Colos Short and Curlies Posted February 17, 2020 Share Posted February 17, 2020 Whilst you can argue about how many of these would get into a top 4/6 team, its actually quite a feat to have such poor attacking stats with: Yedlin and Willems at wingback (both better going forward than defending) Schar and Lejeune available at centre back Almiron and ASM who are very attacking and can hold onto the ball pretty well I'm not saying we should be the Entertainers reborn, but not rock bottom for attacking play Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
t00nraider Posted February 17, 2020 Share Posted February 17, 2020 Our midfield have been absolute turd so far this season. Almiron is a headless chicken 99% of the time. Longstaff's free kicks and corners have been woeful. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
KaKa Posted February 17, 2020 Share Posted February 17, 2020 True colours coming out now. Shifting all the blame to his players by leaking info to people behind the scenes like a snake But Redknapp has shared that Bruce thinks that Newcastle simply don’t have the playmakers required in advanced areas to retain possession in the final third. “I was talking to Bruce after the Chelsea game and he said we haven’t got the players to get up the pitch and keep it, we have to defend well and we have to hope that those three players [saint-Maximin, Almiron and Joelinton] can do something special and he [saint-Maximin] is certainly capable,” Redknapp said. The players just can't do it guys. Nothing to do with my pitiful coaching. No one can ever convince me that these players simply cannot do better with the ball than 33% possession every game. Even struggling to keep the ball and control the game against Oxford?! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Odear Posted February 17, 2020 Share Posted February 17, 2020 This 5 at the back, expect the center forward to hold the ball up long enough for the rest of the team to race up from the box or just outside it half worked for Benitez, it’s not working for Bruce. He doesn’t have the managerial talent to change the culture of the team. The notion that these players can’t keep the ball is ridiculous though. They are being trained and instructed to play this way, or were. I suspect Bruce had to ask how they did things before and has just tried to replicate it. He’s been lucky but luck always runs out. I think the only man who could turn us back into a team playing attractive football is KK. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
AyeDubbleYoo Posted February 17, 2020 Share Posted February 17, 2020 We relied so much on the abilities of Rondon and Perez as well, losing them is absolutely huge. Our best chance really is to change to a possession team, but not sure that would really result in many better performances since our players are mostly average on the ball. Or possibly just play ASM and Almiron as strikers and try to play a bit more like Leicester. Joelinton is adding nothing sadly. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wilson Posted February 17, 2020 Share Posted February 17, 2020 Bruce trying to organise a team to keep possession and taking away his 'big man' up top..... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
D. Yimentov Posted February 17, 2020 Share Posted February 17, 2020 But Redknapp has shared that Bruce thinks that Newcastle simply don’t have the playmakers required in advanced areas to retain possession in the final third. “I was talking to Bruce after the Chelsea game and he said we haven’t got the players to get up the pitch and keep it, we have to defend well and we have to hope that those three players [saint-Maximin, Almiron and Joelinton] can do something special and he [saint-Maximin] is certainly capable,” Redknapp said. . This is how Alan Pardew achieved 5th place with us. Defend and hope Ben Arfa or Cisse does something they shouldn't really be allowed to do. He quickly fell out with Hatem, Papisse awarded himself an onfield retirement and 5th place was never in sight again. These blokes are staggeringly incompetent. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tiresias Posted February 17, 2020 Share Posted February 17, 2020 Still not clear what our plan is at all let alone if we're even supposed to be a direct counter attacking team, wouldn't surprise me if Bruce thought we were like Barcelona Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bimpy474 Posted February 17, 2020 Share Posted February 17, 2020 But Redknapp has shared that Bruce thinks that Newcastle simply don’t have the playmakers required in advanced areas to retain possession in the final third. “I was talking to Bruce after the Chelsea game and he said we haven’t got the players to get up the pitch and keep it, we have to defend well and we have to hope that those three players [saint-Maximin, Almiron and Joelinton] can do something special and he [saint-Maximin] is certainly capable,” Redknapp said. . This is how Alan Pardew achieved 5th place with us. Defend and hope Ben Arfa or Cisse does something they shouldn't really be allowed to do. He quickly fell out with Hatem, Papisse awarded himself an onfield retirement and 5th place was never in sight again. These blokes are staggeringly incompetent. I would agree but with one added addition, Cabaye in central midfield. He was a massive plus at CM, something we lack badly right now. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
