Tippy Tappy football

andrewmswift

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In recent months there's been no end to the derision directed at our "tippy tappy" football.

Yet tonight, we turned in a dominant offensive performance with just that style. We scored all four goals through the middle of the pitch and it is where the majority of our other chances came. It was NOT width that created our goals tonight. And we've not heard a peep of complaint about it.

What this signals to me is that the frustration has not been that we were playing "tippy tappy" football, but that we weren't playing it well enough. This is due to Silva being horrifically off form, Balotelli erratic and Dzeko (who's not quite suited to this style anyway) largely non-existent.

It's also due to our ball pressure being significantly less intense than it has been when we've been on form this season. But tonight with a fourth high workrate, close down, defend from the front type player (Tevez) West Brom had great difficulty grabbing extended possession.

When you have four high work rate players (and I think Silva and Nasri are both overlooked in this regard), and add in a player or two here or there at certain times (Barry, Clichy, Yaya is also excellent in this regard etc) it creates real confusion in the opposing ranks and leads to turnovers in dangerous areas.

Yes, this all sounds common sense but it's what we've been missing. We've not harried our opposition enough, which even if it doesn't lead to a goal it establishes momentum in our favor and instills confidence in the team.

What this says to me is that when Tevez goes (as he will) and Dzeko too, we should be looking at players like Lavezzi, who also has a high workrate and closes players down consistently throughout matches. (I do not know if Hazard has a similar style, so can't comment.) In fact, rather than going after another big striker (we'll have Mario, who I expect we'll keep perhaps largely because we won't get an adequate transfer fee, and Guidetti will return) we should be targeting two quick, tippy tappy players, leaving us with something like this in terms of depth:

Aguero
Silva
Nasri
Lavezzi
Hazard
Balotelli
Guidetti

Is this overkill? I don't think so when you consider that its basically two CAM/wide attacking midfielders (Silva, Nasri), three out and out strikers (Aguero, Balotelli, Guidetti), and two wide forwards (READ: NOT TRADITIONAL WINGERS) (Lavezzi, Hazard).

Add in Martinez (who can slot in at CB if required, meaning we don't have to sign another "world class" CB if we keep Kolo, which I expect we will) when De Jong goes (he didn't sign a contract on 100,000 GBP, and his value has gone down, but he won't think it), and offload AJ if we can get 12 million GBP out of him, and our transfer dealings would not be that far from breaking even.

Out:
Tevez: 25 million
Dzeko: 20 million
De Jong: 12 million
AJ: 12 million

Total: ~70 million GBP

In:
Hazard: 30 million
Lavezzi: 25 million
Martinez: 15-20 million

Total: ~70-75 million GBP

Throw in the transfer fees for Adebayor, Santa Cruz, and the other hanger ons, and we'll also be looking to add a regista. And that would make this a COMPLETE, four fronts competing — and CL winners quality — squad.

And it'll play tippy tappy football.
 
Our style of play is way more skillful than the Rags technically limited wing play. Unfortunately, if we are not quite on our game it is more difficult to eek out a result than when they bang it to the wings and launch it back into the middle. Over the course of a season we need a plan B and not just a slow winger who plays on his wrong side so he can cut inside. Basically we should get Bale.
 
I didn't see the game live or in full, only highlights on MotD. Are you saying that the team still continued with the tippy tappy passing square and backwards around the centre circle? That was my complaint; not that the team were doing rapid interchange passes around the opponent's box - rather that they weren't doing enough of that!
 
Gingers Dad said:
Our style of play is way more skillful than the Rags technically limited wing play. Unfortunately, if we are not quite on our game it is more difficult to eek out a result than when they bang it to the wings and launch it back into the middle. Over the course of a season we need a plan B and not just a slow winger who plays on his wrong side so he can cut inside. Basically we should get Bale.

Both Lavezzi and Hazard are like Bale, only better and cheaper.<br /><br />-- Thu Apr 12, 2012 1:07 am --<br /><br />
HorshamBlue said:
I didn't see the game live or in full, only highlights on MotD. Are you saying that the team still continued with the tippy tappy passing square and backwards around the centre circle? That was my complaint; not that the team were doing rapid interchange passes around the opponent's box - rather that they weren't doing enough of that!

Right, that's precisely what I'm saying. But it's not the traditional "width" that people have been calling for.

And yes, we did keep possession at or slightly ahead of the circle for a large part of the game. It's just that our forays forward were infinitely more crisp and executed, and our high tempo ball pressure allowed us to win the ball in dangerous areas and rattle the defense.
 
I have no problem with Levezzi or Hazard they both look fantastic players but I haven't seen much of them. I mentioned Bale because I think he's been consistently good for two seasons in the Premier League. He also has the directness we are looking for in our Plan B.
 
We need to mix it up and that is why our away form is poor. There was still too much 'tippy tappy' especially in the first half. It is too easy to defend against at times especially when it is played in front of teams with 11 men behind the ball and also as we lack any real pace.
 
Balo wasn't playing, that is all. I mean he always falls to the floor when someone just stands next to him and that slows us down.
 
I just went and rewatched the goals.

1st: Lescott and Barry ball pressure at midfield touch line, give away, Barry and Nasri combine center-left of pitch, Aguero fed into center, charges into center, goal.

Tevez chance skewed well wide: Again, build up center-left of pitch, Aguero, Silva, and Nasri interchange. Nasri and Aguero combine on a 1-2, Nasri dribbles forward, feeds Tevez, who returns to Nasri (miscontrol, can't shoot), who passes back to Tevez.

Silva chance, saved by Foster: Move started when Richards was fed wide, then chipped into box which Silva ran onto, tried to fed Tevez but overhit the pass. Tevez closes down defender who lumps it upfield right to De Jong, who eventually feeds it to Aguero center of pitch, 35 yards out, who combines with Silva on the edge of the box, in turn plays a 1-2 with Tevez, Tevez' back to goal, flicks it back into Silva's pass who shoots, Foster saves and gathers.

Richards chance, blocked by defender: Nasri to Clichy on left, BACK to Nasri, passes to Barry to his right, who feeds Tevez in the middle, 30 yards out, who slots in a nice through ball for Micah.

2nd: Tevez with ball in center of pitch, tries to chip through to Aguero, blocked by defender, bounces up to Nasri, can't control it, falls to Silva, who passes back to Nasri (no more than 3-4 yards away), who slots in Aguero.

Nasri chance just wide: Richards and Silva press high up the pitch on touchline, Richards wins it, finds Tevez in middle, who slots to Nasri who shoots just wide.

3rd: Nasri finds Tevez, just to the left of the box, who cuts back infield, finds Nasri again, who slots in Aguero who cutsback on the line to Tevez.

4th: We all remember Clichy's insane ball pressure, results in the mistake just in our attacking side, Aguero to Silva.

All tippy tappy, mostly short passing on the ground, in the middle third of the pitch.
 
It's an education thing. Ask Brendan Rodgers about the biggest factors in Swansea's development as a team that plays excellent and effective football and he will cite the crowd as one of the biggest factors.

Over the course of several years, beginning with Martinez, that crowd has bought into the fact that "tippy tappy football" is not "fannying around with it". Passing backwards and sideways is not a waste of time and they do not need to "get it forward".

At most clubs, including City, you get a crowd that react in a ridiculous way when a team plays consistently plays quality football in this style and results aren't coming freely.

It is outrageous that this City team, who in the first half of the season were the best footballing team seen in this country for years, destroying teams, get grief off parts of their own crowd for playing this way when they hit a sticky patch of form.

If anything they should get grief for not committing fully to "tippy tappy" in the second half of the season.
 

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