I går fikk vi oppleve at vi spiller i CHAMPIONSHIP - med det menes at det er plenty med kamper og overraskende resultater i overload. Preston tapte, Ipswich klarte en sen utligning... Og vi misbrukte altså sjansen til å ta innpå.
Nå fikk vi en hel treningsuke, noe jeg trodde var en bra ting. At Farke, god på treningsfeltet, fikk terpet på ting. I stedet fikk vi en ellever med fornyet tillit, men som slett ikke fungerte sammen. Leeds-Lives Beren Cross med glimrende kronikk om kampen her: - jeg tar med det som handler om at vi 'tapte midtbanen' og at Piroe i 10'er-rollen fort var en del av det som felte oss i denne kampen:
https://www.leeds-live.co.uk/sport/leeds-united/farke-leeds-united-49ers-enterprises-27820186Tactical inactionA 4-2-3-1 is virtually all we have seen from Farke since he took over in July. Until yesterday, it had largely worked and kept Leeds threatening in attack and, more recently, solid in defence.
Unfortunately, it wasn’t cutting the mustard at any stage of Saturday’s trip to St Mary’s Stadium and one of the key takeaways was why did he not change it. Aside from the hesitant, disjointed nature of the backline, the midfield pair of Ethan Ampadu and Glen Kamara were neither protecting the backline nor providing passing options for the back five.
They were overrun in the middle. While Flynn Downes nullified Joel Piroe, Will Smallbone and Stuart Armstrong had the freedom of St Mary’s to roam where they wanted. In the case of the latter especially, it was staggering how much time and space he was given to wreak havoc.
The Whites could not lay a glove on their hosts, who were cutting through at will for the first hour of the game. And yet Farke made no discernible change to the formation in order to counter the obvious danger being created.
The debate around Piroe, a centre forward, playing as an attacking midfielder, will continue to rage until the end of days. One week it works, with him scoring, and it’s a dream before 90 minutes of anonymity leads to calls for a nine to be played as a nine.
Perhaps Piroe’s lack of natural aptitude for the midfield side of the role left Ampadu and Kamara more exposed than they could cope with. An extra, natural central midfielder alongside them, an Archie Gray or Ilia Gruev, may have at least stemmed the flow of danger.
Anyways, ofte er det de små tingene som avgjør i fotball, jeg er enig med
auren i at vi i store deler av kampen hang greit med, vi trenger ikke overdramatisere hvor elendige vi var (men vi hadde ikke den standarden vi har hatt den siste måneden, det hadde vi ikke). Farke nevner at VAR fort hadde annulert 0-1 og at 0-2 kom mens vi spilte med 10 mann, og at han som scoret burde ha fått sitt gult kort nr 2 i situasjonen da Summerville ble skadet:
Daniel, how worrying was that performance?Well, I'll never get used to in my career to lose a football game and to be in a good mood after the game. That's definitely for sure. I wouldn't speak too much about the worrying performance or whatever, it's more like first of all, congratulations to Southampton because there were more effective in this game. We have won more or less each of the statistics but the result is all that matters and they have won 3-1, so for that first congratulations to them.
I think decisive today was that our defensive behaviour was not spot on like in last games and last four games we were there with four clean sheets in a row, didn't allow the opponents to have many chances. We need to be a bit more aware, awake, sharp in the decisive moments. I wouldn't label it in general because apart from the goal, I can't remember one situation where Meslier had to be there was a save, we didn't allow them too much. But yes, sometimes tiny little moments can make a big, big difference. When we speak about the first goal, yes, normally if you would go with VAR probably would have been ruled out as offside but certainly there is no VAR in the Championship, so you have to drop a bit quicker in order to defend the run of Armstrong.
The second goal we should have shifted a bit quick and a bit more sharp against the ball but was also unbelievably unlucky because there was a situation when there was a foul from Smallbone against Cree Summerville where you could even argue he was on yellow cards. I don't ask for yellow, red cards but you could at least discuss about this. Normally we should play in overload but because of the situation Cree needed treatment and then there are the protocols, he has to stay for 30 seconds outside the pitch, that means we have to play an underload, and exactly in this moment, Smallbone, the player who fouled him, is there and scores out of the cutback and Cree, who just arrived late on the pitch and because he had to stay out, because he had treatment, he has a disadvantage and they score, was a bit unlucky.
I don't use this as an excuse but just also try to speak a bit about we could have been a bit more sharper, shifting a bit quicker, but also it was one of those days where it was also a bit unlucky and every little mistake was punished. I can't argue against the third goal because individual behaviour then, it has to be better against Armstrong and then, if you're then 3-0 at halftime, it's always difficult to return back with points.
Og så har du diskusjonen om hvorvidt Rodon burde startet (JAAA er det lett å si i ettertid i alle fall, mener jo jeg og de fleste andre)
Was there an issue with the centre-backs? It seemed slow at times?No, I don't agree because again there was this tiny little mistake before the first goal, with the second goal was also I would label it a bit unlucky so nothing to do with the centre backs, also the third goal not. If you then don't allow any chances, it's not like the time to speak a bit about the behaviour of the centre backs. Southampton is a really good side so there are many Premier League players in this club. It's also the ambition after relegation from the Premier League to return back to Premier League level, so if they can concentrate on sitting a bit deeper and concentrate on the counter attack, it's difficult also for the centre-backs in order to control all the counters.
I have to make compliments to them how they defended the counter attacks against the quality players in the second half because we literally didn't allow them to have one more chance and in terms of moving with the ball it's more like up to the offensive players to find the solution. So I didn't have a feeling that we put the ball just long upfront, yes, sometimes a bit too slow into the midfield but I don't label that it was a mistake of the centre backs in the build-up that we didn't score more goals. It was just due to Southampton could sit a bit deeper, could concentrate on defending.
We scored a goal in the second half, we won the second half, I was happy with our reaction. Could have been a bit more tiny in their box. Especially after the 1-3 there was a situation when Georgi Rutter sends Piroe through and normally he is there with a perfect first touch and scores the second goal. Would have liked to watch the game then if he scored this moment, the second goal. Today, yes, you have to say the decisive moments were in the first half and this is the reason Southampton won the game and you have to accept it and say congratulations.
VEL, NÅ ER DET VÅR TUR MED Å SLÅ TILBAKE, QPR ER DER FOR THE BEATING, OG BRISTOL CITY AS WELL!!!
Phil Hay kalte gårsdagen en 'Championship reminder'
https://theathletic.com/4915005/2023/10/01/leeds-and-daniel-farke-southampton/Farke ved halvtid:
“In 99 per cent of all cases as a manager, when you’re on such a good run, four clean sheets in a row, and you go back at half-time 3-0 down, I would have thrown bottles and killed someone,” he said. “Today it was more like ‘no, let’s talk about how we turn the game.’ I spoke quite calmly.”
