[FT] Partick Thistle 1 - 3 Rangers (Pena 55; Candeias 94; Herrera 99)

[Frankie 8,145]

We need to play as strong a team as we can! Giving guys like Pena, Holt and Dalcio starts in a QF is a complete no no for me.

 

Obviously Herrera could come in for MIller tonight and the 4-4-2 used again but it's unlikely we'd start with that formation on Saturday so Pena a better fit if we do go with 4-2-3-1 tonight.

[Waltersgotstyle 297]

We need to play as strong a team as we can! Giving guys like Pena, Holt and Dalcio starts in a QF is a complete no no for me.

 

Pena could be a revelation - you don't get 19 caps for a national team with a population of 119m if you are useless.

[Frankie 8,145]

Pena could be a revelation - you don't get 19 caps for a national team with a population of 119m if you are useless.

 

As much as he's hardly been impressive Pena has to start playing more regularly. There's no point spending in the region of £2m and not trying to integrate a player into the team.

 

He's come on as a sub a few times now with varying degrees of success. Now's the time for him to start games before his confidence and fitness really disappear.

[Gaffer 1,665]

Pena could be a revelation - you don't get 19 caps for a national team with a population of 119m if you are useless.

 

I've been 'fortunate' enough to see this guy play and he should be amazing for us, when he adapts. There is no question that the style he's used to is very different, but he is a number 10 and he was bought when PC was looking to implement a 4-2-3-1. This change to a 4-4-2 seems to be restricting Pena.

 

It's restricting him because he likes to find space and run towards goal. When we play 4-4-2, he is squeezed between Dorrans/Jack (whoever is furthest forward) and Morelos. There's just not the space to collect and face the goal. This is a problem that PC needs to address because otherwise he's an expensive substitute player.

 

4-2-3-1 more naturally suits Pena's style, however for that to work we need to have confidence in the striker. At the time he changed formation, PC didn't have the confidence in Morelos to deliver in that role so I understand the change. Now is the time to commit one way or another. Either we put faith (there's that word again) in Morelos and go with PC's preferred setup, or we nurture him more in a 4-4-2. I suspect the former is our best bet, but it's going to mean the end of Miller and Wallace. We know about Miller's issues, but Wallace also lacks the speed and fitness now (in my opinion) to play an out and out wingback, and this is critical in a 4-2-3-1.

 

It's tactical decisions like this that PC must be thinking about every day. If he bites the bullet, makes the changes and it works, then brilliant. But if these changes don't create immediate results, his decisions will be under even greater scrutiny. That's why I'm glad he's paid the big bucks to make such decisions. The injury to Wallace gives him an opportunity to test it out, and that's why it was no surprise to me that Miller has been left out. For me it's his best opportunity to go 4-2-3-1 and test out his best team. I just want to see it, and I'd be happy to risk the result against Thistle to see how it works, because the rewards are so great if it does.

[les186 271]

Pena was a big gamble for Pedro. Hasn't the guy been out on loan for the last 2 years? But I agree that we must start playing him unless his attitude is not right.

[Tannochsidebear 2,306]

I've been 'fortunate' enough to see this guy play and he should be amazing for us, when he adapts. There is no question that the style he's used to is very different, but he is a number 10 and he was bought when PC was looking to implement a 4-2-3-1. This change to a 4-4-2 seems to be restricting Pena.

 

It's restricting him because he likes to find space and run towards goal. When we play 4-4-2, he is squeezed between Dorrans/Jack (whoever is furthest forward) and Morelos. There's just not the space to collect and face the goal. This is a problem that PC needs to address because otherwise he's an expensive substitute player.

 

4-2-3-1 more naturally suits Pena's style, however for that to work we need to have confidence in the striker. At the time he changed formation, PC didn't have the confidence in Morelos to deliver in that role so I understand the change. Now is the time to commit one way or another. Either we put faith (there's that word again) in Morelos and go with PC's preferred setup, or we nurture him more in a 4-4-2. I suspect the former is our best bet, but it's going to mean the end of Miller and Wallace. We know about Miller's issues, but Wallace also lacks the speed and fitness now (in my opinion) to play an out and out wingback, and this is critical in a 4-2-3-1.

