Gameweek 4: The Post Mortem. EVE v NEW, RDG v TOT

Reading 1 Tottenham 3, Everton 1 Newcastle 1

Summary:

Spurs started well, but Reading's midfield had too much to do and allowed Sandro and the Spurs defence to roam and create chances. Spurs were happy to create chances from deep to allow their wingers to utilise the vacated space up front, and got their early goal as a result. Reading tried to put out the immediate fires by having 2 forwards instead of one to pin back the defence, but Spurs reacted by allowing their widemen to tuck in and the fullbacks turned supplier, resulting in Bale's goal for Spurs.

In a game where both sides used lopsided tactics to take advantage of their opponents, simplicity and directness also yielded results. Everton's left-sided attacking riches are on fire at the moment, and not surprising to see a central striker, Kevin Mirallas, joining in on the act despite being deployed on the right flank. However, Anichebe's goal was certainly deserved as he offered an alternative approach to Everton's beautiful link up play on the left side.

Newcastle got it right when they abandoned balanced on the flanks to protect the center more with Perch and used a roaming midfielder in Ben Arfa to create chances. Ba's two goals gave Alan Pardew a good reminder that he's the in form striker at the moment.

Lineups:

Reading field the same starting XI that took the field against Chelsea a couple of weeks back. Spurs have selected a more attacking starting XI compared to last week, while Kyle Naughton coming in at left back replacing Benoit Assou-Ekotto who is injured, Moussa Dembele's contribution against Norwich earned him a spot in the starting squad at the expense of Jake Livermore.

With Reading's 4-4-1-1 going head to head against Tottenham's 4-1-4-1, Reading will attempt to condense the midfield, keep possession and generate chances through their creative players McAnuff and McCleary, while Spurs will have the directness of Gylfi Sigurdsson and Dembele to test Reading's central midfield, with Bale and Lennon aiming to have a go at the Reading fullbacks as well.

Tactical Notes: 

• Spurs' wingers using their space well, Sandro and Spurs' defence allowed to roam forward

I would like to make a reference to two key patterns that I predicted would happen last Saturday; firstly the likes of Sandro and Vertonghen being put under more pressure (either being forced to play the ball more offensively or being pressured literally by the Reading defence), and then the second being Tottenham's wingers playing more centrally to create more chance, as Reading's fullbacks and wingers, on paper at least, are able to defend quite diligently.

Sandro and his defense certainly stepped up to the pressure, and as a result created various chances in Sandro, Vertonghen and Walker having pops at goal, as well as Tottenham's defenders able to provide long passes for their wingers to run into. With the likes of Walker and Vertonghen venturing forward, together with Sandro in midfield, the Reading central midfield suddenly had 2 extra opponents to deal with in Vertonghen and Sandro besides tracking Sigurdsson and Dembele.

Spurs' wingers deserved credit too for making use of the space when Spurs dropped deep. A flaw in Spurs's wingers (Bale) were that they were more comfortable running with the ball into space rather than taking on defenders, and hence they needed yards to chew, which the likes of Man United exploited by defending deeper against them.

This season, Spurs wingers learnt their lesson and added a dimension to their gameplay,  which was to utilise the space that Defoe occupies as an avenue to receiving incisive passes from the Spurs midfield/backline. As a result, Bale had a couple of shots on target from central positions inside the box, Lennon managed to burn Harte for pace and cross for Defoe's goal. Reading understandably were outplayed by Spurs for the entire first half, and were just poor in terms of passing quality and using possession.

• Reading use a second forward to put pressure on the defence, Spurs capitalise with fullbacks and Sandro

With Karacan coming off for Le Fondre at half time, you'd think that Brian McDermott wanted Guthrie more involved in the middle of the park, leaving Le Fondre and Pogrenbyak pinning to two Spurs centerbacks back. That solved one problem, but now Sandro, Dembele and Sigurdsson were outnumbering Guthrie and Leigertwood in midfield. While Reading started to defend deeper and deeper, Bale and Lennon started to occupy the penalty box alongside Sigurdsson, Defoe and Lennon, prompting the likes of Kyle Walker to venture to the byline, resulting in Bale's goal. 

With the game over as a contest, Spurs shored up the midfield by introducing Huddlestone for Sigurdsson, and when Spurs were denying Reading's midfield time to look up with the ball, their front players, namely McAnuff and McCleary, became more direct and started having efforts on goal by receiving the ball long from the defence. With Reading chasing the game, Defoe used the space well, scoring a fine third goal for Spurs. Reading's goal was sadly, a scant consolation. 

Fantasy Implications: 

Reading's reason for their poor display can be anyone's guess, really. Lesson learnt from their abysmal performance is that the central midfield "trio" of Karacan, Leigertwood and Guthrie are key to Reading's spells in possession, and if they fail, expect Reading to falter as well. Spurs' performance had more reason for optimism; While Sandro shined this game, expect the widemen to get at the end of passes from deep positions, namely Bale if you feel that he's starting to hit top form (you could argue that his goal was a bit flukey considering his weak shot only went in coz McCarthy made full commitment for the low corner) or Lennon who has been more consistent. 

