Brian: The right decision?

[ZacNaloen]

Ideals comparison to Bayern Munich is apt but not in the way he was thinking, what Bayern did in the champions league final is what Adkins wants us to do.

The transitions between possession and causing your opponents to chase shadows and fast counter attacking that one of the hallmarks of the modern German game, it's not something they invented though they just do it better than anyone else right now. It's how Adkins has described his footballing philosophy to the press and the fans. When they are pressing you have the space to play long, but when they aren't or the long ball is not on you need to keep the ball play the opposition out of shape to create spaces. Dortmund were pressing Bayern all game and so Bayern had no problem playing it long to their wingers, when it was on, to deal with that.

And I think many would agree it makes for football that is more entertaining than the modern Spanish game.

[sandman]

Only if you don't understand what the Spanish game is about.

[winchester_royal]

Ideals comparison to Bayern Munich is apt but not in the way he was thinking, what Bayern did in the champions league final is what Adkins wants us to do.

The transitions between possession and causing your opponents to chase shadows and fast counter attacking that one of the hallmarks of the modern German game, it's not something they invented though they just do it better than anyone else right now. It's how Adkins has described his footballing philosophy to the press and the fans. When they are pressing you have the space to play long, but when they aren't or the long ball is not on you need to keep the ball play the opposition out of shape to create spaces. Dortmund were pressing Bayern all game and so Bayern had no problem playing it long to their wingers, when it was on, to deal with that.

And I think many would agree it makes for football that is more entertaining than the modern Spanish game.

Exactly. It's not about the 'short' ball or the 'long' ball, but about the right ball. Obviously we're still a bit away from playing the right ball with any regularity yet, but it's pretty clear that it's the direction Nige is trying to take us. No coincidence, IMO, that he spent some of his time out of employment watching how Hamburg train.

[ZacNaloen]

Only if you don't understand what the Spanish game is about.

[sandman]

Dangerous square passes in front of your own box are never "the right ball".

[ZacNaloen]

And you claim to understand the spanish game!

[Wycombe Royal]

Dangerous square passes in front of your own box are never "the right ball".

I think you have an obsession with them for what is only a small thing. So it happened a couple of times against City, the second best club in the country in a game that meant nothing. These 9 games Adkins has had have basically been competitive training sessions as relegation was pretty much assured already.

Maybe you need to get over those small incidents and look at the bigger picture?

(Waits for predictable comeback)....

[sandman]

Only if you don't understand what the Spanish game is about.

The Spanish get the ball into their midfield and Xavi, Iniesta and Alonso play their passes in the opponents half looking for a through ball, no one in Spain really wants Carles Puyol or Sergio Ramos passing the ball around in their own half for too long. After Euro 2008 when they blitzed the opposition teams realised how good they were and how comfortable they were on the ball and became more compact against them which meant Spain have to be more patient to find the opening for that through ball and the possession statistics got higher. The Swiss started it in Spain's next tournament match after the Euro 2008 final, the first game of the last World Cup.

They averaged 50% possession in Euro 2008 and 63% in Euro 2012 so that shows how big the difference was in terms of possession.

To their credit Italy tried to break the mould and play more expansive against Spain in the last Euro final and what happened? Alba marauded, Spain played brilliantly and they showed the way their style is really played with 52% possession. The way Bayern Munich played against Barca originated from La Liga! As anyone who has seen Real Madrid play Barca in a clasico since Madrid lost 5-0 three years ago will attest.

The Spanish style is not dull as the English and a certain Norwegian mentalist would have you believe.

[winchester_royal]

Dangerous square passes in front of your own box are never "the right ball".

Indeed, which is why I said we're still a bit away from regularly playing the right ball.

Sometimes retaining possession at the back is the right way to play at a particular time, sometimes it's too much of a risk. The more we get used to playing this way the more understanding the players will have of when the right time is, and the more adept they'll become at playing in this way hence making it less risky.

[ZacNaloen]

Only if you don't understand what the Spanish game is about.

There is actually no point in responding to your monster post because you haven't said anything I'm not aware of, disagree with, or even anything that disputes the fact the modern German game is more entertaining (particularly for neutrals) than the modern Spanish game.

But it's good to know you can get rattled with the best of them when you care.

[Muskrat]

A Puffin



Nigel Adkins

[AthleticoSpizz]

Wrong decision - we got relegated


just to put the proverbial cat amongst the hobnob squawkers

[SLAMMED]

A Puffin



Nigel Adkins

Looks like it's been eating Wotsits

[jellytot]

Wrong decision - we got relegated

just to put the proverbial cat amongst the hobnob squawkers

No dummy you are naive. NA was not brought in to keep us up. We were doomed along time before bm was fired.
We were jammy with some results in february. we then lost to wigan and villa which were the final nails (two of many)
In our pl coffin. Na is AZ's appointment playing the kind of football he wants to see. He had time to assess our poor pl
Squad and prepare for the chumpionship.

For me it was the right timing and the right appointment. If we get the top academy status i think
The clubs future looks bright. Get rid of some dead wood old BM players who were not up to the pl despite bleating on that they were.
Exciting times ahead for the club. Hope we stuff Leeds home abd away. And we move on.

[AthleticoSpizz]

^

two or three months too late for the insults



mate


good grief

[RoyalBlue]

I think Danny Guthrie's play sums up our new style the best.

Gifts the ball away to opponents then shouts at a teammate, puts his head down, and sulks the rest of the match? If that's our new style, we're oxf*rd.

Clearly you didn't bother to watch any of our games after Adkins took over and enabled Guthrie to show the positive side of his game!

[Man Friday]

Wrong decision - we got relegated

just to put the proverbial cat amongst the hobnob squawkers

No dummy you are naive. NA was not brought in to keep us up. We were doomed along time before bm was fired.
We were jammy with some results in february. we then lost to wigan and villa which were the final nails (two of many)
In our pl coffin. Na is AZ's appointment playing the kind of football he wants to see. He had time to assess our poor pl
Squad and prepare for the chumpionship.

For me it was the right timing and the right appointment.

IF it proves to be the right appointment then it was more luck than judgement on AZ's behalf as NA was third choice. We'd have had Di Canio if it hadn't been for the STAR poll.

[glass half full]

Sunderland for relegation 2014?

[Man Friday]

Exactly.

Very worrying that AZ actually wanted Di Canio (and Poyet).

Thankfully providence took over.

[Avon Royal]

Exactly.

Very worrying that AZ actually wanted Di Canio (and Poyet).

Thankfully providence took over.

Would be worrying if it were true.