Artell deserves credit

Quoted from toontown

That was absolutely not the incident I was referring to.

It was an occasion when Maher knocked the ball down the line instead of passing it about deep inside his own half. In other words he did exactly what we are doing now that is proving so much more successful than pratting about with it on the edge of our own 6 yard box. Artell went nuts at him.

This was before the change of style, I'm guessing.

When you ask folk to do something as a manager, and they pick and choose when they follow instructions or not, it doesn't set a good precedence. For example, if you ask people to come in on time, and 2 keep rocking in late, you ignore it, and everyone else starts doing it. To play passing football, you need people to build keep doing that so it becomes habit.

We are likely going to revisit this style either when safe or next season after the transfer window, and it's going to need players to stick with it. You hoof it, lose it, and you're pinned right back, so it isn't always great from a defensive point of view, neither. Even if you mix it up, if there is a short option to an astute midfielder, and it is the correct option, it should be taken. You do need to make the best of options when you have the ball, and especially if its covered regularly in training, and players don't follow it, it isn't a good thing.

Quoted from AncientExiledMariner

This was before the change of style, I'm guessing.

When you ask folk to do something as a manager, and they pick and choose when they follow instructions or not, it doesn't set a good precedence. For example, if you ask people to come in on time, and 2 keep rocking in late, you ignore it, and everyone else starts doing it. To play passing football, you need people to build keep doing that so it becomes habit.

We are likely going to revisit this style either when safe or next season after the transfer window, and it's going to need players to stick with it. You hoof it, lose it, and you're pinned right back, so it isn't always great from a defensive point of view, neither. Even if you mix it up, if there is a short option to an astute midfielder, and it is the correct option, it should be taken. You do need to make the best of options when you have the ball, and especially if its covered regularly in training, and players don't follow it, it isn't a good thing.

Of course, but you also need to have players able to play that way, and recognise that if you don't such a course of action when in a relegation battle (whether you admit you are in one or not) is likely to be terminal. Artell didn't recognise those things and carried on regardless of the players being unable to play that style. Eventually resulting in the 5-1 demolition by fellow relegation candidates and him staring the sack in the face, the change of style was forced on him by the combination of his weakening position as manager due to results/league position and pressure from players/owners/fans.

I agree we are likely to revisit his style assuming we stay up, as the current method of playing that has improved us is not actually his choice. I am just hoping he has learned to be a bit more adaptable and his style in future is a bit more multi faceted.

One thing I will say and it’s a massive plus in Artells favour

We look loads better playing the pragmatic approach than we did under Hurst