The big problem for me is that we have two central midfield players playing wide. Neither cover the full backs because they aren't wingers so don't have the instinct. That puts a lot of pressure on Henry and Barton and they are both liable to make mistakes because they are covering a lot of ground without cover. All of this leaves the back four exposed.
I am not sure it is entirely a defensive problem in the back 4. I think it is a defensive problem about the shape of the team. We lose the ball far too often on the wings at the moment and that just knocks everyone out of position. We don't defend as a team, we operate in table football banks of four, once you are past that midfield the back 4 have no cover at all.
For me we are also missing a Mackie type player, a terrier who pushes the oppositions back 4 and forces them into mistakes. Charlie is a goal scorer, Zamora is a hold up man but we have no one who spends 90 minutes pushing their defenders back and we haven't had that since Mackie left. Perhaps we should get him back?
The team don't defend as a team, they don't hunt the ball down, they don't crowd players out, they don't push teams high up the pitch. There is not that pack mentality here and if we are to survive it needs to materialise soon because I don't think it is all about the back 4 shipping in 2+ goals a game, it is about the team not defending from front to back. |  |
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