Adelaide United are playing one-dimensional football

Columnist

By Adrian Musolino, 23 Sep 2009 Adrian Musolino is a Roar Expert

Tagged:: A-League, Adelaide United, Aurelio Vidmar, football

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Melbourne Victory's Billy Celeski challenges Adelaide United's Sasa Ognenovski in the A-League football final match, at the Telstra Dome, in Melbourne, Saturday, Feb. 28, 2009. Victory beat United 1-0. AAP Image/Martin Philbey

The tide is turning in Adelaide. After last season’s remarkable Asian Champions League run, and another Grand Final appearance, the wheels appear to be falling off at Adelaide United. And its fans are turning on the team and coach, Aurelio Vidmar.

It has not only been their poor form that has annoyed fans, winning only two matches so far, despite the fact that five of their seven matches have been at home, but also the manner in which they continue to play.

Captain Travis Dodd has suggested the problems are as simple as sharpening up their attack and maintaining possession more efficiently.

But the problems run deeper than that.

The continued plan of playing a lone striker in a 4-2-3-1 set-up is frustrating more than just the fans.

New striker Lloyd Owusu has publicly admitted that he is unable to function best in this set-up and would prefer to play alongside fellow striker Cristiano, something that has happened only once this season.

Owusu was played out of the game against Melbourne and, when a goal down, Adelaide looked unable to conjure up an equalizer for the majority of the game.

Adelaide’s one dimensionality has become painfully predictable.

What’s most worrying is the ignorance of this problem from the club itself. Or perhaps the inability to adapt and change this playbook when needed.

Perhaps last season’s successful run masked the underlying deficiencies of the squad and inexperience of the coach. An argument can easily be made that their successes over-inflated the clubs confidence and ego heading into this season.

There are certainly some questions starting to be asked by Reds supporters.

Most pertinent of those is why the persistence with this counter-attacking, lone striker system? Is it any wonder the Reds are so rusty in attack?

Also, where was the long-term vision in the decision so early last season to let the likes of Angelo Costanzo go, only for the panic buy of Mark Rudan as the season commenced?

The depth the club had, which enabled it to sustain its A-League, ACL and World Club Cup campaigns, appears long gone.

Injury has certainly impacted Adelaide, something that the club admitted was partly self-inflicted with the ‘calf-curse’ forcing a rethink of its training methods.

But these are rudimentary mistakes the club cannot afford to make in its perilous state.

Yes there have been financial limitations, but they cannot excuse what’s being done with the personnel at their disposal.

Owusu has a mightily impressive record in the lower leagues of English football, but he is being wasted in the current Adelaide system.

Their poor home form is a shame considering the favourable draw Adelaide has had, with its fans rewarded with successive Friday night home games. They have turned out in big numbers consistently, but there is growing frustration and antagonism in the Hindmarsh stands.

As the club heads on the road, they need to re-evaluate their goals and accept that they will be in the dogfight for the bottom places of the top six, and are looking vulnerable.

This season the A-League has much-improved depth across the competition, with all teams appearing to have more attacking capabilities than Adelaide, and all with genuine belief that they can make it into the finals.

The goalposts have been moved since last season, and the question is whether Vidmar and Adelaide United have the capability to rework their game plan to stay in touch with the rest.

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The Crowd Says (22) | Page 1 of Comments

Robert B said | September 23rd 2009 @ 3:13am | Report comment

Great article and good questions. It’s a damn shame that our club that has built up such a great name for itself is now going backwards. We should be playing attacking football positive football, the ADELAIDE WAY.

Some points:
- Hughes is junk, we got rid of Diego for him?
- Pantelis should ONLY be played on the left.
- 2 up front VIDMAR!
- If Alemao is able to play despite the broken nose, play him!
- Shin should have a chance in the middle.

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David V. said | September 23rd 2009 @ 7:26am | Report comment

All t hat I’ve been saying. Horrible to watch so far this season, Vidmar’s inflexible approach (like Van Egmond last season) is being found out.

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megatron said | September 23rd 2009 @ 8:59am | Report comment

Think Vidmar was overrated and they did well in the A-League last season due to the lack of competition and just got in a good run in the ACL

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Marlon said | September 23rd 2009 @ 9:17am | Report comment

Thank God !!! An article that finally hits home about Adelaide United. Brilliant Adrian. Your comment about Angelo Costanzo is spot on. Sure, let him go if you have a youth plan or a worthy substitute. But to send him off and replace him with Rudan !!! A stupid move by a club with no idea and no future.

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Realfootball said | September 23rd 2009 @ 9:45am | Report comment

Very serious questionmarks over Vidmar’s capabilities as a coach. Considering the exhilarating player he was, his coaching methods are strange to say the least. Personally I thought he should have been shown the door after his “pissant town” comments. Lack of professionalism, control and insight wrapped up into one inglorious moment.

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David V. said | September 23rd 2009 @ 10:26am | Report comment

I really wonder how much of the current problems date back to that one word.

Signing Hughes and Rudan was also pretty dumb.

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cab711 said | September 23rd 2009 @ 10:27am | Report comment

Adelaide are still the goods for my money. They have great wings with Jamieson and Alemao. Just like CCM they never get any respect, even when they make the finals. Big question is how the defence will hold up against the Asian teams?

