Well, Ange has done the right thing with the team selection for tonight, with a number of key players dropping to the bench. This is most certainly the right thing to do. He has one eye on the domestic game, and that’s exactly as it should be.
We are in a major battle for all three honours right here at home. Whilst we’ve put a strong team out on the park tonight, we haven’t gone all-in. The manager is prioritising and I don’t think a single one of us could argue that his priorities are the right ones.
Out goes the captain. Jota. Abada. Hatate. Juranovic. Carter Vickers. They are all rested up, with the weekend in mind, a tough trip to Easter Road. Into the team comes Forrest, Welsh and Bitton. Maeda plays wide left. Giakoumakis starts as our striker.
If I could have selected the manager’s team for him this is the one I would have picked. There is no need for us to pick this particular ditch to die in; a crap plastic surface, bad conditions, a tie where we’re two goals behind on a tricky away ground … it would have been madness to come here and risk everyone and everything and go for broke in the third tier UEFA competition, and Ange Postecoglou understands that full well.
All I want is a performance tonight, as I said in a piece earlier in the week. All we want to see is this team put up a fight. But not one which leaves us bloodied on the canvas; if we’re using military analogies right now (and it seems like an opportune moment) then our tactics should be to hurt this lot without risking a full frontal assault.
Tonight is about giving a good account … but the real work still waits for us here at home and with his team selection tonight Ange has acknowledged that fact. He deserves credit for it. On no account should anyone be moaning in the aftermath.
TEAM: Hart; Ralston, Welsh, Starfelt, Scales; O’Riley, Bitton, Rogic; Forrest, Giakoumakis, Maeda.
Subs: Bain, Olyewemi, Juranovic, Carter-Vickers, Jullien, Taylor, McGregor, Hatate, Abada, McCarthy and Jota.
sensible. see where it is at half time. if we are behind why risk players on a plastic pitch? I would not have risked GG either
So what about the fans that went to watch their team just give up eh that team tonight are slower than than watching a egg boil honest to many cowards in it ralston forrest and few others.
He needed to play McCarthy alongside Bitton – we have 5 attacking players on there. Maybe OK if you are chasing it in the last 20
Exactly
A bigger european prize comes if we win the league this season HH
I have seen us lose trying not to lose rather than try to win, now I’m seeing us lose trying not to tire fit athletes out by giving them a wee rest, what a joke. Play strongest team or save us the bull that we can go out and win this. Saw only last 20 mins. and watched two good chances as usual humped over the bar, do they actually work at this. At least it wasn’t McGregor for a change.
This is all very well saving our best players for the game against Hibs,and I agree with it but only for the reason that if we win the league it will hopefully kill off Sevco , Even after we win the league and we go into the champions League what are we actually going to do there but maybe get a hiding or two,we really need to up our game or tactics or something before we play in Europe again , we have just been spanked in the third tier European competition how are we going to fare against the big boys of Europe at the minute it doesn’t bear thinking about,we definitely need far better players in certain positions than we have now or next season’s Europe will go the same way out of all three by January.