Newcastle's propensity for longball has been a frequent source of distress all season. At various points in the year, all the team has been able to do is launch the ball skyward, hoping in vain that Papiss Cissé or Shola Ameobi can hold it up. Whether it is a designed approach from Alan Pardew, or a panicked reaction from players struggling under opposition pressure, it hasn't worked. Most people would tell you that given the club's mix of players, it can't work. But after watching French club AS Saint-Etienne over the past few months, I'm convinced it can - even if Newcastle fails to bring in ASSE star Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang this summer.
Saint-Etienne has enjoyed a stellar season in Ligue 1, sitting fifth in the table and among the league's scoring leaders, with a +28 goal differential. It is also a longball team, first and foremost. Though ASSE drew 0-0 against Bordeaux this past weekend, it threatened the goal time and again, creating better chances than any Newcastle fashioned in its own 0-0 draw against West Ham (Cissé should-be goal excepted). But it goes through stretches where players can't string three passes in a row together, and defenders routinely bypass the midfield when they receive the ball. Far from grinding the game to a halt, Saint-Etienne still puts pressure on the opposition during these disjointed periods.
The difference? Les Verts rarely played it slowly through the defense and back to the keeper, allowing Bordeaux's defense to get set. Everything is done quickly - free kicks, throw-ins, and long balls - in order to take advantage of a flat-footed back line. Often the ball would be played over the head of a fullback, allowing Aubameyang to win a race, rather than forcing the forward to challenge for the ball in the air.
Saint-Etienne does have a hulking center forward in Brandão, but it's not as if he's incredibly effective with his back to goal and bringing others into play. For the season, he's completed passes at a 64.7% clip according to WhoScored, a good deal lower than Cissé's 75.6% in league play. When Saint-Etienne defenders hoof it through the center, the ball frequently comes free, just as it does when Newcastle launches it to Cissé. But midfielders surge forward to win the second ball or deny the opposition space, then play a through ball while defenders scramble back to recover. It's another thing Newcastle has not done nearly enough this year.
What I'm trying to say is that this sort of play - true "front-foot football," to use Pardew's much-derided term - is something that Newcastle could put in practice this weekend with just a subtle adjustment to the approach. Yoan Gouffran and Hatem Ben Arfa have enough speed to outpace a defender caught leaning the wrong way. Yohan Cabaye should thrive in a system that lets him be a bit combative, while also allowing him to try his silky passes against a defense that's not in an optimal position. Cissé can still be effective even when he's losing the majority of his aerial battles.
Whether or not this is the right strategy in the long term is certainly debatable. But given Newcastle's inability to play the ball out of the back effectively, it is certainly far better than what we have seen much of the year.
What are your thoughts on the ideal type of striker to pair with Cisse? Should he be more big and powerful or should he be smaller and fast? I personally think a powerful striker would be a better attack partner for Cisse as he would theoretically be able to win balls down to Cisse who can then shoot off the volley or with one touch, which he seems to prefer.
Posted by: rob | 05/08/2013 at 10:51 AM
I'd like to see us try and move for Chicarito next season. I know, I know he plays for Man U but considering he has had barely any game time and even scoring a brace does not seem to get him a start the next game he might be ready for a change. Obviously he may want to stay and prove himself to Moyes or whoever comes in but I think for a decent fee between 10 and 12 mill we could have a shot at getting him.
Posted by: Charlietoon | 05/08/2013 at 11:17 AM
Maybe Mark Viduka would come out of retirement?
Posted by: JeffC | 05/08/2013 at 11:18 AM
The big difference here is execution. We can't even take a free kick or corner when the player concentrates and sets himself up, I wonder how bad it would be if we tried to rush it.
We also don't have the confidence to deliver a decent ball up front and then control it so we automatically go from the halfway line all the way back to the goalkeeper.
Pardew needs to think less about the many different tactics this weekend and more so getting the players pumped up and ready to fight for every ball, cross and half chance!
Posted by: Mathew | 05/08/2013 at 12:42 PM
this is a just a thought.. maybe edin dzeko? i dk how old he is so if fits our typical recruits but seems to get those gritty goals. also lower on the bench so could get him cheap-er ... im sure theres the andy caroll plot too but we wont get him cheap enough for a year or two.
Posted by: Jaeger | 05/08/2013 at 02:18 PM
Our biggest problem (apart from Pardwho of course) in recent years has been the relatively low number of goals scored each season. On average in the PL, since the late SBR left the club, we've managed 46 goals a season which has seen us finish in lower midtable positions more often than not.
Forwards like Shearer, Martins, Ba and now Cisse have been tasked with getting the goals yet, with the obvious exception of Kevin Nolan, we've never had midfielders who were able to step up and score a dozen or more a season to help out the main striker.
IMO what's needed is a different approach to our goalscoring problem where we employ three pacy, skillful and flexible attacking midfielders/forwards to exert pressure on opposition defences. Which could mean Cisse departing and players like Aubameyang moving in to play alongside Goof and Marv (if they stay ?). Gives defences more to worry about and puts less pressure on the midfield to support the striker.
Added to which its easier to purchase attacking mfs (capable of 10 goals a season) than it is to buy top quality (20 a season) strikers such as Falcao, Cavani and Lewandowski. None of whom would ever contemplate moving to SJP in this clubs current state :)
Posted by: AndyMac | 05/08/2013 at 02:49 PM
The long ball worked when Ba was here he could receive and play it, the only other player who can do something with it is Shola but he has no movement and needs far to long to deal with it. The reason why it is not working is that we are still playing to Ba who has gone to Chelsea (has no one told Pardew, I thought he would have known). I would like to ask how many goals have we scored from corners since Pardew came, no seriously I would like to know.
Have you watched how how carefully Cabaye places the ball and repositions it 3 or 4 times before taking the corner it is as if he doesn't want to take it in the 1st place, perhaps Perch should take our corners.
Back to the long ball, Andy Carrol might be our answer but do we want to play that style of football just like Stoke and West Ham, we should be better than that.
Posted by: greg | 05/14/2013 at 09:27 AM