Ramos and Redknapp A Tactical Analysis

And so nearly a month has pa sed since Harry Redknapp took over the reigns of a struggling, disheartened Tottenham Hotspur side. Since his arrival, Tottenham have steadily rose up the table and, despite still languishing perilously close to the relegation places, the storm clouds seem to have been lifted from White Hart Lane.Juande Ramos left in a haze of desperation and false hope, Redknapp arrived with the air of a saviour, bundled into the managers dug-out before he had even the chance to change his suit. He made an impre sion instantly; the club recording their first win of the season in his first game in charge. It would be unfair to credit Redknapp with the tactical accolades after that particular game (Clive Allen was the man who picked the team), but he has proved his worth in the games that have followed. It seems that it has only taken Arry a few weeks to find the right Tottenham formulae.In this piece, I will try to identify the differences (tactical and mental) between Juande Ramos, the slick disciplinarian, and Harry Redknapp, the lovable Cockney geezer. The differences arent always obvious, but they certainly make an impactJUANDE RAMOS: THE MANSchooled in the art of management by his former Elche manger, Juan De La Cruz Ramos Cano, better known Philadelphia 76Ers Hats as Juande Ramos, quickly achieved a reputation as a hard taskmaster. He announced his arrival at Tottenham with an intensive double-training se sion and then promptly instructed all of the players to follow his strict diet. He reportedly complained to the board that the players were fat and overweight (perhaps they were sharing former manger Martin Jols diet?!) and ordered all of the players to eat le s and train more. Some voiced discontent, but most conferred and results quickly improved.Many commented on Ramos old fashioned English style of managing. Players had to endure lengthy conversations with the Spaniard on football philosophy, theory and tactics. Players were fed detailed bits of football information, subs shown complicated diagrams drawn on notepads before they came on. A psychologist was bought into the Tottenham set-up, vegetable smoothies drunk at half-timeContrary to popular believe, Ramos wasnt an Seth Curry Jersey overly complicated man. He has strong beliefs and a strict set of values but, as long as you followed them, you were fine. Ho sam Ghaly voiced his discontent at the new regime and was promptly sent to train with the reserves. Ramos wasnt used to people saying no to him.HARRY REDKNAPP: THE MANQuite simply, Arry Redknapp is the polar opposite of Juande Ramos. A football stalwart, Harry has made his name from taking over struggling clubs and leading them up the table. He joined Pompey when they were in (the then) Division One. When he left they were the F.A. Cup winners and an established top-flight club. He spent 7 years at West Ham, rapidly becoming a fans favourite but one thing still eluded him. He Philadelphia 76Ers T-Shirts had never been in charge of a really big club, never managed a Man Utd or a Newcastle or, indeed, a Spurs.Despite Pompeys F.A. Cup triumph remaining his only piece of silver-ware, Redknapp is one of the most respected English managers in the game. Many believe that, if it hadnt have been for the BBC Bung accusations, Redknapp would have been appointed England manager, ahead of Steve McClaren. Harry is also a simple manager. He knows what he wants to do; stick it in the net. He has no interest in complicated diagrams and fancy diets, ala Juande.Redknapp is also a London boy- knowledgeable of history and traditional playing style of the club: I am a big follower of the history of the game and Tottenham have been a great club over the years. I followed Tottenham, I trained there as an 11-year-old, 12-year-old so I know the history of the club. It is a big, big, club.JUANDE RAMOS: TACTICSJuande Ramos was a great lover of the tactics board. He regally changed formations at Seville but found out quickly that the English players at Tottenham werent used to switching tactics every game. Therefore he adapted to the 4-4-2 formation but then found, at the start of this season, injuries permitted us from fielding players in their strongest positions. Just take a look at this line-up in Ramos last game- against Stoke:GomesHutton Woodgate Corluka ZokoraJenas ModricBentley Lennon BaleBentDespite a Jimmy Butler Jersey left back being on the field, Ramos decided to play Zokora at left back, opting for Bale in Attacking midfield. Lennon was forced to play in the middle, freeing up Bentley on the right, with Darren Bent up front alone. Meanwhile, our best attacking mid-fielder of the last two seasons: Jermaine Jenas, was played in defensive mid-field, alongside Luka Modric, a player who had spent all of his Dinamo Zagreb and Croatian international career playing in attacking mid-field! Ramos left new-signing Roman Pavlyuchenko on the bench, bringing him on only after Stoke had gone 2-1 up. Surely Ramos should have learnt after nearly a year managing him, that Bent simply cant play up-front on his own. Sure he has pace, but he doesnt have the accuracy to execute snap-shots (like Rooney). Nor does he have the cro sing ability to run into the corner and swing a cro s into Bentley or Lennon (like Gabby Agbonlahor for Villa).Corluka played at centre-back (with Dawson on the bench), perfectly highlighting Ramos biggest fault, in my opinion. Ramos didnt seem to ever want to play the younger, or reserve Billy Cunningham Jersey team players. Perfectly competent players like Steed Malbranque, Pascal Chimbonda and Jermain Defoe had been allowed to leave in the summer, leaving the Spurs squad woefully thin on the ground. It was almost as if Ramos had his favourite 15-odd players and didnt intend to play anyone else. Why couldnt Corluka have been left on the bench, Dawson his replacement, or why couldnt a mid-fielder have been sacrificed, like Bentley. Heres the squad I (and po sibly Harry) would have played that day:GomesHutton Woodgate Dawson BaleZokoraBentley JenasModricPavlyuchenko BentThe defence boasts players playing in their actual positions, Zokora would feel at home in the defensive midfield position and Modric would be more comfortable in attack. Bent would have a strike partner and the midfield could flex when in attack (as shown below):GomesHutton Woodgate Dawson BaleZokoraBentley Jenas ModricPavlyuchenko BentOf course, in this particular game Gareth Bales sending off made a difference, but I picked this game for two reasons. a.) It was Ramos last for the club and b.) The squad closely resembles over losing squads fielded by Ramos. Alas; compare Ramos team to HarrysHARRY REDKNAPP: TACTICSTake a look at Harry Redknapps squad that recently beat Blackburn, 1-0.GomesCorluka Woodgate King A sou-EkottoBentley Jenas Huddlestone LennonPavlyuchenko BentAs you can see, Harry fielded a straight
 
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