If we can do a few things differently in our football especially from an administrative and technical standpoint we can compete with quality teams.
Is after 12 locally so i will just highlight a few things.
I have never seen too much of Peru as a team, just a sampling of their players in different leagues, Peru is technically sound as you would expect with a south american team. From sight it looked as if this is a team that has played together for years probably from youth to first team ranks. There is a subtle cohesiveness about their play, easy on the eyes. They seemed a bit docile though, maybe cause it was just a friendly or they already felt they were better than our boys, not overly intense which worked in our favour cause when we dicided to push them we got some joy for good periods.
Now for our boys, lemme first say that i'm only going to comment about the first 70 minutes or so before the mass subsitutions which essentially killed of the game. One thing it did was wake up the pro league players and made them realize what real international football is all about cause Peru practically ran rings around them for the last 20 minutes and got their second item.
Our general play was very narrow, especially in the first half we didnt get much joy down the flanks, the general play was to pass along the back then feed to either Hyland or Theobald who would look for Guerra and a lesser extent Jones who was extremely poor in the first half. The Edwards/Roberts combination on the right side was preferred if we were looking to keep possession as both players worked well with each other combining with the central midfielders but it was hardly penetrative just across and back but it keep going there cause those were the players that looked most comfortable on the ball under pressure and was able to move it around in tight spaces.
Hyland is evolving into what we all expected, he is starting to look head and shoulders above the rest, Guerra probably has just as good a touch but his decision making is what is showing due to his professional development abroad. The real shocker for me was Kevon Carter, while largely anonymous in the first half he was switched over to the right where i think he is more comfortable and the Peruvian left back simply could not stay with him, looked back to his best after the injury, he took a knock in the second half and had to substituted.
Guerra is like enigma, superiorly talented footballer, he played in the hole behind Jones which suits him best. lovely touch and a nice burst of pace, his decision making will improve if he gets exposed to a more consistent competitive environment. He needs to have the ball consistently though and if we are not keeping possession he will disappear for periods at a time cause he's not great defensively. He and Hyland are mainstays in the medium and long term though.
Theobald will always put in his shift, Denzil is technically good but he suffers again from a sluggish pro league. I call him a pro league bully, for Caledonia he coasts through games looking like a general but when the tempo is amped up it shows him up at times. Some errant passes but i think the coaching staff will always keep him around cause like it or not he is the experience in the middle and has to bridge the transition to the younger players. I wish he would stay at a european club just to get him out of that pro league form which is too much of a comfort zone for him.
Kenwyne Jones will never win over a local crowd sorry to say. In the first half he was low on form and effort, poor collection, out muscled and fumbling possession. He had a better second half with improvements all around, but we are where we are as a team and in competitive games we may get only one or two clear chances on goal and he scuffed a tap in after a brilliant run by Guerra. I even question whether the coaches may keep him in their plans if they really find a forward who can link up better with midfield. Seems to take his place based on reputation of being a premiership player.
I am understanding the philosophy of what Charles is trying to do. And i say Charles because i haven't seen any material change in tactics or formation since Shabazz has joined the setup. The philosophy is short passing, the style is evident but the execution is sporadic because the players collectively are not as technically sound. The general consensus is that we played really well today in large patches simply because when you throw in Roberts, Edwards and Hyland with Theobald and Guerra you immediately get better cause the personnel is better equipped to execute and with more games together that cohesiveness will build. We need to consistently play good teams to ensure we get good practice.
The back line was decent, the tactics were to keep possession and play into the central midfield and that was fairly simple to execute. There were no long balls until the euro players were subbed off. Carlos at 33 (i think) still has a nice change of pace as is really what is needed with a battery of young talented centre backs coming through the ranks.
The goal keepers didn't have much to do, Phillip parried a shot in front rather to the side which allowed the tap in but that was isolated to be honest.
Lawd is after 1 so i will conclude there. Summary point is that we need more games against good opposition with the best available team. If we can we will see progress.
