Pressing Game

[croxleyhoops]

Clint Hill has mentioned the JFH wants us to play a pressing game and become a very fit team. Performances this season, until Sandro came back into the team have seen us stand off our opponents in midfield and hardly put in a challenge.
It will interesting to see if our play changes much for Saturday, and if we are fit enough to press for 90 minutes, especially as we are playing one of the better teams in our league.

[upperloft]

Don't think we have a fit enough squad to do that. Two ageing wing backs, Sandro and faulin won't last 45mins playing that way. Fer hasn't really been arsed up until now. But hopefully JFH can sort this.

[Bluehoop]

JFH's Burton team always pressed high up the pitch and I very much doubt he will want to change that philosophy. Bearing in mind how pedestrian we are as an outfit, the question of whether we can do it for ten minutes, let alone 90, remains to be seen

[Ramsey is god]

Don't think we have a fit enough squad to do that. Two ageing wing backs, Sandro and faulin won't last 45mins playing that way. Fer hasn't really been arsed up until now. But hopefully JFH can sort this.

agreed. All very well people wanting to play like this but everyone has to be extremely fit for it to work. Think we probably only have a couple like Mackie who could do it all game.

Just havnt got the players to play this way imho. Think we do have the players to play a possession game though and should be controlling matches with the ball

[Olly]

Not sure that people understand 'pressing'. The team doesn't press for 90 minutes, and neither do individual players for 90 minutes. Only the player with the ball gets pressed, and generally only by one player, and if you're a Guardiola team, you press other players near the ball. Can't see how that's a fitness problem. Each player may only have to press for about 5 minutes in a game. Boom!

[Robsondinho]

Not sure that people understand 'pressing'. The team doesn't press for 90 minutes, and neither do individual players for 90 minutes. Only the player with the ball gets pressed, and generally only by one player, and if you're a Guardiola team, you press other players near the ball. Can't see how that's a fitness problem. Each player may only have to press for about 5 minutes in a game. Boom!

Pressing is a buzz word in football at the moment. It is impossible to press all game! All about cues and triggers and knowing when and when not to do it. Pressing high the pitch just basically means stopping a team from playing from the back.

[hal9thou]

JFH's Burton team always pressed high up the pitch and I very much doubt he will want to change that philosophy. Bearing in mind how pedestrian we are as an outfit, the question of whether we can do it for ten minutes, let alone 90, remains to be seen

You can't press high if there are no legs at the back. It's as simple as that. Much as we all love Clint there is an issue here...

There have been incredibly successful sides (mainly Italian) who held a very deep line. But they had world class defenders.....

[FACTS]

We will have Yun & Perch at fullback, hopefully get another RB or we could maybe play Ned there (wouldn't personally but it's an option).

If the training is right we can definitely get the team fit enough to press high up the pitch when needed. And if we can hold on to possession we're working less anyway - hope this comes true, I've had enough of matches looking like volleyball games.

[Kevin Mcleod]

You can't press high if there are no legs at the back. It's as simple as that. Much as we all love Clint there is an issue here...

There have been incredibly successful sides (mainly Italian) who held a very deep line. But they had world class defenders.....

Clint don't ever play anymore

[Shepherds Mush]

Plenty of teams have done it to us, can't see why we can't implement it.

Just replace chasing after an opponent in your own half/area with doing it at their end.

[nasser95]

Pressing is arguably only about two players: One player who presses, another who moves into his position to cover. More important than fitness here is actual brain and understanding. If you are aware of danger, you move to close it up. That is what pressing is.

[Shania]

Even Rotherham is better suited to pressing high ,ATM. I would love JFH to get us fit enough to play that game.

[Hubble]

It is amazing to consider that we have had a squad of players that is not fit enough. Under Harry, this became obvious, everything was wayyyyy too stand-offish, and many of us pointed out that the team needed to get much fitter and sharper. Let's hope this vital issue is finally addressed by JFH - and not before time. Surely it's an absolute fundamental aspect of modern football? And surely these young men are more than capable of achieving it?

[Ramsey is god]

Not sure that people understand 'pressing'. The team doesn't press for 90 minutes, and neither do individual players for 90 minutes. Only the player with the ball gets pressed, and generally only by one player, and if you're a Guardiola team, you press other players near the ball. Can't see how that's a fitness problem. Each player may only have to press for about 5 minutes in a game. Boom!

I disagree. Only works if the whole team are doing it. If one player goes t press the ball, everyone else has to squezze up to press other players to ensure there is no easy pass out.

Takes a team to do it and if one aint up to it, his man will always be the pass out and the whole press is pointless.

[Ginger Ninja]

Either way I hope people aren't expecting our style of play to have changed much on Saturday, it'll take a little while for JFH's ideas and philosophy to transmit to the players.