What is the preferable Centre-half pairing? | Vital Football

What is the preferable Centre-half pairing?

cherryexile

cherryexile

Vital 1st Team Regular
So if we can keep them happy, and fit (!), what is the order, debate,

Right-Centre Left-Centre
Montsma Walsh
Jackson Melbourne

Cover for both Eyoma
 
Can I choose Beckenbauer and Schwarzenbeck?

Failing that, I would certainly have Eyoma in there, although my own preference would be at right-back. That is not a comment on Poole.

So: Eyoma, Montsma, Walsh, Edun.
 
On experience and known quality, Jackson and Walsh.

But they are both fragile. Eyoma and Montsma both now have a season under their belt and are gaining in assurance and experience. Likelihood is they'll each play over half the league games and we should be confident in their ability to perform to a high standard.

Max covers at CB and LB but may well now be released, he showed at times tonight he's got the qualities MA expects in his CBs there a greater sense of a mistake. More experience might deal with that but he's likely to be 5th choice for one of 2 places and 3rd for 1 more.
 
Horses for courses. Montsma is the first name for a game where we will dominate the ball and is the biggest set piece threat by far. Important if we are breaking down unadventurous teams.

Jackson and Walsh together for a very tough away game. That's probably where I would lean if everyone is actually fit.
 
Montsma and Walsh for me. Not only for their defensive ability, which is probably only similar to Jackson, TJ and Melbourne, but for their ability to bring the ball out from the back.

TJ and Tayo for full backs, but Poole is definitely improving game by game.
 
mikeosullivan said:
Montsma and Walsh for me. Not only for their defensive ability, which is probably only similar to Jackson, TJ and Melbourne, but for their ability to bring the ball out from the back.

TJ and Tayo for full backs, but Poole is definitely improving game by game.
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Poole is the best all round right back in the club, that was MA's choice last season and with a preseason, that ship has sailed. TJ covers that role and will have significant involvement at CB.
 
We've gone from no defenders to which quality players do we leave out

I think TJ in the long term will be a CB. If Walsh is fit he should be first choice CB.
 
Chesterimp said:
Poole is the best all round right back in the club, that was MA's choice last season and with a preseason, that ship has sailed. TJ covers that role and will have significant involvement at CB.
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until 7pm tonight, poole was the only right back at the club. imo he is a very good defensive fullback, yet to see signs of great attacking ability/crossing coming through. and of course he missed a fair chunk of pre-season. but it is great that there is now real competition in that position, and tj has had a fair chunk of pre-season being coached by nuno santo at European super league level, so he could well have improved even more.
 
s unbalanced now, in a sense. Right sided CB, we have a choice of TJ, Monstma and Jackson, whereas left CB we have Walsh and Melbourne. I’d happily pick any one of the three right sided CBs but Walsh is the standout left sided CB. Melbourne is great cover, but Walsh is calmer, reads the game better and is better at bringing the ball out of defence.
 
PerthImp said:
s unbalanced now, in a sense. Right sided CB, we have a choice of TJ, Monstma and Jackson, whereas left CB we have Walsh and Melbourne. I’d happily pick any one of the three right sided CBs but Walsh is the standout left sided CB. Melbourne is great cover, but Walsh is calmer, reads the game better and is better at bringing the ball out of defence.
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We also have Roughan, a left sided CB who has been playing at left back.
 
Pompeyimp2 said:
What is a Centre Half?
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For the younger of us;

Technically the Centre-Half is the number 5, centre-midfield player in a traditional 2-3-5 formation, flanked on either side by numbers 4 and 6, the left-half and right-half.

When formations morphed into four at the back, two of the half line dropped back to play in between the two full-backs, numbers 2 and 3 to become the centre-backs we know of today, but they were also referred to as centre-halves.

2-3-5
1 goalkeeper
2 Right back 3 Left back
4 right half 5 centre-half 6 left half
7 outside right 8 inside right 9 centre forward 10 inside left 11 outside left
 
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On the topic of historical drivel, the phrases 'back to square one' and 'route one' refer back to a time in the 1920's and '30's when (pre-television) radio commentary chose to divide the pitch into imaginary squares which were printed in the Radio Times and referenced during the game in order to help the listener identify which part of the pitch the ball was in, so a pass 'back to square one' was pass back to the keeper (who could pick the ball up at the time) and a 'route one' ball was a kick that missed out the middle squares and went straight into the oppositions 'square one'.

Except that none of the above is actually true. While the 'rectangles' existed there is no known surviving reference to 'back to square one' in the commentaries and the phrase didn't appear anywhere in print until the 1950's (and then in references to Snakes and Ladders). Another urban myth I'm afraid.
 
Agree with Rasen really.

Walsh and Jackson are the strongest CB pairing at the Club IMO because they tick three boxes - experience, good on the ball, aggressive.

I'm not suggesting we chop and change a CB pairing depending on a home or away game, I don't think that'd be a good idea, but they're your away match type pairing.

Montsma is a bigger threat from set pieces and perhaps better than Jackson at threading those balls into midfield (Rochdale away last season sticks out) but he's not willing to go and smash through someone like Jackson and be as aggressive in aerial duels.

TJ will end up a similar standard to Walsh and be as well rounded IMO. He's got a bit of everything - good on the ball, aggression, pace.
 
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