The Western Sydney Wanderers notched up their eighth draw of the season against Perth Glory on Monday from 13 games played, winning only two fixtures and sitting a staggering 19 points off ladder leaders Sydney FC. So where it is going wrong for the Wanderers this season?
Finding Wanderland
Parramatta has been the home of WSW since their inception and has witnessed some magical moments.
Come from behind wins, upsetting juggernaut opposition – yes, Luiz Felipe Scolari’s Asian Champions melt down under pressure still rates highly – and witnessing magical semi-final victories from the Red and Black Bloc.
These events have given the Wanderers a sense of home at Parramatta Stadium, that they belong to the community around them. You can feel the passion of the supporters and the players believe that “impossible” is just a word.
This season has seen WSW relocate to Spotless Stadium and ANZ as Parramatta Stadium is redeveloped, a necessary evil.
Neither stadium has seen a Wanderers victory this season, in fact, ANZ hosted the first game 4-0 drubbing from Sydney FC. The Wanderers need to find that winning feeling again at both stadiums to find their new, albeit temporary, Wanderland.
Blueprint for success
Defence
Now we’ve spoken about the pitch, let’s talk about what’s happening on it.
Leaky defence has been the main concern for the Western Sydney campaign so far. The back four combinations have looked vulnerable on the counter and the less said about the goalkeeping standards of both Andrew Redmayne and Jerrad Tyson the better.
They have scored 17 goals, however, they have also conceded 23. Compare these stats to Brisbane Roar who have scored 16 but only let in 14 goals and are now sitting in 3rd on the ladder off the back of solid defence and an amazing season so far from keeper Michael Theo.
The Wanderers wing backs have also been pushing further and further up the pitch in order to find space in an attempt to get crosses into the box.
Similar to last season, there is far too little success from these plays. Scott Jamieson was a primary example of this last season. Scott Neville and Jack Clisby have continued to push wide, but with no strong target in the box, often the ball in is wasted or given straight to the opposition who quickly go on the counter.
Midfield
The midfield has been generally played as five in the middle with two central defensive midfielders, two wingers and a centre attack midfield. It is clear what style of play coach Tony Popovic wants from his team this season, and he has tried to evolve over the last two seasons to match that.
Passing and possession is the name of the game, a stark move away from playing counter-attacking football of the seasons past.
The main problem with this style of play is the turnover rate, and ineffective crosses being provided from the wide areas. A-League teams this season have been more than happy to allow Wanderers space down the sides, knowing their crosses are rarely effective in terms of scoring opportunities.
The same goes for set pieces. On a positive note I believe when the midfield attack clicks, they have shown wonderful slick movements on and off the ball and have carved up defences in front of them.
Forwards
Western Sydney has always been short of a quality striking power, relying on the team goals, particularly from their midfield players, hence Mark Bridge is still the top scorer at the club.
The Kerem Bulut experiment has failed this season, for numerous reasons. Although he looked quick, his conversion rate, consistent offside and work ethic has seen him released by the club.
During the transfer window, WSW needs to buy a solid striker to utilise the slickness and chance creation of the midfield players. Holding the ball up, poaching goals inside the box and being a consistent target from set-pieces.
I believe a good buy in the number nine position will be key in turning their fortunes around towards making a decent finals run. I’m optimistic that Tyson will continue to improve between the sticks and dry up the goals conceded.
Roarers, where do you see the main issues for WSW this season? Can they turn it on for the rest of the season? Can they win it if they make the finals?
clipper
Guest
Thanks for the confirmation, duecer. When I started saying this 10 years ago, there wasn't that much agreement, but since WSW entered and the Swans kept going strong, just about no one disagrees with me - even the reasonable league posters admit this is the case.
duecer
Guest
Rick - I do think clipper has a point. Nobody would doubt that RL is the biggest sport in Sydney, but that does not mean it is the dominant sport. Compared to Melbourne where every AR team there is about the average attendance of the other sports, or even London where every EPL team is above the other sports - that is dominance, but when the top team in Sydney is the Swans and both Football teams are above several RL teams, you really can't argue that RL is the dominant sport, especially as crowds have been falling. When you then factor in participation, where Football is very clearly dominant, the argument gets even weaker. You just need to look around and see there are just as many people wearing Football as NRL merchandise and then realise that it's really case closed.
northerner
Guest
Whoo, you're walking pretty close to the edge on defamation there, boy. You might want to retract all of that.
