Flip Flop

[brian green]

I cannot remember a time when our play yo yoed from very good to very bad so suddenly and seemingly without reason.

The games which stick in my mind are QPR  home and away when we were unbelievably bad in one half of the game and really good in the other.   Arsenal away in the cup was another.

We also have passages of play in many games when really good football is mixed in with total rubbish.   There is no rhyme or reason to it.   It is all too random and spontaneous to be put down to anything the manager might or might not say or do.

Needless to say our points tally tells you that there has been far more bad than good but the fact that his season we have seen some very good stuff makes bearing the contradictions of the first 77 minutes of last Saturday's game compared with the last 13 minutes even harder to bear.

[Greg N'Ash]

The home record isn't helping is it. People ocassionally like to see their team win and they're obviously ill at ease at Villa Park because its becoming a millstone round their necks. But you're right, we have played well and awful in the space of 90 minutes both home and away.

[andyaston]

To be honest we have been hit with loads of misfortune bar the Wolves game of late. Plenty of penalty appeals turned down, loads of penatlies being given against us, mistakes at the back being punished, deflections falling towards oppostions strikers and Stephen Warnock.

[KevinGage]

You can point to those good periods as examples of what we're capable of.

But then I'm sure most struggling/ relegation threatened sides could say similar.

Wolves - who got absolutely annihilated at home to a pretty ordinary Olbiyun side yesterday (and lost to us)  had us on the ropes for big period of the game at their place. 

B-lose went down last year despite giving a team as good as Arsenal a real going over (only a week or so after le Arse had beaten Barcelona).  The West Ham side that went down last year beat Liverpool convincingly at home and had a spell from about Jan - March where they actually looked half decent.  For a bit.

But when you have as many shortcomings as we do,  the mistakes more often than not undo any good work, or our bright play only brings us back to parity in a match. A selection containing Wanock, Collins and Dunne is all to often like a 1 or 2 goal handicap.

[picicata]

Honestly, I don't think it's much of a mystery. When we are chasing a game, we generally play much better than we do when we have to press a game.

To me we set up to defend and stifle, playing a pass and hold game. Once we have gone behind we can no longer do that and have to open and play a pass and move game. Once we are back level we start playing with caution again. This is why our games go in fits and starts and also why we have gained quite a number of points from losing positions. It's also one of the most frustrating things about McCleish's tactics as we obviously can play, we just arn't being encouraged to from the outset of a game.

[picicata]

To be honest we have been hit with loads of misfortune bar the Wolves game of late. Plenty of penalty appeals turned down, loads of penatlies being given against us, mistakes at the back being punished, deflections falling towards oppostions strikers and Stephen Warnock.

 If you try and defend far to deep and give the ball away cheaply then you will give away more penalties, you will see more mistakes being made and you will see more deflections falling to the opposition. That's not misfortune or bad luck.

[ozzjim]

Generally the flip has been with the likes of Ireland, NZogbia, Albrighton, Keane and Gardner of late on the pitch, creating space and opportunity.

The flop is when the side is stifled by tactical suicide.

[PaulWinch again]

Generally the flip has been with the likes of Ireland, NZogbia, Albrighton, Keane and Gardner of late on the pitch, creating space and opportunity.

The flop is when the side is stifled by tactical suicide.

Pretty much bang on.

[Jimmy Smash]

I thought this thread was about a new French defender we were looking at signing.

[pauliewalnuts]

You can point to those good periods as examples of what we're capable of.

But then I'm sure most struggling/ relegation threatened sides could say similar.

Wolves - who got absolutely annihilated at home to a pretty ordinary Olbiyun side yesterday (and lost to us)  had us on the ropes for big period of the game at their place. 

B-lose went down last year despite giving a team as good as Arsenal a real going over (only a week or so after le Arse had beaten Barcelona).  The West Ham side that went down last year beat Liverpool convincingly at home and had a spell from about Jan - March where they actually looked half decent.  For a bit.

But when you have as many shortcomings as we do,  the mistakes more often than not undo any good work, or our bright play only brings us back to parity in a match. A selection containing Wanock, Collins and Dunne is all to often like a 1 or 2 goal handicap.

See also Blackpool, who played some fantastic stuff, but couldn't defend, and got relegated.

[bertlambshank]

Defend too deep and you get flop football.
Our manager is the only one Who can't/won't see it.

[andyh]

25 games and we can remember having good spells in 2 !!
I'm sure we have had the odd good 5 or 10 minutes in other games as well, but I think that sums up the season so far.

[cheltenhamlion]

Our season in a nutshell was covered in 3 days when won at Chelsea and got panned by Swansea.

[MonsXI]

Generally the flip has been with the likes of Ireland, NZogbia, Albrighton, Keane and Gardner of late on the pitch, creating space and opportunity.

The flop is when the side is stifled by tactical suicide.

Spot on!

Unfortunately AMC would prefer to play Heskey (who I thought played well on Sunday) instead of N'Zogbia and Keane is going back to Baywatch so theres gonna be more flop than flip!

[Clampy]

McLeish is like Houiller was last season. Just when you thought he's finally getting things right, along comes a shocker of a team selection to puzzle everybody and a perfomance to go with it.