Changing your formation really is experimenting.
Who's saying anything about dropping Stevens or playing Coleman or Doherty at CB?
Several good CB options? Realistically we have two - Clark and O'Shea. Duffy is very droppable - Kenny axed Coleman for less.
But I think I know what has you flapping like a bat in a belfry. Here goes - Doherty is very capable of playing (and scoring) from midfield or wing back in 442 or 352. He'd definitely be better than Cullen, Browne, Molumby or Curtis et al in such a crucial game. That's not experimenting - it's setting out your team to suit your best players.
Last edited by Snapshot; 11/03/2021 at 1:35 AM. Reason: John83 (mod and writer of post I answered) said "flapping like a big blouse" was offensive.
Changing your formation really is experimenting.
No harm having the talk. I'd go Doherty for Coleman, and if you go with a free(ish) 10, are you running the risk of slipping into a 5-4-1? McGeady's best days (few enough, imo) are behind him at this level. Still, I'll grant you that he could offer more than our default setting of a targetman and little lad upfront.
Hello, hello? What's going on? What's all this shouting, we'll have no trouble here!
- E Tattsyrup.
I thought Egan is out injured?
And playing Molumby ahead of Browne, while Molumby can't even get his game ahead of him at club level and is far less experienced? This is a competitive (Forget friendlies which are no real indicator) game against a good Serbian side - Molumby is not ready for this yet especially in such a crucial position where mistakes are punished. There's only 4 years age between him and Browne anyway so Browne is till a younish player himself - just far more experience.
I'd go 4-5-1 (Assuming all below are fit
------------------Randolplh----------------------
Coleman----------Clark------O'Shea-----------------------=Stevens
------Brady---------Browne-----McCarthy(Cullen)----Hendrick
--------------------Hourihane----------------------
-------------------Connolly------------------------------------
- 5 in midfield helps reduce space and keep it tight with Hourihane central - advanced midfield role
- the real width is actually coming from the full backs with Brady / Hendrick slightly narrow so hopefully we can create some overlaps
- deliberately playing BRady on right (Hendrick on left) so Brady can cut inside and do some damage with left peg etc.
- Hourihane gets nod as he is in very good goal scoring form and can shoot from distance
- Connolly pace upfront will give them something to worry about
- Bring on Knight with 20 to go to replace Hourihane. Great energy levels and seems to have an eye for goal
- playing Oshea is a bit of a risk but not sure who else there is
If we play a 433 in this game I think we'll get killed - especially with our current squad
kenny appears to not really rate cullen at all for whatever reason - molumby and knight look to be ahead of him. i expect him to make a point of sticking to his principles.
Randolph
Doherty Clark Duffy Stevens
Molumby Hendrick Hourihane
Connolly Idah Brady
not sure about clark from the above as it feels like he's not a kenny player. he'll hardly go with parrott given his lack of success in senior football to date - though i wouldn't rule it out.
brady might drop back a line to get horgan involved, leaving one of hourihane or molumby on the bench.
Last edited by zero; 10/03/2021 at 4:00 PM.
If that was regarding my post, sorry I wasn’t suggesting they should start in the upcoming games just an illustration in support of a 352.
And I agree that we can’t just implement a change in formation without some friendlies to try it in.
EG - generally I just think a floating 10 would suit us. It mightn’t be McGeady as it is definitely debatable whether he could still do a job for us at an international level (he’s playing really well atm though). With McGoldrick out of the reckoning it’s not really easy to see who’d naturally fit in that role out of what’s left (Parrott?). If you played a more traditional two up top though, your wing backs would need to be given a greater license to get forward aggressively.
I just have a hard time seeing what advantages our current approach to 433 gives us.
Out of what is available for Qatar game (if Kenny were to want to experiment with formation)...
---------------------------Randolph-----------------------
------------O'Shea---------Duffy---------Clark-----------
Coleman-----------------------------------------Stevens
-------------Molumby------------------Cullen------------
--------------------------Hendrick------------------------
-------------------Connolly--------Long------------------
or
---------------------------Kelleher------------------------
------------O'Shea---------Long----------Clark----------
Doherty------------------------------------------Stevens
-------------McCarthy------------------Knight------------
--------------------------Hourihane-----------------------
-------------------Connolly--------Idah------------------
or any combination of the above based on the final squad...
Kenny said before (As Ireland manager) on Off The Ball ( I think) that he isn't fixed to 433 and will be flexible. I don't think we have a good enough midfield 3 to play that system yet / or who are well enough suited to it. It takes alot of energy - look at Liverpool - most effective with Henderson, Wijnaldum and Fabinhno in there.
Plus professional players can handle different systems. I just feel for Serbia we need to keep it tight - we can still try and pass the ball though
As it stands now Connolly is our future and McGeady is past his promise, at least as a starting player.
It's a tactical adjustment to the circumstance of the task ahead, vis a vis the opposition.
I doubt there's a successful one formation size which suits all irish games. But whatever change be made, it should be practised on the training ground to the nth degree, until everybody understands their role.
Last edited by geysir; 10/03/2021 at 8:21 PM.
I don’t believe that to be true despite him saying it. He regularly went 4-4-2 during first spell at Derry but never since and definitely won’t go there with Ireland imo therefore we will grt 433/451 from Kenny. I would say always, he may surprise but it would certainly be a surprise.
60 posts, three months, one dismal performer.
Please supply stats on right back Matt Doherty's goal scoring performances from central midfield to back up your assertion that he's better than in that position than our central midfielders.
It's not a complicated request. No deflection, no wumming, no self-righteous guff in response, please. Just stats. Put up or shut up.
Last edited by Eminence Grise; 11/03/2021 at 7:35 AM.
Hello, hello? What's going on? What's all this shouting, we'll have no trouble here!
- E Tattsyrup.
It's an opinion that's entitled to be challenged in fairness.
You know, cos it's a discussion forum, why shouldn't we discuss it? It's what we're here for after all.
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