It was very pleasing to see Adam Smith line up against Cardiff City in the starting 11. He may feature against Valencia as well as I am hoping his coming off at half time against Cardiff was just a precaution. The evidence that AFCB are light at the back though in his position have clearly been shown over the summer.
Four at the back is usually the way Eddie sets up his teams and the wing backs are always important to the way the Cherries play. While we have seen Eunan O'Kane and Marc Pugh fill in at right back in some of the warm up games, if Adam Smith did again get hurt there is one man that Eddie will probably have to call on to play there. Yes, I would suggest that Simon Francis might well move back to his old position. It is clear from the team selections this summer that Franno is being primed to play as centre-back, but when needs must it is surely the safest option to see him playing a familiar role if it helps out the team.
We have not seen Baily Cargill play as he has also taken a knock and the options for centre-backs look limited with the departure of Tommy Ephick. Luckily Steve Cook is also back in the running for a start against Man Utd. Brad Smith also adds a new option if AFCB see another centre-back injured. Nathan Aké may have wanted to get some chance to play in midfield this season, but it appears that he will be needed more as centre-back cover and having seen how comfortable he looked against Reading at the back he will be pressing for a start there against Man Utd.
The importance of that first league game is huge. Yes, it's Man Utd but it is a home game and the team needs to feel confident that they can win any game at Dean Court. The problem is that whoever plays at right back is likely to be up against the talented Memphis Depay, who is going to give any right back lots of problems. AFCB really need someone with experience playing against Man Utd at right back, so Adam Smith's return is great timing. We await news on Harry Arter in the next couple of days after he had to come off in the Cardiff game.
The Cherry Chimes' Newsletter is out today.Four at the back is usually the way Eddie sets up his teams and the wing backs are always important to the way the Cherries play. While we have seen Eunan O'Kane and Marc Pugh fill in at right back in some of the warm up games, if Adam Smith did again get hurt there is one man that Eddie will probably have to call on to play there. Yes, I would suggest that Simon Francis might well move back to his old position. It is clear from the team selections this summer that Franno is being primed to play as centre-back, but when needs must it is surely the safest option to see him playing a familiar role if it helps out the team.
 |
| AFCB have started to really highly-prize the qualities of Adam Smith. |
The importance of that first league game is huge. Yes, it's Man Utd but it is a home game and the team needs to feel confident that they can win any game at Dean Court. The problem is that whoever plays at right back is likely to be up against the talented Memphis Depay, who is going to give any right back lots of problems. AFCB really need someone with experience playing against Man Utd at right back, so Adam Smith's return is great timing. We await news on Harry Arter in the next couple of days after he had to come off in the Cardiff game.
Cherry Chimes' August Newsletter brings you the best stories on the blog and the thoughts behind them from last month, plus there is a special Newsletter article entitled: Should AFCB fans be confident of a higher finish?
To sign up for the newsletter just complete the form below - like all good things it's free:
No comments:
Post a Comment