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- Realfootball said | September 23rd 2009 @ 12:02pm | Report comment
  
  I think you are wrong there – Adelaide get plenty of respect. The simple fact is that they are not playing well and Vidmar has recruited poorly and seems incapable of adapting to changing circumstances.
  
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  - David V. said | September 23rd 2009 @ 12:53pm | Report comment
    
    Correct. Vidmar wasn’t the one responsible for getting the team to the ACL final- the players, more specificallly Galekovic and Ognenovski, were. And now that Ognenovski and Costanzo are gone, the quality of their defence is worse and playing defensively makes less sense. And there’s not the creativity in midfield to play a fluid attacking game either.
    
    United’s recruitment policies have been woefully imbalanced, but so have many A-League clubs.
    
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    - Realfootball said | September 23rd 2009 @ 2:46pm | Report comment
      
      Very true, Davd V. Melbourne perhaps being the most striking case in point. The squads are thin on quality too when the injuries kick in, but that’s the salary cap. Melbourne were very lucky to win against Adelaide – the first gaol was sheer fluke and the second was meaningless – but the harsh reality is that Adeliade might not look like losing games, but they never seem to look like winning them either. I can’t recall an A League side that looked less likely to score goals in a game (even the Roar at their worst created a lot of chances – they just couldn’t put them away). In their ACL run that was never the case – they could defend for long periods but when they attacked they always looked dangerous. What has changed? Well, Diego has gone for a start and that was mystifying, because Vidmar hasn’t replaced him. Barbiero is injured constantly, and anyway he’s just a toiler. There’s no class, no panache in the middle, no one like Miller or Culina or Corica or Burns or Talay or Bertos/Diego/Daniel or Hernandez. Yes, every team is represented here except one, and that, of course. is Adelaide.
      
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      - Vicentin said | September 23rd 2009 @ 5:32pm | Report comment
        
        Very true – their most likely goal option is Cornflakes’s head from a set piece …oh, that’s right he’s still in the naughty corner isn’t he? Agree with most everyone here, the signings and sellings are all a bit mystifying and where’s the playmaker? Suddenly Diego seems like he was a genius in Adelaide’s midfield. Is Aurelio turning into one of those control freak managers who completely distrusts creative players who might do something he’s not expecting? He’s got to lose the headset too – looks like he’s on the set of UFO or Captain Scarlett.
        
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        cab711 said | September 23rd 2009 @ 9:25pm | Report comment
        
        Holy crap your showing your age there Vincentin.
        
        Vicentin said | September 23rd 2009 @ 10:12pm | Report comment
        
        cab – nah just precocious – ok you got me but young at heart at least. Actually I remember watching UFO around 1980 – which was when it was suppose to be set, and being rather disappointed with my surroundings. For instance, that these sorts of uniforms for women involved in space travel never caught on…
        
        http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2071/2067218329_f03c63fd33.jpg … or
        
        http://espanol.geocities.com/paulinabaeza1/ufo/13.jpg
        
        …though of course very happy the fishnet singlets (on men!) never caught on. I can’t even bring myself to search for an image of that!
        
        Pippinu said | September 23rd 2009 @ 10:18pm | Report comment
        
        Love the magenta hair.
        
        Vicentin said | September 23rd 2009 @ 10:27pm | Report comment
        
        Pip – how could you not? But seriously, it was so absurd because it was supposed to be part of the uniform! Was it some sort of helmet perhaps … a radiation shield?
        
        I just sidetracked myself even further then and was watching an episode of Captain Scarlet on youtube …who’s idea was it have him speak like Cary Grant and why? I keep expecting him to say “Judy, Judy, Judy”.
        
        …Aurelio Vidmar and the Adelaide form slump …it is clearly the work of the Mysterons!
    - Pippinu said | September 23rd 2009 @ 9:29pm | Report comment
      
      Interesting point – both AU and MV lost two defenders each – and yet didn’t bring two back in (maybe one each?)
      
      So one long term injury apiece – and bang – you’re up shit creek.
      
      Picking up Leijer, and then Muskie returning, has definitely shored things up for MV.
      
      But the time will come soon where they have to see a future without the general out there – might be a shock to the system.
      
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  - cab711 said | September 23rd 2009 @ 9:20pm | Report comment
    
    Thats what I said, give Vimar some respect sheesh.
    
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- megatron said | September 23rd 2009 @ 4:59pm | Report comment
  
  I can’t see them making the six if they continue like this. The comp has gone up a level and they haven’t even been able to get decent points at home. Can’t afford to not be scoring this season with the tightness of the league
  
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rojack said | September 23rd 2009 @ 3:17pm | Report comment

Funny how Dave Mitchell was the first one to point out their one dimensional game before the season even kicks off and he was shot down.

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- David V. said | September 23rd 2009 @ 4:43pm | Report comment
  
  Perth have played decent football, and Srhoj is emerging as a “poor man’s Nick Carle” if there is such a thing.
  
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  - rojack said | September 23rd 2009 @ 4:58pm | Report comment
    
    Well, depends which half you are talking about. Perth tends to play really well in one half and does the opposite in other half. But yeah, Srhoj is doing well this season.
    
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    - David V. said | September 23rd 2009 @ 5:38pm | Report comment
      
      Well Srhoj is the latest inductee into the “Better than Gerrard” club, I hope he enjoys it!
      
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