Jon Guy says…
I don’t think there will be a major change in thinking. He will set the team up to win and I expect to see a lot more from the team in terms of application on Monday.
The big question is who does he put
in to replace Xhaka. Diarra and Talbi need to be back in the side and I would think he will change it up after Saturday.
I think his only thought will be three points especially with the home momentum. I cannot see RLB telling the team to play for a draw, not with respect against Burnley.
John Wilson says…
I don’t think RLB is a knee-jerk kind of coach. He’ll approach the game against Burnley in the same methodical and pragmatic way he always does. Whatever his approach, I will also get my backing, as he has a ton of credit in the bank as far as I’m concerned.
It is the players themselves who have to approach the game differently. It’s very easy to point the finger at the manager after a defeat, and the players avoid direct criticism. For me, the display against West Ham lacked passion, commitment and aggression. They weren’t as hungry as The Irons is how Sadiki put it. Thanks to that result, I think the players will be hungry on Monday night, not just to put last week’s poor performance to bed, but also to repay that first away day debacle. When RLB sends a team out, I’d assume total focus and hard pressing is required to make a success of the given tactics — that didn’t happen last week. I expect there to be a total team effort on Monday, also proving we’re not just a ‘Xhaka team’.
I’d assume Diarra will start, and I’d also be surprised if Hume wasn’t captain again.
Malc Dugdale says…
While I do think the gaffer will have one eye on the unbeaten home record, he will also want to draw a line under what was a poor away showing at West Ham and give us our best chance of another three vital points.
There wasn’t a lot that was good about that last game, other than Brian Brobbey in my view; the shape didn’t work for the first 45, the personnel didn’t really fit into what shape was proposed and on top of that a lot of the lads just weren’t at the races or proper up for it, which is odd for our group.
I can see some players like Geertruida featuring to balance the lack of Granit a bit better, and we will likely see more from Diarra who looked quite dynamic and up for it when he came on.
I’d expect to see less of Mundle, maybe with Adingra or Talbi coming back in to offer more threat and better ball retention wide left. I’d also like to see Mayenda stay on the park, but pushed out wide right to give us the width opposite Adingra/Talbi, though I’m aware Diarra can play right midfield as well, so that’s one for the coach to work out. The jury is surely out on the Hume right-midfielder idea for a spell, as that worked ok with Xhaka marshalling but was a sad mess last weekend.
The one place I expect least change is the defence. Tho Trai was poor at The Hammers, at home he and Reinildo are generally very reliable. That said, we have Cirkin chomping at the bit and Mukiele is close to undroppable despite last weekend.
This is the second chance for Régis to find a way to cope and thrive without Xhaka, but with the challenge of also preserving our home record. He will also want to avoid a season double against a team way poorer than us on any given day, so it will be interesting to see how the French genius sets us up and how it pans out.
I trust in Reg to get us something, and with a few more somethings and we are well safe, which continues to be the first real target for us to achieve this winter.