 

It's tactical decisions like this that PC must be thinking about every day. If he bites the bullet, makes the changes and it works, then brilliant. But if these changes don't create immediate results, his decisions will be under even greater scrutiny. That's why I'm glad he's paid the big bucks to make such decisions. The injury to Wallace gives him an opportunity to test it out, and that's why it was no surprise to me that Miller has been left out. For me it's his best opportunity to go 4-2-3-1 and test out his best team. I just want to see it, and I'd be happy to risk the result against Thistle to see how it works, because the rewards are so great if it does.

 

Good analysis Gaffer, and while I havent seen as much of Pena as you, it looks to me there is some sort of player in there if we can find the right style and teammates to bring it out.

 

I am assuming you want to see Pena as the middle of the 3 in your 4-2-3-1?

[robstewart79 0]

Looking ahead to Saturday, i think we need to go 5 at the back.that way there is always a center half to shuffle over and help/cover the full back.that said i would like Wilson to play 2night to get 90mins under his belt.

With a 5-4-1 our wide men and full backs could play they're natural game. Morelos might b a bit isolated but if we can get him a couple of chances hopefully he will convert 1. After 60/70 mins we could look to change it depending on how the games going.

 

 

 

[theboyharley 5]

Pena gets into good positions but right now he isn't doing the very basics anywhere near right. His passing has been awful. He does need more time to settle but throwing him in when he's not sharp could do more harm than good.

 

I don't think we play a formation tonight with Sat in mind. I think we need to play our best team to win the game tonight. As much as we need to win an old firm game, tonight's game is arguably more important as we need to start winning cups again while trying to get closer to Celtic

 

 

 

[Gaffer 1,665]

Good analysis Gaffer, and while I havent seen as much of Pena as you, it looks to me there is some sort of player in there if we can find the right style and teammates to bring it out.

 

I am assuming you want to see Pena as the middle of the 3 in your 4-2-3-1?

 

That's correct TB, he's perfectly suited to that central role in the 3 attacking midfield positions. He's at his best when he can keep moving the ball (i.e.When he can take players on, but he's not so good when having to hold it up) and he needs someone who he can play quick one-twos with (because he's brilliant at breaking through defensive lines with these passes and runs). He would have Candeias and Morelos in particular to work with.

[Gaffer 1,665]

Looking ahead to Saturday, i think we need to go 5 at the back.that way there is always a center half to shuffle over and help/cover the full back.that said i would like Wilson to play 2night to get 90mins under his belt.

With a 5-4-1 our wide men and full backs could play they're natural game. Morelos might b a bit isolated but if we can get him a couple of chances hopefully he will convert 1. After 60/70 mins we could look to change it depending on how the games going.

 

Your point about 5 at the back is understandable. What you'll find is that it's the same reason I want PC to play his preferred 4-2-3-1. The reason I say this is because in this approach, the defensive midfielder actually drops all the way back between the central defenders (who operate a little wider than you'd expect a central pairing to do). This happens when the team gains possession, allowing the wingbacks to support the attack. This gives us 3 central 'defenders' while we retain possession and can manage defensively if required on a fast counter attack by our opponents. And you're correct, that we have very effective attacking wingbacks in both Tav and John. It also means we have two central midfielders (Dorrans and Pena, assuming Jack is the holding midfielder) who have to hold up play until the wingbacks can return to their defensive duties, if and when the opposition regains possession.

 

4-2-3-1 has become the most attractive approach for many of the top teams because it allows them to exploit the transitions as PC keeps talking about. It's very effective if done properly, but you need the right players and the discipline. I feel we've now got the right players to do this, but now we need to develop the discipline and that's what PC's drills are all about. That's what he means when he talks about 'reacting to the moments in the game'. The biggest threat to this formation and tactic is when you come up against a team that switches the ball quickly in the final third, because it leaves the team exposed, but I'll not bore you with that detail. Fortunately, in Scotland we don't have opponents with the skill to do that particularly well so this should be ideal for the Scottish game.

 

Whether PC is our long term manager or not, what I do believe is that he is building our style and approach in the right direction. It's up to him to prove he is the man to make it work. If he can't, I don't want someone else to come in and change our tactics. I just want us to commit to making this work. It could be incredibly effective for us, and that's what excites me.