Sunday 10th February 2013
13:30
Villa Park
Aston Villa vs West Ham United
Goalscorers:
1:0 Christian Benteke 74'
2:0 Charles N'Zogbia 78'
2:1 Ashley Westwood OG 87'
Analysis
Throughout West Ham's most successful spells under Sam Allardyce, one of the most effective means of attack has been using traditional wingers, and regularly launching attacks from the flanks.
In the last home game, a 1-0 win against Swansea City, West Ham enjoyed great success in feeding the wingers (Matt Jarvis & Ricardo Vaz Te) and getting crosses into the box.
The image below shows average player positioning against Swansea. Both wingers (# 7 & 12) and fullbacks (# 17 & 14) average positions show a natural width in the team. This approach was used with regularity (63% of attacks come via the flanks).
Compare this to average player positions against Aston Villa, and there is a stark difference. A change in formation to 3-4-2-1 meant the team played a far more narrow game, relying on fullbacks to supply the width. Playing such a narrow formation did not yield success, as West Ham continued to attempt crosses into the box.
West Ham delivered 36 crosses into the box against Aston Villa, with Joe Cole attempting 15 of them, but just 4 of Cole's 15 crosses reached their intended target. What is clear from the image below, is that, despite Cole's insistence on crossing into the box, his average position (# 26) was far too central for this approach to be successful.
It is my belief that, when playing the new 3-4-2-1 system, a difficult decision needs to be made: Nolan or Carroll.
If the team wish to play crosses into the box in this formation, than the two attacking midfielders need to provide width. With Joe Cole & Kevin Nolan in these positions, the team against Aston Villa played too narrow to provide the types of balls in that Andy Carroll feeds upon.
If the team want to persist with Cole & Nolan in these two spots, a different approach will need to be taken. Through balls should be the order of the day, rather than crosses. According to whoscored.com, West Ham attempted 0 through balls against Aston Villa. This could be because Carroll's natural game is not conducive to this style. Maybe a smaller, quicker striker would be better in this formation to provide a different option.
General Play
4-2-3-1 Starting Formation 3-4-2-1
23.5 Starting XI Average Age 27.9
Charles N'Zogbia Best Performer Mohamed Diamé
68.65 Capello Index Rating 61.75
Ashley Westwood Worst Performer Jussi Jaaskelainen
53.31 Capello Index Rating 56.55
47% Possession 53%
(averaged from whoscored, bbcsport & skysports)
74% Passing Accuracy 71%
65% In Opposition Half 59%
Charles N'Zogbia 91% Best Accuracy 87% Mohamed Diamé
361 Passes Attempted 366
Fabian Delph 48 Most Passes Attempted 53 Mark Noble
46 Long Balls 53
Ron Vlaar 4 Most Long Balls (excl. GK) 13 James Tomkins
Offensive Play
10 Attempts on Goal 15
3 On Target 4
5 Off Target 6
2 Shots Blocked 5
3 Attempts from Outside Box 4
Christian Benteke 3 Most Attempts on Goal 4 Andy Carroll
4 Corners 10
5 Offsides 3
15 Crosses 36
4 Successful Crosses 11
Charles N'Zogbia 5 Most Crosses Attempted 15 Joe Cole
54% Aerial Duels Won 46%
Christian Benteke 6 Most Duels Won 8 Andy Carroll
Defensive Play
32 Tackles Attempted 25
26 Successful Tackles 19
Fabian Delph 6 Most Tackles 7 Mark Noble
54 Clearances 33
Ciaran Clark 14 Most Clearances 10 Winston Reid
14 Interceptions 14
Fabian Delph 3 Most Interceptions 4 Winston Reid
5 Blocks 2
Ashley Westwood/Matthew Lowton 2 Most Blocks 1 Winston Reid/James Tomkins
Discipline
18 Fouls Committed 13
Nathan Baker 4 Most Fouls Committed 3 Mark Noble
3 Yellow Cards 2
Emanuel Pogatetz (WHU) 45'
Nathan Baker (AV) 72'
Wiston Reid (WHU) 78'
Darren Bent (AV) 87'
Ciaren Clark (AV) 90'
0 Red Cards 0
Head to Head
Brad Guzan vs Jussi Jaaskelainen
1 Goals Conceded 2
3 Saves 1
4 Crosses Claimed 1
36% Passing Accuracy 71%
25 Total Passes 17
21 Long Balls 12
84% % Long Balls 71%
Ron Vlaar vs James Tomkins
29% Aerial Duels Won 40%
1 Tackles 5
1 Blocks 1
2 Interceptions 3
13 Clearances 7
0 Fouls Committed 1
81% Passing Accuracy 70%
26 Total Passes 33
4 Long Balls 13
15% % Long Balls 39%
Fabian Delph vs Mark Noble
90% Passing Accuracy 81%
48 Total Passes 53
2 Long Balls 3
4% % Long Ball 6%
0 Crosses 1
0 Successful Crosses 0
0 Chances Created 0
0 Assists 0
6 Tackles 7
0 Blocks 0
3 Interceptions 1
1 Clearances 1
1 Fouls Committed 1
0 Attempts on Goal 0
0 Attempts on Target 0
Christian Benteke vs Andy Carroll
1 Goals Scored 0
3 Attempts on Goal 4
2 Attempts on Target 1
70% Aerial Duels Won 53%
58% Passing Accuracy 46%
36 Total Passes 41
2 Chances Created 0
0 Assists 0
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