Just a word on our defence/Tim Ream

[Whitestone]

Ream was an integral part of two promotion teams and will always be remembered and admired for that. I understand that he's a favourite of fans but sentiment won't win you games.
In The Championship Tim had time on the ball, time he won't have this season. He was seriously exposed last time in The Premier League. So were Odoi and Le Marchand. I can't see anything changing if any of these three are involved on a regular basis this season. Happy to be proved wrong but I doubt that will happen.

[Denver Fulham]

Ream could honestly play the best match ever versus Arsenal, it won't matter, he can't win supporters back after something that happened two years ago. This is a recurring theme for a lot of our players unfortunately - but it's also the nature of the beast of sports in general. I'm very thankful the players have someone like Parker to motivate and inspire themselves. The proof has already taken shape by us being promoted through many trials and tribulations. Ream was integral in both sides of that, but that is literally what it means to be part of a team. You lose and win as one, or you listen to the naysayers and breakdown as individuals.

At this point a ball just needs to be kicked to get a glimpse of an understanding of where Ream's game is at. It's the only way to find out, and no amount of those stuck in the past or those optimistic about the future can prove otherwise.

Like basically anyone on our roster, Tim is talented enough to play a good match against anyone. The problem is he's not good enough to play them consistently at this level, so every match he plays is more risk to our overall quality. If Tim starts more than a small handful of matches, we're in trouble.

And I love Tim as a US/Fulham fan. He's really maxed out his career, imo. There's no shame in not being good enough to regularly start in the Prem on the wrong side of 30. He can still be useful as a squad player, but he was overmatched in this league two years ago and isn't going to be improved now.

[jarv]

I like Tim Ream....someone said on here he was a disaster last time in the prem.  The team was a disaster, managed by a disaster (or 2). That is not Tim's fault. I used to be a defender and it is a nightmare when your team in front leave you exposed, even at the rubbish level I played.

I have always thought, his reading the game and distribution, he could be useful just in front of the back 4.

[Matt10]

Ream could honestly play the best match ever versus Arsenal, it won't matter, he can't win supporters back after something that happened two years ago. This is a recurring theme for a lot of our players unfortunately - but it's also the nature of the beast of sports in general. I'm very thankful the players have someone like Parker to motivate and inspire themselves. The proof has already taken shape by us being promoted through many trials and tribulations. Ream was integral in both sides of that, but that is literally what it means to be part of a team. You lose and win as one, or you listen to the naysayers and breakdown as individuals.

At this point a ball just needs to be kicked to get a glimpse of an understanding of where Ream's game is at. It's the only way to find out, and no amount of those stuck in the past or those optimistic about the future can prove otherwise.

Like basically anyone on our roster, Tim is talented enough to play a good match against anyone. The problem is he's not good enough to play them consistently at this level, so every match he plays is more risk to our overall quality. If Tim starts more than a small handful of matches, we're in trouble.

And I love Tim as a US/Fulham fan. He's really maxed out his career, imo. There's no shame in not being good enough to regularly start in the Prem on the wrong side of 30. He can still be useful as a squad player, but he was overmatched in this league two years ago and isn't going to be improved now.

Parker talks about togetherness, and that will sometimes go further, and mean more, to a group of players than having top quality rated individuals. People need to get over 18/19. We weren't a team. There was no togetherness. I said it earlier, they will fail as individuals - and our players did. Parker's work in building our players back up from the lowest of lows, some supporters just don't realize the magnitude of how difficult that task could have been. 

I think Parker will be very cautious with the LCB spot because of the relationship Ream and Hector have built. I also believe Parker places a strong emphasis in Ream's passing to be crucial in our possession based system. He is literally in every attack. The reality that I can prove that with is the fact that he led the league, as a defender, in the number of passes. Before anyone says that maybe because those were backpasses, then that just proves the point further because we are a possession based system that builds from the back.

If we get a younger LCB, one who is great on the ball of course, I absolutely hope that Ream can show him the way of Parker's system. That LCB role is crucial to our build up and possession, and it's not a wonder that Parker did not want to change it for the majority of games last year - even when Mawson or MLM were fit.

[Statto]

He is literally in every attack. The reality that I can prove that with is the fact that he led the league, as a defender, in the number of passes. Before anyone says that maybe because those were backpasses, then that just proves the point further because we are a possession based system that builds from the back.

