Tactically Misunderstood

After another away defeat, sparked by another failed attempt at utilising the much-lamented 4-5-1 formation, fingers of blame are being pointed. But the most pertinent fingers were those pointed at each other by the players on the pitch.

Whilst Saturdays performance ended full of bright play and hope for the future, none of it could detract from the woeful performance of the first half. The factor which remains most firmly in the mind is that of several players arguing with each other, clearly bemused at how the other had let them down. Which pointed the biggest finger at who was ultimately responsible.

Jim Magilton stated that he cant control the actions of the players once they step over that white line. Which is true, but leaving them unprepared before they step over the white line was hardly giving them a fighting chance.

It is often remarked that a good team is the sum of its parts. Plenty of teams littered with outstanding individuals have failed to make any impact as a team (hello England national team 2007), whilst plenty of teams with arguably llesser talented individuals have achieved great success. The reason for this is based on working as a team; players who understand implicitly their role in the team and that of their teammates. Understanding that comes from continued education and coaching in what is required.

It has also been said that great players are able to switch to a variety of formations, sometimes mid-game, and still be great players. Lesser players cannot. Herein lies the problem.

Jim Magilton has routinely asked his players to switch from 4-4-2 one week to 4-5-1 the next week. On occasion, he has also asked them to make this switch halfway through a match. Our players are simply not drilled well enough, or sufficiently experienced enough, to be able to make that kind of change and cope with it seamlessly.

The result has been a general malaise of miscommunication and misunderstanding. Players dont understand what they are supposed to be doing, at what point they are supposed to be covering players and at what point they are supposed to be pushing forward to attack. These are aspects that only come naturally after several months experience, both in training and on match day. It is no surprise that the past two away matches have seen a dramatic change in the performance of the team, coinciding with a return to a 4-4-2 formation they are all comfortable with.

Im all for adapting to the circumstances, trying to win the tactical battle with the opposition manager, but we can only do this by using weapons we know how to use (Danny Haynes pace against the ageing Chris Powell is an obvious example). We are at a level where our players need to understand exactly what they are being asked to do. Once that has been achieved, we have sufficient quality in the side that we should be able to rise above most sides in this league.

Magilton is on a steep learning curve as a manager and may just have learnt one of his biggest lessons. What price a repeat 4-5-1 at Leicester on Boxing Day?