I'm posting this on the Lescott thread but, in truth, it could be posted on about half a dozen "this is how we should play in defence etc" threads also. So, if it's out of place, apologies...
There's a danger, in all of this, that Lescott (good player, that he is) is starting to be seen as a sort of magic bullet; the immediate cure-all for all of our defensive woes. Personally, I'm not so sure that he's actually as good as all that! To be fair, nobody has suggested that the defence won't need time to gel - but, the trouble is, everybody will be subscribing to their own theory on just how much time is long enough and, in that case, we probably won't have to wait until Halloween before the first of the Stadler and Waldorf brigade start to climb on every defender's backs (as opposed to just Dunney's) with their well-rehearsed torrents of abuse. God knows, we might never sign Lescott (I hope we do) but even before we have done, it seems like the pressure is starting to build on him, already. Hardly sane, is it? "We need a left-sided centre back" has become this year's "we need a target man" and, you know what? It might just be a knee jerk reaction on all our parts.
Don't get me wrong, I'm not arguing that our defence has been looking comfortable for anything like a long time now - and heaven knows we've tried enough formations in the Hughes era. What I am arguing is that when a corner comes zinging into our box, it doesn't much matter if the player hoofing it away is doing so with his left or right boot. No amount of extra left sided players is going to make up for our woeful lack of composure, in dealing with crosses, as much as the players on the pitch actually playing to the defensive system to be employed on such occasions. (I'm presuming here that there is one (just as Hughes had at Blackburn) and that Micah (for example) admiring the Tim Cahills of this world as the outjump him, isn't part of said plan).
True, a left-sided centre back may be of more use to us when the likes of Theo Walcott are running at the right side of our defence - but most of our problems in this area have had as much to do with a weakness at left back (Bridge was woeful at times, last year) and a reluctance to track back from our left wingers (although Robinho did improve greatly as the season progressed) as to whether Richard Dunne (for example) is a 'southpaw' or not.
With the exception of Nedum, not one of our defenders could hold their head up at the end of last season. Previously, they all enjoyed big (and deserved) reputations in the game. Various individual reasons for the loss of form could be mooted (Micah's loss of focus - whatever he says, himself; Bridge's ring rustiness; Dunne with a new baby in the house to distract him/ just getting old/ suffering under the burden of captaincy in the new goldfish bowl mentality) but whatever the reasons, this is professional football - at the business end, too - and they should all be drinking at the last chance saloon if they don't show a marked willingness to improve and adapt to the proposed defensive strategy. Or to put that another way, Hughesy may have to give them a right, good boll***ing and remind them that the door works both ways before things start to improve - and that's regardless of whether Lescott comes or not.