I'm going to stick my neck out and guess that Mawson, who is generally not perceived to be a 'ball-playing defender', wasn't far behind him with number of passes proportionate to games played, and that on defensive metrics (tackling etc) Ream was our worst defender. Certainly he had the lowest overall rating on WhoScored last year, which was based on all those things in combination.

[USNA90]

I'm far from a student of the game, so what I'm saying may be way off base.  That being said, my problem with Ream isn't his defense per se, but rather his play when he has possession and is under even the slightest bit of pressure.  He makes way too many passing mistakes in dangerous areas of the field for my liking.  I remember one instance in a game this year following the re-start when he came under moderate pressure about 20 yards from the endline and about 10 feet in from the touchline.  He turned and played the ball straight back - not even close to anyone - and it ended up rolling over the endline for a corner.  Fulham paid for some of those mistakes this year, but got away with quite a few as well.  I see them paying for those mistakes much more regularly in the PL.  If I were an opponent, I would press Fulham from the opening kick because a mistake is bound to happen, since they're way too careless close to their own goal.  To my admittedly unpracticed eye, Ream seems to be the culprit more often than not.

[WolverineFFC]

Ream could honestly play the best match ever versus Arsenal, it won't matter, he can't win supporters back after something that happened two years ago. This is a recurring theme for a lot of our players unfortunately - but it's also the nature of the beast of sports in general. I'm very thankful the players have someone like Parker to motivate and inspire themselves. The proof has already taken shape by us being promoted through many trials and tribulations. Ream was integral in both sides of that, but that is literally what it means to be part of a team. You lose and win as one, or you listen to the naysayers and breakdown as individuals.

At this point a ball just needs to be kicked to get a glimpse of an understanding of where Ream's game is at. It's the only way to find out, and no amount of those stuck in the past or those optimistic about the future can prove otherwise.

Like basically anyone on our roster, Tim is talented enough to play a good match against anyone. The problem is he's not good enough to play them consistently at this level, so every match he plays is more risk to our overall quality. If Tim starts more than a small handful of matches, we're in trouble.

And I love Tim as a US/Fulham fan. He's really maxed out his career, imo. There's no shame in not being good enough to regularly start in the Prem on the wrong side of 30. He can still be useful as a squad player, but he was overmatched in this league two years ago and isn't going to be improved now.

I agree with your sentiments completely. When he signed originally, I compared him to Aaron Hughes in that he is not going to wow, but is a solid, understated defender. This has been true in my opinion.

If Dennis Odoi, MLM, and/or Tim Ream start more than 10 games combined for Fulham at CB this season, the club will be relegated. Their errors are going to cost goals in the Premier League that clubs in the Championship did not capitalize on.

[Southcoastffc]

"If Dennis Odoi, MLM, and/or Tim Ream start more than 10 games combined for Fulham at CB this season, the club will be relegated"    No offence intended, but I sometimes read this board just for the amusement of seeing ridiculous assertions like this.

[WolverineFFC]

"If Dennis Odoi, MLM, and/or Tim Ream start more than 10 games combined for Fulham at CB this season, the club will be relegated"    No offence intended, but I sometimes read this board just for the amusement of seeing ridiculous assertions like this.

We will see. I don't find that assertion to be ridiculous considering how the defense was 2 years ago. Each of those players were 2 years younger and struggled to cope with defending at the Premier League level then.

[Matt10]

"If Dennis Odoi, MLM, and/or Tim Ream start more than 10 games combined for Fulham at CB this season, the club will be relegated"    No offence intended, but I sometimes read this board just for the amusement of seeing ridiculous assertions like this.

We will see. I don't find that assertion to be ridiculous considering how the defense was 2 years ago. Each of those players were 2 years younger and struggled to cope with defending at the Premier League level then.

But that is exactly what I'm saying. 2 years ago is done and dusted. Parker is here and he has brought our players, a lot of which were part of the squad 2 years ago, back from the dead. That has to count for something - and I think that is what Parker is more focused on. I'm sure he has also had the tough conversations with those same players, who are having these same concerns like supporters do.

