------------Ramsdale------------
Smith----S. Cook---Ake----Rico
---L. Cook---Lerma---Surman---
-------------H. Wilson-------------
------Wilson-------Surridge------
Subs: Boruc, Simpson, Francis, Gosling, Billing, Fraser, Solanke
Hopefully everyone has come through unscathed from Watford (physically; I'd imagine the shame is still burning away for those that actually care). That back 4 is probably our first choice back 4, so no excuses there. I will not hear another bad word against Rico, stand up guy and excellent left back who, wherever we are next season, I hope he's there too.
Midfield; I've gone for a 3. I think the most important thing is to get players in with a good first touch- more importantly, Surman was excellent against Luton, and can't do any worse than any of the others have recently. Surman offers good ball control, a cool head, actual leadership qualities and, whisper it quietly, is actually a very good passer, and is capable of some good forward balls. He is also quite weak and slow; he's no Sergio Busquets, he's arguably "done" at this level, but he does several key things very well, like absorbing pressure (to an extent), recycling the ball efficiently and quickly, and picking out passes smartly. It's time to try something new, yet familiar. Get Surman back in.
Thats where the other two come in. We all know how good Lerma is, we know how good L. Cook can be, lets leave the boring, recycling of the ball to Surman, and allow L. Cook to try and be creative with his passing and movement, and allow Lerma to do what he does best: maim and bully the opposition.
H. Wilson, with his good shooting ability and slide rule passes, naturally fits behind the strikers. He doesn't track back, can't dribble all that well, and is weak. Put him in the hole, put him where we should have put Ibe from the moment we signed him. Get him around the edge of the box, and he will win corners, create chances, create free-for-alls in the box, and maybe even score.
Wilson stays up front because he is technically a better goalscorer than Solanke. Maybe with this new formation, he'll see a bit more action. At the end of the day, it's up to him, and whether he's happy to have had no shots on target since October. Surridge showed some endeavor vs Watford, some attacking initiative, and looks like he wants to score. He's scored goals at other levels, he's scored more than Solanke, so give him a go.
No point having wingers if they're not doing anything, we don't cross the ball in or create chances from wingplay anymore, so forget it. I thought Fraser was one of the better players against Watford personally, I don't buy into him looking like he didn't care- i thought he put a lot of effort in, and he looked devastated at full time. He's getting dropped purely because I want to see a new formation with new ideas, he can still come on and offer some pace at least.
Thoughts?
