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Have my team and post ready but will be going out shortly and won't be back on until about 4.00pm so can send it onto some by PM if they want to post it for me. Or if someone wants to start the match thread.

Right I am going to post mine here and then someone else can put it into the match thread because otherwise I am going to hold the whole thing up.



When I started the draft I’ll admit I did not have much of an idea what kind of team I would select or even what shape or system they would play, however once Gerrard was chosen as my first pick it was always going to have to be set up to accommodate him at his prime. The way I ended up going with my team is very similar to the peak Benitez era Liverpool team.

Defence
At the back I have four very solid defenders, two of whom I’d say are up there with the very best in their positions in Vidic and Ivanovic. Vidic and Vermaelen should partner each other well at the back, both were leaders on the pitch and will compliment each other in the sense that Vidic will be the aggressive defender who will attack aerial balls and close down the opposition whilst Vermaelen will sit off and read the game more, he is also well capable of playing out from the back when necessary, although my team is not intended to be a tiki-taka possession based team. Ivanovic is an incredible right back, defensively he is possibly the best there has ever been in the league and he had a great engine to get forward if not the most cumbersome. Le Saux is a premier league winner and has a very successful and long career at the top level, he will primarily stick to defensive duties and prohibit crosses from Solano. Vidic, Ivanovic and Vermaelen are all big threats from set pieces too and have good goalscoring records for defenders. Of course these are all propped up by Courtois in goals, who at his peak was a world class goalkeeper for Chelsea and won two league titles with them and a golden glove along the way. He is a complete goalkeeper who has no obvious weakness and was great at commanding his area which will be important in this match as I presume getting the ball into Kane will be one of duffmans main threats.

Midfield
The midfield is where I think I will win this game and I think when comparing my midfield to duffmans there is a significant gap in quality. Kante is the best (himself or Makelele) holding midfielder the league has seen, he will do what he does best and sit deep, be aggressive, win the ball and make a lot of interceptions before giving it off to more creative players. His sheer athleticism alone will keep Le Tissier in his pocket, who has a lot of talent but there has to be question marks about him performing at the very very top level, there is a reason he only has 8 caps for England. Gerrard then is this teams obvious talisman, he will play fairly high up the pitch in support of Wright similar to himself and Torres of that Benitez/Liverpool team. Not many teams could handle Gerrard during this period and he is such a threat for both scoring and creating goals, he will be given a bit of a free role where he can roam and pick up threatening positions but won’t have to worry too much about the defensive side of the game with the two men behind him. Arteta I think was a shrewd pick as he knits it altogether, as I said my team won’t be relying heavily on holding onto the ball at all costs but he can dictate the tempo of a game, will seek for the ball off my defensive players and be able to supply my forward players such as Gerrard, Wright, Ljungberg and Son.

Forwards
Ljungberg and Son will have a lot of joy against Coleman and Harte I would think. They are both extremely good at making runs into the box and having Gerrard/Arteta hitting through balls for them to get onto and in behind Harte/Coleman will bring a lot of joy for my side IMO. They are quick and strong wingers with an eye for goal and the knack of popping up in the box at the right time, this was something the Liverpool team of that era was missing big time, and I think if they had wingers of this quality they would have comfortably won a few league titles. In Ian Wright then I have a clinical striker who has notched over 100 premier league goals for Arsenal and broke 30 goals in all comps in 4 out of 5 seasons. He could score every type of goal, had pace and had good link up play and I intend for Gerrard to play quite high up to him so he is not left isolated.

Opposition
I think Duffman has a good team but his full backs will struggle against my wingers and I think my midfield is far better. Harte is a liability at left back and I think Ljungberg will cause havoc down that side of the pitch getting in behind him and Ivanovic offering support when necessary. Defensively I think Kante will have Le Tiss in his pocket, my two centre halves should be well capable of dealing with Harry Kane as he is not explicitly quick, I don’t see where his teams goals are going to come from really as a lot of the players in the support positions (Solano, Le Tissier, Ramires, even McManaman to a certain extent) are not of the highest quality. Vieira will have a big job on his hands trying to stop Gerrard and if he spends the game trying to stop Gerrard it’s one of duffmans best players tied up for the game.

The nature of my picks were players who were hard working and had a positive impact in a high work rate team. Players who were excellent for periods of time and had a high impact for their teams.

From the back out, I have Schmeichel marshalling an excellent duo of King and Gallas. Both players are brilliant one v one defenders and also exceptional positionally. Coleman and Harte were both picked for their impact at both ends, Two players who feature high on the list for goal scoring and assists and can get on the overlap. Hartes pace might be an issue if you look at his later career but hes positionally sound and chips in with goals and assists from both deadball and long range.

