Tough game against a very tough opposition. We started off very solid at the back, knowing that the opposition are a good technical side but we were able to keep a good performance for the first 17 minutes, almost an entire half! Just before the end of the first half we conceded the first goal. That snowballed in the second half with 5 more goals for a definitive 0-6 result. Unfortunately we’re out of the cup after this loss but we’re looking forward to the rest of the season and for what’s to come!
My highlight of the match was the Initial 15 minutes where we were very solid in defence. Jacques was our player of the match. He had great performance, both defensively and offensively, showing anger in a positive way. Good in 1v1 situations but the opposition outplayed us technically as a team. To improve we need to work on our concentration to stay focused for the whole game.
We didn’t have controlled possession during the game. Under high pressure, the boys made a few mistakes, passing the ball straight to opponents at the edge of box and struggled a little bit to keep the ball on the floor when in transition. This made it hard to maintain ball in the central area. In the second half, the players pressed more, which allowed us to regain possession more frequently. When we started to keep the ball on the floor, a few chances were created. These included good ball movement, excellent touches, quality passes to play around defenders and vision in finding teammates in wide areas.
Johan scored a terrific team goal assisted by Maxime from the centre of the pitch. Everyone who engaged with that goal only took 2 touches on the ball which allowed the ball to move very quickly, keeping the defenders at bay. Unluckily, we were not able to seize all of our chances, but the way we played in those moments was great.
The highlight of the game was in the second half. The boys had moved the ball really well from the left side to the right, moving into the final third with 3-4 quality passes, breaking through the defensive line and creating really good scoring chances. Player of the match goes to Johan. He played well in the striker role and kept himself high up the pitch, receiving the ball under pressure. He also found himself a few shooting opportunities in and out of the box with both left and right feet.
The focus on Tuesday’s training session was 1v1 attacking, aiming to improve players foot work and let them have more variety. It did not have immediate impact on the game, but the result will come in the long term. We need to work on recreating game like situations to make sure the boys can still deliver good passes under pressure.
Throughout the tournament, the girls were on top of their game working as a team and creating some memorable goals. They fought until the end of their matches getting a couple last minute wins in the process. Even after losing in the finals they all still had their head high ready for their next tournaments/matches and even having happy tears. Sasha and I are extremely happy and proud of all the girls. We had great efforts from everyone on the pitch, and goals from Princess Aiva, Aniera, Emily, and Maisie. And some huge medals too 🙂
I loved seeing the support the girls had for each other throughout the entire tournament. We kept composure, showed great kindness to opposing players, and congratulated the strengths of each teammate. There were also several FANTASTIC finishes, and you might have seen me skipping down the sideline and Sasha yelling in support! It was amazing to see the things we have been working on in training translate directly to the pitch, as a coach I was very proud.
Emily was the player of the tournament. Emily had amazing ball control throughout each game and scored a fantastic finish in the final by being in the right position in front of the goal. Also, she stepped up in a huge and brave way by being the keeper for the penalty kicks. She did so amazing in goal, and we are so proud of her for her courage. Way to go, Emily!
We worked a lot on having the centre midfielders play out wide to the wings and then crossing it in. I spoke to the girls about how this is exactly how we scored over half of our goals in the tournament. We also spoke about never giving up until the ball is out, and this also resulted in several goals on our side. We have been working on looking up as well, and this played a huge role in finding the open player for shots, also resulting in many assists from our team. We can keep working on looking up, controlling the last touch, and finishing. Excited for the next tournament/games!
It was a great match on Sunday. We scored 4 goals quite quickly to take a commanding 4-0 lead. The other team was able to add another player so we played 6 players against our 5 for most of the game. Shout out to Robyn who made some incredible saves in goal. Great goals by Aniera, Piper, and Maisie and huge assist by Alex! The girls kept their composure, despite being a player down. Great passing all throughout the game, the crosses were also great.
Robyn was player of the match. She brought fantastic energy and made several incredible saves in goal, especially when it was two or three players against her at once. We focused a lot on crossing the ball and looking up, and I could see that in the match. We can always work more on getting back on defence, marking up, and getting goal side.
