Simon Lowe
The Stoke City fan and author has his say
formation. It has, in fact, now carried us through to the Carabao Cup quarter-finals, delivering some superb team performances along the way.
But it suits that scenario, allowing City to soak up pressure, with the opposition playing in front of the back five then setting us up for breakaways and set pieces, one of which was brilliantly headed home by Sam Vokes for the winning goal at Villa Park on Thursday night.
Conversely, when the onus is on Stoke, at home, to make the play, 5-3-2 feels restrictive, limiting; negative even.
Stoke should have beaten Birmingham on chances created on Sunday, but the majority of those came after O’neill made his changes.
They were substitutions, including the introduction of Mcclean for Tymon, that the team had been crying out for for some time. Arguably since the start of the game, which is the whole issue entirely.
To be fair to O’neill his analysis of what to do to solve an in-game problem has proven top notch this week.
On Thursday, Villa were beginning to get on top as they got behind Jacob Brown, pictured, at right wing-back, so the manager plugged the gap by bringing on Tommy Smith and throwing Brown’s pace up front.
Superb management. It pushed Villa back and shut up shop brilliantly.
That it was two players coming on from the substitutes’ bench on Sunday who combined for the goal, after completely changing the pressure the Birmingham defence were under with their touch, quick thinking and pace, says it all.
O’neill got the change right, but he only had to because he is getting the starting tactics a tad awry in home games.
I respectfully suggest… It also tells us that sometimes it is personnel, just as much as the tactics.
Campbell and Powell added guile and sheer speed in attack, going in behind
Birmingham’s defence for the first time in the game, pressing them back and ultimately creating that equaliser.
They need to start the next game, which happens to be the rather tasty fixture of a visit to Nathan Jones’s Luton Town. I’d expect the 5-3-2 to remain for away games as it has served us so well, but maybe the two subsequent fixtures, both at home, against Barnsley and Brentford, will see a reversion to the 4-2-3-1 which saw Stoke score far more goals more frequently at the back end of last season than they are managing at the start of this. Notably against those two opponents.
Let the shackles off at home, Michael. This squad has the ability to outscore an opposition when given its head.