semi final in decades. You obviously didn't get the memo? 

 

We looked fine with 3 at the back before Soy got covid. And beat man United and rattled 5 past Shef United. I would be more than happy to see it again especially with Harvey Barnes still injured. 

You mentioned the only two good performances we've had with it and one of those played like Burton Albion. Be honest and ask yourself how many of the other matches should we have been 2 or 3 goals down by halftime only to miraculously recover some kind of form when things got changed in the second half. Yes, the pure statistics of the table doesn't lie but it doesn't tell the full story of poor mind numbing performances and a great deal of fortune.

[themightyfin]

2 minutes ago, volpeazzurro said:

You mentioned the only two good performances we've had with it and one of those played like Burton Albion. Be honest and ask yourself how many of the other matches should we have been 2 or 3 goals down by halftime only to miraculously recover some kind of form when things got changed in the second half. Yes, the pure statistics of the table doesn't lie but it doesn't tell the full story of poor mind numbing performances and a great deal of fortune.

You dont get to third in the table in possibly the best league in the world and an FA Cup semi-final with mind numbing performances and luck. 

Have a word with yourself muppet.

 

[volpeazzurro]

10 minutes ago, Pliskin said:

We won’t be dropping the back three. Otherwise, you have to do one of the following.

 

Dont play Madders

Drop Vardy because he isn’t scoring 

or Drop Kalechi for Vardy to accommodate the formation. 
 

Barnes is injured, and Under is bollocks, so it pretty much means we have to play with wing backs to get some width. At the moment, to play to our full capacity, we have to play a back three. Kalechi and Vardy have to play as a pair, Kelch constantly references to Vardy’s movement and ability to create space for him. So, they have to play together. Until Barnes is back, we won’t be going away from a back three. 

So for the sake of one player missing we really have to play one formation? Do you really see Ricardo and Castagne as having played well as wing backs? In the first halves of games we've looked so susceptible to conceding and only poor finishing by opposition teams has stopped that. A solid back 4 with those same players in their best positions would stop that. If we aren't able to play different formations with what we have, how come we suddenly rise like Lazarus from the dead when Rodgers changes it on 68 minutes as he invariably does, it's a miracle!

[SpacedX]

1 minute ago, volpeazzurro said:

You mentioned the only two good performances we've had with it 

Away to Arsenal away to Man City - there's two more. 

 

Honestly, people have become a little too fixated with this three/five at the back. It's likely not Brendan's preferred system but as we witnessed recently against Man U - if we play well it can work very well. 

 

You and many others conveniently overlook the fact that last year's tailspin was brought to you by the number 4. 

[An Sionnach]

2 minutes ago, volpeazzurro said:

So for the sake of one player missing we really have to play one formation? Do you really see Ricardo and Castagne as having played well as wing backs? In the first halves of games we've looked so susceptible to conceding and only poor finishing by opposition teams has stopped that. A solid back 4 with those same players in their best positions would stop that. If we aren't able to play different formations with what we have, how come we suddenly rise like Lazarus from the dead when Rodgers changes it on 68 minutes as he invariably does, it's a miracle!

To me that was the miraculous Mark A.

[volpeazzurro]

3 minutes ago, themightyfin said:

You dont get to third in the table in possibly the best league in the world and an FA Cup semi-final with mind numbing performances and luck. 

Have a word with yourself muppet.

 

If you don't think that we've not been extremely fortunate despite some piss poor football you really must wearing blue tinted glasses. Even if you disagree, why the insults?

[volpeazzurro]

Just now, An Sionnach said:

To me that was the miraculous Mark A.

😁 Can't argue with that! He was fantastic. 

[st albans fox]

3 minutes ago, volpeazzurro said:

If you don't think that we've not been extremely fortunate despite some piss poor football you really must wearing blue tinted glasses. Even if you disagree, why the insults?

Why not let the three first choice CB’s play the back three (for only the second time this season) and then re assess ??   Cags and wes have an ability to bring the ball into midfield creating an overload .... see how it plays out later on a big pitch against a high press team ....

Edited 18 April 2021 by st albans fox

[HighPeakFox]

I've come to realise that different posters have different fears and anxieties, and their apparent go-to subjects (in this case, the formation) are coping mechanisms.

 

So tedious as it is to read this AGAIN, just as it is tedious to read about Mendy being dreadful, or Praet being inert, or Amartey being one of our worst players ever, I get it.

[mozartfox]

53 minutes ago, volpeazzurro said:

As long as we drop the turgid 3 at the back with 2 wing backs that can't play wing back who just contrive to block the midfield aimlessly. Yet again against West Ham we were crap until we changed it, got at em, players seemed more comfortable and scored 2 goals. The slow start with poor tactics/team selection has become so boringly obvious to any opposition manager for weeks now. West Ham without 3 of their best players and we still approached it as if we were playing Bayern Munich. Even Newcastle beat West Ham yesterday!

People that sit on the fence can be so annoying

[volpeazzurro]

1 minute ago, st albans fox said:

Why not let the three first choice CB’s play the back three (for only the second time this season) and then re assess ??   Cags and wes have an ability to bring the ball into midfield creating an overload .... see how it plays out later on a big pitch against a high press team ....

I honestly do understand your point and in theory it should work shouldn't it as I think we're possibly blessed with the best 3 centre halves in the Premiership for that role. However, as pundits have pointed out,  Soyuncu looks uncomfortable when continually asked to cover the left full back area which then negates his potential to get forward. Fofana less so and he's looked better but has the advantage perhaps of playing on his stronger side. At times we have been so overrun in midfield that the opportunity for our centre halves to 'overload' has been negated before it can start.

[majaco]

22 minutes ago, HighPeakFox said:

I've come to realise that different posters have different fears and anxieties, and their apparent go-to subjects (in this case, the formation) are coping mechanisms.

 

So tedious as it is to read this AGAIN, just as it is tedious to read about Mendy being dreadful, or Praet being inert, or Amartey being one of our worst players ever, I get it.

Nigeria didn't qualify.

 

Of our thirteen top players, 11 are available.  So the team seemingly picks itself.

 

However, we have some strong back up players who can make a difference.  Rodgers could go with Thomas with balance of the team in mind bit will probably settle on  Castagne on the left.  He could go with Albrighton as he energised the team but will probably hold him back as an I pact sub.  Praet is high quality but will probably start with Ndidi, Tielemans and Maddiso  as they can be brilliant.

 

 

Edited 18 April 2021 by majaco
Auto correct replaced N'didi with Heidi. She's probably more of a tricky winger than a cdm