4 Comments

Carroll Ban a Blessing?

It’s been spoken of at length since the the final whistle blew against Burnley but it does appear that Andy Carroll’s idiotic double lunge may well pave the way for a more attractive (not to mention effective) style of play. I’m surely not the only person who is concerned that Slav will shoehorn the big fella straight back into the starting line-up once his suspension is over and I can’t help thinking that a straight red and three game ban might have been better.

Obviously I’d have preferred 11 men to stay on the pitch and believe we would have comfortably won the game but it’s hard to argue that our passing didn’t improve following Andy’s dismissal. The pass & move first touch exchanges between Obiang, Lanzini, Hernandez & Antonio were a joy to behold and the players seemed liberated.

Surely a man of Bilic’s experience must have noticed the improvement and hopefully he’ll now implement a  game plan that better suits the players at his disposal. Individually we were better than Burnley, I said before the game that it’s unlikely a single member of Sean Dyche’s team would get into our best eleven and I consider Brighton to be the same.

The likes of Lanzini and Chicharito are ball players and are completely hindered by the style of football we’re forced to play with Andy Carroll on the pitch. If it was an effective strategy then there could be little complaint but our No9 has three yellow cards, one red and no goals so it’s pointless persisting.

 

About Gonzo

Hammers Chat video blogger @Gonzobignose

4 comments on “Carroll Ban a Blessing?

  1. Sadly I think a line up without Carroll but with Chicharito and Lanzini will be given only one game, one chance, to shine.

    And knowing the west ham luck, we’ll have a shoddy game Friday, and it’ll be dismissed as an option forevermore.

  2. Great stuff Gonzo! This is exactly what I’ve been saying. Carroll can be a great impact sub, but is a mistake to build the team’s tactics around him.

  3. Think we are all on the same page here – give pace a go and play Chic and Sakho up top. But they have to deliver, especially against two big (and slow) centre backs like Brighton have. Let’s hope the supply chain improves and Arnie gets his finger out if he plays with Antonio and Lanzs.

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