All those late goals - is this a fitness problem?

[Robbie]

Excellent analysis in another post on late goals, set piece goals, headed goals etc.

So, what is going on in training?

Are we unfit?  (certainly a few of our players look the wrong shape for football)

Are we not practising set pieces and defensive play enough?

Who is the team is taking the mad decision to run down the clock?

[westcliff white]

nope its a concentration problem, under Ferguson, full length training matches at united went on for 50 minutes in each half so the players could concentrate for longer periods, no surprise that they scored a lot of late goals

[Carborundum]

Haven't seen an overall fitness problem as such.  Thought the last minute goal in 30 degree heat back in August reflected very well on the fitness levels.

But there is something going on with Ben Pringle.  He is regularly coming off after 60 minutes absolutely shattered. I don't think he has an aerobic fitness problem.  Rather, he is being asked to do a huge amount of running to help our defensive cover and he is willingly doing it.  Almost always the fastest man to close the opposition down and then straight to the next job.  He's surely operating in the anaerobic zone far more than anyone else and after 60 he's done and off.  With plenty of left footers to replace him, that seems a reasonable plan.

We also have one player with a considerable engine and that's Tunnicliffe.

We have a couple of players who have very strong cores and legs.  Rather than speculating on their calorific intake, I notice who is good at holding players off, spinning the defender around and battling.  For the avoidance of doubt, that's McCormack and O'Hara.

But however much the team have been practicing defending corners and crosses, they need to do much more of it.  Then do some more again.  They are going to have to turn it into a strength, because 23 other managers are now going to have "can't defend in the air" writ large in their notebook page for Fulham.

[Wearethewhites]

Apart from the odd player, we look in good shape, and are no way as unfit as we were under Jol. However, as a team, we always look mentally unprepared going into games, and I put this is down to coaching. We seem to switch off at set pieces, and especially when games are coming to a close. For me, it happens far to much to just be a coincidence, so I'd look at what the coaching staff do on a daily basis. 

[gang]

It's concentration. Fulham players go into a sort of panic mode toward the end of the game and that affects the ability to make correct decisions under pressure.

[love4ffc]

nope its a concentration problem, under Ferguson, full length training matches at united went on for 50 minutes in each half so the players could concentrate for longer periods, no surprise that they scored a lot of late goals

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[Fulham76]

We're simply disorganised tactically! Most teams create so many chances against us, it's unbelievable.

Chalton should have gone ahead as early as the 1st minute yesterday. Wolves could have been 4-0 up before we lost Cairney. Sheff weds could easily have doubled the amount of goals they did get & Blackburn's finishing was poor - too name a few.

Whether the coaching staff don't do their homework on the opposition or we're just set up poorly, tactically we get it wrong most games. And while we're conceding at least 10 decent attempts on our goal each game, we have no chance of a top 6 finish.

The fact we concede so many late on is just coincidence - it could happen any time with us being so disorganised.

[bobbo]

I'm sure not , it's been said we were dominating at the point of the first substitution and yet the substitution still went ahead.

[OdecaMynoT]

Andy Lonergan is a great shot stopper,but part of the problem for conceding goals/late goals imo.

When it comes to dealing with crosses/corners,where we have conceded so often this season,

he seems to be rooted to the goal line. He needs to dominate the penalty area,which in turn will have a positive influence on the defence.

His reluctance to deal with crosses creats uncertainty in the defence and the opposition sense that.

The defence has a collective ar-se puckering session(as most of us do) every time the  ball is floated in to our area. Sheff.Wed and Charlton being prime

examples.

[H4usuallysitting]

Apparently we don't do repetitive defence scenario's because the players get bored.....as quoted by Kit

[filham]

We are far from the well drilled and defensively organised unit we used to see week in week out when Roy and Ray were in charge and always seem ready to take a sucker punch. Also we do struggle in the air , even Stearman is under a lot of pressure fom big strikers.
The aerial situation is eased when Dan Burn plays and I always feel more comfortable when he is in the defence for the last 15 minutesI

I am not in favour of replacing Kit just now but he really has to something about our defence, buying a couple of new centre backs has not solved the problem , there is a lot of work to be done.

[J.Perkins]

I don't think fitness is an issue. We just can't close out games. Most managers change tactics in the final quarter, whether winning or losing, but Symons can't get it quite right. Example, Charlton. At 2-0, we started passing it about slowly, not really attacking. 2-0 is not a scoreline to sit on with 30 to go.

[FPT]

I think we're in good shape; Jamie O'Hara isn't going to be next Mo Farah, and you can see him starting to wane around the 70 minute mark. Ben Pringle runs a hell of a lot in his matches. Ryan Tunnicliffe is always trying to be action man.

It's more concentration than anything, but lets look at the last 10 minutes goals conceded individually:

Cardiff - Ben Pringle slip gave Craig Noone the space to find his aim.
Brighton - Stupid tackle from Shaun Hutchinson.
Hull - Bodurov day dreaming.
Charlton no.1 - Set piece switch off - Tunnicliffe allowed man to get goal side.
Charlton no.2 - Cousins unmarked. Got to look at Christensen.

So when I read that, I see individual error which does also come as part of a concentration issue. Why is that? I don't know. Maybe we panic. Maybe we don't have that belief and faith that we can win matches which leads to moments of madness?