Match Thread Bradford City V Wycombe Wanderers Saturday 2nd August 2024 3.00pm (Now with The Voice review)

A few people are quoting the possession stats from yesterdays and said they are worried. Guys, it’s not 1990. We have far more meaningful KPIs to rate performances on…..like xG, which is one such metric data analysts (employed at most clubs now) use!

https://www.sportinglife.com/football/live/212268/bradford-city-vs-wycombe-wanderers/xg-shot-maps?scrollTo=match-tabs

we outperformed Wycombe 1.69 - 1.05 on xG and fully deserved our win based on meaningful chances created.

A great performance from the lads, even allowing for Wycombe missing a sitter, having a poss pen, and generally having spells of fluffy possession.

possession means nothing in football in the current age!

 

It's a guideline rather than rule. You could just about read their numbers up close but once they got a bit further away it was impossible to read.
It looks like our away kit could be an issue this year with white numbers and letters being used, the numbers might be ok as they are quite big but the names will probably be hard to read.

 

And not only that Rod, there is a buzz on the terraces and in the concourses. Fans wearing their shirts with pride once again. Loving it.

 

I haven't seen anyone use possession stats to argue that Wycombe were the better side. I think possession stats are useful in assessing other sides and how they approach the game. For example, when we come up against a side with low possession at the top end of the table we'll know that they are an effective counter attacking side. You can value possession stats whilst sso recognising that they don't provide any indicator of who the better side were.

 

Ive read comments saying ‘worried’ or similar.

wycombe missing Kone, who is angling for a move, was a big help for us. Despite their possession I felt we were always in control though. Ill happily settle for 32% possession if we create chances like we did yesterday every week. Keeper made two worldies.

 

Why its ok having all that possesion if your doing something with it ????
Whats matter is what you do in possesion when you have it and we did better with ours than theirs.

I mean you can go back to the Hughrs era and all the possesion we had in his games i mean it may look good on the stats but when your there watching and realise that all the possesion was basicslly messing about with it in non threatening areas then you realise possesion really counts for nothing if you aint threatening with it

 

If you look at the breakdown of possession by each player between their back 4 and goalkeeper they had 38.9% possession. Especially when we are 2-0 after 15 minutes I am more than happy if their back 4 and goalkeeper have a lot of the ball as that is not going to hurt us. It's similar to when Hughes was in charge that we would often have a lot of the ball but created few changes. Alexander even said himself yesterday that he's not that bothered about possession and when we get the ball the first thought is to get the ball forward into their third to create chances. For all of their passes we completed 54/98 passed in the final 3rd and Wycombe were 81/139, most of them for Wycombe were in the 2nd half where they were much better and we starting sitting deeper.

 

Ah I see the posts you refer to. I agree, I wouldn't worry about our possession at all. In fact, I'd be interested to know average possession for league teams across a full season. I wouldn't be surprised to see a lot of sides at the top end with low possession stats.

 

He quoted last seasons data , who knew , without checking .

This is an image from yesterday

https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=pfbid0mgQ6Z7VCbSF9oUWfduGhFL1xQAohiL9aDF5KT7tyZEfuMW1uJkEohxFgnv2yqXyel&id=100072231030024

 

Great stats supporting what I said earlier , all that possession between their back 3 and keeper was ineffective and meaningless . Even Pep now regards “possession” as old hat if one doesn’t do anything with it. In fact managers who play possession like they did yesterday are two seasons behind lots of sides wishing to play counter attack using a press.
Onwards and upwards until a new tactic evolves?

 

True. We had 6 shots on target to their 3. You can pass it around the back 5 for half a game and be in posession but got to do summit with it.

On another day we would have won that 4-2 if they got the penalty.

 

Was watching Barnet vs Newport in the EFL Prelim Round (who knew?) and newly promoted Barnet were losing with like 70 plus percent possession lol

I believe they used to call this sort of thing "a lesson in finishing", though more aptly they could call it "a lesson in how to use the ball".

 

We were discussing that during the game. Giving away fouls in their half or on the half way line. No real threat to us there. I noticed Power took one for the team late on rather than let the player pass he just hauled him down. And that aggressive attitude was evident across the whole team really. Its game 1 and already we are looking a half decent well organised outfit.

Their manager was commenting after the game that they didn't have enough steel about them and that's why they ultimately lost. They did seem to get rattled rather easily complaining after being fouled etc. But still a really decent footballing team.

 

Agreed, If the ball was going towards the target and his arms outstretched (Not even close to his body) and it prevents a shot on goal, surely that's a penalty?
Either way, glad it wasn't!

 

Not particularly impressed with either of big money spenders Stockport or Bolton in their match this afternoon.

 

Really? Stockport look very good indeed.

 

Put it this way, on today's showing, wouldn't fear them at all. Sky commentators also saying Stockport nowhere near their best, despite winning.

Very early days, but I would imagine Luton, Huddersfield and Cardiff will be the stand out teams this season. Looks like Torvide will be Lutons next signing from Colchester.

 

A real test next home game. It'll be some occasion.

 

Mixed reception from the fans for Nahki perhaps?

Has Nahki played against us since deserting us?

 

If there was, I honestly don’t think (given the ref didn’t give it) it would have been overturned. Similarly, wouldn’t have been overturned if he had awarded it.

Was one of those where you could argue a pen - clearly hits hand, arm away from body.

However, could be a debate on ‘natural position’ given he was moving to close down the shot and also distance from opponent - given it was blasted at him around a yard/yard and a half away.

Personally think it was the latter which was the main reason it wasn’t given.