The napper...

[Bruno55 0]

That'll do me bearman lol Kiernan for me

[Whosthedado 1,703]

I'm with Craig on this one. I think Danny Wilson is due one. My money is on him

[BrahimHemdani 1]

I've a book in the house written by a couple of professional American sport statisticians who analysed professional football. I found it fairly hard going to be honest but one of their insights was how ineffective corners are. They analysed literally thousands of them and their discovery was that you're far more likely to score from open play than from a corner set piece and that all corners should be taken short and used as a way to start a possession based move and not lobbed into the box looking for a header.

 

It's all part of that 'moneyball' philosophy that's currently in vogue.

 

I think this is fair comment unless you have a really powerful aerial threat there's not much point in lobbing corners into the box. McCulloch was useful in that scenario as was Daly from crosses.

 

That's said short corners can back-fire. We lost a goal straight from one v Auxerre at home if I recall.

[Blinkyman 0]

I've a book in the house written by a couple of professional American sport statisticians who analysed professional football. I found it fairly hard going to be honest but one of their insights was how ineffective corners are. They analysed literally thousands of them and their discovery was that you're far more likely to score from open play than from a corner set piece and that all corners should be taken short and used as a way to start a possession based move and not lobbed into the box looking for a header.

 

It's all part of that 'moneyball' philosophy that's currently in vogue.

 

I remember watching Barcelona desperately avoid a certain corner to themselves and kicked the ball out for a throw-in for the opposition close to their corner flag. It's only becoming clear to me now that Warburton's possession style is based on the same philosophy of avoiding low percentage-kicks at all costs & to retain the ball is essential. Hence the short pass-out goal-kicks, cross-field passes and short corners as compared to the McCoist alternative we have witnessed for a lifetime.

 

What we are seeing week in week out now is how I always imagined the game should be played, like watching Brazil as a boy.

 

As for corners, goals will crop up from time to time but I doubt we will be risking 50/50 possession from too many long ball corners in the traditional 'Scottish' sense ...............

Edited September 18, 2015 by Blinkyman
grammar

[craig 5,199]

I think this is fair comment unless you have a really powerful aerial threat there's not much point in lobbing corners into the box. McCulloch was useful in that scenario as was Daly from crosses.

 

That's said short corners can back-fire. We lost a goal straight from one v Auxerre at home if I recall.

 

Lumping the ball into the box can have the same effect though. If/when the corner breaks down and the other team are quick on the counter then it is almost irrelevant which type of corner you take - you will be susceptible to their quick counters. I have noticed that Warburton, when we have attacking corners, leaves one of his quickest players at the back to cover such a counter.

[Bearman 9]

Since we haven't seen a headed goal so far this season, here's a cracking couple from the past for those suffering withdrawal symptoms...

 

 

[barca72 440]

Stop the video and this is what you see. Diver Commons completely hurdled Boughie and was never touched. It was all a deliberate sham.

 

 

Edited September 18, 2015 by barca72

[barca72 440]

wrong thread

[Gazza_8 233]

Lumping the ball into the box can have the same effect though. If/when the corner breaks down and the other team are quick on the counter then it is almost irrelevant which type of corner you take - you will be susceptible to their quick counters. I have noticed that Warburton, when we have attacking corners, leaves one of his quickest players at the back to cover such a counter.

 

Taking a corner into the box isn't 'lumping' if you have a routine, you know where I hit the ball to and to what player. That's calculated, thought out and probably practiced. But yes, under McCoist it would've been lumped into the box and hope for the best.

[BrahimHemdani 1]

Lumping the ball into the box can have the same effect though. If/when the corner breaks down and the other team are quick on the counter then it is almost irrelevant which type of corner you take - you will be susceptible to their quick counters. I have noticed that Warburton, when we have attacking corners, leaves one of his quickest players at the back to cover such a counter.

 

I agree with you on that, all I was saying was that short corners can back-fire but then again McLeish was the manager then and he moved Ricksen who had been playing well in centre mid to RB as McLeish told me later "I put our best man on their best man" and Khizanishvili who had been slotting in at RB into centre mid "because Arveladze told me he could play there".

 

So what happens "Rangers made the worst possible start when, having made a mess of a short corner, the home side conceded possession and the ball found its way to Benjani Mwaruwari, who in turn found Kalou. Kalou escaped the attentions of Khizanishvili to chip the ball over Stefan Klos and though his first effort came back off the bar, he had a simple task to tap the rebound into an empty net.....If anything, Rangers' start to the second half was even poorer as they lost a second goal less then two minutes after the break. Kanga Akale picked up on a loose Khizanishvili header, crossed for Kalou, who spun past Boumsong and slotted the ball past Klos. "

 

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/europe/4095333.stm

 

Another good thing about Warburton is that he almost always leaves at least one and sometimes two up the park when we are defending corners unlike McCoist and his mentor Smith who even had Darcheville hobble back to stand on the line, sometimes not even getting there on time.