t00nraider Posted February 17, 2020 Share Posted February 17, 2020 You know it's bad when you're hoping Shelvey to return soon. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
TRon Posted February 17, 2020 Share Posted February 17, 2020 True colours coming out now. Shifting all the blame to his players by leaking info to people behind the scenes like a snake But Redknapp has shared that Bruce thinks that Newcastle simply don’t have the playmakers required in advanced areas to retain possession in the final third. “I was talking to Bruce after the Chelsea game and he said we haven’t got the players to get up the pitch and keep it, we have to defend well and we have to hope that those three players [saint-Maximin, Almiron and Joelinton] can do something special and he [saint-Maximin] is certainly capable,” Redknapp said. The players just can't do it guys. Nothing to do with my pitiful coaching. No one can ever convince me that these players simply cannot do better with the ball than 33% possession every game. Even struggling to keep the ball and control the game against Oxford?! Those three definitely do need some polish, but there is definitely some raw talent to work with even if they are nowhere near the finished article. I think Rafa would have been great for all of them, he is much clearer in his instructions, and what he expects them to do in certain areas of the pitch. Bruce on the other hand.....let's play. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Happinesstan Posted February 17, 2020 Share Posted February 17, 2020 Dwayne Dibbly should be fit for Palace. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Noobold Posted February 17, 2020 Share Posted February 17, 2020 He's like Leonardo DiCaprio in catch me if you can when he pretends to be a doctor by watching hospital soap operas. The players look to him for guidance and all he says is "let's play" and Hopes he gets away with it. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
mrmojorisin75 Posted February 17, 2020 Share Posted February 17, 2020 He's like Leonardo DiCaprio in catch me if you can when he pretends to be a doctor by watching hospital soap operas. Agnew: "Steve, I think we should adjust the back line and try to transition the play into counter-offensive channels" Bruce: Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Disco Posted February 17, 2020 Share Posted February 17, 2020 Newcastle United, passive and pathetic You can forget the Rafa Benitez comparisons, because they do not stand up to scrutiny. Newcastle United had an awful first half of 2018/19, but over the second half of the season Benitez revolutionised their football. Between mid-January and the end of the season, only four Premier League teams scored more goals than Newcastle. Under Steve Bruce, it’s often hard to work out what the point is or whether there is any aim at all. Newcastle defend deep, sacrifice possession and ostensibly seem to hope that they get lucky on the break or rely upon set-pieces. The two attacking midfielders pick up the ball as auxiliary wing-backs and are therefore asked to carry it 50 yards and beat three players to create a chance, while the striker is left chronically isolated. Newcastle’s attacking numbers are abysmal. They rank 19th for goals scored, 20th for expected goals, 20th for shots, 20th for touches in the opposition box and 20th for possession. Their strategy for survival is hoping that their early season upsets against bigger teams carries them through a long winter and spring. That might well prove to be enough, and Bruce can reasonably insist that his only task was to keep them up, but bugger me it’s horrible to watch. If the quality of Newcastle’s squad was a fair excuse for this eye-bleeding fare in August, that doesn’t really apply now. Nobody made more signings in January. The team that started at the Emirates included arguably the best goalkeeper outside the top seven, two international full-backs – both new signings – and two international central defenders, an international central midfielder and a young player wanted by Manchester United, two exciting attacking midfielders and a striker signed for £40m last summer. Joelinton has struggled badly and looks bereft of confidence, but he flourished in Germany with strikers around him. Lumping the ball long to him and expecting him to cope is nonsensical. Bruce took plenty of stick when he was appointed, and there are some Newcastle supporters who seem to actively want him to fail as a result, but this is on him. The supporters who travel the country to watch their team will have been embarrassed by their collapse on Sunday, but when you sacrifice possession and territory this becomes the norm. The only Newcastle player with more than two league goals this season is a central midfielder who has missed more than 40% of their matches. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
