Les Parry’s reign as caretaker manager is now 3 games old- 1 win and 2 defeats, which while still not great has at least seen an upturn in effort and desire from the beleaguered Rovers side.
One of the main changes under ‘Discopants’ is the formation- from John Barnes alien 4-2-2-2 to a heavily protective 4-3-3. Les has made his reasons for this very clear- to stop the rot at the back, and stem the gaping holes in a Rovers rearguard that has slipped to a -18 goal difference in the opening three months of the season.
The last time Rovers employed this system was early last season under Ronnie Moore. During pre-season it looked particularly impressive with free flowing football and attacking verve culminating in a comfortable 1-0 win over Blackpool, with the only goal coming from Charlie Barnett. Once the season started however, the formation proved too lightweight in midfield and Ronnie quickly abandoned it in favour of his usual 4-4-2.
Going further back, most Rovers fans will associate the 4-3-3 with John Aldridge. In a system that brought the heights of a Wembley appearance and 6th round appearance in the FA cup, Aldridge utilised a midfield trio of Mahon, Gary Jones and Nick Henry, with Taylor and Parkinson supporting the likes of Ned Kelly or Wayne Allison as the target man.
So what are the benefits this time round? Well from first impressions, it seems Parry is looking to use the two wider forwards as support for the midfield, defending from the front and making the opposition work to break us down. The trio of Moore, Gornell and Curran have interchanged continually and worked tirelessly, somewhat to the detriment of their attacking threat, and Parry has acknowledged this as a neccessary sacrifice.
In midfield, McLaren has played a deep lying role behind the ball winners, Edds and Welsh, which has had mixed success. While it does in theory give us options, and McLaren the chance to prove he can pick a pass, the lack of movement in attacking postions has more often then not led to him losing the ball or going backwards. Edds however has been a revelation, becoming somewhat of a fans favourite by giving 100% for the cause.
From a defensive perspective, Parry seems to have improved things. 2 goals conceded in 3, and a much stronger backbone to the team than before. The main concern though is the lack of someone to put the ball in the net. Only 1 goal scored in his 3 matches in charge, and yet numerous chances created, particularly for Curran- worryingly Ian Thomas-Moore has been a peripheral figure, and seems unsuited to the role. The solution may be to shake things up up front. The front 3 are all similar in build and ability- someone like Ricketts as the focal point could make a massive difference; or perhaps using Shuker or Mahon out wide ahead of Gornell could bring some much needed creativity.
Personally though, I think once the ship is steadied, the defence more confident and a new man is in charge, a return to 4-4-2 could be our salvation. For the moment though, we can only hope one of the forward players finally finds the net in what could be a crucial 125th anniversary match on saturday.
5-3-2 to shore up the defence. Ash Taylor in between Goodison and Broomes. Clean sheets bring confidence and we can build from there. Keep it tight in League One and you always get chances – 1-0 wins took us to just outside the playoffs last season and will steer us to safety this.
I think 4-3-3 only works if you’ve got a big man down the middle to hold the ball up for the midfielders bombing on. At the moment when we’re defending Curran and Gornell are forced back to defend, leaving Moore isolated up top [mind you they chop and change so much it could be any of them as the central forward]. None of them really have the stature to play the role
I’d like to see more legs in midfield, i think McClaren’s been given enough time now. Some youthful legs in there could really make a difference