Do we attack too much?

[bruno14]

I've been watching our match against WBA and i personally feel our overly aggressive attacking mentality is leaving us exposed at the back, interestingly I found an article on the bbc from a while back where us foxes were attacking a lot and got ourselves in a bit of trouble

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/10251349

[Master Fox]

Clearly not.

Or when we do we tend not to score.

[ithuriel]

If we are atacking we have the ball and are not defending at the time so no, it is just the end product is missing at the moment.

[MrSpaM]

Think the topic should be "Do we try to attack too much"

[Geordie]

Perhaps if we didn't have lumbering buffoons masquarading as strikers we'd have half a chance of converting those attacks in to goals.

[davieG]

Do we attack too much

Do we waste chances and give the ball away too easily -

[Kitchandro]

How can you attack too much when you are not winning? We should be busting a gut to get the equaliser/winner home or away. If anything, we don't attack enough - at Swansea we just let them attack us and merely hoped we would get a lucky break and hit them on the counter.

Our tactics should be based around getting goals, that means playing 4-4-2 instead of the kop out that is 4-5-1. We won't score many if we have 1 man up front.

[Geordie]

How can you attack too much when you are not winning? We should be busting a gut to get the equaliser/winner home or away. If anything, we don't attack enough - at Swansea we just let them attack us and merely hoped we would get a lucky break and hit them on the counter.

Our tactics should be based around getting goals, that means playing 4-4-2 instead of the kop out that is 4-5-1. We won't score many if we have 1 man up front.

Depends on who that striker is.

If you play Fryatt or Howard then forget it.

[Kitchandro]

Depends on who that striker is.

If you play Fryatt or Howard then forget it.

Yes fair point. Unfortunately he's only tried Fryatt and Howard and we haven't got Drogba.

I can't see the advantages of us playing 4-5-1. 4-3-3 can have it's days, but that has a tendency to turn into 4-5-1. When you've got someone like Howard you should use him like we did in League 1. I think we have good strikers and I think an extra man in midfield is a waste for us when we've got Fryatt, Howard, Waghorn and now Vassell. (Not Gallagher, I don't agree that he's a striker)

[Thracian]

I'm not sure we have any idea how to attack. Nor do we really have the ammunition to attack effectively.

Failing No 1) Goalkeeper: Attacking is about the team not just a section of it. Do we have a Van Der Saar who can gather a cross or shot and re-distribute it to an unmarked colleague in one swift movement? No. The vital seconds are lost, options closed out and we are often reduced to a hopeful punt upfield.

Failing No 2) There is still little sign that we have centre-backs who can score from set-pieces. Leicester City under MON had Walsh and Elliott who were not only uncompromising centre-backs but extremely dangerous when moving forward. When it came to winning things their goals were vital.

Failing No 3) Set pieces: Linked with the above is the fact that we so rarely score from free-kicks or corners. Added to Failing No 2 it means we're missing 15-20 potential goals a season through what is effectively a self-imposed handicap. Where is the imagination on the training ground, the evidence of different moves being practiced and the specialist deliverer? All the vital elements are missing.

Failing number 4) We rarely threaten a headed goal even via an attacker. King is the only one who might attack the near post or who might ghost into a gap. Howard either can't get there or can't jump well enough to beat an opposing centre-back. Fryatt is no aerial player and N'Guessan - who has shown some promise in that department is either injured or out of the team. Again it costs several goals a season. Shortfall so far: 15-25 goals over a season.

Failing number 5) Lack of goals from central midfield. It's another self-imposed handicap. You wouldn't call King especially fast or physical but he scores a goal every four games which is outstanding for a midfielder and he does so because he sees the pictures, stays calm and hits the target regularly. And that's it for us. Oakley has scored 8 goals in 123 appearances and no goals this season. Wellens has made 61 appearances and notched just 3 goals and Abe's shown no signs of scoring yet. It's just laughable and represents another 12-15 goals gone to waste. Total now 27-40 goals gone.

Failing number 6) Crosses. First we carry no great threat in the air so lofted crosses, particularly floated crosses, have virtually no chance of bringing reward. And our lack of a consistently effective near-post runner means even hard, low crosses are speculative and too-often our failure to get bodies into the box quickly enough only adds to the problems we make for ourselves.

There are several other important things too but just the six points I've made are costing us so many goals we've got no chance of winning things and this has been apparent from the off this season...and last season for that matter.

[Guest DavidJCW]

I can't understand how people are questioning the question in hand...

Do we attack too much? Yes. Simple as.

Then add to that, do we finish off our attacks? No, otherwise we wouldn't be near the foot of the Championship and out of the Carling Cup.

We attack too much whilst our defending is poor... that's the sum total of why we're not doing very well. If we could attack, finish off the chances and strengthen up the defence, we'd be quids in, but for now, yes, we attack too much for our lack of fire-power.

[1964FOX]

I think it's the fact they forget to shoot at the end of the numerous attacks that's the problem.

[davieG]

I can't understand how people are questioning the question in hand...

Do we attack too much? Yes. Simple as.

Then add to that, do we finish off our attacks? No, otherwise we wouldn't be near the foot of the Championship and out of the Carling Cup.

We attack too much whilst our defending is poor... that's the sum total of why we're not doing very well. If we could attack, finish off the chances and strengthen up the defence, we'd be quids in, but for now, yes, we attack too much for our lack of fire-power.

How can we attack too much? When you've got the ball you try to score goals what else is there to do give it back to the opposition and say 'you have it we want to defend a bit more' - hang on that's what we've been doing.

[Finnegan]

I disagree with the notion you can attack too much. If you're dominating you are dominating and if you take your chances you win.

What IS important is that you defend correctly and currently we are not. A positional sense is viatal and we were caught all over the shop vs WBA with Berner a particular offender.

[Babylon]

The question shouldn't be do we attack too much, it should be why do we attack so poorly.