A really good performance from us in our cup semi-final with us having a really good start with Teo playing the ball into Marco who rifled it into the top corner. This was followed by a freak goal which took two deflections and went in making it 1-1. We kept probing and pushing for our second which came from Marcelo placing the ball into the back of net to close out the first half 2-1 to BFA.
Once the second half started we continued to play but unfortunately conceded a really good strike from the opposition making it 2-2. Following on from this we played some really quick combinations in order to put ourselves back in front at 3-2 followed by 2 goals from Marco which capped his hattrick and our 5-2 victory.
My favourite moment was our first goal which included some really good build-up play and were able to transition the ball quickly leading to Marco scoring our first goal. My player of the match was Marco as for his first game back from injury he performed fantastically providing link up play for the midfielders, able to press high and got a hat-trick on his return after a lengthy layoff, so a big shoutout to him.
This week in training we focused on building the attack in transition and we can use combinations to progress the ball forward. I feel there was a real impact as when we had the ball and used these quick combinations to move the ball quickly and especially when we were in the final third. We can be better by keep progressing with our ball progression in transition at training as we can keep polishing it and continue to display it in the games to come.
A big shoutout to the boys to make it to the semi final in the Gold tournament putting in a really good performance during this cup run. A tough game which saw us start off pretty well pressing the opposition and putting them under pressure. But after we conceded the first goal and as a result of putting in a lot of effort to score the half unfortunately ended with a lopsided score. Once the second half started we had a good resurgence and were able to create chances, but were unlucky not to put any of them in the back of the net. What followed was us conceding more. Once again very proud of this team to make it this far in the gold tournament and hoping to see what they can achieve in future matches.
My favourite moment was probably the first five minutes of the second half as we really made the game competitive, even creating chances which were close to going in. My player of the match was Elias as he didn’t stop running when we were pressing and did not let his head drop during the game and also had a lot of close chances to score.
This week we have looked into our topic of building the attack specifically in transition and we weren’t able to showcase it that much in this game but in small moments there was indications of the quick passing combinations we like to play. We can be better by keep being committed to the topic and try to apply it to our future games and tournaments coming up.
If you were to ask a random passer by who the older team were, bar their odd 6-foot-something monster and purely on sporting merit, there’s no doubt in my mind which team they would have chosen. Under 13s, if you are reading this, you got popped. Bar 2 minutes of madness, against the run of play in the first half where you scored your two goals (the second of which our GK passed you the ball; we love a challenge), it was all us.
And when I say all us… madre mia. We were popping it around like it was no-one’s business. Our first 11-aside experience looking like early Pep’s wildest utopian 433 dream. Combinations galore, build up, breaking the lines. Pure quality. It was probably our most coordinated, cohesive display and the lads deserve a lot of credit after our best week of training yet.
It’s hard to pinpoint standout performances as everyone was so good. We built patiently from the back through the formidable back-two of Arch and Chris, who used Filipe well to invite pressure and break it through accessing the unmarked fullbacks, Kez and Eduardo. Filipe, bar a brain-fart after failing to deal with an under-hit pass (not solely his fault) resulting in their second goal, was also class throughout.
In midfield, the triangles were, to put it lightly, popping off. Maxi, Yillinho and Yacine combined technical excellence with tenacity, although a little more position-specific work will be key going forward. There were plenty of chances to pin vertically (drag your opponent up the pitch) and receive between-the-lines via a split pass – something we’ll definitely be working on before the end of the year.
Out-wide, combinations began to flourish between full-back, wide CM and winger – Zak D, Zac LH and the returning Ezekiel Vita. Having seen a bit of Mr Vita early in the season and thought ‘corr blimey, there’s some player in there if we can actually teach him how to play football’, it’s been a breath of fresh air having his dopey, smiley face back in camp. That electric pace combined with decent 1v1 ability and ball-striking is something I’ve missed out on so much this season. You are still under strict instruction not to leave your basement till the allotted 4-hours of Jamie Vardy tapes have been watched, sir.
