Fryatt Needs A Rest

[Thracian]

No you didn't say different systems week in week out, you said play the system to make best use out of the players' skills, form etc.

As you must realise, players form goes up and down, players get injured, suspended. Therefore meaning the set of players will chop and change each week. therefore shouldn't the formation change each week depending on which players are available at the time??

Going to a 433 system, in my opinion would not work with the players we have. At the moment we have 4 centre midfielders (wingers tucking in) and we still get overrun in midfield, taking one out and putting a striker will mean we miss out on the midfield even more than we do now and we'll and up hoofing it more.

Same with 343, the left/ right midfield, will end up playing fullback, also the opposition full backs are free to over lap. leaving the centre midfield 2 on 2 and as I've said, we can't compete when there's 4 in there.

What I believe we need to do is get a midfielder to replace joey - I have never rated him, and keep the ball on the floor, the players in the side are all comfortable on the ball, and pass our way out of the division. But we need a decent midfielder to accompany hughes.

You have fallen into a familiar trap that coaches so often believe...that taking one player out of midfield leaves you swamped by the opposition. And who marks the extra striker?

As a rule, strikers tend to be the best footballers in a team. They are dangerous, difficult to mark. Defenders, tend to be less skillful, a bit slower. Exposing a pair of defenders to three strikers means that third man has to be marked and, often, there is no-one really suitable to do it.

If your own four man back line and three man midfield cannot deal with defending against a counter attack then should should change the personnel. It is more than enough if they are organised, disciplined and can pass the ball when they get it.

In fact, it can make the midfielders job easier because they no longer have to make runs into the box as support-attackers to the same extent as when there's two strikers, thus risking leaving a vulnerable gap behind them.

The packed midfield owes its existence to one thing - fear. Coaches tend to first protect the 0-0 they start with. But a fearful coach will never win anything.

Even if an attack-centred team loses a goal it doesn't necessarily matter. Why? Because so many teams, including ours, consciously or unconsciously commit more resources to defending that lead rather than scoring again. Evidence? How many games have we won by more than one goal this season? Just four!

But they will always find it hard to combat a team of attackers and if they falter, the realisation that even their massed ranks have been breached is a huge psychological blow and the recovering side can continue to dominate if they are schooled not to fall into the same trap.

Ah... the psychology of such a simple game!!!

The key is to have the players and the will to impose your philosophy on proceedings.

Remember the Newcastle team of Kevin Keegan?

Did we go up there thinking they'll attack and we'll counter them with ultra-quick breaks. No, we put all hands to the pump and tried to defend for our lives, barely venturing out of our own half in anger for fear of being expolited. And the outcome? We were hammered 7-1 if memory serves me.

[The Don]

You have fallen into a familiar trap that coaches so often believe...that taking one player out of midfield leaves you swamped by the opposition. And who marks the extra striker?

As a rule, strikers tend to be the best footballers in a team. They are dangerous, difficult to mark. Defenders, tend to be less skillful, a bit slower. Exposing a pair of defenders to three strikers means that third man has to be marked and, often, there is no-one really suitable to do it.

If your own four man back line and three man midfield cannot deal with defending against a counter attack then should should change the personnel. It is more than enough if they are organised, disciplined and can pass the ball when they get it.

In fact, it can make the midfielders job easier because they no longer have to make runs into the box as support-attackers to the same extent as when there's two strikers, thus risking leaving a vulnerable gap behind them.

Now I'm really gonna have to disagree there. Strikers may be the most important players on the pitch, but they are not the best footballers. I would give that distinction to centre midfielders.

And if we are now going on about tactics, I'm not really going to argue about merits and disadvantages of different systems, with someone who knows more than some coaches. I'm just someone who watches and enjoys football. So perhaps you could tell me how by removing a midfielder adding a striker will improve our passing game and decrease the number of long balls that are played. Without any outlet of width, surely any defender would try and bypass the midfield by playing it long and making our damn ugly game that we play at the minute look even worse??

[Master Fox]

Why should Fryatt need rest for god's sake? He's about 19 years old and all he does is play a bit of football! I need a bloody rest!!!

[Thracian]

Now I'm really gonna have to disagree there. Strikers may be the most important players on the pitch, but they are not the best footballers. I would give that distinction to centre midfielders.

And if we are now going on about tactics, I'm not really going to argue about merits and disadvantages of different systems, with someone who knows more than some coaches. I'm just someone who watches and enjoys football. So perhaps you could tell me how by removing a midfielder adding a striker will improve our passing game and decrease the number of long balls that are played. Without any outlet of width, surely any defender would try and bypass the midfield by playing it long and making our damn ugly game that we play at the minute look even worse??

