The Soccer Blog: Steady As She Goes

Tuesday, 7 December 2010

Steady As She Goes

By: Noel | December 7th, 2010
van de Velde - Ships

It has become a familiar stalking horse: Roy Hodgson doesn’t like change. He doesn’t like to change his approach, or his starting eleven, or even make substitutions. There’s Plan A, and then there’s Plan A, and if you don’t like it you can check back in next week for another installment of Plan A. Of course, as the players have taken up a more possession based approach over recent weeks one has had to ask if perhaps this is change of a sort, since the fundamentals being shown now are in many ways closer to those Liverpool used in past years than the ones used to start the season with. Perhaps it is, and if so it deserves a tentative respect. But it’s still nowhere near enough when other very basic things remain depressingly unchanged.

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It’s been noted by many that Dirk Kuyt has looked rather poor in his last few outings, and though he’s still clearly putting in the effort it would be hard to argue that his already heavy touch hasn’t been that little bit worse, or that he’s been popping up in dangerous areas and chipping in valuable goals like he does when on form. With the idea of “on form” of course being a bit of a tricky concept with a blue collar player like Kuyt. What hasn’t been noted nearly as often is that on the back of a pair of injuries picked up with his national side he’s been playing more minutes than just about any of Liverpool’s current A Team, Roy Hodgson’s glacially evolving first eleven.

Elsewhere, it was only a week ago that the manager was going to great lengths to describe the need for Joe Cole to find his way back to match fitness, both mentally and physically. It’s hard not to wonder, then, why a struggling Kuyt was left on the pitch so long yesterday against a largely apathetic Villa when an early substitution and a few extra minutes for Cole to run on the right with an increasingly adventurous Johnson might have paid dividends down the road for both attacking midfielders. Kuyt appears to need a bit of rest; Cole needs a few minutes off the bench here and there in the hope he can find his mythical form instead of another injury; and the opponent isn’t putting up much of a fight.

It doesn’t seem as though an aptitude for rocket surgery need be involved when you step back and examine the component pieces, yet Cole sits and wits interminably, and it is increasingly puzzling.

The situation is frustrating to watch, as much as anything because this aversion to change is at a position of strength. In the naturally narrow formations Liverpool’s current squad are best suited for–and that more and more they are in fact setting up in, at least in the league–that collective of somewhat jack of all trades attacking players includes the aforementioned Kuyt and Cole, as well as Maxi, Gerrard, Jovanovic, and arguably Babel and Pacheco (as well as Aurelio as a more defensive option, going by a few of his recent appearances off the bench). That’s a lot of players to squeeze into two or three spots, but it also gives Hodgson a great deal of flexibility to react to form and fitness from match to match as well as make quick changes based on performance within a specific game. With the thoroughly decent options available there’s no excuse for not giving a tired player a rest, and there’s really no reason whichever player is on form and healthy shouldn’t be asked to run their socks off knowing that if they start to tire towards the end there’ll be cover on the way–while if they don’t run their socks off until they do need to be substituted, there will be someone else willing to it from the start.

In the end it seems to reflect Hodgson’s insistence on making Plan A work come hell or high water or opponent equalizers, and while there can at times be an argument for giving players the chance to work out any kinks or momentary dips in form and get things right–especially if you’re dealing with a player who has a history of top level performances or, alternately, if you’re dealing with a position of relative weakness–there are times like yesterday where it appears more than anything to be a kind of senseless stubbornness. Nothing more or less than the in-match equivalent of “My methods have worked for 35 years and I’m not about to change them now,” if you will. The players, those narrow attackers, are there, giving options the likes of which don’t exist anywhere else in the squad–even Liverpool’s depth at center back doesn’t come close to the list of generalist “attackers” available. Plan A, one imagines, should really be to get the best out of the players on hand. Instead it appears to embrace a stubborn disdain for one of the squad’s few real strengths.

