http://www.southlondonpress.co.uk/article.cfm?id=114376&headline=Simon Makienok reveals why diamond system made Charlton Athletic sparkle&sectionIs=sport&searchyear=2015Yet another SLP article well worth a read, Mak talks about how the formation worked. (I haven't seen it posted elsewhere)
One bit highlights something which I think has been a major issue for us this season
He puts his struggles down to the fact he hardly played any football for Palermo last season after his move to Italy didn’t work out. "I got thrown into this league playing 90 minutes every game,” he said. “I got to a great fitness in pre-season and felt I started the season well, but I wasn’t ready for games Saturday-Tuesday-Saturday.
A lot of our summer signings had little experience of the intensity and number of games in the Championship. Hopefully as they get used to it, we'll get more performances like Saturday's
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The first time he plays the full 90 mins, we win.
Coincidence ? Absolutely not. He's a vital player for us.
It must also be difficult having Watt as a strike partner. Watt's strength is his unpredictability but that strength, overdone, can become his weakness. Mak needs to develop an understanding with a strike partner but, if that player is one minute on the left wing and the next acting as a defensive midfielder, it can be very hard to do so.
At the moment Reza (or a fully fit and firing Vetokele) is probably a more potent foil to Mak - but Watt is the player you want to come on and mess and to stretch the tired legs of the opposition.
If we had the SAME size squad, but it was all made up of experienced Championship pros, I'm sure we wouldn't have got all the injuries that we've had. If you break a bone or do your cruciate, that's bad luck, but most of our injuries aren't like that, they're those annoying strains and knocks that seem to keep our players out for weeks or months. I remember plenty of previous squads which were no larger than our current one, but players managed to play all season without these minor injuries, because their bodies were more battle hardened.
Is this because he does not rate him but cant actually say that or he knows someone else is coming in?
Clearly a really important player for us and that lovely pass to Fox in the build up to the third shows he isn't all about aerial ability. How many assists now?
Reminds me a bit of Iwelumo in that given the wrong service, like Iwelumo tended to get here, he will not score very often at all, but given the right service, like Mak got a bit more of on Saturday and Iwelumo got at Wolves, he can and will score goals.
Also, the more natural partner for a big fella like him is someone who will play off defenders' shoulders and work the channels because they will stretch teams and give Mak a bit more room. Having a midfielder operate higher up the pitch, closer to him for layoffs etc helps too. I think Watt is probably least suited of all our forwards to play with him, but KAG is so young, and Reza and Igor have been injured.
Watt's been badly off form but I think he's been trying too hard to make stuff happen and has tended to try and force situations and tended to end up over doing it. The talent is still there, but I really hope Reza and Mak can push on as a pair from here and allow Watt a spell on the bench as an impact sub to hopefully play with a bit more freedom in a side getting results and rediscover his mojo.