WHY MEDEL COULD SOLVE CENTRAL DEFENSIVE PROBLEM

There is an age-old football mantra about managers building from the back. Get rock solid defenders, particularly at centre-half, and the foundation is provided for your flair players to win you matches.

In the modern era, there is a new twist to that. The best teams insist upon footballing defenders, possession being nine tenths of the law.

Particularly in the Premier League where carelessly lumping the ball upfield simply means good players running it straight back at you and putting the back four under pressure.

It wasn’t really a problem for Dave Jones’ Bluebirds in the Championship, while playing out from the back in the top flight wasn’t a strength of Malky Mackay’s City.

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, on the other hand, has made it abundantly clear he wants his defenders to be comfortable on the ball. Something, I guess, which emanates from his own playing days when his centre-back colleagues included Rio Ferdinand, Nemanja Vidic, Henning Berg and Ronny Johnsen.

Even big Jaap Stam, known as a non-nonsense, rugged ball-winner, could play. Which Dutchman can’t?

The first time David Marshall had a goal-kick against West Ham, the two centre-backs split either side of the penalty box to be ready to receive possession. Other teams have done that plenty of times at Cardiff City Stadium, but I can’t remember when I last saw the Bluebirds enact those tactics.

Solskjaer clearly isn’t just talking the talk. He wants his defenders walking the walk by implementing his patient, passing game.

But therein is a problem because it’s questionable whether the new Cardiff boss has the personnel available to perform the function.

Steven Caulker is clearly City’s best footballing centre-back since the days of Danny Gabbidon, so no problem there. But who partners him?

I’ve batted Ben Turner’s corner heavily this season, arguing right from the start – against heavy popular opinion – that he, not skipper Mark Hudson, would be Mackay’s pick as Caulker’s centre-back colleague.

Turner, I thought, would be more capable of dealing with nippy Premier League strikers because he has legs. But his distribution of the ball is poor and that doesn’t fit into Solskajer’s passing mantra.

Hudson is a bit more comfortable in possession, which is why he has been instantly been recalled by Solskjaer. But after his struggles against West Ham and Carlton Cole, the best we can say is that the jury is out on Hudson’s qualities as a Premier League centre-back.

The trouble is, with his Bluebirds in the bottom three and locked in a relegation battle, Solskjaer doesn’t have time to wait.

He either sticks with Hudson, which could prove costly, or buys big in this transfer window, Newcastle’s Steven Taylor one of the players Solskjaer has been linked with.

There is a third, much more left-field, option, though which I’m going to throw into the pot.

How about Gary Medel moving back from his defensive midfield role to playing next to Caulker? With Kevin Theophile-Catherine and likely new recruit Fabio da Silva as full-backs, suddenly the Cardiff back four would have real footballing ability across the line from right to left.

I already forsee the inevitable questions. How can you put a midfielder into defence? How can Medel, at 5ft 8in, deal with high balls into the box? If he does switch position, who covers his midfield destroyer’s role?

Well, it’s worth pointing out that Medel never plays midfield for Chile, where the anchor role is held down by superb Juventus star Arturo Vidal.

Medel is always picked at centre-back and invariably shines in the position, too. I watched him play there against England at Wembley in November and he completely marked Wayne Rooney out of the game as Chile won 2-0.

I have rarely seen a Cardiff player with better positional sense than Medel. He just has this uncanny knack of being in the right place at the right time to snuff out trouble and that anticipation is a precious commodity at international level where the best strikers are quick and possess clever movement.

But isn’t it like that in the Premier League, too, which makes Medel’s lack of height less of an issue?

I wouldn’t advocate him playing centre-back in the Championship, where your penalty box is under regular Route One aerial bombardment. But against nimble forwards such as Rooney, Suarez, Aguerro and Torres, I’d fancy Medel’s chances of coping with their sudden bursts more than those of Hudson or Turner.

Yes there will be the likes of Peter Crouch, Grant Holt and others to deal with in the coming months, but Caulker is more than adept at dealing with those aerial duels, enabling Medel to sweep up around him.

As for who could sit into Medel’s midfield position, well it looks like Magnus Wolff Eikrem is being groomed for that role anyhow. If Solskjaer wants more bite, the tenacious Aron Gunnarsson is another option.

Everything considered, maybe Medel at the back is not quite as left-field as first seems. Not even Peter Whittingham is more comfortable on the ball under pressure than Medel, who as well as being in the right place at the right time has this knack of being able to find a team-mate almost every time.

