AVFC statement - McLeish sacked.

[Risso]

When I spoke to Alex last week, I mentioned that he may be manager of the month. We are half way through April now. Watch this space!

It's nearly three weeks since April Fools' Day.

[VillaAlways]

When I spoke to Alex last week, I mentioned that he may be manager of the month. We are half way through April now. Watch this space!

It's nearly three weeks since April Fools' Day.

I think that must have been when Dave spoke to him

[VinnieChase84]

DB - that barca article is frightening. Note to other forum users, done read that article use before tomorrows match cause it will be even more depressing what we have to view

[Tom Sawyer]

Do you see anything of AMc's tactics to Barcelona's???
http://www.miostadium.com/opinions/simon-kuper/barcelonas-secret-soccer-success

I think he tries to play like this... unfortunately he's just not very good. This is his downfall.

[PaulWinch again]

I don't think he tries it at all. In fact I think he actively tries to keep the ball as far away from our team as possible. He does the 5 second rule in reverse, if we have it for more than 5 seconds then the players get fined.

[DB]

Me neither, I honeslty don't think he has that ability to look at tactics like that. It's a world of difference. Let face it only a few coaches can.

[paul_e]

I'm a rugby person as my main game to play, and 1 of the first things you learn coming into rugby is about hunting in packs.  If you get caught on your own (in attack or defence) it's a good chance something is going to go wrong.  This is taught to rugby players at all levels, and huge amounts of time in coaching and tactics are devoted to keeping your players together and isolating opponents.

Football works exactly the same.  If you have options to pass to it's an easy game, if you can commit to pressing a man knowing all his 'targets' for a pass are marked you drop the game to being about 1 person being able to trick their way round another.

What Barca do is on the same level as most professional rugby sides in terms of working as a team, the problem is football has long been a game about individuals, look at Barca, Messi is the one who gets all the plaudits but actually the whole side is setup in a way that allows him to look spectacular and he just happens to be the one who finishes most of the great moves.

I'd love to see a great rugby coach come into football and work with a team (on the training ground) for 6months, if they knew enough of the basic skills I think they'd make a great job of it because of the team comes first mentality they'd bring.

[Monty]

Me neither, I honeslty don't think he has that ability to look at tactics like that. It's a world of difference. Let face it only a few coaches can.

Which says a lot about football, to be honest. Such a closed network of incompetence couldn't exist anywhere else.

Paul I've often thought about certain points in rugby being applicable to football, on the ball and off it. The trouble is, in rugby the systems are a) simpler (running with the ball everyone not in a ruck arranges themselves in a straight line - in football everything about that is complicated by being able to pass forward) and b) actually defined by the rules themselves - in football you can do anything with ten outfield players.

However, you are right in how we could apply a couple of these aspects of the game.

[Dante Lavelli]

I'm a rugby person as my main game to play, and 1 of the first things you learn coming into rugby is about hunting in packs.  If you get caught on your own (in attack or defence) it's a good chance something is going to go wrong.  This is taught to rugby players at all levels, and huge amounts of time in coaching and tactics are devoted to keeping your players together and isolating opponents.

Football works exactly the same.  If you have options to pass to it's an easy game, if you can commit to pressing a man knowing all his 'targets' for a pass are marked you drop the game to being about 1 person being able to trick their way round another.

What Barca do is on the same level as most professional rugby sides in terms of working as a team, the problem is football has long been a game about individuals, look at Barca, Messi is the one who gets all the plaudits but actually the whole side is setup in a way that allows him to look spectacular and he just happens to be the one who finishes most of the great moves.

I'd love to see a great rugby coach come into football and work with a team (on the training ground) for 6months, if they knew enough of the basic skills I think they'd make a great job of it because of the team comes first mentality they'd bring.

Good post paul-e.  There was a manger the other day that something along the lines of “I love Barca and the way they play.  It’s not their attacking I like, it’s the way they defend in packs.  That amount of work for the team requires such humility.”

The rugby coach idea is also something that I would like to see.  They are streets ahead when it comes to conditioning, arguably both mentally and physically.  I think the problem is people confuse the amount of money football produces as knowledge or wisdom.  So when Woodward works at Southampton he gets screwed over by the media and fans (and Redknap if I recall correctly).  Similarly, I could never understand the guffawing when McLeish went to expand his knowledge with the Browns.  Football needs to learn from other sports.

[PeterWithe]

Someone on here mentioned reading a book about Barca recently, I'm pretty sure that in it they worked out that statistically, the opposition were likliest to give the ball away just after winning it so they coached all their teams to immediately commit players to press the ball however high up the field they were as soon as the ball was lost.

[paul_e]

Someone on here mentioned reading a book about Barca recently, I'm pretty sure that in it they worked out that statistically, the opposition were likliest to give the ball away just after winning it so they coached all their teams to immediately commit players to press the ball however high up the field they were as soon as the ball was lost.

Haven't seen that specific quote but it's true, and is even more pertinent in english football where the first touch/technique is less assured.  There is a tendency to take your eyes off the game at the point where you take the pass or make a tackle, which limits your options when looking to pass on, etc.  That is the point where you're most vulnerable.  If you can get in someone's face right as they get the ball it's much more difficult for them.

Oh and Dante, I've been wanting Villa to take that approach for years.  The problem in football is that there's a massive element who aren't talented enough at the coaching and tactical side to even attempt to do anything creative so, again particularly in english football, the focus has been on getting quicker or stronger and relying on the same tactics and training as was used 20-30 years ago.

[Rick_avfc]

Rumour has it that Rany Lerner has flown into the country for tomorrows game. oooooooooooh how exciting!  About bloody time he made an appearance
Im hoping I wake up to the headline on Sunday morning saying "MCLEISH SACKED"

[Dante Lavelli]

Someone on here mentioned reading a book about Barca recently, I'm pretty sure that in it they worked out that statistically, the opposition were likliest to give the ball away just after winning it so they coached all their teams to immediately commit players to press the ball however high up the field they were as soon as the ball was lost.

There’s an article linked above which describes the “science” brilliantly.

[Fingers]

Someone on here mentioned reading a book about Barca recently, I'm pretty sure that in it they worked out that statistically, the opposition were likliest to give the ball away just after winning it so they coached all their teams to immediately commit players to press the ball however high up the field they were as soon as the ball was lost.

Correct, my good man.  They have it installed into them to win it back within 7 seconds or they all filter back into position.

[Rip Van We Go Again]

Rumour has it that Rany Lerner has flown into the country for tomorrows game. oooooooooooh how exciting!  About bloody time he made an appearance
Im hoping I wake up to the headline on Sunday morning saying "MCLEISH SACKED"

Crack open the safe and get Fergusons's letter out again.