KaKa Posted February 17, 2020 Share Posted February 17, 2020 They are spot on all the time Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Conjo Posted February 17, 2020 Share Posted February 17, 2020 But Redknapp has shared that Bruce thinks that Newcastle simply don’t have the playmakers required in advanced areas to retain possession in the final third. “I was talking to Bruce after the Chelsea game and he said we haven’t got the players to get up the pitch and keep it, we have to defend well and we have to hope that those three players [saint-Maximin, Almiron and Joelinton] can do something special and he [saint-Maximin] is certainly capable,” Redknapp said. . This is how Alan Pardew achieved 5th place with us. Defend and hope Ben Arfa or Cisse does something they shouldn't really be allowed to do. He quickly fell out with Hatem, Papisse awarded himself an onfield retirement and 5th place was never in sight again. These blokes are staggeringly incompetent. Was this before or after Pardew started playing him as a right winger in order to use Ba or Ameobi up front? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cronky Posted February 17, 2020 Share Posted February 17, 2020 True colours coming out now. Shifting all the blame to his players by leaking info to people behind the scenes like a snake But Redknapp has shared that Bruce thinks that Newcastle simply don’t have the playmakers required in advanced areas to retain possession in the final third. “I was talking to Bruce after the Chelsea game and he said we haven’t got the players to get up the pitch and keep it, we have to defend well and we have to hope that those three players [saint-Maximin, Almiron and Joelinton] can do something special and he [saint-Maximin] is certainly capable,” Redknapp said. The players just can't do it guys. Nothing to do with my pitiful coaching. No one can ever convince me that these players simply cannot do better with the ball than 33% possession every game. Even struggling to keep the ball and control the game against Oxford?! Tin hat on, but there's truth in what Bruce is saying. Almiron and ASM are good at running with the ball, not good at hanging on to it or releasing it accurately or at the right time. We rely a lot on those two being able to get past opponents, and open up defences that way. Joelinton is different. We use him as a pivot to the attack, in the same way as Rondon or Mitrovic. At holding the ball up, he's better than Mitrovic, but not as good as Rondon. So yes, altogether, the front three are not good at linking with the rest of the team and that affects the way we play. And I imagine that Bruce will think twice before confiding in Redknapp again. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stifler Posted February 17, 2020 Share Posted February 17, 2020 Why were 4 players on the train last night when the rest of the squad were on a private jet up to Newcastle? They obviously don’t want to spend anytime with Bruce. Who can blame them. ASM will be off in the summer, he knows he’s going nowhere under Bruce, and has already done enough for someone else in the Premier League to pay £20m+ for him. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Collage Posted February 17, 2020 Share Posted February 17, 2020 But Redknapp has shared that Bruce thinks that Newcastle simply don’t have the playmakers required in advanced areas to retain possession in the final third. “I was talking to Bruce after the Chelsea game and he said we haven’t got the players to get up the pitch and keep it, we have to defend well and we have to hope that those three players [saint-Maximin, Almiron and Joelinton] can do something special and he [saint-Maximin] is certainly capable,” Redknapp said. . This is how Alan Pardew achieved 5th place with us. Defend and hope Ben Arfa or Cisse does something they shouldn't really be allowed to do. He quickly fell out with Hatem, Papisse awarded himself an onfield retirement and 5th place was never in sight again. These blokes are staggeringly incompetent. I would agree but with one added addition, Cabaye in central midfield. He was a massive plus at CM, something we lack badly right now. Exactly. Cabaye was so important to that team. And for one season I’d say he and Tiote were one of the best CM pairings in the league. I’d say it never looked as bad under Pardew as it does now, mainly because we had better players back then. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jinky Jim Posted February 17, 2020 Share Posted February 17, 2020 Why were 4 players on the train last night when the rest of the squad were on a private jet up to Newcastle? They obviously don’t want to spend anytime with Bruce. Who can blame them. ASM will be off in the summer, he knows he’s going nowhere under Bruce, and has already done enough for someone else in the Premier League to pay £20m+ for him. I hate Bruce as much as anyone, but apparently everyone was given the chance to fly back or get home by train.Got to admit, if it was me, I wouldn’t have flown during that Storm. I don’t think there’s any significance to this, though I’d also would want to spend as little time with Bruce as possible and if given the chance, would also have taken the train. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
