I can see that argument but maybe the players preparation is effectively covered during the week at training and lads effectively know that they will be playing early enough in the week due to the teams (first v reserves) that are arranged in the practise matches.
what concerns me more is the players inability to put passes where they should go and the inability at times to control simple passes. this was quite evident last Friday. one pass from a midfield player to our RB at the time in the second half summed it up for me.... it should have been a simple pass back to the full back but it went past him requiring our RB to turn to retrieve the pass but by then the turks had pressed up on him and so the RB had no option but to launch it up the pitch. too many of our passes put the receiving player under pressure for me and I cant understand why its so bad at times
Yes, also it keeps all players at all times at the ready.
This is true, but only if the players starting won't make a difference to the tactics.
If it's as simple as 'the left winger will do this, this and this' then everybody knows their job, regardless of who the left winger turns out to be on the day. But if it's as simple as that, it means there aren't really any variations on tactics based on the individual players, along the lines of 'if X plays up front, we deliver the ball like this, but if it's Y, we do it like this'.
But seeing as how we were hoofing it up to two small forwards, maybe it really is as simple as that.
I'd say it's safe enough to assume there isn't a Pep Guardiola level of detail applied.
I disagree with this. Every player in the squad should be prepared whether they are starting or not because things happen. People wake u on the day of a game with a dose of the flu or slip in the shower or get injured in the warmup etc. And things are even more unpredictable in the game itself. It's a different code but Kieran Marmion played on the wing for the first time in his life against England in the 6 Nations.
Naming the team late means our opposition don't know what they will face and allows us to put new players in without worrying about them being up all night with nerves the night before.
We can be poor at dealing with tactical corners. The goal we conceded against Scotland in Glasgow in the qualifiers for the Euros immediately springs to mind. We also conceded from a corner at home to Austria last campaign. I'm nearly sure there have been other occasions too..?
Surely there's a happy medium. A manager can give his players an idea of who'll be starting a day or two in advance and can prepare those players accordingly. There's no need to release the planned line-up to the media and you would hope that squad morale and discipline would be solid enough to ensure the information wouldn't be leaked.
Last edited by DannyInvincible; 28/03/2018 at 11:00 AM.
There's a big difference between publicly naming the team and telling the players who's playing though.
There was some confusion last year when Robbie Brady ran back to the bench just before kick-off and just after the team photos were taken to look at a piece of paper O'Neill was holding, in what appeared to be a last minute tactical / positional clarification. The more alarmist in our ranks here cited it as evidence of chaos but I was more relaxed about it. I'm less certain now.
It's noticeable that when O'Neill's merits are discussed by his players it's always that he's a great motivator but not hands-on in training. Personally I'd prefer a coach to have his players well drilled and briefed first and foremost.
It usually adds up to the same thing. It inevitably gets out if the players know. Very few footballers go on to have careers in the intelligence services.
You are right about O'Neill's reputation but that's no different to Alex Ferguson, Arsene Wenger or Brian Clough (no surprise there). For me as long as someone is covering that it doesn't really matter, and given everything i know about him I find it very difficult to believe that Roy Keane is letting the 'lettle details' slip.
He's a bit lost looking alright but I don't think it's a major issue if Arter closes his legs - https://youtu.be/D4acjRjt8LM?t=38s
I do think that comes down to player intelligence and leadership on the pitch as much as anything else. Same in Glasgow and to a ridiculous extent in Turkey, we fell asleep.
Last edited by DeLorean; 28/03/2018 at 2:49 PM. Reason: Damn you Stutts :)
It's not unknown to name the team so close to kick-off. I know UCD did it in our European games (when we had changes in the team). The previous evening's training session can decide things (particularly in a friendly where you're looking to experiment), and possibly the medical check-in on the day too.
It does still sound a bit counterintuitive alright though.
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