Премьер лигийн эхний тоглолтуудад довтолгооны хурц тоглолт үзүүлж буй Фулхэм хамгаалалтын асуудлаа шийдвэрлэх шаардлагатай тулгарлаа.
Альваро Арбелоагийн удирдлага дор Фулхэм эхний тоглолтуудад 50 удаа хаалга руу чиглэсэн цохилт гүйцэтгэж, өрсөлдөгчийнхөө торгуулийн талбайд хамгийн олон удаа бөмбөг хүрсэн баг болсон байна. Гэсэн хэдий ч багийн довтолгооны хэт өндөр байрлал, бүтцийн алдаа нь Челси болон Кристал Пэлас зэрэг багуудад сөрөг довтолгооны олон боломжийг олгож, хамгаалалтыг нь хүнд байдалд оруулж байна. Тухайлбал, улирлын нээлтийн тоглолтод 31 дэх секундэд гоол алдсан нь багийн хамгаалалтын тэнцвэргүй байдлын анхны дохио байв.
Фулхэмийн хамгаалагчид болох Калвин Басси болон Йоахим Андерсен нар сөрөг довтолгооны үед хангалттай дэмжлэг авч чадахгүй байгаа нь гол дутагдал болон хувирчээ. Төвийн хагас хамгаалагч Шей Чарльз хамгаалалтад ганцаараа үлдэж байгаа нь өрсөлдөгчийн хурдтай довтолгоог зогсооход хүндрэлтэй байна. Энэ нь Кристал Пэласын эсрэг тоглолтод Даичи Камадагийн гоол оруулсан нөхцөл байдлаас тодорхой харагдсан бөгөөд багийн тоглогчид бөмбөгөө алдсаны дараа 60 гаруй метр гүйж, хамгаалалтад эргэн орохдоо эмх цэгцээ алдаж байв.
Арбелоа ирэх долоо хоногт Ливерпүүлтэй хийх тоглолтын өмнө тактикийн өөрчлөлт хийх шаардлагатай байна. Шинэ цэрэг Давид Аффенгруберийг багийн бүрэлдэхүүнд оруулж, хамгаалалтын шугамыг тав болгон өөрчлөх эсвэл нэг жигүүрийн хамгаалагчийг довтолгоонд оролцуулахгүй байх хувилбаруудыг авч үзэх боломжтой. Хэрэв эдгээр асуудлыг шийдвэрлэж чадахгүй бол Манчестер Юнайтед болон бусад өрсөлдөгчийн эсрэг тоглолтуудад дахин хүндрэл учирч, Арбелоагийн ажлын байранд эрсдэл үүсэх магадлалтай байна.
Дэлгэрэнгүйг эх сурвалжаас харах
↓Эх сурвалжийг нээх ↓
Alvaro Arbeloa’s Fulham have been an exhilarating watch across the early weeks of the Premier League season, but the free-flowing attacking football at Craven Cottage has come at a cost.
No team has taken more touches in the attacking penalty area, while only Manchester City have attempted more shots on goal than the London side’s 50. But Fulham’s desire to pin the opposition back under Arbeloa is leaving them exposed to the counter-attack, opening spaces that Chelsea and Crystal Palace have been all too happy to exploit.
The first warning sign landed alarmingly early for Arbeloa, watching his team concede just 31 seconds into the season opener.
Straight away, Fulham look to build up with their centre-backs wide and both full-backs — Antonee Robinson and Timothy Castagne — pushed right up the pitch. In the sequence below, goalkeeper Bernd Leno moves the ball out wide to Jorge Cuenca in frame two. The defender attempts a long pass, while the midfield three run forward in anticipation of the knockdown.
Instead, Chelsea’s Maxence Lacroix heads the ball straight back over them, and Fulham are caught flat-footed; full-backs are out of position and the midfield is easily bypassed as Cole Palmer picks up the ball between the lines and slips it through the gap for Joao Pedro to score.
While an extreme example, almost a freak accident from kick-off, it is a goal that helps to display some of the perils of Fulham’s risky build-up shape.
Most teams will leave a “rest defence” structure of three defenders and two midfielders (or vice versa) behind the play when they move forward with the ball. Enzo Maresca’s Manchester City are taking new risks this season, with only Elliot Anderson back to protect the three central defenders while his midfield partners look to get on the ball in the attacking third.
