Coyle's Tactics?

[Sluffy]

As every game goes by I lose more and more hope that Owen as any tactical nous what-so-ever.

United are on fire at the moment (they won their last game 8-2!) so what does Coyle do - play 4-4-2 (again!) and replace Muamba (ok he is shite but he is a DEFENSIVE midfielder) with Mavis (an attacking mid).  So the team lines up with 2 attackers, 2 wingers and an attacking mid - and thus expect RNC to screen our centre backs on his own - one of which is Zat Knight - against arguably the strongest and certainly the most in form team in the Premiership!

Does he really think Petrov is the sort of player who would tackle back and help Robinson guard the left flank - as little help could be forthcoming from RNC who had to hold midfield basically on his own?  What a surprise then when FOUR of the United goals came from just exploiting this one glaringly obvious weakness.

Why does Coyle not adapt his strategies and tactics for every game rather than persist with the tried, tested (and obvious to every opposition manager, by now!) tactics of playing his obligatory 4-4-2 with his mandatory team selections that include Knight, Jussi and Kevin Davies - who are clearly now either not up to it, out of form or both?

Coyle might be the most motivational speaker in football but that counts for nothing if he can't pick a team and set them up in such a way that they actually can win matches.

OK, we were probably never going to beat United today but I would have been encouraged if he at least attempted to do something different than picking more or less the same team every week and sending them out with the same tactics and NO plan B!

Why buy Wheater if he is never going to play him?  It is obvious to everyone but Coyle that Knight is a liability - what exactly did Wheater do wrong before Coyle brought Knight back for him for Wembley last season?

It worried me last season that Coyle didn't seem to have any grasp on football strategies and tactics and I didn't make myself too popular on here with some when I said so - but regrettably it is looking as though I may well be right!

[DaveBWFC]

Owen Coyle is a tactical díckhead. The team he picked and the formation today was a disaster. Everyone could see it wasn't working half way through the first half. Yet he didn't change anything until an hour had gone. He needs to get his head from up his own arse and get a plan b and a plan c for when things aren't going well.

I am seriously píssed off with him after today. If he had ginger hair and hadn't scored a few goals for us people would have the bed sheets out. Sort it out Owen!!!

[Malcolm Everett]

I am starting to see these tactical frailties in Owen Coyle. You would think he would learn from mistakes, starting with how poor the away form is but he doesn't adapt or change things, it is always the same. Its as if he thinks that 4-4-2 is correct and the winning formation but the players aren't playing good enough.
He needs to start playing the 4-3-3/4-5-1 formation against better teams. We need 3 players in the centre of midfield with the two attacking wide players to not only help the sole striker but help the full backs too. Why do we need 2 strikers against teams who we won't get a lot of the ball up front? It is just a waste of a man.
It is time to drop players like Davies, Knight and Jussi but at the same time Coyle needs to sort his tactics out. We made it so easy today. We need to start closing space down, swarming on the opposition, we need the wide players to help the full backs, we need to get Tuncay and Ngog into the team to give us pace and creativity. A 4-4-2 is just too open. Come on Coyle, lets see some changes.

[Le God]

If Muamba played it probably would have been 0-10 with his passing.

the main problem was getting overloaded on the wings and no closing down at all.

5 in the middle might have kept it close for an extra 10 minutes but 1 on 1 every time on the wings killed us.

whatever the fcuking formation the players still have to put in a shift.

[Jamster26]

Coyle disappointed me today. I agree with Sluffy and Dave.

Thing is, the opposition have done this in the past. Target Robinson, as they know he'll receive little support and as we are so open, theirs wingers will have all the time in the world. Off the top of my head, City did it, Tottenham did it.

My biggest concern, is has Coyle surrounded himself, with Yes- men?

At half time today, I was thinking, "Ok, we probably aren't going to come back from 3-0 down but Coyle, atleast take off the players who aren't playing well enough, for players who deserve a chance and give the second half a right good go.

But...nothing. I mean, I was gobsmacked. There's one thing having confidence in your players, it's another thing to realise, that players can't be undroppable, no matter how much confidence you have in them. It wouldn't surprise me if he alienated some of the players on the bench. What must they be wondering? Please get injured Davies, please pull your hamstring again Knight....As this seems to be the only way of getting a chance in the team.

Coyle's after match interview amused me. "If you don't count the five goals United scored, they only had two shots on target". Really Owen? Really?

I'm just really annoyed and as Sluffy had said, Coyle's recurring formation and tactics, is just getting beyond a joke, in all honesty.

Big few months for Owen Coyle. He's not immune, even if certain players are, according to his book.

[Natasha Whittam]

Coyle gets away with it simply because he isn't Gary Megson.

If Coyle had followed Fat Sam or Bruce Rioch he'd be out by now.

[Diana Prince]

one word: naive.

[aarons2009]

With all the midfielders we now have in the side you would think Coyle might actually try using more than 2 of them in a game.

I mean we have Muamba who isn't the greatest at attacking but he is good at ball winning, Mark Davies who is good at running with the ball at his feet and Pratley who is a decent box to box midfielder.

..............Muamba......

Tuncay.....Pratley......Petrov....

...............M.Davies.............

That might not work but it looks more compact.

[Natasha Whittam]

We can't afford to have a player like Mark Davies in the team, he simply isn't good enough.

He can't tackle, is bloody slow, and his passing is useless when under pressure.

When we play a team full of slow tarts who back off then I'd stick him in.

[Big_Sharps]

4-4-2 might have worked for Alf Ramsey and Mike Bassett but it is not going to work for you Owen, please change it.

[wanderlust]

It was naive as DP says - and perhaps dogmatic.

I think OC needs to start off by telling the players - all the players - that we are a squad, not a 'first XI" plus fringe players.



     

[H. Pedersen]

Owen Coyle wants the team to play 4-4-2; the Megson era likely convinced him that entertaining football is key to his employment.  I am firmly convinced 4-4-2 is never, ever going to work if we're constantly shifting between that and 4-5-1.  The players aren't going to get those great results like 4-0 over QPR or 4-2 over Tottenham last season if Coyle pussies out every time a game might be challenging and packs the midfield with Davies alone up front.

Yeah, we got dicked by United, but with the form they are in, we're getting dicked 99 times out of 100, regardless of formation.  We still created a lot of chances, and Klasnic and Petrov worked very well together.  Those are things we'll take into the Norwich game where we should be able to win.

Now, the team selection, that's a different question.

[traf]

The team will, like Owen's tactics, remain largely unchanged.

[ReebokTrotter]

I never saw any tactics on Saturday.

[wanderlust]

I think the plan was to cut them to pieces with our superior pace, skill, passing and movement.


That's why we only needed NRC to mop up their attacks.

[texan dave II]

Had a 4-5-1 been played the ball would have stayed in our 3rd the entire match
We never would have had a shot on goal
united would have pusher even more numbers and we would have lost 5-0 with no shots on goal
Petrov and Ivan did take the game to them and did quite well on the attack
with the 4-4-2 we played it could have been 5-3

That being said SKD for Ngog at the half And Tunkay for MD in the 60th may have made a differance

[Bazzabomb]

Coyle thinks tacics are breath freshners.