Brentford (A) 5/10: Build-Up & Match Thread

[Elephant Pyjamas]

We can’t have him running on to balls over the top but other than that I like him - holds the ball well, actually wins headers and has a nice touch. Decent finisher if he plays like Chelsea too.

Great save against him at Arsenal, he's been close a couple of other times too.

 

[sycophantia]

Tbh I never expected him to tear any trees up goal scoring wise but he provides a focal point we haven't had for ages, puts defenders under pressure, holds the ball up. He's what we've been crying out for for 2 or seasons. Think he's an asset.

 

[MARKakaJIM]

We can’t have him running on to balls over the top but other than that I like him - holds the ball well, actually wins headers and has a nice touch. Decent finisher if he plays like Chelsea too.

Running onto balls in behind seems to be about the best part of his game?

 

[Alan]

I've been fairly happy with JSL, I think he'll be good.

Touché 2: Electric Boogaloo

 

[Dire Wolf]

I'm fairly underwhelmed tbh. I can't even remember one thing of any note he did against Liverpool. In fact I can't even remember one thing he did period.

Apart from win the ball to set up our only goal you mean?

 

[Mel Evo]

He genuinely does hold the ball up and play teammates in with simple but progressive short passes. Touch and general ability look good. He won’t score regular goals until we have a functioning system around him, and we’ve got to wait a few weeks for a chance of that.

 

[Dire Wolf]

I *quite* like him as a player, but I don't think he's had as much of an impact as you would have hoped. 1 goal is not great, but he has got a couple of assists. He doesn't look quick enough to me, but I guess that isn't his game. I'd like to see him getting in more scoring positions in the box, he's barely been on the end of a cross yet.

 

[Tony Towner]

I *quite* like him as a player, but I don't think he's had as much of an impact as you would have hoped. 1 goal is not great, but he has got a couple of assists. He doesn't look quick enough to me, but I guess that isn't his game. I'd like to see him getting in more scoring positions in the box, he's barely been on the end of a cross yet.

What crosses?

 

[Sniffer]

I *quite* like him as a player, but I don't think he's had as much of an impact as you would have hoped. 1 goal is not great, but he has got a couple of assists. He doesn't look quick enough to me, but I guess that isn't his game. I'd like to see him getting in more scoring positions in the box, he's barely been on the end of a cross yet.

Playing Strand with no wingers on the pitch makes zero sense. Playing wingers with Strand not on the pitch makes zero sense.

- Jonathan Wolf

He actually won a header in the box that drifted wide in the first half on Saturday but I can't recall many, if any, other crosses.

 

[Deano]

Remember reading that crosses into the box provide a very low chance of scoring a goal I think it might have been just over 1% so I don't think you'll see many teams using it as a primary tactic.

Strand Larsen seems ok in the air but nothing special, you'd expect him to win some just because of his height. I get fans always want new signings to work out so they get more leeway when they are evaluated at the start, but the jury is out on Strand Larsen for me, there are some good things we have seen from him but probably not enough of them and he does go through big spells of some games where he is barely involved at all. Could be the rest of the team not playing to his strengths, could just be that he needs more time to adapt, could just be that he's not that good.

In the next couple of months i'd want to see a marked improvement on what we have seen from him so far.

 

[Elephant Pyjamas]

The header against Arsenal was from a cross. But the general point is accurate, there have hardly been any crosses, not head height crosses anyway, other than corners.

 

[Tony Towner]

Remember reading that crosses into the box provide a very low chance of scoring a goal I think it might have been just over 1% so I don't think you'll see many teams using it as a primary tactic.

Strand Larsen seems ok in the air but nothing special, you'd expect him to win some just because of his height. I get fans always want new signings to work out so they get more leeway when they are evaluated at the start, but the jury is out on Strand Larsen for me, there are some good things we have seen from him but probably not enough of them and he does go through big spells of some games where he is barely involved at all. Could be the rest of the team not playing to his strengths, could just be that he needs more time to adapt, could just be that he's not that good.

In the next couple of months i'd want to see a marked improvement on what we have seen from him so far.

Depends how you define a cross versus a pull back or through ball from wide. The 1% applies to the beating the full back and putting the ball in the air type and is driven by only 1 in 5 actually finding their target. Still accounts for 15% of total goals though

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/255698488_Crossing_in_Soccer_has_a_Strong_Negative_Impact_on_Scoring_Evidence_from_the_English_Premier_League#:~:text=Abstract,about%2015%25%20of%20all%20goals.

 

[sycophantia]

Feels like my expectations were much lower than everyone else.
When we signed him, given his past exploits, I was hoping for 6-8 goals, some assists and decent hold up play, good in the air.
Don't think many Premier league teams were chasing him so I wasn't expecting prime Raul. Took Jiminez a bit of time to settle and get used to life in the Premier, I'm not sure he'll ever be that good but it's early days yet, plus we've been a bit shit overall at times.

 

[Deutsch Wolf]

Yep, Raul opened up with 3 in 14 and one of them was a penalty. And we had better players then with a better manager.

 

[Alan]

He genuinely does hold the ball up and play teammates in with simple but progressive short passes. Touch and general ability look good. He won’t score regular goals until we have a functioning system around him, and we’ve got to wait a few weeks for a chance of that.

“Weeks” feels optimistic

 

[Mel Evo]

“Weeks” feels optimistic

Hey, I’m an optimistic kind of guy. If you’re happy to accept an expectation that we’ll be nailed to the bottom of the table in a few weeks forcing action likely to result in too poor an appointment being made too late as optimism. Look at me, glass half full!

 

[The Bear]

Apart from win the ball to set up our only goal you mean?

It hardly set up the goal. He passed the ball 5 yards backwards to Forbs who did the hard work.

Decent run to get onto it though I suppose.

 

[Del Woppio]

Nobody gets any attacking credit whatsoever for that goal. Two bumbles and a defensive howler.

 

[sycophantia]

Nobody gets any attacking credit whatsoever for that goal. Two bumbles and a defensive howler.

Not even RAN who got in a good position in the box to slot it home? Tough crowd.

 

[Alan]

Nobody gets any attacking credit whatsoever for that goal. Two bumbles and a defensive howler.

Still could have shanked it at the end