Quote:
Originally Posted by Damien
Anyone think the pressure is getting to Hodgson? His press statements about Liverpool playing so well as well as little gem: "I refuse to sit here and accept that we were outplayed or in any way inferior" were impressive displays of delusion.
|
Absolutely lost it and his comments are becoming more and more bewildering and embarrasing with each defeat. The Derby? best performance under his management? that is ludicrous as the best performance under his management was the home draw against Arsenal first game of the season before he'd had any real chance to work with the team. I think the realisation has hit home hard that he is managing a team ill equipped to play his archaic stand-off and counter tactics and he doesn't seem to have a plan B, either that or he's not prepared to use one.
Under Benitez, the team at their best last season were hard working, pressing and organised, capable of retaining posession: press and push forward being the first line of defence. Quite a contrast to the tactics served up by Hodgson: stand off and attempt to absorb the pressure with the whole midfield sitting constantly on Pepe Reina's toes in the centre of the park. The major source of goals conceded has come from the flanks: teams are encouraged to attack due to the lack of closing down and the full backs are not good enough to prevent the cross. When the ball does arrive in the box Skrtel and Carragher are completely devoid of any ability to meet the aerial challenge. Other maladies include the utterly shambolic and immobile Christian Poulsen lacking the ability to cover for Glen Johnson et al when they push forward which is something Mascherano was very adept at doing last season. Roy doesn't seem to realise that there are a couple of players in the squad more than capable of doing this job but he chooses not to play them there or not play them at all.
Sections of the media and certain ex players who ought to know better are still desperately clinging to their anti Rafa agenda and the notion that poor old Roy inherited such a poor squad: one that's not too different to a squad which finished second a couple of seasons before and a squad which didn't concede many goals the season after despite an unacceptable league position. Hodgson has already lost the fans and it won't be long before he's lost the dressing room so he has to go now before any further damage is done.