Michael
Guest
And if the pay tv deal with Fox Sports was so fantastic for Football, then why didn't the Lowys also allow David Gallop to also sell Westfields to them for the same amount?? I can asure you all that if Gallop was working as CEO of Westfields and he went back to Lowys to inform them that he had sold Westfields to the Murdochs for only $350M he wouldn't have been shown the door...............................He would have been thrown head first, through the window of the 15th floor LOL.
Michael
Guest
"Have not seen any promotion for the game whatsoever." - NOR WILL YOU, LOL!! News Ltd/Foxsports have NEVER promoted Football in Australia! And now that the Lowys have delivered the tv rights to them for 6 years for virtually nothing, what incentive do they have to promote the sport? The so-called 'contra' part of the pay tv deal is just a furphy! Fox Sports/News Ltd have NEVER EVER used the A-League or Socceroos or Football in general in promotions or marketing for their products!! So the 'contra' part of the deal is either just a huge free discount gift to News Ltd from Westfields/Lowys to give the crooked Westfields a free ride in the media OR it is the crooked Lowy families "private cut" for gifting away the rights! In the second case the word "contra" is Lowy/Murdoch code for "contraband" LOL Nothing less than a full Royal Commission into the crooked governance of the sport since 2003 when the Lowy family took control, with long jail terms for the FFA leaders, will clean up up their mess and remove the stench created from their malignant influence. There are many politicians who want to see the Lowys held to account for their ruining of the sport!
AZ_RBB
Guest
If I'm not mistaken, Homebush was quite literally a wasteland pre-Olympics.
marron
Guest
No we weren't then either - and despite being able to score enough we still weren't confident up there. I wasn't talking about s change between this season and last so much. It all comes back to the coaching staff which was my main point. agreed about the cms largely. The slowness of our defense was always going to be troubling. I heard on the grapevine we might see something a little different tonight.... :/
Rick Diznek
Guest
They are one of 5 RL teams operating in the area, which is all I said. 1 in 6 people in Sydney watch every Fri night NRL game. You are seriously deluded if you think rugby league is not the major sport of Australia's biggest city. Why do you think the media deal in rugby league in Australia dwarfs the soccer one?
Rick Diznek
Guest
In my mind... Lolz muchly ta. More like the fact 1 in 6 watch the Friday night NRL game every week. Are you seriously suggesting rugby league isn't the dominant sport in Sydney moron? After only 110 years of dominance? What a retard
clipper
Guest
The Swans also used to play at ANZ, doesn't make them a WS team - although they have the highest attendance of any team, in this, in your mind, anyway, league dominant city. Do you really think most people would place Souths as a WS team?
Rick Diznek
Guest
Souths also play at ANZ, so keep trying. Go back to following the rah rah clipper before it disappears in Australia...
Rick Diznek
Guest
Yeah an all code city. Hahaha. Been rugby league since 1908. Quality lolz
Realfootball
Guest
I'm flying down for the game, AZ. Has been very low key so far, certainly. I bought tickets a while back so have no idea how sales are going. There's no doubt, however, that Wanderers are off the boil in general.
Realfootball
Guest
clipper
Guest
Talk about an artificial argument - you simply can not subtract one of the games to suit your cause - and there are 4 NRL teams in the west, not 5, all of which had a lower average attendance - which you would expect now Sydney is an all code city.
Realfootball
Guest
Not calling for his head, AZ, not at all. But the evidence suggests that Popovic would be well advised to review the way he handles player management, squad renewal and recruiting. This is now the second season he has got it very wrong. One mistake is a learning experience. Two mistakes is a warning. A third mistake is unforgivable.
AZ_RBB
Guest
Also a little worried about the Derby next week. Aside from probably getting belted, I get the feeling our away contingent will be much smaller than usual. Will be very disappointing if we can't get 40k+ total attendance. Have not seen any promotion for the game whatsoever. Big bash have their cross city match at the same time. Regardless of what you think of that competition, this will say a lot about the league
Nemesis
Guest
It's been mentioned before, but it always worth reflecting: Alex Ferguson's first 6 years at ManUtd: #11 #2 #11 #13 #6 #2 Would've been sacked in 1990 (4th year when they finished 13), but Utd finally won a trophy - the FA Cup
AZ_RBB
Guest
Sotirio. That is all.
AZ_RBB
Guest
I guess it's hard to argue against that because there are so few long term coaches in the A-League. Argument could have been made for Arnold and Muscat last season as they struggled to maintain the form they had the previous season. It's hard to make good comparisons in such a small league.