Zac-Attak too is showing the form of his life. Aggressive, confident, direct were all words uttered on the side lines to describe his performance. He’s been absolutely brilliant recently – not just in this match, but importantly in training also. I’m so happy for him. Up top, he was supported by Oli DB, who as usual dazzled with his dribbling whilst also finding his feet on a bigger, 11-aside pitch. His counter-pressing was typically excellent and his decision-making continues to improve. He even scored a header (!!!) after some great interplay on the right resulting in a Zak Dalvi cross and assist stepping up from the Black team.
But our player of the match has to be Chris. My goodness. After Camden Elite on Monday he backed it up with another top, top, performance. He rises to the occasion and my goodness how he rose. He was composed at the back, he used his objectively brilliant ball-manipulation skills (although needs to execute with more purpose; more intensity) to change the direction of build up and ran quite literally through their entire team to equalise. But credit to Chris, he’s a big lad and can get away with a lot because of his physical advantage, but wants to learn and is keen to employ the correct techniques. You’ll go far with that attitude, fella. Just keep those standards high.
From a team perspective, what was particularly impressive is that the boys were challenged at half-time to not make this a ‘valiant-display-ending-in-loss’ type performance, but to send a message with a strong second-half display and a result. They did that, whilst playing fantastic football in the process. We rode our luck with a dubious off-side call given, but ultimately were incredibly deserving of the dub. Plenty to be really proud of and excited for the 11-aside season to come.
More early Pep utopian dream 433 stuff, por favor.
If there’s one benefit of losing last night, it’s that for the first time in a long time I do not feel obliged to write a 2k word thesis on our performance. I’ll keep this short and sweet, as recalling the memories is naturally painful and unpleasant.
Lots went wrong on Tuesday. For starters, we’re a Monday or Sunday team, not Tuesday. We rely on our warmup and with no cages available we were not at prepared come the first whistle. We started slowly and paid the price; with two quick-fire goals from SJW when it was much too easy to get shots off. What was particularly disappointing was that we have actually been working on low block defending for the past two weeks, so I’ll be sure to reinforce the need to get good pressure for future reference.
Anyway, we then started to grow into the game and show off our inarguable quality. The right hand-side axis of Archie, Yilly and Zizou – my player of the match for his gutsy play, intelligence and quality on the ball – was popping off, using width to access the centre and switching the point of attack. Oli was typically dangerous, ducking and diving through their core and scoring to make it 2-1. Game-on. This followed our best spell of the game and we were unlucky not to draw level, with Oli again rattling the inside of the post from a free-kick. Unfortunately, against the run of play SJW scammed themselves another. 3-1, big dagger.
At half-time, the message was to deliver the performance of our lives, get the next goal and go and win the game. Sounds easy, right? Wrong. Against the division’s top side, it was a mountain which we were unable to ascend. We conceded two more after Filip had kept us in the game numerous times.
So a tough, painful day at the office in a match I really thought we had a chance of causing an upset. But in each loss, there is opportunity for learning and learning we shall do:
#1 Onto the pitch early to warmup if the cages are unavailable. This is my fault.
#2 Start quick and look to play in their half by playing it long in the event of high pressure. We will work on this in training.
#3 In a low-block, always – and I repeat, ALWAYS – get good pressure on the ball. It will cost you if not, and it did. We worked on this in training; don’t forget your training.
#4 If the game is not going our way and we’re under pressure, look to play in the opposition half and manage the game. We need to have different ways of playing to be successful.
To be honest, the boys have been excellent recently so I’ll happily shoulder most of the blame for this one. We will work on how to play long effectively in training this week, as we’ve spoken about it countless times as a legitimate solution to the high press but still fail to actually employ it. That’s on me.
Best remedy to defeat is more hard work and I’m keen to do just that. Starting at training, then on Sunday v APB Wingate. No rest for the wicked. Up the Blooms!
A very fast start as within the first minute of the game, we had scored and won a penalty through Rubens’ great work. Exactly what we wanted and the highlight of the match. Unfortunately the penalty was missed and the team had lost a bit of intensity as we had conceded two quick fire goals to go 2-1 down. However, the response was much better. We had taken the lead again through Yacine and Jack, and ended the half 3-2 ahead.
