Stoke 2-1 Newcastle - Alan Pardew Stubbornly Sticks With Rigid 4-4-2 in Defeat
Last night was a real slog. Despite the current popularity of a fluid 4-2-3-1 formation, Newcastle and Stoke both came out with very old-fashioned line-ups. Stoke played 4-5-1 with Peter Crouch leading the line, whereas Newcastle continued to persist with 4-4-2, despite the formation bringing no joy in their last 3 Premier League encounters (when Big Sam is more tactically diverse than you, you know youre in trouble)..Newcastle went ahead thanks to Asmir Begovic spilling Demba Bas effort into the path of Papiss Cisse shortly after half time but the Toon couldnt hold on. Cameron Jeromes arrival from the bench sparked a revival for the home team with the striker going on to create the equalizer and then score the winner. Despite all Pardews talk of hard-work and unlucky, this was yet another ghastly performance from the boys in black and white. The once-dubbed Pardiola is right to deflect criticism away from his players, because hes well-aware its his tactics and line-ups which deserve all the derision and scorn. Flash back to the start of the season, Newcastle had won 1, drawn 1 and lost 1; a truly mediocre start to what looks to be a mediocre (lets hope its not any worse) season. Fans, myself included, clamoured for a 4-3-3 formation; something which worked so well towards the end of last season when Newcastle won 7 games on the bounce and propelled themselves into a challenge for the Champions League. A few weeks later, after a very encouraging performance in the Europa League (3-0 against Bordeaux) Pardew decided the time was right to give the formation a go in the Premier League. Away. At Everton. A side who are, lets not be coy about it, competing for the Champions League this season and it was obvious even then that theyre going to be a tough opposition for any side, never mind at home. It may seem disrespectful to question the judgement of a manager who last season defied all expectation and took Newcastle to 5th place in the Premier League but if theres one thing Everton are renowned for, this season more than any other, its width (specifically the attacking prowess of Leighton Baines and Steven Pienaar). One thing 4-3-3 does not afford you is defensive width and when your right back is James Perch (Danny Simpson was injured) you should be worried. Oh, and there was no Cheik Tiote, Newcastles main source of steal in midfield, who was replaced by Jonas Gutierrez who, despite his willingness to run himself into the ground, doesnt have the technique nor intelligence to act as a defensive pivot. Newcastle got cut apart in the opening 20 minutes, conceding chance after chance to a rampaging Everton. Pardew, alert to the danger and allowed flexibility thanks to the versatility of players like Gutierrez and Perch, quickly changed back to 4-4-2 which stemmed the tide and Newcastle salvaged a draw (albeit very fortunately). Since then the manager has been loathe to experiment again, despite it being obvious that 4-4-2 doesnt work with the players at his disposal. Its true Newcastle are currently a side ravaged by injuries (No S. Taylor, R. Taylor, Cabaye, Ameobi, Ben Arfa, Vuckic or Obertan) but even with a fully fit side 4-4-2 would lead us on a path to defeat. When Newcastle signed Senegalese striker Papiss Cisse from Freidburg, Newcastle fans dreamt of a world-beating partnership between him and Demba Ba, one which would cause defences across the Premier League to quake in fear. Almost a year on and that dream has very much failed to become a reality. Despite the national connection the two simply dont work well together. Rather than one dropping deep (Rooney and RVP) or one looking for the flick on (Heskey and Owen) both try to be the same player. The pair often get isolated with too much space between the attack and midfield. This leads to the much-derided hoofball (Newcastle are highest in the League this season for long balls, a stat no one should be proud of). Given our current tactic Ameobi is a much better partner to either Ba or Cisse; hes a more effective target man who can bring the ball down on his chest and open the game up for our midfielders to come forward. That gap (chasm would be more appropriate at certain times) is made even worse by Newcastles lack of attacking drive in midfield, especially with Yohan Cabaye injured. The Frenchman is wasted in a 2 man midfield; it stifles him with defensive work (something hes not shy of) and doesnt allow him to get forward, where he can create and support the strikers (much as he did towards the sharp end of last season). As mentioned previously, 4-4-2 is a good formation to use if you want to attack (and defend) through width... Newcastle fall down here again. Ben Arfa, the clubs star player, is asked to do too much defensively and, as a result, picks up the ball far too deep to be effective. In order to be most effective he should be getting the ball further up the pitch, near the final