Our Midfield

He needs to change the shape and go with 2 sitters and and a 10.
Even today Kilmarnock had one of their strikers sitting on McGregor when we had the ball. Absolutely every manager we come up against now deploy the exact same tactic bcoz they know how we want to play.

 

I love them both but I think McGregor and Hatate need moved on.

Hatate is brilliant, but I think his head is elsewhere. McGregor isn't physical enough for Europe anyway, but I don't think he has the same influence in games domestically anymore.

We should be slowly phasing McGregor out with somebody that can take his place.

 

Same mate.

We really need to address the midfield in the January window, we desperately need a physical ball winner.
Hatate for me is a man down, McGregor on his last legs, Nygren is passable if he had better midfielders alongside him.
Our strikers and wingers are starved of any decent service, from this slow, unimaginative and weak midfield.

 

Barnardo and Engles sitting with Reo to play the 10.

I think its the best balance we have. Neither Barnardo or Engles are can play the 6 alone but could be a duo in their because they have the legs to get about the pitch most of the six players we have in CM

And Reo is our most creative and with a solid structure behind him could see the best of him

 

The midfield doesnt function well at all. I think the players we have there are better than their performances suggest. Theres a real lack of intent and purpose about it. It offers so little options in and out of possession.

Its the one area where there should be plenty of competition yet we seem to have 7 central midfielder players that look out of sorts. And they all seem to be regressing instead of improving - maybe McCowan aside.

 

Hatate does his best work from deeper tho when the game is ahead of him. Id have him as one of the 2 sitters but not until he rediscovers a bit of form.

Realistically he's not going to drop McGregor so it would be him and either Engels or Bernardo with Nygren playing as the 10

 

Hatate to me has regressed badly.

I'm sick of saying it, but I will say it again, he's been dining out on that 3-0 win over the Huns at Parkhead many moons ago.

 

Wouldn't blame anyone for having a poor game on that shitheap they call a pitch............the ball doesn't even bounce naturally

Good thing is that after this season we never have to play on it again

 

all our midfielders are all too similar should be vying for the one position . engels should be a box to box type and have his place nailed down but hes nowhere near good enough .mcgregor is an attacking midfielder and has been playing out of position for years because we wont spend on a proper dmf ,we have been getting away with it because he is a * good player. mcgregor and hatate are two fantastic options for the position neither of them are playing the rest are nowhere near it .

 

Next game, to inject some positivity into the game, Brendan should try a wee experiment.
It's called the 'nae feckin tippy tappy please' game.

Any midfielder either walking, taking more than 2 touches then going sideways or refusing an obvious forward pass more than 3 times - they get subbed.

Any unnecessary negative pass followed by pointing at a team mate to suggest where they should pass it = immediate substitution.

Any * out of a tackle = immediate substitution

Any dynamic forward runs with or without the ball, incisive forward passes or sprints/tackles to win back possession resets the count to zero.

Goals or assists give you 15mins without the 'tippy tappy' count running.

Even if 4 or 5 subs end up being midfielders, that's the rule.

Most negative player of the day = £500 fine

Need to knock some feckin energy and positivity into them somehow.

 

I would like to see McCowan-McGregor-Engels in the Partick game. Need to mix things up and see if we can control the midfield

We mixed it up vs Falkirk and had the best performance of the season.

 

Its definitely not clicking..

Can't see him changing it too much, it likely needs a change of system to get the best out of the players we have.. but he won't change it..

 

Hatate is a class player - sometimes. Most times he's a man down. Drop him for McCowan and see what that does. Although I'd also play Nygren at RW and also bring in Engles or Bernardo.
I think that could make a big difference.

 

Totally agree Mick about Nygren. Would allow him to drop back in to midfield when required for more strength and Saracchi could also move inverted when he moves forward for balance.

The fact that both Engels and Bernardo can't get a game is quite bizarre.

 

Nygren is never a RW in our 4-3-3, he doesn't have the speed or trickery. He's definitely been bought as an 8. And he's been good there.

 

Think Nygren and Hatate are trying to take up the same positions and it’s not working. I’d drop Nygren or put him wide right and play Engels.

 

I know it’s very early, but it doesn’t look like Balikwisha does either.

 

Aye, early days but Balikwisha looked even more uncomfortable on the right than the left..

Two tough fixtures to bed in though, for different reasons.

 

I agree, that he doesn't have the speed or trickery that we would want to see from the likes of Balikwisha, but to say he isn't when he has played a lot of his career there and posted his best results might suggest otherwise. Until Jota is back fit and firing and Balikwisha gets up to speed, he is at least another option

 

Not buying that for one second. He's a right winger and at present is our best option to play at right wing.
As we've got viable options to replace him in midfield, he should be on the wing.