Gallagher up front....player power rules?

[colbo68]

Having just seen Gallagher finally get his wish and start up top against Reading, does this signify that the players are taking over the dressing room and show that Sousa is too weak to manage this club?

Under Nige, any dissent was managed out - Gallagher played where Nige wanted him to play, Andy King played the game that Nige wanted him to play etc... Any players who showed unruly behaviour (DJ, Max, Brown) where got rid of - essentially Pearson was strict, disciplinarian and respected. Sousa is surrounding himself with players that he feels comfortable with - Moreno, Lamey et al and its interesting to see that some of the 'old guard' appear to be handing in transfer requests. Has Sousa lost the dressing room already? How can players who shone under Pearson suddenly become shite overnight? (eg. Andy King had his worst game in a City shirt against Burnley). The city dressing room has some strong personalities in it... I think they may be taking over, don't have respect for Sousa AND, having seen the Football League show on Saturday night, where Barnsley won, the sheep shaggers nearly won and Scunny won... I think this is going to be a long hard season - unless the team start playing with each other and for each other, we could really struggle this year......

Opinions please...

[Jimmy]

or maybe its because when we went 4-4-2 against Leeds with Gallagher up front we dominated them

[Finnegan]

Gallagher's a striker and not only that he was one that was always going to suit Sousa's passing football.

Was more surprised to see him linked with the transfer request story than to see him start to be honest.

[davieG]

or maybe its because when we went 4-4-2 against Leeds with Gallagher up front we dominated them

I don't see this 442 against Leeds it was much more a 4-1-4-1 with both Gallagher and King playing just behind Howard, a much more positive and attacking formation we didn't do that against Reading and that's why Gallagher was less effective.

But I doubt very much the Gallagher's upfront because he insisted on it, was just another of Sousa's experiments.

[bettso]

It seems that Sousa is still unsure on what certain players best positions are which is why we're seeing so many changes in formation.

Not sure why so many fans are assuming so many different things and starting threads like this and the 'Sousa out?' thread. I'm not having a pop so please dont start snapping at me. I'm just confused. When a new manager comes into a club, there is always a transitional period where results are not particularly great, the formation changes with awesome regularity, players leave and some come in etc etc. This is the process that we are going through now.

Yes, Nigel Pearson had a style of play that was effective but it did have it's limits. There was no way that things would be the same under Sousa and the players who have been used to what was essentially a modern version of the long ball game are now being asked to keep it on the floor and retain possession. This is going to take time to implement and some players (those who apparantly have handed in transfer requests) will not like it and will inevitably leave. Some players however will thrive (Lloyd Dyer is an obvious example) and the new players once bedded in will start to provide results.

Supporters love to hark back to the glory days of Martin O'Neil so let me remind you once again of that home game to Sheffield Utd. I was in Crazy Corner that day, and every single person was chanting, 'fook off, Martin O'Neil', saying that Muzzy Izzet was a complete waste of space when he came on and nobody wanted a 2nd rate foreigner in the side (at the time we didnt realise of course that he was as Cockney as Danny Dyer!!) and most were lamenting that we were no longer playing the style of football that we played under Mark Mcghee and that O'Neil had obviously lost the dressing room already. The rest is history.

The similarites with then and now are absolutely startling and i'm amazed that so many fans are following this logic again. I dont know if Sousa will be succesful, but i'm going to give him a chance to fail before I start labelling him so.

[colbo68]

It seems that Sousa is still unsure on what certain players best positions are which is why we're seeing so many changes in formation.

Not sure why so many fans are assuming so many different things and starting threads like this and the 'Sousa out?' thread. I'm not having a pop so please dont start snapping at me. I'm just confused. When a new manager comes into a club, there is always a transitional period where results are not particularly great, the formation changes with awesome regularity, players leave and some come in etc etc. This is the process that we are going through now.

Yes, Nigel Pearson had a style of play that was effective but it did have it's limits. There was no way that things would be the same under Sousa and the players who have been used to what was essentially a modern version of the long ball game are now being asked to keep it on the floor and retain possession. This is going to take time to implement and some players (those who apparantly have handed in transfer requests) will not like it and will inevitably leave. Some players however will thrive (Lloyd Dyer is an obvious example) and the new players once bedded in will start to provide results.

Supporters love to hark back to the glory days of Martin O'Neil so let me remind you once again of that home game to Sheffield Utd. I was in Crazy Corner that day, and every single person was chanting, 'fook off, Martin O'Neil', saying that Muzzy Izzet was a complete waste of space when he came on and nobody wanted a 2nd rate foreigner in the side (at the time we didnt realise of course that he was as Cockney as Danny Dyer!!) and most were lamenting that we were no longer playing the style of football that we played under Mark Mcghee and that O'Neil had obviously lost the dressing room already. The rest is history.

The similarites with then and now are absolutely startling and i'm amazed that so many fans are following this logic again. I dont know if Sousa will be succesful, but i'm going to give him a chance to fail before I start labelling him so.

good post.... I think I agree with you actually - I remember the hosility toward O'Neill - however, I have a bad feeling about Sousa and hope I'm wrong

[marbelladave]

I don't see this 442 against Leeds it was much more a 4-1-4-1 with both Gallagher and King playing just behind Howard, a much more positive and attacking formation we didn't do that against Reading and that's why Gallagher was less effective.

But I doubt very much the Gallagher's upfront because he insisted on it, was just another of Sousa's experiments.

Spot on...

Against Leeds it appears that Gallagher played in the 'hole', behind Howard in an area that he was able to find some space.

He was able to link play and set up much of what was good in our play, he was helped immensly by King bursting forward from midfield and, some of the time at least, by wide men who got forward quickly into good positions.

A 4-1-4-1 formation that can easily slip into 4-2-3-1 should the need arise.

Against Reading Gallagher was pushed right up alongside Howard, for a player who is not good in the air and lacks a striker's instinct close in, that was odd. Odder still was the rigid 4-4-2 that left us outnumbered in the centre of midfield and our back 4 without protection. Fryatt looked a much better bet when he came on though our under manned and under pressure midfield could not provide much in the way of service.

Another experiment as you say, and one that went badly wrong, against a very ordinary Reading side.

If Sousa is still unsure of how we should line up, he only has to ask...