31 Aug 2021 17:30:07
I know a number of you have discussed Saturday's game separately but thought I'd offer a few thoughts.

The first half was impressive and we dominated. It was unfortunate that our two best chances fell to the wrong person. That said, every attacking player is going to have to do more this season to contribute goals to make up for the loss of a proven striker, plus our playing style and the type of chances we create. If we are to be fluid in attack, we need several players to be relatively reliable in putting the ball in when it matters.

Both Armstrong and Adams were quiet in terms of efforts on goal on Saturday but Newcastle played compact and made playing through the middle hard. In order to free up space for Adams and Armstrong in these sorts of matches, we have to offer more of a threat when attacking from a wide position to capitalise when we have space there, or to draw defenders out of such a compact shape. I felt the wide players did well but I never really believe when we're out wide and facing a narrow defence that a cross into the box is going to result in anything more than a clearance or turnover. That was until Broja came on later.

That said, we could and should have gone in at half time with a lead. At least a couple of goals given the nature of the game to that point. We were impressive across the pitch.

Newcastle changed little at half time other than to seemingly be reminded that they were the home team and the fans booing them off should be met with a more proactive second half. They were better, but we were no worse and so the contest was more even in the opening minutes of the second half.

Newcastle's first goal was frustrating because as is often the case with the goals we concede, it came as a result of several players all dropping their attention/ energy level at the wrong moment.

With the ball stuck on the right side of our box, Tino and Moi did enough to make Newcastle check back, but there was an opportunity for Moi to press harder/ more aggressively as Saint Maximin cut the ball back to Ritchie. Moi did then work well with Adams to push the ball back once more, but then Adams dropped off, allowing Schar (I think) enough time to get his head up and pick out Murphy. A little more pressure may have discouraged the pass or made it less accurate.

But the big issue here is Djnepo who failed to spot Murphy jogging into the space behind him. He was ball-watching and anticipating a square ball that he could press high. He therefore drifted out of a useful defensive position. KWP is stuck narrow with Salisu as both Willock and Wilson were around the one centre back so he needed support. KWP saw Murphy but only a moment before the ball was played and too late for Djnepo to be of any help. The ball was great, leaving a 3v3 but KWP couldn't get to Murphy quick enough to stop the ball coming across goal and you could argue that Wilson, diving low, simply wanted the ball more than Salisu or Stephens.

I think several players could have done better defending the situation, but the hole in the defence was made by Djnepo's inattention to the danger around him. He's not a defender but has shown in recent weeks a willingness to work hard to track back and double up on wide players which he has done effectively. Its a shame he was focusing on the wrong thing but hopefully he will learn from this. Would someone else off the bench have behaved differently? No idea. It would require strong defensive awareness and positional sense. Perhaps KWP and Perraud could try playing together?

RH acknowledged Djnepo's fault because 3 mins later, he was off replaced by Redmond. The manager was proactive in his substitutions this week and Redmond's arrival did steady the ship. But it became evident as the minutes ticked by that we were lacking goal threat up front so Broja was brought on for Adams. Its certainly the case that he presents more as a striker than a forward, where as Adams is the latter, unselfishly working for the team but not always threatening the goal.

When Redmond crossed from the left, it was Broja's driving run to the near post that left a hole for Moi to run into. With the ball just missing Broja, Moi was able to slide it in on the rebound. Both of the manager's substitutions had a key role in the goal and let's not forget that RH chose to put Moi in from the start. Its very easy in hindsight to second guess the starting line-up and the substitutions made during the game, but on Saturday, for the most part RH got them right. We dominated the first half and in the second, each time a player was showing signs of not quite delivering, they were replaced by someone who came on and made a difference.

At 1-1, momentum came back to us and I was pleased that RH made the gamble to try and win us the game. Swapping Romeu for Diallo is an attacking move as he is much better at keeping the ball moving positively compared to Romeu whose strength is breaking up play. In the build up to Newcastle's second goal, we were winning the midfield battle and attacking well. Newcastle were back to relying on counter attacks that often fizzled out. The game was there.

