Roberto Martinez discussion

[Kev The Rat]

I'm going to have an opinion but I won't back it up with facts...sound.

The most obvious and compelling fact is 13 conceded in 5.

It's been stated on here that the defence is being afforded no protection from the midfield we are allowing the opposition time on the ball when they have it. We are not pressing or harrying like last season.

 

[mythbuster]

Off form?? hahaha its more than that.

The formation is the same, the system is not. The players are not dropping into space when the ball is lost, every team we play is finding pockets in between the banks. Last year the work rate was through the roof and as soon as possession was lost the team retreted into its unit, players were pressurising the opposition and forcing them to loose the ball. This year we are backing off and allowing them to move the ball

Yeah, you and the other pseudo expert Kev The Rat are going on ignore. Sorry to lump you in with that other beaut, as you're normally sound, whereas he's a bell 100% of the time.

 

[Kiwi]

The bottom line is he's the manager and it's up to him to address these issues.

For me we're far too open as a team, the back 4 just isn't getting the protection it needs. I also think the pre season was a disgrace and that has definitely contributed to the start.

It's the senior pros needing to get their A into G and sort their mental head space and focus. All the manager can do is coach them the tactics, encourage them and build them up and select them to play, beyond that what happens on the field with individual errors is certainly not the managers fault. The buck stops with the player, as a professional and a senior professional to keep their focus and perform the role the manager wants.

 

[dannyboy]

Like I said with 13 conceded in 5 the onus is, I think, on you to come up with answers beyond blaming 'individual errors' on the leakiness of the defence.

Just putting it down to individual errors is a ludicrous argument. Any manager good or bad can come up with that excuse.

As you say, it's up to Martinez to sort this out. If we're languishing in the bottom half by the end of the season you can't just turn around and say that's fine because we've got players who are prone to cock-ups.

 

[nsno-chris]

The penalty changes the entire game, really. We start feeling the heat, they start finding the space when we go up the pitch trying to get ahead.

It gave them momentum, but the game plan changed about 10 mins before that when they started moving up the pitch to limit our ball movement. If they didn't get the penalty it may have been a 10 minute blip that we needed to ride through and they may have retreated, but they never, they grew in confidence and the further up the pitch they moved, the more time and space they had

 

[dannyboy]

It's the senior pros needing to get their A into G and sort their mental head space and focus. All the manager can do is coach them the tactics, encourage them and build them up and select them to play, beyond that what happens on the field with individual errors is certainly not the managers fault. The buck stops with the player, as a professional and a senior professional to keep their focus and perform the role the manager wants.

Stop selecting the players making mistakes then. Change the set up to give a vulnerable back 4 some much needed protection.

You genuinely think there's nothing Martinez can do to help us improve?

 

[bluegirl]

Cut out the mistakes and we'll be fine.

The mistake he made was playing Stones at RB and playing Distin.

Can't blame him for the others up top, it was their chance to shine...

 

[ilikecheese]

Stop selecting the players making mistakes then. Change the set up to give a vulnerable back 4 some much needed protection.

You genuinely think there's nothing Martinez can do to help us improve?

So Howard has a worldie of a game vs Wolfsburg and has a mare vs Palace. Guess Martinez is to blame.

 

[Chang Elephant]

Stop selecting the players making mistakes then. Change the set up to give a vulnerable back 4 some much needed protection.

3 tackling midfielders (now we have four) in front of them now, especially at Anfield till they remember how to defend

 

[Kiwi]

Stop selecting the players making mistakes then. Change the set up to give a vulnerable back 4 some much needed protection.

You genuinely think there's nothing Martinez can do to help us improve?

Bits and pieces but nothing of huge significance. The individual mistakes are what hurt us. And the issue is with selecting other players is that perhaps they aren't as good and as such the errors are more the norm than the anomaly as it is with the senior pros.

 

[Kev The Rat]

The next 2 games are pure murder can you imagine the damage di Maria/mata/rvp will do let alone an RS fired up for the derby with the kop baying for blood

 

[dannyboy]

So Howard has a worldie of a game vs Wolfsburg and has a mare vs Palace. Guess Martinez is to blame.

We haven't started the season well, to call Martinez blameless is just myopic.

 

[thirdmantackle]

Players make mistakes because they are mentally weak, or they are under pressure due to their lack of ability under pressure.

 

[Kev The Rat]

Stop selecting the players making mistakes then. Change the set up to give a vulnerable back 4 some much needed protection.

You genuinely think there's nothing Martinez can do to help us improve?

Exactly. Moyes would have frozen players out for this. Or more likely, the players wouldn't make the mistakes in the first place. Individual blame may be true but it's the manager who has a grip on the situation. I was thinking Jags and Distin were simply too old but I'm not sure that's the case now.

 

[ilikecheese]

We haven't started the season well, to call Martinez blameless is just myopic.

I'm not saying there is no blame, but Martinez is not to blame for Howard's mare today. Just as he's not to 'blame' for Howard's worldie vs Wolfsburg.