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Meanwhile, with Gerrard’s return against Newcastle seeming probable and any individual whose opinion is worthy of respect strongly in favour of keeping the Lucas-Meireles partnership together for at least the foreseeable future, it’s about to become even more congested no matter who gets thrown into which of the four most attacking roles on the pitch and quite how they’re set out tactically. Because as has become increasingly obvious, Hodgson doesn’t like to make early substitutions or rotate his squad, and even if the team is showing encouraging signs of trying to play football and get the fullbacks down the pitch the numbers suggest that if he doesn’t start to change his ways at least a couple of players good enough to do a job for most Premier League sides will be spending an awful lot of time twiddling their thumbs. The numbers, then, are as follows:

In the first thirteen matches over the first two months of the season, the average first “naturally occurring substitution” came at the 72 minute mark. There was a match against Trabzonspor where Torres was scheduled to come on at the half for Babel no matter what, leading to a rather puzzling situation where the first half’s best player and scorer of Liverpool’s lone goal was yanked. Then there was the Sunderland match that saw Konchesky injured on 28 minutes. On those occasions the first substitution used in the average occurred at 73 and 62 minutes into the respective matches.

In the second thirteen matches over the last two months of the season, that substitution time has come down a minute to the 71 minute mark. Similarly noted exceptions would be Torres’ injury against Blackpool on 10 minutes, and a planned halftime substitution in both legs against Napoli, with subsequent substitutions at 60, 65, and 65 minutes respectively.

Liverpool may be getting a little bit better–even if it is only a little bit–when it comes to the general gameplan and tactics with the now definate move towards 4-2-2-2 variants and possession that allows the fullbacks to provide width. However, better in-game management is still desperately needed for the club to maximise its potential this term, and that starts with rotation in the attacking quartet to keep everybody fresh match-to-match as well as earlier substitutions to allow harder running from the starters and fresh legs in the final third of matches. Thankfully Liverpool has the depth to do this, to rotate and substitute liberally at positions likely to need it most. The only question remains whether the manager can knock ten minutes off the time he makes his average first substitution to best utilize the talent on hand.

Some Related Liverpool Posts:Match Preview: Liverpool v. Blackburn, 10.24.10Tuesdays with Roy: This Time on a TuesdayMatchday: Liverpool v. SunderlandFive Questions Left to AnswerThe Arjen Robben Endorsement, Europa League, and Ownership Pseudo-News

Category: Special Features

Tags: Dirk Kuyt, Jamie Redknapp is a Moron, Joe Cole, Maxi Rodriguez, Roy Hodgson, Special Features, Squad Rotation, Steven Gerrard, TickTickTick That's the Sound of the Match Running Out, Unnecessary Verbiage
« Liverpool 3, Aston Villa 0: Taking Advantage | Home | cheeky fellowhttp://i.imgur.com/Jkwek.jpgYWNAwe could have been at spurs position if not for those misses either side of half time in that game :(

our season wouldnt look so bad than huh?Hopeful Red!God you must have a short memory you seem to be suggesting that Hodgson is stubborn and won't change his mind about things?

I think you might be confusing him with someone who in season 2007-08 started VORONIN (it wasn't a nightmare it really did happen) 13 times in the league against 9 starts for Crouch (erm? WTF!)

Season 2008-09 Robbie Keane scored an equaliser against Arsenal then in the next game scored 2 goals in a 3-0 victory against Bolton which saw us go top of the prem and was then sold back to Tottenham.

Last Season Rafa started Babel (a player he signed for £11.5 Million) 13 times, Last night is the first time in a long time I have witnessed Babel putting two good games back to back, he's already started 5 games for us this season and now that his performances are improving hopefully he will start a few more games.

I'm not criticising Rafa, he was a very good manager I am merely pointing his main weakness (possibly only in my opinion) was his stubbornness and inability to see what was in front of his nose sometimes see link below (anyone who was at the Lyon game when Yossi got SUBBED will know what I'm on about):
http://www.guardian.co.uk/foot...

I just can’t see how you can criticise Hodgson on this basis so early on in his management.

