by Victor Meldrew »
23 Apr 2017 16:18
SCIAG leon Lower West That was embarrassing. Stam's fixation with a set style of play maybe his downfall. Tactically naive from the kick off. Is this Stam's way of telling the owners what investment is required. In order to achieve the goals he has set personally. All that was required was a single point to secure a play off place.
Why do football fans use the expression "tactically naive"?
It basically says they know more about football than the manager. In this case a manager that had played at the very highest level.
Yeah right.
There have been about ten times this season when Stam has made a selection which has made me question his judgement. In all but one or two of those, he's got it absolutely right.
At this point he could play Kermorgant in goal and I'd have to accept that he was probably right.
I always find it odd when posters have a go on a football website at another poster who DARES to say anything derogatory about a manager on the basis that the manager always knows best as he has played at the highest level.
I give you Neville, Hyppia, Zola, John Barnes even the great Bobby Moore as examples of top level players who have not succeeded as managers and presumably along the way have at times been accused of being tactically naive.
As for Stam, a top defender and yet , for whatever reason, cannot get his team to defend as successfully as they do at home.
Presumably tactics do come into it as the defenders are the same players.
I think it revolves around the ever-present Gunter in that he has played every game, home and away, in the league-he doesn't have much to do defensively in home games but when he needs to stand up and be counted away from home he is just a shrinking violet.
Maybe Stam doesn't see Watson as the answer but his loyalty to Gunter is unfounded and yes, naive in his first season as a manager.
Overall I feel that he has done a great job with what he has got and so far bought but on a message board I see no wrong in fans criticising when we ship 7 or give up 3 to a side just off one of the relegation spots or ship 5 against a team just below us in the league.