If his defenders keeping possession is the priority Solskjaer says it is, perhaps a Caulker-Medel centre-back axis, with Eikrem sitting just in front of them, could be an alternative way forward.

If so, the days of the Bluebirds lumping the ball upfield will be well and truly gone.

http://www.walesonline.co.uk/sport/foot ... ld-6510373

its criminal how we seem to be so weak at the back............how?

where was Malky building from?

I would only play Medel at the back with 2 other CB's

No chance not in this league and not in a pair.

Teams would target his lack of height and pepper crosses in the box.

Completely different to him playing in a defensive 3 for Chile.

No chance not in this league and not in a pair.

Teams would target his lack of height and pepper crosses in the box.

Completely different to him playing in a defensive 3 for Chile.

Surely teams would target him in a defensive 3 or 4?

It used to work at Spurs when Gary Mabbutt played a similar role and he was only a couple of inches taller than Medel!

I think it could work with Gary in the back

It would work fine in my opinion but I understand Polo's concerns. However, against teams like Stoke who play hoof ball you just put Turner back in and Medel back in CDM but deeper than he is now currently. He can sweep up. As the two full backs will be attacking you'd keep the threat (most likely Fabio and John flying up the wings with Caulker and Turner and Medel sat back deep as the holding 3. Medel's lack of support up front would be compensated by the wing backs flying forward. Essentially we'd be playing a cross between a 3-4-2-1 and a 5-4-1 depending on possession of the ball etc.

Without the ball.



With the ball.

It would work fine in my opinion but I understand Polo's concerns. However, against teams like Stoke who play hoof ball you just put Turner back in and Medel back in CDM but deeper than he is now currently. He can sweep up. As the two full backs will be attacking you'd keep the threat (most likely Fabio and John flying up the wings with Caulker and Turner and Medel sat back deep as the holding 3. Medel's lack of support up front would be compensated by the wing backs flying forward. Essentially we'd be playing a cross between a 3-4-2-1 and a 5-4-1 depending on possession of the ball etc.

Without the ball.



With the ball.

I read Paul Abbandonato's post to mean that he'd only play Medel alongside Caulker, with no place in the team for Hudson and Turner, which I think can also work, although there is a case for playing Medel as a sweeper behind 2 centre backs against the likes of Man City!

'But after his struggles against West Ham and Carlton Cole, the best we can say is that the jury is out on Hudson’s qualities as a Premier League centre-back.'

After one game?! That was his first Premier League game in nine years, and his first appearance alongside Caulker!

Good god

'But after his struggles against West Ham and Carlton Cole, the best we can say is that the jury is out on Hudson’s qualities as a Premier League centre-back.'

After one game?! That was his first Premier League game in nine years, and his first appearance alongside Caulker!

Good god

Cole give both our centre halfs a tough time in fairness I dont know why only Hudson is getting caned for it.

Hudson stopped an absolute certain goal for Cole early in the 2nd half with a brilliant interception but hasnt seemed to have got any credit for it.

'But after his struggles against West Ham and Carlton Cole, the best we can say is that the jury is out on Hudson’s qualities as a Premier League centre-back.'

After one game?! That was his first Premier League game in nine years, and his first appearance alongside Caulker!

Good god

Cole give both our centre halfs a tough time in fairness I dont know why only Hudson is getting caned for it.

Hudson stopped an absolute certain goal for Cole early in the 2nd half with a brilliant interception but hasnt seemed to have got any credit for it.

The stats show Hudson made the most clearances in the league over the weekend.

Tbh, a lot of the slating seems to be purely because we lost, if the game had gone exactly the same but we'd won 2-0 instead we'd have been raving about most of the team.

No chance not in this league and not in a pair.

Teams would target his lack of height and pepper crosses in the box.

Completely different to him playing in a defensive 3 for Chile.

Well Engand never did, and to be honest how many teams in the Premiership play hoofball even Stoke are playing more on the ground. Remember Colin Todd one of the best central defenders only 5' 9 or 10.

Funny how Eikram is in peoples starting 11 without seeing him play. Reminds me of Cornilius a few weeks ago.
Where is the loyalty to tried and tested players?

Eikrem did more in a brief cameo than whitts has done in months, he had a shot on target, put in an enormous tackle and accurately sprayed some decent balls around the pitch. Screw loyalty, drop whitts, he's poor.