If Hodgson had made any changes (that weren't forced on him: Torres, Carra) from the side that played so well against a Tottenham side that has seen huge net investment in the past few seasons I would of been full of questions. Sure enough we picked much the same side played good football again last night and came away with a 3-0 victory against a side who gave Arsenal (now on top spot) a torrid time last week. I think the danger with this article and a danger for lots of Liverpool fans is that whatever Roy does he can't be right (even when he wins?!). People have been talking a lot about giving certain players more of a chance surely we should extend the same courtesy to a manager? We've topped our Europa League table (Juve didn't get through) and we are moving up the league by next weekend we could be 5th in the league which based on investment is probably where we should be, but we are an improving side and could even make it into the champs league when you look at the squads Arse, Man U, Chelsea, Spurs and City have got that would be quite an achievement. Lets get behind the manager if we don't think we are where we should be by next summer then I won't stand in the managers way but until then get behind the him and the redmen!
Red2deathFull respect for the Liverpool tradition of supporting the manager. I for one don't support Roy and he's the first manager ever to get that judgement from me in 25 years of being a fan. What really is the logic behind the "get behind the manager" ethos?

As a fan I'd only get behind anyone I felt was good for the club. Hodgson, for me, is way out of that category. Results right up till recently were abysmal, and even till now his tactics and style of play and lack of passion for the club and lack of ambition is still abysmal. He doesn't meet the bare minimum criteria for being a decent Liverpool manager, and therefore I don't support him. Similar with many other fans.

Did you get behind Voronin just because he was wearing the shirt? Traore? Hicks & Gillett? Same logic. Just because someone wears the shirt, or sits in the boardroom, or scratches his chin in the dugout, doesn't mean he automatically deserves support from Liverpool fans. We'll support him if he's good for the club, and we won't if he's not. No hypocrisy there, just doing what logical fans do.GalahadThreepwoodI agree. As far as I can see, Roy's shown that he's not the stuff LFC managers are made of. I'm happy that the squad's doing better now, but why did it take so long for Roy to make the adjustment to possession-based football? Most of us noticed the problems with his tactics early on, but it took almost 4 months for him to make a change. If he's so astute, why did he insist on playing his brand of negative football week in and week out, even after defeats like Blackpool and Northampton showed up the glaring difficulties with it? And that doesn't even account for the terrible press conferences, the puzzling dedication to Poulsen, etc., etc. I think he's stubborn, backward, and too arrogant for his own good, and I believe the club would be better off without him. A couple of wins, while encouraging, aren't going to change my opinion.Hopefull Red!should of read 6th in the leagueredtrev73Hopeful Red, your positivity is intoxicating my friend! The basic tenet of your post does seem to presume that a comparison with benitez is implicitly suggested and i must say i don't think that's the case, so leaving rafa out of it, (something that numpty andy gray should try) i must say i agree with the sentiment of 'credit where its due'. However, my natural inclination is still to feel a wave of disappointment/nausea every time old roy rolls in front of his adoring media. This unpleasant sensation is not based on an irrational dislike or a hankering after the previous incumbent but rather the pig's ear the chap has made of running Liverpool Football Club to date. The evidence of this is overwhelming and if it were just bad calls or misjudgements i would be inclined towards forgiveness and patience...but it's not, there's also the way he has conducted himself in the media and taken full advantage of his bullet-proof status whilst spectacularly failing to inspire fans or players. Some of his more unfogiveable pronouncements have been documented by ed on here previously but it's been a comprehensive undermining of morale. I must say i would agree with noel's analysis re. roy's insistence on Plan A-or-the-highway. An insightful observation by our host again. The basic improvement in our play (which co-incides with the new midfield axis of raul and lucas) is a cause for optimism however, and if nando and stevie are introduced up top it should be even better (assuming our number 9's work rate mirrors that of ngog last nite). I reckon we'd all like to be 'hopeful reds' mate...but you can understand the caution/fatalism of many, no?blog comments powered by Disqus

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Tuesday, 7 December 2010

Steady As She Goes

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