third, and attack the back line directly, rather than having to beat an extra midfielder. Gutierrez is first choice for the left wing but few would call him a winger. Hes extremely defensive-minded and is rarely seen taking on his man (and even rarely seen beating him), hes much more likely to play the ball back to central midfield and start the process over again. Last night, with Vurnon Anita playing right wing (ahead of Marveaux and Sammy Ameobi) between them Newcastles wide midfielders didnt attempt a single dribble. In fact, the only midfielder to be direct and run with the ball was Cheik Tiote, a player not renowned for his fancy footwork. Whats more baffling is that Anita was thought to be signed with Pardews eyes on a 4-3-3, with the diminutive Dutchman partnering Tiote as a double pivot (destroyer/distributor) with Cabaye in a more advanced role. Whilst its obvious that Anitas acclimatization to English football is taking longer than expected, is the solution to this problem really to stick him on the right wing, a position with which he has no experience? Why not pick Marveaux, who had a solid game against Maritimo, or Sammy Ameobi whose done well when given the minutes. The decision to stick Anita out there would be more understandable if Newcastle had a rampaging right back who would often get forward and leave himself exposed defensively (which Anita would then cover) but they dont. They have Danny Simpson; a player with negligible pace and a shocking delivery. There is yet another problem with Newcastles dependance on 4-4-2; it helps if your players match the formation. Hatem Ben Arfa is very much left footed, so when played on the right he has a disposition to cut inside and, therefore, not deliver the sort of cross that your front men would thrive on. This wouldnt be a problem if Simpson was an attacking right back, looking to overlap but, as previously explained, hes not. The problem is mirrored on the left wing, Santon (easily Newcastles best player in the last 4 defeats, although thats not saying much) is right footed but playing at left back which means when he gets into an advanced position, hes also likely to cut inside shoot/pass rather than cross. The question has to be asked, with all this evidence, why is Pardew sticking so rigidly to 4-4-2? With a squad currently decimated by injuries and players exhausted due to the Europa League schedule, he could perhaps be hesitant to try something new. With Ameobi unfit (along with youth striker Adam Campbell) Pardew appears loathe to drop Cisse or Ba to the bench, for different reasons. Ba because hes currently the man in form and has a worrying amount of player-power thanks to his £7 million buy-out clause thats active in every transfer window. His knee is a gamble but all it takes is one flutter by a striker-starved Liverpool (or even QPR with their exorbitant wages) to rid us of our prime goal-scorer. Cisse is another matter. Clearly lacking confidence in front of goal Pardew is desperate to get him back to the unstoppable goal-scoring machine he was last season and the longer he lingers on the bench the more confidence hell lose and its clear from the start of this season that Cisse is a player who needs confidence to be effective. So with Wigan approaching on Monday evening what should Alan Pardew do, stick or twist? Wigan tore Newcastle apart last season 4-0 at the DW Stadium as the Magpies struggled to adapt to Wigans unconventional 3-4-3. Last night League Champions Manchester City struggled with Roberto Martinezs men until they mirrored the formation themselves in the last 20 minutes (hauling off the awful Javi Garcia didnt hurt) and promptly scored 2 goals. With Steven Taylor out until February the option of a back 3 is very unlikely, unless utility-man Perch drops back from midfield but then youre relying upon Danny Simpson to be your defensive and offensive width, something any Newcastle fan would be scared of. More depressing news is that aside from Ba and Cisse, the clubs only other current attacking option is chronically late Nile Ranger. Whilst he was considered a hot prospect a few years ago, run-ins with the police and shoddy time-keeping have seen his star wane and almost evaporate. Its a sign of desperation from Pardew that he got any minutes at all last night. As Christmas (and an intensive fixture list) rears its head, its pointless to look back at last season and wonder what happened to the team that trounced Manchester United, beat Chelsea and, yes, dominated Stoke away. The fact is Newcastle United are in a nose dive, racing rivals Sunderland into the relegation zone with every match played. Steve Taylor and Yohan Cabaye are out until February, question marks surround the seriousness of Ben Arfas hamstring injury and right now, regardless of formation, every game looks tough. Even more-so than formation the question on everybodys lips is reinforcements... will the team get any? Pardiola best get praying, after all... tis the season.