Julen Lopetegui

Lopetegui Litmus Test | J-Lo’s Tactics Set For Scrutiny

|
Image for Lopetegui Litmus Test | J-Lo’s Tactics Set For Scrutiny

The friendly games to date have told us very little about the state of West Ham United’s squad. Half of the first team were still on holiday, and academy members stepped up to fill the gaps. There was a wholesale rotation of the team at halftime, meaning six or nine substitutions were made.

The opponents were also at very different stages in their own pre-season and of differing qualities, as we have well documented already.

However, the return of senior squad members such as Antonio, Coufal, and Soucek, who joined the squad in Florida, means that The Hammers are gradually integrating more senior members. It will be interesting to see how the team performs against Premier League opposition when we take on Wolves and then Crystal Palace in this summer’s ‘Sunshine State’ tour.

(Which, incidentally, makes a lot more sense than the 25-hour trip ‘down-under’ last summer. Trying to get athletes back into match fitness could not have been helped by the accumulated jet lag of a round-the-world tour in a week. I know I was wiped out for a week afterward. Common sense, or more likely commercial priorities across the pond, appear to have triumphed this year.)

Back to the Sunshine State summer games. Forget the results and the fitness levels; I’m more interested in the evolution of our style under Julen Lopetegui. Having been a vocal critic of his predecessor, I’ve noticed three themes becoming more apparent in the first couple of games. I’ll be watching the two Saturday games to check for the continuing emphasis on developing:

1. High Defensive Line – Worrying only when the less-than-mobile Zouma plays, watching a back four maintain a much higher line has been informative, especially when one (Aguerd in the last game) forgets and plays an opponent onside. Watch for our defenders pushing up, being shouted at by the ‘keeper to do so, and generally NOT inviting sides to attack us by getting deeper and deeper.

2. Midfielders Attacking the Ball when Out of Possession – Notable in both games, this is an exciting evolution under our new head coach. Partly because of the energy displayed by academy players Potts, Earthy, and others, early signs are that West Ham are much more aggressive when out of possession rather than just retreating to the edge of our own box and defending for our lives.

3. Switching Play from the Back with Long Diagonal Cross-Field Passes to Hit Wingers – The so-called ‘Aguerd’ left-foot long route. This was a noticeable trend from Kilman, Aguerd when he came on, and JWP. It represents a marked development from the side-to-side-back play of old.

The games are being televised, so you can watch for tactical changes yourself. The club is asking £7.99 for streaming both games, which is either daylight robbery or cheaper than a stadium hotdog, depending on your viewpoint. Streaming passes are available on the club’s site.

Share this article

From the old Bobby Moore Upper to the Billy Bonds' stand these days I've been watching since '03 and a supporter since about 1970.. 'Football is Life' oh yes. Let it raise your spirit but never darken your mood. Life's too short not to enjoy the journey with our Claret and Blue heroes n' villains.

1 comment

  • Joseph says:

    Preseason friendlies really just there to Highlight problems in the squad…wont go pulling my hair out if we lose both games and wont be dancing in the street if we won both…..they will be good tests for us and likewise for the opposition and then you can see the weaknesses the players have with this new style of football being implemented and maybe help put a rocket under the money men when they realise what Jlo and Tim are right to highlight the problem areas we have and that the options we have to step up are not upto the task.

Comments are closed.