I think dealing in absolutes is a dangerous game. I do not believe football is that linear. The reality is that Tim Ream will most likely play more than supporters want this season until we have a new centre-back sign on the dotted line. That's the reality of the situation. That's what I speak to each and every time. Put yourself in Parker's shoes: come Saturday, what are you doing? You can't sign anyone else that day. Ream has been training as your LCB the last two weeks. What's your decision? Ream, Odoi, MLM? Who? That's reality. Now time to deal with it.

[Lyle from Hangeland]

Why Left footed CB's are in high demand.

https://theathletic.com/2049395/2020/09/08/explained-left-foot-centre-back-ake-laporte/?article_source=search&search_query=why%20are%20left%20footed%20cb

Explained: Why left-footed centre-backs are so in demand


By Tom Worville Sep 7, 2020 133
After narrowly beating Sheffield United 1-0 at Bramall Lane in January, Pep Guardiola was asked his thoughts on the importance of Aymeric Laporte to his team. The Frenchman had returned to the starting XI that day after a near five-month layoff through injury.

"He has something that we don't otherwise have in the squad — his left foot in a central defender," said the Manchester City manager.

"There are many actions to build up — to make our play quicker, better — but we can't do them. Not because the other players are not good but because Laporte is the only left-footed central defender."

He gave a reason for why Laporte was so vital to City from the back but not an explanation of how being a natural left-footer actually helps.

The reasons are two-fold: passing angles and trajectories.

Here's an example of what happens when a right-footed defender plays at left centre-back, from Arsenal's 3-1 win away to West Ham United last December under caretaker manager Freddie Ljungberg.

Calum Chambers lines up on the right of defence with Sokratis — who used his left foot the joint-least among Premier League centre-backs last season in terms of the percentage of passes he made with it — on the left side.

Here's a good example of a situation in which a left-footed centre-back can make a pass more often and comfortably than a right-footed one can. Sokratis has the ball and is under relatively weak pressure from the home team's Felipe Anderson.

To his left is Kieran Tierney, hugging the touchline. If Sokratis attempts to pass with the instep of his right foot, the ball will curve in a convex manner, the path of which is naturally closer to the three highlighted West Ham players. Alternatively, a pass with the left instep leads to a trajectory that is further away from all of the highlighted trio.



A left-footed pass is less likely to be intercepted, so is the safest means of progressing the ball out to Tierney. However, West Ham's shape is good here, which leads to Sokratis going back to goalkeeper Bernd Leno instead.

A passage later in the first half of the same match offers another useful example.

Sokratis (No 5) receives the ball from Chambers but his body shape is square-on. A natural left-footer here would open up their body more, let the ball run across them, and hit the large space to their left (as circled below). Lucas Torreira (No 11) isn't watching, and Sead Kolasinac is out of the picture, meaning Sokratis has to again go back to Leno. A natural left-footer would have found it easier to be more progressive.



Sokratis isn't the most comfortable in possession anyway but the issues with Arsenal's build-up in this game aren't just down to him. Here's another example, this time with Torreira on the ball. Although the Uruguayan is playing in midfield and not at the back, this is another right-footed pass that shows the structural reasons why left-footed passers are so revered.

Torreira passes to Tierney with his right foot. This is one of the few times in the first half where the passing lane out to the left is clear — Robert Snodgrass had a great first half when it came to blocking Arsenal's progress down the left.

Mesut Ozil is circled and, although he's being (loosely) marked by Mark Noble, the West Ham captain is the wrong side of his man. If Arsenal play this situation right, they could find themselves in a threatening position.



Snodgrass switches on and starts to close Tierney down. The trajectory of the ball means it's curving in towards Tierney, so if he wants to attack the space in front of him, he has to control the ball and move it forwards himself...



...instead, he elects to pass the ball back from Torreira. Ozil is still free, and in plenty of space, but is unable to be found by Torreira.



In fact, it takes Arsenal eight more passes and 30 seconds before the ball eventually reaches Ozil's feet. At the start of the move, he was between the lines of West Ham's defence and midfield, but now Ozil receives the ball just behind the midfield line (see below) — a far less threatening situation than one that could have played out.



Let's replay this situation, but instead imagining that the pass Tierney receives is from a left foot instead. The trajectory of the ball would naturally be going forwards instead of towards the sideline, and Arsenal's left-back would be able to run onto it at speed.

One pass would have comfortably moved the side upfield, temporarily removing six players from the game as they attack down their left:



In this situation, Arsenal would have upped the tempo of their possession, and potentially tempted a West Ham defender to step out from the back to reduce the threat of Ozil between the lines if the ball is played his way.

