Boss cautious over two-striker formation

Kone is crap, he is no strike partner for anyone, one goal and one assist in two seasons says the lot ....... ٣million and gawd knows how much in wages heÂ’s cost us ....... Send him down the same road as McGeady, the one that says Â’Way OutÂ’

Having 2 strikers on the pitch may leave us exposed in other areas.... erm whatÂ’s the excuse for being exposed for most of the season then??

To be fair, one goal in his last nine starts puts him about level with Lukaku.

Honestly, Martinez spouts absolute nonsense and has little or no tactical awareness whatsoever. If we had a quality striker alongside Lukaku he wouldnÂ’t be so isolated. But wait, we did have one. EtoÂ’o. What happened to him?

Oh yes, Martinez left him on the bench, and when he did start, it was out of position, on the wing... No wonder he got pissed off and left having such an inept clown as your manager.

Why if you have two good strikers would you not use them together? So Naismith could be asked to play a posiiton he is completely uncomfortable in and which does not suit his abilities instead? Because that didnÂ’t leave our midfield exposed at all with him out of position wide and not knowing who to cover on set pieces, etc., now did it?

We had two good forwards until January and never bothered trying to work with them as a pair.

I like the idea of Barkley just behind Lukaku but Martinez quashed that idea with his team selection against Villa. The answer is getting a quality striker to compliment Lukaku or replace him when he is injured.

One hopes there will be a clearout at the end of the month as some players for various reasons have been useless to the Blues all season and even those with contracts should be addressed.

The game on Saturday one hopes will be a much better one for the Blues than at Villa Park but Sunderland will be defending like crazy. They are the draw specialists in the Prem. and have only conceded 4 goals more than Everton so it could be another frustrating afternoon.

Just having Ross in the team exposes us because he barely puts a tackle in; it’s not his game – he is there to create things going forward.

The more I read the more I doubt that Lukaku will be here beyond the end of the next transfer window, similarly with Mirallas who said he would be wearing the same shirt at the start of next season but he could still move before the end of the window and not be called a fibber.

Personally as long as we got good wedge for both players I wouldnÂ’t lose too much sleep but I would never be able to sleep again if Kone is leading the line for the whole of next season.

Why not play 3-5-2, with the right personel of course

Taxi!

Thank God for Aaron Lennon is all I can say - he tracks back more than any forward player weÂ’ve had in years, and makes a huge difference for us defensively, just by being in a position to slow down opposition attacks, even if he doesnÂ’t break them down himself. For that quality alone we should sign him, nevermind his pace going forward (albeit without the best end product in the world)

I agree with those who say we donÂ’t really have two effective strikers at the club. Kone is worse than a Sunday league striker (with respectful apologies to some decent Sunday league strikers), and just embarrasses himself and the shirt every time he is allowed playing time. He has to go, but is a Martinez favourite so I fear weÂ’re stuck with him.

Likewise McGeady, who cannot hold a candle to Aaron Lennon. Martinez really should keep his mouth shut. He contradicts himself with almost every statement he makes, is the master of gobbledegook, saying a lot but meaning little at the same time, and shows his total lack of tactical awareness in the way he talks about team selection and whatever Â’momentÂ’ a player is in. Does he not know a moment refers to the passage of a few seconds, and is he therefore picking his team based on a few seconds with each player? "How are you in this moment Arouna?" "Â’OK, boss Â’ "Oh good. YouÂ’re in the first team on Saturday." I now get a headache every tine I have to read or hear this idiotÂ’s nonsensical pronouncements.".

I think Martinez would be very naive to think we are okay striker-wise, I have got news for him... We ainÂ’t!!

Rubbish player, lovely bloke, tries hard, limited.

If you put Gibson and Barkley in the middle with Lukaku and Mirallas up front we’d get strangled at places like Stamford Bridge but we would blow away the majority of the dross in the league by the number of goals we would score by getting quick ball to our forward players. Instead we have Lukaku, Mirallas, Barkley and Lennon – a forward line better than most in the Premier League but they can barely score in most games because of our tactics and midfield personnel.

Play him as a striker, you know the position he was always employed to do...before someone decided he was a winger (Moyes & Martinez) or a old fashioned No 10.

He is a clinical finisher but I can probably count on one hand the number of games he has played as an out and out striker.

So basically what Martinez is saying is that he doesnÂ’t trust his midfield to do what theyÂ’re supposed to do so he has to saturate it with 5 players.

The problem we have is Lukaku. He is very difficult to play with. He doesnÂ’t pass when you would expect him to, and he is too slow. He can hit a lovely pass on occasion, but I just think he is a strange player. He is forever looking over his shoulder pointing where he wants the ball, telegraphing the defence of what is about to happen.