But. Diallo is only 22 and was naive in bursting forward to support Tino on the right wing. JWP had also tucked over to the right-hand side, albeit much deeper to keep half an eye on Joelinton, so there was a gaping hole in the middle of pitch if we lost the ball. Diallo rushed a cross, which was never really on, mirubbishting it and Newcastle had time and acres to play the ball forward into. With JWP not really having the pace to make an effective challenge (and also already being on a yellow card) it was effectively 2v2. Salisu had a great game for the most part but he made an error here as he was stuck in two minds whether to press Saint Maximin or drop towards the overlapping run of Joelinton. Stephens saw Joelinton's run and initially followed him, but then, despite being the deepest defender, decided to confront Saint Maximin as no-one else was. His error was that he didn't press. He stood still and waited for the ball to get to him which meant he was playing Joelinton onside. This was exactly what the Newcastle player needed. with 3 defenders focusing on him, Joelinton was free and the counter was on.

Sprinting back towards your own goal always makes life so much more difficult because the speed of play means you have a fraction of a second to make key decisions. To compound the earlier errors, Salisu slides in to block a cross from Joelinton that didn't come and Stephens was then sucked over but was equally ineffectual in stopping Joelinton passing the ball to Ryan Fraser. McCarthy saved well from his strike but the ball fell to Saint Maximin. JWP had decided to run to the back post to guard the goal rather than stay with Saint Maximin which was another rushed decision which he might now make differently. But because these quick decisions and panicked defending are so much harder to control, the idea is to avoid putting yourself in that situation. If Salisu had stuck tight to Saint Maximin, he could have slowed him down, fouled him on half way to take one for the team or forced him to pass to Joelinton much, much sooner. The better teams in the league would likely have gone for option number 2. Stop the game. Get your team back to defend. Prevent a counter attack. Salisu, again, is young. He played very well on Saturday and its a lesson he and many others in our team need to learn. Counter attacks against teams like Man City are hard because they use 'tactical fouls' where they need to. We play a cavalier 2-4-4 when we're in possession but that makes us vulnerable to direct counters. So rather than getting cheap yellows for niggly fouls, our defenders will need to learn to save them up for when they're most needed to stop counters in their tracks.

Great spirit thereafter by the team to go for it in what little time was left. Redmond dropped into a number 10 position where he can be at his most effective. A wonderful through ball to Armstrong, foul, penalty. Redmond is another player who is often frustrating in wide positions but playing as an inside forward, he rarely looks to beat players on the outside and cross so holds up play or drifts centrally where there is more traffic which can slow a quick counter attack. But credit where its due - what a positive 20 minutes he had. He covered the areas Djnepo fell in both defence and attack, accruing essentially 2 assists on the day.

At the start of play I would have liked a win and after the first half, felt we deserved one. By the end, I was relieved and pleased to get the draw. Like last week, another draw which is a positive for a team that 4 months ago would likely have lost to such a late goal. As previously posted, if we keep earning draws in those games that we would have lost last season, plus we retain at least the same number of wins, our points tally will be more comfortable. For a tema of our stature, winning around half your games is quite a good return in the wins column. It was doing the same in the losses column that was of most concern. If we can tip the balance in favour of draws rather than losses, all will be well.

1.) 02 Sep 2021
02 Sep 2021 10:36:10
Good Morning Elfigo
Your very detailed analysis are always good to read. but you have to be honest, in effect you are describing very basic mistakes that the same players have been doing, not just week in week out, but season after season.

Romeu has not tracked his man, has been caught in position, has had to foul people for a long while.
Jack Stephens can be having a very good game but will then suddenly ball watch, not track his man, poor marking at dead balls etc etc

I was disappointed he took Perraud off and put KWP on at left back. He wasn’t voted the best left back in the French League for nothing! Ralph needs to stop this dabbling with players out of position. Yes KWP did well, but push KWP forward to play ahead of Tino; that makes not only a very strong, fast and dynamic partnership, but also great defensive cover.

Mo can play both wings, pair him with Perraud.

Most certainly shouldn’t be playing Djenepo. Effort 9/ 10, productivity 1/ 10 . can't ‘carry’ anyone in this league .

As for Romeu and JWP . what do we do with them? Both too slow .,
Redmond . did have. Good period with a great cross, but phew how many of our fast attacks end up going nowhere …

Shouldn’t Tella be starting every game?

Armstrong and Broja up front?