26 Sep 2020 23:38:37
Hopefully the sooner Pulisic and Ziyech return the better for as we won't have to see anymore tinkering.
Werner isn't a LW, he tried to get into central roles a lot today which left our LWB very isolated. I thought Werner was very good in his last two matches and should have played as our striker. Yes Tammy did well vs Barnsley, however, surely you have to look at the quality of the opposition before you get excited. A natural LW can support our LWB by keeping width to create overloads, however Werner perfers central positions. Mount played on the right and he was keeping his width and therefore was able to create constant overloads with our RWB.
Going forward, Lampard needs to play Werner as our recognised striker. He needs to play in his natural position because sooner rather than later the media will be on Werner's back for goals and he won't get many from the wings. I said last year Tammy wasn't good enough and my opinion doesn't change just because he scored vs Barnsley. He missed an absolute sitter today, horrible memories of last year.
Kante + Kovacic pivot was awful today. I'm thinking Kante + Mount pivot but Kante needs to play like a DM and hold back.
27 Sep 2020 07:26:15
I think most people were happy with the lineup before we went 3-0 down.
Abraham was excellent against Barnsley, lower opposition but it earned him a deserved opportunity. Did he take that opportunity? Well he was the only one on his toes in the dying seconds following up Mounts shot. Despite missing chances he kept going and ultimately scored the equaliser. There's some recency bias with Abraham, because his form dropped at the end of last season. But he was very good for the first half of the season and scored important goals for us, just like yesterday.
I agree that the Kante / Kovacic midfield doesn't work. Would love to see Mount in place of Kovacic for games like yesterday. But (can't believe I'm saying this after we dropped £250m already) we need a genuine defensive midfielder when we play against tougher opposition.
27 Sep 2020 07:34:32
Playing players in their preferred position would be good and I’m sure when some players gain fitness that will be the case.
I refer to a previous post and Ed01s summary of Kante as a must read.
I can’t have Mount as a DM but it’s all about opinions.
Tammy did miss a good chance yesterday but he did score but I except and think, he will be a Marmite Player for Chelsea fans.
27 Sep 2020 08:03:55
When a player performs well and shows you that he is ready and that he has natural link up with your other starters, you have to reward them and see what they are capable of. Tammy had to start and he ultimately answered Lampard's faith.
I have been saying it for a few months now: Kanté and Kova midfield is a bad idea no matter who is the opposition. They just don't work together well and their fit and balance with Jorgi is really bad as well. We absolutely need a proper DM and that's why we need a PL proven guy like Rice.
In my opinion, Kovacic should never be near our starting XI. He is just average.
If you look at the first two goals, you could see that Kovacic is far too away from our back 4 and that exposed them and led to personal errors.
The best formation for us when everyone is fully fit is 433:
Mendy
James Fik Silva Chilly
Rice
Havertz Mount
Hakim Werner Pulisic
CHO and Tammy should also be playing regularly. We absolutely need those guys.
27 Sep 2020 08:51:38
My opinion on Tammy doesn't change unfortunately. Even at Villa he had 3 misses before a goal. Last year he scored 8 or 9 goals in 4 consecutive matches and then was struggling to improve on that tally hence why he got dropped. The two misses yesterday were woeful, his got no composure at all. I'd rather see Timo Werner play as a striker and be utilised there. I don't see Pep tinker and play Aguero on the left or right. Lamps needs to keep it simple.
Also the omission of Zouma was surprising. His contact rotation of the defence is u healthy at best. we need continuity so llayers can build chemistry with each other.
27 Sep 2020 09:43:08
With all due respect to Rice he I ain’t no Makelele, so I’m not sure if can play that role but if is or if we can find that sort of player then let’s Mount go forward and press high. IMO that is when he is most effective. I have no problems with the remaining choices in your team Ashk.
As I say Tammy will always be a Marmite player to the fans IMO.
Zouma not playing was a shock but not in the squad was an even bigger shock. I still assume he was injured.
27 Sep 2020 10:14:58
The good thing about this formation is that both Mason and Kai come back and help defence. Their work rate is superb.
The thing about Tammy last season was that it was his first season and we really didn't have proper creativity in our team, but even so, he managed to grab goals. Then he got injured and played through injury that's why his form dropped.
Tammy gives his all whenever he is on the pitch and he is a proper #9. Yeah he sometimes misses a couple of chances but he never gets discouraged and always tries to the end. He is also very mobile and very good with the ball to his feet.
Werner on the other hand is not a classic striker. He drifts back and goes to the sides all the time. He even played on the left in RBL. So I totally get the idea of playing him a bit behind Tammy and on the left.
Something we all seem to forget is that we haven't had a preseason so it's really hard to have the great chemistry Liverpool and City are showing. It takes time and we have to be patient. But I agree that we have to have a primary formation and stick to it for most games and change a few things according to our opponents.
27 Sep 2020 12:45:12
I agree Ashk, for me the shape is more important than the individuals that are picked to play but like most people I have my favourites.