Unai Emery

[Olneythelonely]

I wonder if he does his big defensive set up work pre season, then we work to that regardless. With our high line last year, we used it throughout, even when it started to look like we were found out. We’ve now got this slow sideways movement, with a mid to low line and it doesn’t look like he’s going to change it, halfway through the season.

I know why tinkering isn’t always a good thing, but I’m worried he won’t change until the summer.

Or I might be talking bollocks. Which is likely.

[ChicagoLion]

Great illustration eamon.

Please go back to that, we have enough firepower to trouble the best defences.

[Bent Neilsens Screamer]

I wonder if he does his big defensive set up work pre season, then we work to that regardless. With our high line last year, we used it throughout, even when it started to look like we were found out. We’ve now got this slow sideways movement, with a mid to low line and it doesn’t look like he’s going to change it, halfway through the season.

I know why tinkering isn’t always a good thing, but I’m worried he won’t change until the summer.

Or I might be talking bollocks. Which is likely.

If that is the case it’s negligent with still half the season to go.

[paul_e]

Part of the problem with getting that degree of organisation is that we don't play the same defence for long runs of games as we were before and clearly that's going to mean that how we train them is different. I suspect it's because of how hard losing a defender mid-game hit us 3-4 times over the first 18months under Emery but he needs to work out how to get the familiarity we need back.

[Mister E]

Part of the problem with getting that degree of organisation is that we don't play the same defence for long runs of games as we were before and clearly that's going to mean that how we train them is different. I suspect it's because of how hard losing a defender mid-game hit us 3-4 times over the first 18months under Emery but he needs to work out how to get the familiarity we need back.

He's had 2 years to get all our defenders in tune with a system that can be replicated game after game ...

[VillaTim]

I think our style of play has become quite blurred . Last season we had more of an identity and the players seemed to know and relish in their roles . This season the main thrust seems to be give it to Rogers on transition and see if he can bulldoze his way forwards (he does it very well btw) . Other than that the FB's seem confused , onana and Kamara offer little from an attacking POV. Set pieces have been mediocre (is macphee still here ) . And we can't defend.

[caster troy]

I’d love to see the stats on 1. Goals from individual errors and 2. Right side vs left side.

Plenty of goals I can think of you could say were our fault in possession. Konsa giveaway v Ipswich, Carlos  v Wolves, Onana v Everton, Kamara v Newcastle. All examples where a cheap turnover in a dangerous area led to a goal.

Of those above all the goals were also subsequently conceded on our right hand side. Last night’s equaliser reminded me of Archer’s goal for Sheffield United against us last year, and many others. With Diaby gone and Bailey struggling teams have figured out you can bombard that side without fear of being picked off on the counter if you lose it.

[Bent Neilsens Screamer]

I think our style of play has become quite blurred . Last season we had more of an identity and the players seemed to know and relish in their roles . This season the main thrust seems to be give it to Rogers on transition and see if he can bulldoze his way forwards (he does it very well btw) . Other than that the FB's seem confused , onana and Kamara offer little from an attacking POV. Set pieces have been mediocre (is macphee still here ) . And we can't defend.

Apart from all that we’re grand!!

Definitely missing an in form Bailey or the option of Diaby or Ramsey to offer some additional attacking threat. It’s a credit to Rogers how well he’s done as really, you stop him and you’re left with Tielemans as the principal chance maker.

[PaulWinch again]

I’m hoping Unai has clocked that what we are trying to do defensively is just not working. It’s not going to be helped by Pau being out, but we need to change something up. Unai wants us to control games, but we’re not very good at it at the moment.

[OCD]

On the controlling games, there's obviously more to do there but we've been better at it. Home games in particular we've been conceding from transitions mostly and we've done better defensively in games where we've had to sit back and be organised (Man City, Bayern Munich). It's more the away games where we struggle to control games, and that's always going to be harder.

[LeeB]

I sometimes feel we're focusing too hard on trying to  'control' the game at times, instead of just trying to score goals and not concede them.

[Bosco81]

We just seem too easy to score against, teams don’t have to do much to score. Not sure what the answer is, we seem to play deeper than we did last year, we don’t catch teams offside as much, even if it did use to cause us a few nervy moments doing it, Konsa was a lot deeper than the other 3 at times on Monday, you’d think with Kamara back it would protect us more but it doesn't seem to have done the trick, even though Kamara has been playing well

[PaulWinch again]

I sometimes feel we're focusing too hard on trying to  'control' the game at times, instead of just trying to score goals and not concede them.

Yep I agree, and ironically when it really comes to the crunch we’re not very good at it. We’re also a bit naive when it comes to the things that help that control in latter stages of games, e.g. Unai delaying over the subs the other day. Bringing on those subs not only gives us more energy, but it also breaks the pattern of the opposition which all helps gain control.

[Drummond]

I sometimes feel we're focusing too hard on trying to  'control' the game at times, instead of just trying to score goals and not concede them.

I'd agree for the first 70 minutes, then we seem to do what you're suggesting in the last 20 and keep conceding.

[Somniloquism]

Yep I agree, and ironically when it really comes to the crunch we’re not very good at it. We’re also a bit naive when it comes to the things that help that control in latter stages of games, e.g. Unai delaying over the subs the other day. Bringing on those subs not only gives us more energy, but it also breaks the pattern of the opposition which all helps gain control.

Although if he had made those changes earlier, and they still would have scored (I felt the move was well worked for them and not sure if the subs would have made any difference), he would have been blamed for changing the side and letting them back in it like with Bournemouth and Forest.