sussexpob wrote:st_brendy wrote:We need to learn to either react to our opponents making changes, or find away to get the third goal and kill these games off. To be blunt about it, the primary reason why we won was because of your lack of ability. Most PL sides really should have got something out of that game, based on that second half
Do you think Fonte going off made a difference?
Not really. Defensively Yoshida was fine, so Fonte wasn't missed from that perspective. And although Fonte did see a lot of the ball in the first half, as part of us regularly recycling position and looking for a way through Bmouth, I'm not sure it was losing Fonte which lead to us no longer doing that. I'd say it was more because Bmouth were less wasteful in possession (so we saw less of the ball), and carried a greater, and quicker threat, so we were less interested in passing the ball between our back four or coming out of defence with the ball (in the first half, even if we ever lost the ball, the chances were that Bmouth wouldn't do anything with it. Murray didn't have the pace to get away from us, and his teammates were too deep to help him. It allowed Fonte to spend a lot of the first half in Bmouth's half. No way could he have done that in the second half though, even if he had been fit to play on).
I think I'd have taken Pelle off, put JWP or Gaston on to help control and pass the ball, and moved Mane into Pelle's position to provide that direct running threat in behind. And I'd have replaced Wanyama on his yellow card. But instead Pelle became detached, we couldn't retain possession, Mane didn't always offer help defensively, and Wanyama had to reign in his beast-like qualities somewhat (until he had little choice but to finally take a player out).