Everton 1 Newcastle 1

Lineups:

As expected, Everton fielded Tony Hibbert at right back while moving Phil Neville into the middle of the park alongside Leon Osman. The real surprise, though, is Kevin Mirallas starting on the right wing ahead of Steven Naismith. Injury-hit Newcastle have placed Steve Harper in goal, with Williamson and Perch coming in for Coloccini and Danny Simpson. Another surprising omission was Demba Ba up front, providing Sylvain Marveaux a start on the right wing to form attacking quartet with Ben Arfa, Cisse and Cabaye up front.

With Everton's 4-4-1-1 lines up against Newcastle's 4-2-3-1, Cabaye's offensive repertoire will be on full display as he will be off his defensive shackles with Gutierrez and Anita behind him, and while Everton will no doubt test Marveaux and Perch's defensive abilities, Kevin Mirallas will also attempt to exploit his pace advantage over Davide Santon.

Another key feature of Everton's game will be using Fellaini as the target man with Everton's center forward and Osman anticipating the second ball. Another key feature about Everton is their defensive pressing game, where every single player puts tremendous amounts of pressure on the person with the ball, especially with their offensive players, who have enough strength and energy to do so in Jelavic, Fellaini and Osman.

Tactical Notes:

• Everton carrying out their gameplan, Newcastle slow off the blocks

In the first half, Everton successfully carrying out their gameplan. You could even say that Newcastle never got out of first gear, and for the first half hour or so, the front four were almost constantly isolated from the back 6, and efforts to link that up by Cabaye were met with pressure from Fellaini, which robbed the ball off him and forced a fine save out of Harper. Everton were also hitting Newcastle where it hurt, Baines and Pienaar repeatedly combining to create chance after chance; Kevin Mirallas even switched flanks to get in on the act, and had a shot at goal after cutting in. 

Everton's opener could be credited to the linkup play between Baines and Pienaar, but Gutierrez's role as a defensive midfielder on that side of the pitch will certainly come into question. Perhaps Newcastle could've stationed James Perch in defensive midfield as he did several times last season, while Marveaux could occupy the right back slot. 

Newcastle, to their credit, stuck to their gameplan despite going behind, and pressed even harder upfield, resulting in Everton starting to give away possession more frequently. They also limited Everton's chances to off target/outside the penalty box attempts and easier shots for Harper to deal with. With Newcastle's firepower, the frontmen did start to have attempts on goal, and their pressure and hard work nearly paid off when Anita had a shot cleared off the line by Baines. 

Deploying Kevin Mirallas also had its weaknesses; without the solidarity of Naismith, Mirallas was nowhere near Ben Arfa when he received the ball to cross for Anita, and while Hibbert cannot be blamed for attempting to block Cisse's shot, Moyes must make a mental note to improve Mirallas' defensive discipline.

• A Tale of two Substitutes: Ba and Anichebe

Both teams made substitutions that had different impacts in the second half. Everton brought on Victor Anichebe for the injured Nikita Jelavic, and Ba came on for Marveaux. Ba's introduction allowed Papiss Cisse to receive the ball in wider and deeper areas and turning provider for Ben Arfa or Ba himself, as reflected in the buildup to Ba's first goal. 

Ba's occupation of the front line also implied that Ben Arfa had more space to run into, as he played off Cabaye several times as an outlet to retain possession in midfield. Ben Arfa would also have the license to roam and create chances for teammates. Ba's vacancy in the wide areas also prompted Gutierrez to move to the flanks, causing James Perch to occupy the center of midfield alongside Cabaye as Ben Arfa roamed away from the center of midfield. Perch was becoming more influential and started becoming involved in most of Newcastle's positive play. 

Everton, however, were not to be outdone and got their reward from Kevin Mirallas' lateral movement across the midfield. He initiated attacks off the left flank and linked up Fellaini, Neville and then Pienaar for Fellaini's disallowed goal. 

Both of Everton and Newcastle's goals had an element of simplicity in them in terms of strategy and directness; first Pienaar played a simple pass to Anichebe, who used his power and pace to take it past Taylor and Harper, who both could've done much better in preventing that goal. Then immediately after, Shola Ameobi directed a goal kick for Ba to run onto and finish, though Everton's lack of awareness of Ba's movement, as well as Howard's attempt to make himself big made Ba's attempt look easy. 

Fantasy Implications: 

Demba Ba has to start the next game based on form alone, whether he's making a fuss about moving away in January or not. If Pardew persists with this new playing style against Wigan next game, a free-moving Ben Arfa could be well among the points. As for Everton, the in form trinity of Pienaar, Baines and Fellaini simply cannot be ignored anymore, but Kevin Mirallas' performance is note-worthy.