possession vs clinical finishing
Tuesday, January 9, 2007
After all these years of watching and playing football, I have to admit that possession in football does not equate to winning matches. Clinical finishing has always been the key to winning matches. Any fool can tell you this too. So why is it that some footballing brains are not ticking? Footballers and coaches alike, some of them are guilty of this. Don’t strive to keep possession of the ball, but excel at clinical finishing. This is what I would tell my players if I’m a coach. Am I right? Possibly. Probably.
Let’s recall the match between Liverpool and Arsenal. Amount of possession Liverpool had was 62%. Arsenal only had 38%. The Reds had 16 shots, while the visitors had 5 only. Final score? Liverpool 1 Arsenal 3. The same story happened at Ewood Park last month when Liverpool lost 1-0 after dominating the game in terms of possession. Come on, Guys! You have to be clinical in your finishing! What matters most in football is scoring goals, isn’t it?
Liverpool, for all their credentials as traditional powerhouses, are seriously lacking in the department of scoring. There have been times when they were made to look good, like their 4-0 win at Wigan. But honestly speaking, they are simply not good enough at the moment. They have got several strikers, but none can score consistently. The same can be said of their midfielders. Gerrard has not been the scoring phenomenon of last season. Their defenders? Carragher just scored his first in 7 years! If they struggle for periods to score in a match, I cannot find one inspirational player who can pop out to score at will.
Maybe, they must seriously scout for one clinical striker. Maybe, give Kuyt some more time and he will be one. Maybe, someone from the youth setup could be the clinical one. Maybe, the training sessions should focus on scoring goals. Maybe, I can be their coach……Maybe……
I think I’ve said enough. As a Liverpool fan, I wish them all the best in……scoring goals.
It’s never the amount of possession that counts…count the goals, Folks!
Wednesday, January 10, 2007 at 1:38 am
I truly agree with you. Finishing is still the most important factor even the fact that the team has the lion share of possession and have many chances in front of goal. In football, if you can’t score, you can’t win. Isn’t it?
Also, it’s always the result that counts. No matter how well the team played, how much possession they had or even has the most number of shots on goal, a goal is still that really counts. No goals=No win=No results.
That’s explains it all. Count the goals! You are right!
cheers.