Unfortunately, we conceded quite early to a good solo run from the opposition. In this instance no one took the initiative to engage with the player 1v1, pegging us back to a level score. The game was extremely open, frantic and end to end as both teams had enough chances to find the winner. A mixture of poor finishing and panic in front of goal resulted in a draw at the final whistle.
The most important point I can make from this match is that when a set back occurs, it’s vital to remain resilient and continue to play our football. I felt like we had lost our way after missing our penalty and lost any rhythm we had created. It’s essential the team understand that our play style should not change, especially when we are under pressure and making mistakes
Our player of the match was Vinnie Maguire. Mr consistent. Vinnie put in great shift and even when we were struggling, continued to stay strong and played the game to the standards that we expect of the team.
Another strong start as we had scored early in the game through Luca Dawber, however conceding a penalty shortly after with a poor challenge, we lost our rhythm again, similar to our Friday fixture. In a very cagey match, I felt like we were off the pace, playing with panic and not our usual composure. Our inability to deal with the long ball and allowing the opposition to play through our midfield was troubling.
In the second half, we managed to regain some control of the game, but once again, it was extremely scrappy. Rubens, being direct, aggressive and quick managed to bypass their defence, and in a 1v1 with the keeper, slotted it into the bottom corner. With a few minutes left on the clock, Jack took a short corner, into Yacine, who set it back as Jack got onside, driving into the box and striking the ball into the back of the net.
All in all, a poor performance, where the team believed we were going to get an easy match, anything but.
Player of the match for the second time in 3 days was Vinnie Maguire. In a tough 1v1 battle, he continued to fight and show his class. On a day where the team struggled, he remained consistent.
As this was a friendly, I’ll keep this brief. Ultimately, we won because our physicality and technical ability was superior to the opposition. Minimal tactical prowess caused some raised eyebrows from a certain Australian on the touch line. Our first couple of goals came from long balls over the top which were latched on to by Alexia and Karina, using their pace and strength to shield the ball from defenders, finishing calmly. After this I asked the girls if we could try to play through the opposition as opposed to over them. There is nothing inherently wrong with playing long balls as all that is doing is exploiting vacant space if the opponent is pressing high. But, I wanted to challenge the girls to see if they could do it both ways.
To the girls’ credit, we scored a goal which started from the goalkeeper, followed by a nifty one two between Carla and Tori at centre back. Tori then fizzed in a sharp pass to Promise at centre forward. With some excellent footwork and body feints, Promise was able to shake the Barnet defence and tuck the ball away into the corner.
This game was framed as bit of fun. An opportunity to try things that might have otherwise not been tried in a competitive fixture. This resulted in some comedy moments such as Karina, our goal keeper, going for a run up the pitch, losing the ball and then momentarily forgetting that she was the goal keeper before starting her journey back home. My highlight of the match based on pure comedy. We conceded a pretty poor goal in the grand scheme of things, but I hoped that this would be a lesson in over committing.
And boy was I WRONG. Minutes later we found ourselves playing a very unorthodox 0-0-6 formation, with both centre backs perched on the edge of the opposition box. You don’t need to play long balls when the opposing team gives you that much space to run into. And of course we conceded another to which I said “No defending, just vibes. I’m a fan”. Once again, I was able to see the light side of things as the result was irrelevant in this fixture. Having watched the footage back with the girls I hope they can see that this is probably not the way to position ourselves if we want to be successful.
Player of the match was Karina, for her suicidal approach to goalkeeping. In addition to this she scored a wonderful goal which was down to her exquisite first touch, taking the defender out of the game before calmly poking home into the bottom right corner.
In training we worked on half turns as well as making the pitch big when we had the ball/making it small when we did not have the ball. I would say these things were sparingly on show. To be fair we did make the pitch small when we did not have the ball. We just happened to be camped outside their box. Our improvement will come from understanding where the dangerous space is in both an attacking and defensive sense and exploiting/covering that space.
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