Erikse

Burn played at left back the entire season, remember? He certainly didn't play as a wing back in a back 5. It was Burn - Botman - Schar - Trippier right from the start. In 21/22 it was Targett - Burn - Schar - Trippier/Krafth Here's an article from december 2022 on our tactics: https://themastermindsite.com/2022/12/27/eddie-howe-newcastle-united-tactical-analysis-2022-23/ "Newcastle have set up in a 4-3-3 shape since the start of Howe’s reign, with only a few minor tweaks to the team that finished inside the top half at the end of last campaign." "Eddie Howe’s men set up to defend from the front in a 4-3-3 shape, that quickly reforms into a 4-5-1. They press high and intense from the front end of the pitch, with compactness between each line. Defenders remain ready to step above their line of engagement to track runners in deep, and various members of the midfield five will also step when the ball reaches their zone. Joe Willock has been the most active in stepping up when deployed in central midfield, but Bruno Guimarães also remains an intense and active presser in stepping up higher than what you would typically expect of a ‘6’." "Eddie Howe has remained tactically flexible, versatile and intelligent with his attacking aspirations ever since taking charge, all the while playing with a fairly rigid set of characteristics."

What season? 22/23?

I was responding to a comment saying that we changed formation and tactics going from 22/23 to 23/24.

We played the same 4-3-3 high press and high line attacking football when we finished 4th the season before. Despite being tight at the back, we scored loads that season. The first season when we finished 11th we were perhaps more defensive and shithousing 1 goal wins, but we were playing 4-3-3 then aswell.

Heck, even under the Mike Ashley era we picked up Ben Arfa, Sissoko, Wijnaldum, Enrique, Cisse, Tiote, Cabaye, Santon, Schar, Joelinton and ASM. All bargains from other leagues, with no top club hijacking the deal. We did well with that earlier with Bruno, Botman, Isak and Tonali, but despite our huge success with it, we seem to be increasingly more interested in PL players.

Interesting how Brentford keeps having success with cheap players from different league that we've never heard of. Then some are bigging up our scouting since we tried to sign the hottest Premier League prospects that even the cartel clubs wanted, and then subsequently panicking since we didn't have other ideas.

Not entirely true. They were at 38 points after 25. We're at 33 points. If we're going to match their final score of 66 points, we'd have to win 11 out of our last 13 games.

We will sound quite delusional to outsiders if we claim that Howe hasn't been given support.. That's the type of thing that we would laugh about if someone else with our spending made the same claim about them.

Bit of a weird example. They finished on the same amount of points as us (we had no europe), despite going all the way to the quarterfinal in CL, and reaching the semifinal in the FA Cup. If anything that proves that it can be done with a relatively thin squad.

I know a guy.. Available and ready.

I was replying to a post where you talked about how much difference 2 more games makes. We could have offset some of that difference by rotating more in the cup. Even if we went out, were we really going to beat the top teams in the semis and final after our december and january schedule, with those 2 extra games in the CL that you yourself talked about?

See my last post.

If our squad is too thin, and the amount of games is such a huge problem. Why did we have to play a strong team every round of the Carabao? Even against Bradford. Should we not prioritize a little when we're playing in 4 tournaments?

We did better in the 23/24 season with a thinner squad and a lot more injures.

We used to play exciting attacking football under Howe. Even in the 23/24 season we scored loads. Had very little of that this season. No cohesion at all going forward.

Must be all the backing that Keith Andrews has been given in the windows.

Because we were linked to a player whos scoring goals for Leeds?

Tbf Wolves didn't know how the season would go for them at the time. If they had been higher up the table with JSL scoring goals, they wouldn't have let him go as "easily" now.

In forums you have to be either highly negative or postivie. None of that in between stuff, that's just woke nonsense.

Such an antiforum thing to say..

I think he was low on confidence at the time. 3 goals for Burnley for the first half of that season.

I don't really know the mechanics of that. Either way, if you're right, that again just makes my initial point even more valid. Isak is a cunt, but the signing itself was massively beneficial to us. If that's what we would get from our next "stepping stone" signing, then I'd take that all day long.

Well, if we reinvested them well, then that just strengthens my initial point anyways.

Is it really that bad to be used as a stepping stone by the odd player? Isak contributed massively to 2 CL qualifications and the cup trophy. Then when he threw a tantrum we banked twice the transfer fee that we paid. I'd say that's a pretty damn good outcome, even considering that he was a cunt who forced a move in the end. I wonder what we would have achieved if we didn't make that signing out of concern of being used as a stepping stone. The issue is how we wasted all the money that we got for him..

In the last 2 seasons they are at a net positive in transfer fees. Here are the 24/25 outgoings: Total amortization cost doesn't include fees gained from sales. Only the amortization that they were paying for the player will be subtracted. Villa has earned so much through sales.