Midfield is again a hard working machine with Vieira and Ramires both having a huge engine and being genuine box to box midfielders to provide some solidity along with an attacking threat. Solano and McManaman provide genuine width along with creativity. Solano in particular I always feel was underrated.

Looking at Le Tissier, yeah he isnt the most high energy footballer but a genuine Maverick and someone in a team of this talent I feel will get the team ticking. Playing for relegation fodder, year after year he was consistently pivotal in keeping them up with a great goal return and excellent eye for a pass.

Forward
Harry Kane, a player with great movement and amazing ability to get in the right place at the right time. If he stays in England he will break Shearers record for sure IMO. He is handful for most defenses and has shown he can score against the best defenses while playing as a lone striker.

Looking Ferris team, hes got some good players and a pretty decent set up. I honestly think he lacks a little going forward and I think my back two would mop up anything throw the middle. He has decent wingers but I feel his full backs negate his attacking threat a little as I dont see too many overlaps and even if there was ive two wingers particularly Solano who will continue to track back. He has Kante who I rate hugely in the CDM role however I feel Vermaelen might be a big of a week link. I feel I have a slightly more solid spine.

Also my first draft, I have enjoyed it immensely and hope there will be a few more.

Sorry for the stupid question but how do i get the line up from the buildlineup site to embed into the post?

redzerdrog wrote: »

Sorry for the stupid question but how do i get the line up from the buildlineup site to embed into the post?

I saved them as images (click the download button) to my phone and uploaded them to imgur(use the desktop site if your on phone) and then copy link into the img brackets

Trigger wrote: »

You need to open the image in a new tab and then copy that one.. hold down(or right click) and open it in a new tab and you will get a slightly different link starts with I.imgur

Thanks, that took me about an hour to do!:D

Just realised you have just exposed my team!!:D:D

After writing 1200 words on my team, if only I applied myself liek this whn I was younger:)

Trigger wrote: »

Edited it there, sorry.

At least you havent been voted against before the opposition even picked his team :pac:

ah it wouldnt take a genius to work out how i was gona set up!

Ha I seen that alright, its pretty harsh :pac:

To be copied into the match thread once open

My formation and tactics are fairly simple, but I’m going for a tried and tested approach that takes inspiration from a couple of different teams. Here’s how I’ll line up to begin with:



As many could tell from just that line up, it’s a counter attacking style I’ve adopted and intended to use from the start, and it’s modelled on Leicester City’s title winning season, with some minor tweaks and obviously much more talented personnel. It also takes elements from Houllier’s Liverpool side, and plays very much to the strengths of Michael Owen who I’ll be partnering with Lukaku up front, to form what I hope would be a much more deadly, clinical version of the Owen-Heskey partnership of old, which was highly successful to begin with. I’ll get into the tactics and what I want from my players a bit now:

Goalkeeper

Reina was a great pickup for me here, as I was looking for a keeper who wasn’t just a great shot stopper, but also had the ability to distribute the ball accurately and quickly, to begin very direct counter attacks by kicking the ball into space for Owen and Overmars to run onto, or straight on top of Lukaku to knock it down for a teammate. I’ll also be asking him to play the sweeper keeper role to an extent, because my back four has the pace to maintain a high line and keep the pressure on at times.

Centre Backs

I’m adamant that I’ve got the best centre back pairing in this competition. Both are PFA Player of the Year winners and really stood out in a sport where defenders usually go under the radar. I don’t need to speak too much of their qualities here because they’re clear to see, but in terms of how I want them playing; Virgil will lead and organise the entire back line as he does currently at the highest level for Liverpool. McGrath won’t have to worry about those duties, I have him in here purely to defend. They both have a great turn of pace, so they’ll be keeping a fairly high line and trying to catch the opposition offside if my midfield are controlling the game, and will have few problems catching a forward who occasionally gets in behind them. If my side is losing the midfield battle or defending a lead, they’ll be sitting back in a more traditional position for centre halves and snuffing out any danger in the box, heading crosses away with ease which both are well known for.

On the ball, McGrath with his excellent ability in possession will keep it simple and play short passes, while Virgil will be the playmaker from defence when required, pinging his trademark diagonal balls out to Kuyt to or occasionally down the line for Overmars to chase. Both will offer a significant threat from set pieces too, primarily the Dutchman.

Full Backs

Baines and Johnson are two of the most experienced fullbacks in this draft, and between them have come up against many of the wingers drafted at some point. It’s a small thing, but familiarity is key in one-on-one battles and I’m expecting that to factor in a little bit. Much like the centre backs, their position will vary depending on the opposition and how the game will flow. In moments where my team is on top and building attacks, Johnson will be close behind Dirk Kuyt and giving him an option on the overlap or occasionally inverting his run and cutting it back for a midfielder or delivering a cross for Lukaku at the near post. Baines will take a more defensive position, letting Overmars roam a little further forward but he’ll be overlapping as well when Overmars cuts inside and takes on his fullback, offering an added threat with his superb crossing ability. Most of his deliveries will come from deep though, hanging balls up for Lukaku at the back post. Baines will also be my set piece specialist.

