Unai Emery

[edgysatsuma89]

Yeah, we're definitely not stinking the place out, that was circling the drain for 5 years. We're having a below average league season, though, hence being 10th. I say below average, that's considering our players should be better than 10th.

[Rory]

Yeah, we're definitely not stinking the place out, that was circling the drain for 5 years. We're having a below average league season, though, hence being 10th. I say below average, that's considering our players should be better than 10th.

But should they?

If you believe some: Martinez is overrated; Cash is gash; Mings is past it; Digne is slow; Maatsen can't defend; Torres can't defend; Konsa is rubbish (this season); Onana is made of glass; Barkley is injured; Bailey is shit; Ramsey is also overrated; Rogers is either brilliant or useless; Ollie misses more than he scores so needs binning.

Maybe we're a Europa/Conference League level squad that Unai managed a minor miracle with last year. A squad that has since made a profit in sales, and this year we're struggling to adjust to the increased demands.

I just don't know where some people's fucking expectations have come from.

[Dante Lavelli]

“We competed well, but it is not enough - we move on." - no Unai, in the second half we didn’t compete at all.

Looking at his face at full time, I doubt that was the message in the changing room.

[ChicagoLion]

I hope by next season he has sorted out a defensive strategy.

[PaulWinch again]

Thing is Rory both things can be correct. The criticism of individuals, in a lot of cases is generally fairly misguided confusing patchy form for overall ability. Watkins is a good example, anyone saying he’s not good enough is demonstrably wrong based on his record.

But it is also true that only 5 teams have conceded more than us, we go behind pretty much every game, and away from home we’ve been hammered several times. Unai has been brilliant for us, but we are definitely underperforming in the league.

[PaulWinch again]

As I’ve mentioned I think Unai has decided the slow, controlled style will help us defensively but we make such fundamental mistakes that it can’t paper the cracks. That slow style also simultaneously stifles our attacking freedom. It really isn’t working.

[Rico]

I think that this season we are beginning to see the end of the 'total football ' system employed by Emery and Guardiola. Like all fashions or systems they naturally evolve or die, so I wonder what the next system will be?

I can remember the FA employing a guy, I think his name was Charles Hughes, who had done a statistical analysis on Brazil 1970 (possibly the best team ever?) and concluded that most of their goals came from moves involving three passes or less. This was probably correct, but the English FA didn't really comprehend the difference between a Brazilian "long pass" and a hopeful hoof upfield.

I'm not advocating a return to Wimbledon style long ball, but this tipppy tappy passing across the back line is looking more and more like it's been found out. I'm my mind it just gives the opposition more time to reset defensively, and then pressing us on the edge of our own penalty area and picking up possession when we loose the ball.

Who knows what the tacticians will come up with next, but I think we're seeing the end of the possession at all costs football employed by Emery and Guardiola.

[Drummond]

He has performed a minor miracle to get us we are.
There has always been a nagging doubt in my mind, though, that a rigid game plan and way of playing will get found out sooner or later.

Man Citeh played robot football to great effect, but now it is not so effective.

If you watch the NFL, as I do, all the coaches have laminated game plans and head microphones. Here, substitutes are often shown an IPad Tablet when coming on, though they never seem to be paying much attention.
The great teams of the past would sort things out on the pitch between themselves and Tony Morley would flick V's at Ron Saunders after scoring.
Flexibility and adaptability on the pitch required.

There was an interesting article on BBC Sport the other day that talked about slow build up football being beaten by a more direct, faster style now.

That's part of what we're up against I think, and with no Torres available we just don't have the ability to move the ball up the pitch quickly (and accurately) from defence.

Last night Tielemans was surrounded by a triangle of players every time our keeper had the ball, because he was our out ball, jand the defenders aren't good enough on it to play accurate passes.

Palace marked our wide players too which meant going long a few times. It worked reasonably well but obviously doesn't guarantee possession.

With Kamara and Barkley out we don't have control of midfield, either defensively or on the ball, and so we invite pressure on to our constantly changing central defence.

[dutchvilla]

The crux is that five players - Martinez, Konsa, McGinn, Bailey and Watkins - have not hit the heights of last season. That's neither entirely on them or on Emery. And if it was simple solve, he would have already done so.

[manic-road]

I get the slow build up and the teams effort to control the games, I have watched opposition players like Son of Spurs spend the first 45 minutes putting in loads of sprints closing down defenders not getting anywhere near the ball and then look totally gassed at half time. In a season of so many matches the players would burn out far quicker playing a more high tempo game that some wish for.

[Dave P]

It seems that once a season, he has these brain farts like last night.  He absolutely deserves criticism for last night because nothing was right.

However, if he did it to prioritise the FA Cup, then that is fine by me.

[ChicagoLion]

As I’ve mentioned I think Unai has decided the slow, controlled style will help us defensively but we make such fundamental mistakes that it can’t paper the cracks. That slow style also simultaneously stifles our attacking freedom. It really isn’t working.

It started from qualifying for Europe and I can only assume it is energy conservation.
As you say, it is not working because out of possession we look like the keystone cops.
An approach that concedes 2 goals a game and  from the first opposition attack is doomed to fail.
I think Emery has got stuck.

[Nii Lamptey]

I get the slow build up and the teams effort to control the games, I have watched opposition players like Son of Spurs spend the first 45 minutes putting in loads of sprints closing down defenders not getting anywhere near the ball and then look totally gassed at half time. In a season of so many matches the players would burn out far quicker playing a more high tempo game that some wish for.

Yeah, but WHEN do you let the shackles off? These current tactics are not working at all, and our season could literally be over within the next two games if recent form is anything to go by.

Qualifying for Europe through the Premier League is done imo. There are far better 'teams' above us and with our current form and the way we're set up, I can't for the life of me see us gaining ground on that front.

Cardiff is a banana skin which could go either way depending on which team he puts out/turns up, and Brugge will be rubbing their hands if they watched the Palace game last night. The way they picked off Atalanta, they'd have a field day against our lot.

If we get through both games unscathed, then great. But if we don't, this season is a busted flush. These defensive tactics (*which aren't actually defensive at all because we can't bloody defend!), are just god damn fucking excruciatingly painful to watch!

The media are questioning the likes of Ange and Amorim for being stuck in their ways - When does Emery start creeping into that same conversation? Without BOTH Kamara and Torres, this system DOES NOT WORK, so why the fuck does he keep persevering with it?

No Europe (*CL or Europa) would be a catastrophe for the club. Our players would have had a sniff of the big time, and I could see a lot of unrest amongst our better players in the summer if this season fizzles out to nothing.

In a bad mood this morning. Shit view at Palace, trains cancelled from Marylebone resulting in a dash across to Euston, train to Rugby, taxi to Leamington to pick up my car, drive home to Kidderminster, got home to bed in the middle of the night, and now a full day of work - Fucking great.

Sometimes football is magical, but in reality, most of the time it is shit.

UTV

[Meanwood Villa]

The last paragraph there sums it up. We keep chasing the magic, hopeless romantics that we are.

[ChicagoLion]

It seems that once a season, he has these brain farts like last night.  He absolutely deserves criticism for last night because nothing was right.

However, if he did it to prioritise the FA Cup, then that is fine by me.

Hi didn’t.