By contrast, Fulham are pushing both full-backs on, while only the deepest midfielder (and occasionally Alex Iwobi on the left) are nearby to protect the centre-backs if the ball is lost. That is allowing teams to get at Calvin Bassey and Joachim Andersen quickly when they nick the ball, meaning Fulham have to scramble backwards and cover a lot of space when possession is lost.
Here is an example of that shape against Crystal Palace. It allows for some neat combinations down either side, with triangles forming between Iwobi, Robinson and Cesar Palacios on the left, as well as Josh King, Castagne and Oscar Bobb on the opposite flank.
But when the ball was lost, Shea Charles was often the only midfielder on hand to help sweep up ahead of the centre-backs. Andersen in particular has struggled with such an aggressive role, where recovery pace and stomping channel defending are required to keep the shape.
Just five minutes later, Palace are able to break through, as Daichi Kamada scores a goal ruled out for a marginal offside.
Fulham continue to play on the front foot, until a loose touch allows their opponents to clear. The ball falls to Andersen, who attempts to play a first-time pass back down the line. As we can see, full-backs are high, while King and Palacios have made their way into the box.
Andersen’s pass is intercepted, and Palace waste no time in looking to attack Fulham’s open shape.
The centre-back is dragged out wide to track Eddie Nketiah’s run, while Charles pushes on to mark Adam Wharton, which allows for an easy pass forward into Kamada.
Kamada takes the ball in and plays another quick forward pass down the line, releasing Nketiah — who had been selected ahead of the less pacy Jorgen Strand Larsen — in a race with Andersen…
… and although the Dane does well to delay Nketiah on this occasion, the speed with which Fulham have to retreat leaves them disorganised as they attempt to get behind the ball.
Nketiah plays the ball back to Yeremy Pino, who has time to pick out a cross. Fulham’s centre-backs are far apart, and players who have had to run 60 yards back towards their own goal are unsurprisingly letting runners go.
Bassey and Robinson fail to sort out their marking responsibilities in the middle, and Kamada is allowed to ghost into the space to volley home.
Fulham’s current rest-defence shape leads to frantic back-tracking defending, while the opposition can pull the centre-back partnership across the pitch with passes in behind and switches into the channels. In an era of increased physicality and box-to-box athleticism throughout the Premier League, such openings are going to be punished by expert counter-attacking teams.
Those distances are something that we can see from the pass networks below. While link-up triangles on either side of the pitch were threatening against Chelsea and Palace, with Castagne and Bobb contributing to many of Fulham’s most threatening attacks, Bassey was too far away from his opposite centre-back in both games, while Sander Berge and Charles were left with too much space to cover in front.
Though the intent is exciting, Arbeloa’s side have so far been unable to capitalise on their own opportunities to make their high-risk strategy look like something that can realistically be sustained.
So, what now? With a trip to Liverpool this week — a team who thrive on transition under Andoni Iraola, showcasing their abilities to scythe through a high line against Ipswich Town last week — Arbeloa should be considering a reshuffle.
One option would be to only attack with one full-back, leaving the other to tuck in and form a rest defence shape of three. That would allow Andersen to move into a central defensive role and inject pace to the wide areas, with either Castagne on the right of a back three or Robinson on the left.
It is a similar approach to what Marco Silva employed throughout his Fulham career, and while it may take away from the potency of their attacking play, it should give them a little more cover when the ball is turned over.
Another option is to tweak the formation and switch to a five-at-the-back shape with wing-backs. That will allow Castagne and Robinson to continue getting forward to provide width, while sacrificing one of the midfielders for an extra player in the back line.
Fulham signed centre-back David Affengruber from Spanish side Elche on deadline day; he was one of La Liga’s most incisive progressive passers last season, while he was accustomed to holding a high line for an ambitious, possession-heavy side. That should allow him to slot into the right-sided role, again offering more protection and playing to the strengths of Andersen by moving him to the centre.
Further forward, King and Bobb would suit No 10 roles behind the dynamic Gonzalo Garcia. New signing Hugo Larsson would add protection alongside the reliable Berge, while Iwobi could be used interchangeably between central and attacking midfield roles.
It will be fascinating to see how Arbeloa approaches his return to Anfield, with another game against a strong counter-attacking side in Manchester United to come before the international break. If they go for it again, and concede heavily, he may not be given his chance to attack Ipswich, Hull City and Coventry City in the weeks to come.
It is a question of stick or twist that could cost Arbeloa his job.