First don't knock yourself. I am just putting a point of view - it is no more informed or valid than yours or anyone else's - and it is based today simply on being a fan who watches lots of games like you. We'll agree to disagree about striker and midfielders (and even wingers). It was a generalisation anyway but the point I was trying to make was that big, strong, skillful strikers cannot be left to roam free.

As for the width it comes from attacking full-backs (in 4-3-3 or 3-4-3) pressing as high as they can on whichever side play develops. Not having two such full-backs seriously limits our attacking and helps to make our team look ugly.

It also doesn't help that, Williams apart, we have generally poor passers in midfield and this is another reason I favour three strikers - O'Grady can pass and hold the ball and win headers, and run, and shoot. Can Maybury or Hughes do all that?

The great young Manchester United team benefitted from wonderful attacking full-backs in Neville and Irwin plus excellent passing in midfield. That is simply illustrative. I am not suggesting we can play like them. We have to play to our strengths.

[Wezleylowski]

Why should Fryatt need rest for god's sake? He's about 19 years old and all he does is play a bit of football! I need a bloody rest!!!

Football is mentally straining aswell as physically,training included its probably very draining .And it doesnt help playing for the foxes. :fox:

[The People's Hero]

Why should Fryatt need rest for god's sake? He's about 19 years old and all he does is play a bit of football! I need a bloody rest!!!

Too **** right.

[The People's Hero]

Football is mentally straining aswell as physically,training included its probably very draining .And it doesnt help playing for the foxes. :fox:

Well he can work 9-5 plus commuting time and do an evening shift behind a bar then if he wants to swap me.

[Jamesino_LCFC]

If it hasnt been mentioned on here I would like to say that Elvis looked good on Monday when he came on and worked well upfront on his own, all be it we were mainly focusing on keeping the point..

For Plymouth I would probably have O'Grady and Hammond upfront to start with, see how it gets on, or O'Grady with either Hume or Fryatt, the choice preferably being Hume as he is a little older.

[DaveyJ]

If it hasnt been mentioned on here I would like to say that Elvis looked good on Monday when he came on and worked well upfront on his own, all be it we were mainly focusing on keeping the point..

For Plymouth I would probably have O'Grady and Hammond upfront to start with, see how it gets on, or O'Grady with either Hume or Fryatt, the choice preferably being Hume as he is a little older.

Definitely worth giving Fryatt a rest, it'd be gutting if he got a serious injury playing in one of these last two games that don't really matter. Also 'tis the perfect oppurtunity to test out O'Grady and see if it's worth keeping Elvis in any capcity.

[Thracian]

I'm not certain but I still feel Elvis could be a god player if a) He can be taught to get his head up and b) he could be taught that a tap in counts as just as good as anything else and far better than a piledriver that flies over the bar or wide. He has pace, strength and spirit. He can also shoot. But mostly he shoots harder than he needs to. Cold blooded ruthlessness ... the first quality of a striker. And like a military sniper, that means hitting the target is paramount.

[Bert]

Why should Fryatt need rest for god's sake? He's about 19 years old and all he does is play a bit of football! I need a bloody rest!!!

He's 20 actually.

The reason he needs a rest would be, that training every day, playing 2 games in the space of as many days, and the way he plays his game would be the answer, not to mention he is carrying an injury to his groin.

[Ric Flair]

Why should Fryatt need rest for god's sake? He's about 19 years old and all he does is play a bit of football! I need a bloody rest!!!

After every game he sits out of training for the first few days as he's carrying several knocks including a slight groin strain and damaged shoulder.

[LCFC UK]

After every game he sits out of training for the first few days as he's carrying several knocks including a slight groin strain and damaged shoulder.

Fryatt the Warrior

[The Don]

After every game he sits out of training for the first few days as he's carrying several knocks including a slight groin strain and damaged shoulder.

Do you think his pace may improve once his groin's been sorted??

I would like to think so

[Ric Flair]

Do you think his pace may improve once his groin's been sorted??

I would like to think so

He's deceptively quick anyway, but he'll never be lightening quick. He's not that quick off the mark but on the ball or once he's in full stride he's actually fast and as you must be aware it seems very hard for defenders to get to grips with him.

[Mr_Lavigne]

I am better than Fryatt.

However, Hume is a Canadian God.

[Head Honcho]

He's 20 actually.

The reason he needs a rest would be, that training every day, playing 2 games in the space of as many days, and the way he plays his game would be the answer, not to mention he is carrying an injury to his groin.

If he has an injury then it goes without saying he shouldn't play, but if he's fit he should play, for christ sake thats what we pay him for and if I was going to the match I'd expect him to be on the pitch.