Any number of possible situations could play out in theory, causing plenty of chaos and resulting in a dangerous attack, but none of these were able to take place due to the initial pass.

According to Statsbomb data on fbref, Chambers and Sokratis combined for 177 passes in open play in this game, the most by members of a four-man Arsenal back-line in any game in 2019-20. That's a lot of opportunities to progress the ball but they rarely did, completing just two progressive passes (those that move into the opposition box or take play forward 10 metres more than any of the prior six passes) and two passes into the final third.

The combination of the two shows a stagnant centre-back pairing, unable to build effectively from the back. There's little wonder, then, that Mikel Arteta specifically requested a left-footed centre-back in the January window shortly after he joined from Manchester City as head coach. The club brought in Pablo Mari of Flamengo, and then signed Gabriel from Lille last week. Both players are natural left-footers.

After Mari arrived, Arteta's comments about him echoed those of Guardiola. "Mari balances what I want to do from the backline," Arteta said. "He gives more options, more solutions, he opens up the pitch more."

And those solutions were evident in the return fixture against West Ham in March. Newly-signed Mari anchored Arsenal's backline alongside David Luiz, the first natural left and right pairing at the back of the season.

Arsenal's shape in this game saw midfielder Granit Xhaka slotting in at left-back when their de facto left-back Bukayo Saka bombed forward. The presence of Mari led to greater balance on the left side of the field and created situations such as the one below early in the game. This helped Arsenal get the ball into the final third, courtesy of a curling left-footed pass in to Saka in space behind West Ham's midfield.



It's an unsurprising pass to see Mari make, given it's a very common route that Guardiola uses at City with his left-footed option, Laporte. In the 2-2 draw at the Etihad against Tottenham Hotspur at the start of last season, Laporte frequently used a left-footed pass to carve a way into the attacking third.

First of all, he passes to Oleksandr Zinchenko, who sets Raheem Sterling up for a shot just six seconds after the Frenchman's pass...



...then Laporte gets Sterling in behind less than 90 seconds later...



...and again three minutes later, with Zinchenko acting as a decoy, with the left-back moving centrally to pull his marker inside the pitch, again offering a clear passing lane in behind to Sterling.



It's not just passes along the ground that left-footers on the left side can help to complete, but also those in the air.

Here's an example of Mari lifting the ball forward over West Ham's midfield, aiming for Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang.



The natural flight of the ball spins away towards the touchline, over Jeremy Ngakia's head. It's not a perfect ball — that would have allowed Aubameyang to run directly at goal — but it does result in him having the ball under control in a fair amount of space on the left.



Again according to fbref, this game saw Arsenal's two centre-backs combine for 146 passes overall, eight progressive passes and eight into the final third — a huge improvement in getting the ball forward from the back.

It's hard to isolate the reason for this uptick in passing performance being solely down to this revised defensive pairing, but there is a clear difference in how Arsenal looked to distribute the ball and impact the game.

The benefits of having a left-footed centre-back are clear for teams that are hyper-focused on building out from defence, and there are a few teams in clear need of a left-footed option.

Manchester United are the most obvious, given Ole Gunnar Solskjaer practically told the world what he's looking for in the transfer market...


Solskjaer's side regularly played with a fully right-footed backline last season, but the merits of having a left-footed option in defence were tangible away to Chelsea in February.

United started with a back three of Luke Shaw, Eric Bailly and Harry Maguire, with the left-footed Shaw completing nine progressive passes. That's the most of any United centre-back appearance in a league game last season, level with Maguire against Watford.

The difference here is that United shouldn't be reliant on the finer elements of building out from the back to defeat the likes of a Watford side that ended up relegated but in games against top opposition, such as Chelsea, this efficiency in doing so is important.

Another club who might want to enter the market for a left-footed centre-back are Tottenham.

With the recent departure Jan Vertonghen, who was their only naturally left-footed option in central defence, Spurs' options when building up are going to be limited.

When looking at the games in which Tottenham start with a back four, they get far more productive passing from their two centre-backs when the pairing is a left-footer with a right-footer rather than two right-footed players.



Southampton are one such club that won't be worrying about a lack of balance at the back.