In more defensive situations, the pair will fall back into a solid line of four and try to keep their shape, they’ll aim to keep the opposition wingers at bay and stop the crosses coming in. On the counter attack, one will always stay back behind the halfway line and the other will provide an option on the overlap to stretch the move if the opposition defenders tuck in to deal with my front two.

Midfield

I’ll go through this section individually, as this is the main area which will mirror the title winning Leicester City side.

Fabinho wasn’t my first choice for this position and was a controversial pick, but I feel he was the best equipped of what was left to take on my interpretation of the Kante role. His ball winning ability is of the highest quality and I’ll be asking him to hassle opposition midfielders as often as possible, particularly in the few seconds after my team would lose the ball. He’ll sit back a little more than Kante would have in the same role, vying to dominate the midfield alongside Scholes with his neat passing and ability to play the ball in tight areas.

Scholes will be the playmaker here of course, providing the much needed link between defence and attack. If he finds himself with the ball at his feet during a counter attack, there’s no better man to make that key pass whether it’s from 50 yards or 5. In possession, he’ll keep things ticking over with Fabinho and bring the wingers into play to stretch the opposition. On top of all that, Scholes is a significant goal threat from any range and if he’s given space for a shot or makes a late run into the box, there are few better midfielders to convert a chance than him. I’d call him the Drinkwater of my team to keep the Leicester comparison going as that’s the role he’ll occupy, but it just sounds ridiculous. :pac:

Overmars will be dynamite on the counter attack of course, but from general play, I’ll be asking him to start out very wide and trying to beat his man with his dazzling skills on the ball and his electrifying pace, cutting inside or taking the ball down the line. He can cross or shoot well from either foot, so his unpredictability will test the opposing defence and he also has the option of cutting it back to Baines to whip in a cross, so much of my attack will come down that side of the pitch.

Kuyt is the workhorse of this team. He’s primarily in there to link up once again with Glen Johnson and add some defensive steel to the right hand side. He’ll be bombing up and down the wing as ever and making runs into the opposition’s penalty area from out wide, and there are few better at getting into goalscoring positions from out wide than Kuyt. He can cross the ball well, he can shoot, he can tackle and he’ll be putting all of those skills to use in my team, and he’ll do it for the full 90 minutes given his remarkable stamina and work ethic. Won’t be my number one option for building attacks, but he can’t be taken lightly be defenders or they will be punished.

In defensive situations, Scholes and Fabinho will sit in front of the back four and keep their shape. Overmars and Kuyt will be sat a little further forward, the latter helping out my weakest defender in Glen Johnson and Overmars giving Baines a bit more to do in defence while he himself waits for the chance of a counter attack, offering me an outlet on the left hand side to start one off.

Forwards

As I’ve already alluded to, I’m looking to reform the Owen and Heskey partnership of old, but with a significant upgrade on the latter in Romelu Lukaku. Michael Owen in his prime has always worked well alongside a big man, so by having him play off Lukaku, he’ll be excellent at anticipating the knock down from his strike partner and identifying the spaces he can run into. The other main reason I chose to draft Owen so early on is that he had deadly pace, and I’m going to take full advantage of that on the counter attack with quality service from a number of areas, mainly between Reina, van Dijk and Scholes with their excellence in long range distribution.

Lukaku will be a solid goal threat in his own right, and he’ll be the number one target for Baines and Overmars to pick out at the back post. He’s got good pace for a target man too, so that threat can’t be ignored either. Another man who’ll threaten from set pieces. He’s mainly in the team to get the most out of Owen, but he’s an accomplished goal scorer and won’t let a good chance go to waste.

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With that, I’ll wrap up with a picture of how my team will line up without the ball, a position from which I’ll hope they’ll not only hold out defensively and earn a clean sheet, but also enable me to operate a lethal counter attacking strategy and nick a win:

Mr.Nice Guy wrote: »

The first few matches had the results hidden and I think it's more absorbing when the outcome remains unknown. If people click on a thread and see a one-sided contest taking place they may not be bothered giving their thoughts.

i concur. precisely my reasoning when I kept them hidden in the first few that I had to add a poll too.

Some interesting match ups there

There's no need to lay out our team thoughts since we did that in the opening round, right?

I'm going to skip that if it's alright. Not sure other users want to read a big quoted post either. I'll link to the opening post from the last thread maybe,