TRon Posted February 17, 2020 Share Posted February 17, 2020 True colours coming out now. Shifting all the blame to his players by leaking info to people behind the scenes like a snake But Redknapp has shared that Bruce thinks that Newcastle simply don’t have the playmakers required in advanced areas to retain possession in the final third. “I was talking to Bruce after the Chelsea game and he said we haven’t got the players to get up the pitch and keep it, we have to defend well and we have to hope that those three players [saint-Maximin, Almiron and Joelinton] can do something special and he [saint-Maximin] is certainly capable,” Redknapp said. The players just can't do it guys. Nothing to do with my pitiful coaching. No one can ever convince me that these players simply cannot do better with the ball than 33% possession every game. Even struggling to keep the ball and control the game against Oxford?! Tin hat on, but there's truth in what Bruce is saying. Almiron and ASM are good at running with the ball, not good at hanging on to it or releasing it accurately or at the right time. We rely a lot on those two being able to get past opponents, and open up defences that way. Joelinton is different. We use him as a pivot to the attack, in the same way as Rondon or Mitrovic. At holding the ball up, he's better than Mitrovic, but not as good as Rondon. So yes, altogether, the front three are not good at linking with the rest of the team and that affects the way we play. And I imagine that Bruce will think twice before confiding in Redknapp again. All well and good, but that's no excuse for the abysmal team structure and lack of coaching input. Read that 365 piece posted by Disco and tell me which bit you disagree with. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
KaKa Posted February 17, 2020 Share Posted February 17, 2020 True colours coming out now. Shifting all the blame to his players by leaking info to people behind the scenes like a snake But Redknapp has shared that Bruce thinks that Newcastle simply don’t have the playmakers required in advanced areas to retain possession in the final third. “I was talking to Bruce after the Chelsea game and he said we haven’t got the players to get up the pitch and keep it, we have to defend well and we have to hope that those three players [saint-Maximin, Almiron and Joelinton] can do something special and he [saint-Maximin] is certainly capable,” Redknapp said. The players just can't do it guys. Nothing to do with my pitiful coaching. No one can ever convince me that these players simply cannot do better with the ball than 33% possession every game. Even struggling to keep the ball and control the game against Oxford?! Tin hat on, but there's truth in what Bruce is saying. Almiron and ASM are good at running with the ball, not good at hanging on to it or releasing it accurately or at the right time. We rely a lot on those two being able to get past opponents, and open up defences that way. Joelinton is different. We use him as a pivot to the attack, in the same way as Rondon or Mitrovic. At holding the ball up, he's better than Mitrovic, but not as good as Rondon. So yes, altogether, the front three are not good at linking with the rest of the team and that affects the way we play. And I imagine that Bruce will think twice before confiding in Redknapp again. I can't accept this because there are numerous other teams in the league that don't have perfect players and they manage to keep possession more than 33% every single game. We have the worst possession in all of Europe for goodness sake. We're not talking about playing like Man City here. We cannot even convincingly control the game against League 1 Oxford. Bruce is having an absolute laugh. He's an utter joke. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
ATF Posted February 17, 2020 Share Posted February 17, 2020 Snip Good article. What the Rafa/Bruce comparisons also miss, amongst many things, is that Rafa was coach for more than one season. So all the "Bruce is doing a better job than Benitez" shouts - well Rafa achieved instant promotion as champions, a top ten finish first season back up on half the reinvestment of Brighton and Huddersfield, and then mid table again the second season after all the teams around Newcastle pushed on. Plus wins over Man City, and much better Arsenal, Chelsea and Man United teams than they've faced this season. He did an excellent job in a stronger league, without the luck of this season, and without the humiliations. He was far, far superior in every significant way. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
mrmojorisin75 Posted February 17, 2020 Share Posted February 17, 2020 just went back to look at our possession last season from the man city game on, which most of us would accept was the best of rafa 15 games average 40.5% Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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