Kone is really ordinary, but you can see what he is trying to do, and he is often a part of good build up play. I would happilly see the back of them both.

Give me a quick lad who can head the ball and hold it up when needed. Is it that much to ask?

That in Martinez speak means: Â’I could use 2 strikers but I wonÂ’t because it leaves us exposed.Â’

And Paul, picking teams which are better than the vast majority of teams in their respective leagues, and who do not consistently play 4-4-2 anyway, does not prove 4-4-2 gives decent defensive returns (especially when so many 4-4-2 sides fail defensively, and when teams do not play wingers, which we have a surplus of). Juventus often play a 3-5-2 formation with wing backs pushed forward (they will play like that tonight too, with Lichensteiner and Evra pushed forward), whilst Griezmann often plays deeper for Atletico when playing alongside Torres or Mandzukic, especially in the bigger matches.

That said, as others have said, weÂ’ve been absurdly exposed this season anyway, because weÂ’ve had a variety of attacking players dumped in attacking positions (Mirallas, Naismith, Barkley, McGeady, EtoÂ’o) who not only let players run off them, but who run into the space of our full backs, and who do not suit MartinezÂ’s passing style).

He is being lampooned for saying something sensible, because he has overseen a terrible season. I do not have much sympathy for him, because he has created the discontent. We do not want much, we just want tactics which suit our players, and for Martinez to buy players which suit the tactics he wants to play. He has done neither, but has failed to keep a lid on player and fan discontent, failed to get our players ready in terms of fitness for the start of the season, has made some massive tactical howlers, has helped turn an albeit over-rated Barkley into one of this seasonÂ’s biggest failures, and irritated us with misplaced positivity in the process. The formation is not the problem, tactics, nativity and Martinez is.

"Hola Steve, this season I want you to play the Messi role for us. Until Villa away, then you can do IniestaÂ’s job"

Tbf, given the personnel, IÂ’d only play one striker. Can Garbutt play up front? (Just kidding.)

Someone above says Romelu isnÂ’t fast. Go out and buy the Sunday Mirror this weekend. Their footie section contains technical data on PL matches. Rom has been one of the fastest on the pitch all season. IÂ’ve got the tables in my scrap book.

Mid-way in speed are some the players that most of us would like to see moved on. I think most of us agree this list includes Naismith, Kone, McGeady and Alcaraz. ThereÂ’s nothing personal about this as far as I can see, itÂ’s just that they are not up to the level demanded by the PL. Essentially, playing one or two of these players in our line up has damaged our results (together with our injury problems) this season.

Wow – it’s taken him 8 years of management to come to this astounding revelation.

Â’Some games you need that sort of platform.Â’

But weÂ’ve played with one striker for about 99% of the games heÂ’s managed, so basically you donÂ’t need that sort of platform presumably according to him?

Â’It is something you need to use at the right time because it can leave you exposed in other areas of the pitch.Â’

Back to No 2 above; so actually itÂ’s hardly ever the right time as weÂ’ve hardly ever played it. (Given we were Â’exposedÂ’ playing 6 defensive players and one striker for pretty much all season, following his logic, we should presumably bin Lukaku and play with no strikers so as not to be Â’exposedÂ’.)

Most important thing is to have two decent wide men – and of course two decent CMs – which we don’t have. Nevermind the two decent strikers...

I had a bet at the start of the season that he wouldnÂ’t get 10 from open play. IÂ’m quite looking forward to collecting come the end of the Spurs game. As for Martinez claiming heÂ’s cautious about playing 2 strikers. HeÂ’s certainly not cautious about filling the midfield with defensive players, even against mediocre opposition at home.

I haven't read Duncan Ferguson's piece on Barcelona, but I think his boss needs to look at how both Bayern and Barcelona play the game. No long bouts of interpassing at the back, both play a very high tempo game – something I don't think we are fit enough to do. Also, they move the ball from back to front very quickly; admittedly they have the wonderful Messi and the highly talented Neymar and Suarez.

Now they don't just play at that tempo on matchdays, as Guardiola says, they both train with that high tempo and intensity throughout the week. So RM, get a tape of last night's game and learn how the game should be played, not your boring style of football that sends us to sleep.

Feed the Yak... no wait, we don’t say that any more – but the principle is sound.

Are all these master tacticians saying that a team set up in the modern formation would always beat a team from the sixties set up with 5 forwards, because they would dominate the midfield?

ItÂ’s still 11 against 11, and if youÂ’re short in one area of the pitch, then presumably you will have a numerical advantage in another area of the pitch.