Interesting to note that TWG has come to similar conclusions to a number of us here:
Sorry wasnāt Cahill only 1.8m tall? Height helps but there are other factors involved when scoring a header.
- Timing of your run
- Positioning
- Ensuring you foul the defender to get to the ball first
Although Reza and Alfie have been quite poor at this (doesnāt help that the crosses have been bad) it isnāt unreasonable for Corica to expect that his strikers will score headers. The ābig manā title isnāt required.
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Serious question, do we have a shooting coach who helps players with their technique and do we practice what to do on fast transitions so that players know what runs to make and where team mates will be? Because it doesnāt seem like we do.
As for Steve, I have no doubt that he can be a coach, the problem is that in this salary capped league, the most effective appointment you can make is the best coach(who makes the right recruitment) and Iām not sure he is the best coach at this point in his career. Maybe he needs to do some NPL gigs ala Rudan.
Case in point, ALF had that free header which he put wide and really should have buried.
Cahill had an above average standing jump (Iād like to see what he got on the standing jump test) and is not an accurate comparison. Jamie MacLaren and Adam Taggart are more accurate comparisons and both struggle(d) to score headers here.
While I agree that it isnāt unreasonable to expect your strikers to score headed goals, when the elements required to succeed are all stacked against them it is foolish to continually pursue this option.
Low crosses to near post runs and low cutbacks to the penalty spot/top of the box would offer a much higher chance of success than winning an aerial duel against 3 CBās with up to a 15cm height advantage and one of the best GKās in the league.
Thereās a reason that so many managers around the world these days play 4-3-3 or 4-2-3-1, and you could even throw 5-3-2 or 3-5-2 into the equation as well. Solidity in the middle of the park and less chance of getting picked off on the counter. It means you can commit numbers forward without leaving glaring gaps. It means thereās less chance of opposition #10s or wingers getting between the lines unimpeded. Its largely why a 4-4-2 formation these days is largely useless because an over-commitment of even one midfielder often spells major trouble when the ball is turned over, whereas the above formations can allow more fluid movement. For me, the only time it ever works is when the team is very compact defensively, and the attacking forwards and wingers have incredible speed and cohesion on the break. Leicester City did this very effectively when they won the Premiership a few years ago.
In our 4-4-2, neither wide player really hugs the lines, and only really occupy the wide areas when we turn over the ball and get into a defensive shape. And you canāt REALLY call it a box formation either, because they donāt occupy central positions that often. It felt like when we beat City the first time this season that we played more of a box midfield and we carved them up. But the positions the AMs often occupy is an uncertain middle ground where they will often move the ball along but not really get into scoring positions as much as Iād expect from advanced midfielders. We donāt really have the forwards currently to break with enough speed to hurt teams. Le Fondre and Reza arenāt slow but they are not speedsters. Buhagiar was a key element of making transition work for us but with his injury, we havenāt adjusted. Zullo and Grant initially were very reluctant to get forward but they are bombing on forward as usual. I think now we struggle with that because for whatever reason, there doesnāt seem to be enough cover coming across, especially when Grant breaks down the right.
Ultimately, this formation is way too rigid and as others have pointed out, Corica would be well-advised to consider changes to provide a better balance.
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To the first question, I would imagine they do, but many foreigners have pointed out that the training regimes in Australia seem to be of a much lower intensity than in Europe. Its no coincidence that Le Fondre was so sharp he couldāve cut through a vault door when he first arrived, but now it looks like heās aged 5 years in 5 months and looks quite rusty. The training intensity would probably have something to do with it. It just goes to show how amazing Arnold was, as he was able to get the best out of overseas guys like Ninko, Bobo, Mierzejewski and Buijs. Iām willing to bet his training intensity is much higher than most Australian professional players would be used to, and closer to a European standard. It would also explain how a lot of our goals in the last few seasons looked so simple, but the execution was flawless.
To the second question, we just donāt have the cattle on the field that are fast enough to break in the way we need to for a 4-4-2 formation. I donāt think its any more simple than that. To break quickly with our current starting players require them to pretty much already be in the exact position they need to, ready for the transition. Obviously, the opposition would either ensure they have numbers back to cover, or just pick us off going forward. So unfortunately it usually ends up with us having to hold the ball up or pass backward as soon as we get to the player furthest forward, instead of having plenty of passing options and movement.
We look gun-shy in front of goal. My opinion is that there is a lack of confidence among the players at the moment in their ability to score goals and thatās why weāre seeing players opt to pass rather than have a shotā¦
Last night, we did see some shots from outside the box that were way off, but once inside the box the preference was to pass. An example was when Reza had a lot of room inside the box, approached from the right and opted to pass instead of scoring. In the position that he was in, any decent striker should have a very good chance of scoring from there.
I can draw parallels to Manchester United under Mourinho. During the later part of his tenure, United were having issues scoring goals. When Ole Gunnar Solskjaer came in, I saw some videos of him running training sessions with the playing group where they only worked within the final third doing attacking drills. He was telling them to shoot in situations when their default action at that point was to pass instead - essentially trying to have them regain their confidence in scoring from those situations. It seems to have paid off! It seems Sydney FC need to do something similar.
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Con āDead Ball Specialistā Boutsianis was saying on the ABC commentary the other night that a lot of the strikers that he works with (at a younger level) donāt actually see the chance. Itās not until they go through a video review that they recognise it.
He then applied this to Kosta Barbarouses and said something along the lines of being a converted striker heās probably never been coached to see the chance.
It is just unfathomable to me that professional footballers, shot after shot, are unable to keep the ball down or place it around the keeper.
It is interesting in the end that the only thing that set the two teams apart was that Harrison had the technique to convert his opportunities.
Even these shots were the safe option and hit that way.
Zullo shot from an angle where any deflection would see the ball go out for a corner. He aimed high and to the near post and the ball was last seen turning left at the corner of Norton St & Parramatta Rd. Low and hard to the far post would be the higher percentage option but also open us up to a quick counter.
OāNeillās shot was from 30m out with all 4 defenders and Retre behind the ball with only 2 of their players upfield.
Why are our training levels so far off the pace or so much lighter compared to overseas? If the overseas players know it, and we know it from player interviews, why has this not been adjusted and fixed by now?
Considerations that might have a slight effect are harder pitches and the fact we play in the summer but I doubt thatās the whole story at all.
This one by any chance? The scousewegian accent it pretty amazing too.
Haha. If our players havenāt already been told to āshoot, farken!ā then itās time we admit the Cove has failed in its duty for the last 14 years. 
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Yep, there was another one as well where they were actually doing drills as well. I think the footage must have been taken before the one that you posted.
Con knows the importance of being able to anticipate a hole in traffic.
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I understand what they mean about seeing the chance.
I had some great coaches help me with my finishing.
Obviously Iām not a professional but I was good a youngster.
Even when I play now I donāt look up or think about where the goal is or the keeper, you just know where to put the ball. It isnāt a delayed thinking process. If our players arenāt getting taught that then they will stop and have a look first, then they get closed down.
Thereās plenty of goals I scored where Iām surprised that I didnāt think about at all just nailed the finish.
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Are you free to travel to Brisbane next Friday? Might need you up front.
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