As has been widely observed on social media, the match against Spurs largely turned on the injury to Antonio and Bilic’s decision to press in to action Carroll rather than Sakho or Ayew from the bench. Up until that point, we were easily containing Spurs and looked the more likely side to score. Twice we got behind their defence and only failed to score due to poor final balls in to the box; while Spurs, during that opening period, could only muster a fluffed half chance by Kane. This shows both the importance of (1) Antonio’s pace and power to the team and (2) the need for Bilic to stick with ‘what works.’ His substitution led to Hernandez being pushed to the right and allowed Spurs to get in to the game. I have to say that I whole heartedly agree with those who have argued that either Sakho or Ayew would have allowed us to continue with a system that was both successfully neutralising Spurs’ attacking threat and putting them on the back foot.
Andy Carroll is a very good option to have on the bench, but arguably there were better options available on that occasion. This point was only compounded by the role that Carroll played in losing possession, in dangerous positions, in the lead up to two of the Spurs three goals. Still, the Spurs match is history and the focus now must inevitably shift to defeating Swansea this Saturday. Given his past success against this opponent, I am sure that many will call for Carroll’s inclusion in the starting line up. However, I think that we need to start with a different strike force and keep Carroll ready (if necessary) to come on from the substitutes bench. Personally, I would play both Sakho and Ayew against Swansea and set them a different challenge to the one that they are expecting.
In this game I would start with a flat back four and deploy a 4-2-3-1 formation; with Noble or Obiang and Kouyate shielding the defence and an attacking triumvirate of Ayew (right) Hernandez (centre) and Arnautovic (left) supporting Sakho as the spearhead/fulcrum of the forward line. I have choosen Sakho over Carroll because of his proven ability to run the channels and bring others in to play. This selection would also address the issue of where best to play Hernandez. At the centre of an attacking three, Hernandez would be able to support Sakho and get in to attacking central positions in the final third. While in Ayew and Arnautovic (out wide) we have players that are very proficient at getting on to the end of scoring opportunities and converting.
My suggested starting line up (4-2-3-1), assuming Obiang will be unavailable to play, would be:
Hart
Zabaletta
Cresswell
Ogbonna
Reid
Noble (Capt)
Kouyate
Ayew
Hernandez
Arnautovic
Sakho
I also feel that it is safe to dispense with the back three in this fixture and try to select an effective flat back four combination. We need to do this as an on-going fear of deploying a flat back four effectively limits the tactical options at our disposal going forward. Some times the three at the back is justified, but it needs to be one of a number of formations/tactical options available. In short, Bilic must curb his apparent tendency to deploy players out of position to (seemingly) accommodate them in the starting line up. He must, instead, get his formations sorted and select the best players available in their positions for each formation. It is only in this way that players and teams gain confidence and improve both individually and as a unit. If that means the likes of Carroll or even Hernandez being benched for certain fixtures then so be it.
In the injury absence of Lanzini and Antonio, the task is obviously to select a system that makes best use of the currently available talent in the squad and maximises our chance of taking the three points on Saturday. Swansea will be preparing in training to face the physical challenge of Carroll, so lets try something different to wrong foot them. My option is a 4-2-3-1, but there will undoubtedly be contrary opinions amongst the WHTID readership, so lets read their constructive thoughts on the matter.
Above all else, it will certainly be good to ‘put a lid’ on the Spurs defeat and turn our attentions to the side/formation most likely to guarantee a much needed and morale boosting victory. It is a match that we can win and hopefully the victory will be accompanied by a good performance, with all the ‘pegs in the correct shaped holes’ and everyone working well individually and as a unit. With this squad one gets the impression that all the essential elements/pre-requisites for greater success are there, but it is just a case of getting the combination/selection right and the team ‘clicking’. Hitherto Bilic has evidently (for various reasons) been struggling to get it right, as such he now needs to go back to basics and fundamentally rethink his tactics and selection policy. It would be nice to think that the Swansea match could be a watershed and major turning point in that respect.
As for the result, I am going to stick my neck out on this occasion and go for a healthy 3-1 or 4-1 home win to give everyone a timely morale boost. COYI!
SJ. Chandos.