Although they're hardly a possession-heavy team, their signing of 21-year-old Mohammed Salisu for £10.9 million from Real Valladolid could be quite the coup.

Given how much teams value "Premier League experience", there's a very good chance you will see Southampton's new left-footed centre-back linked with all manner of top teams if he starts regularly for them and accrues good minutes.

That's a sentiment shared by those within the game too, with one data scout at a European club noting, "Come the end of the season, if he's got 2,000 minutes in the league, he's a £20 million player minimum, likely verging on £25 million-£30 million."

This all points to why Manchester City were so willing to pay £41 million this summer for Bournemouth's Nathan Ake — there are very few top left-footed centre-backs in the market at the moment.

He will likely be a deputy to Laporte, but Ake gives City another left-footed option at the back. When you have a player as crucial as Laporte who's had a recent long-term injury, it makes sense to invest heavily in a back-up.

Ake's signing ensures Guardiola can exploit the additional angles and trajectories that come with having a southpaw at the back.

[WolverineFFC]

"If Dennis Odoi, MLM, and/or Tim Ream start more than 10 games combined for Fulham at CB this season, the club will be relegated"    No offence intended, but I sometimes read this board just for the amusement of seeing ridiculous assertions like this.

We will see. I don't find that assertion to be ridiculous considering how the defense was 2 years ago. Each of those players were 2 years younger and struggled to cope with defending at the Premier League level then.

But that is exactly what I'm saying. 2 years ago is done and dusted. Parker is here and he has brought our players, a lot of which were part of the squad 2 years ago, back from the dead. That has to count for something - and I think that is what Parker is more focused on. I'm sure he has also had the tough conversations with those same players, who are having these same concerns like supporters do.

I think dealing in absolutes is a dangerous game. I do not believe football is that linear. The reality is that Tim Ream will most likely play more than supporters want this season until we have a new centre-back sign on the dotted line. That's the reality of the situation. That's what I speak to each and every time. Put yourself in Parker's shoes: come Saturday, what are you doing? You can't sign anyone else that day. Ream has been training as your LCB the last two weeks. What's your decision? Ream, Odoi, MLM? Who? That's reality. Now time to deal with it.

The original thread from Denver stated that Ream is capable of playing a good game, which I agreed with. I do think Ream will start Saturday and probably most of September. It is unavoidable now. I hope he plays well. I keep hearing 2 yrs ago should be forgotten, but it took 6 minutes in the cup match against City for him to be sent off LAST season. He can't cope well enough with top level forwards. If Fulham want to stay up, they are going to have to nick a few points off the big boys.

I stand by my opinion, if Tim Ream, MLM, and Odoi are your #2, #3, and #4 CB's Fulham will not be able to stay up. If they are #4, #5 and beyond, I have no issue.  Whoever is in the lineup I will be supporting and hope they perform well, but it does not change my level of concern regarding what each of these players have offered defensively the past 2 seasons.

[Bracken White]

Haven't read all the comments but do agree, Tim Ream comes in for an unreasonable amount of adverse stick in these pages & played excellently for the last third of last season. So let's strengthen by all means - but let's cut TR some slack!

[Artful Dodger]

The starting point  is that Ream has been in the heart of our defence for 2 promotions so can't be that bad in what is a tough league. We all hoped he would perform better in the Prem 2 years ago but to be fair, we had a midfield that provided very little protection. It is likely that we will play much deeper as a team for much of the season compared to being in the Championship so any lack of pace is less likely to be exposed. Add that to a central midfield that threatens to be a bit tougher this time round and again, the defence in general will be less exposed. It can only help.

I don't disagree we need a top quality CB and that would mean replacing Ream but lets get behind the guy this weekend at least!

[General]

Ream has never been a PL centre back.

He's a great championship player, plays the ball on the ground, good leadership skills etc and I'll be grateful for his service to the club but itll be evident as the season starts and when we get another quality CB in the difference. It's already evident the difference between Hector and Ream as it is. If we have Ream as a starting CB then we aren't learning the right lessons and will always be found wanting at premiership level.

He's also getting on in age for a CB and it'd be a nice thing to do to sell him so he can get one more pay packet at another championship club.

[The Rational Fan]

He is literally in every attack. The reality that I can prove that with is the fact that he led the league, as a defender, in the number of passes. Before anyone says that maybe because those were backpasses, then that just proves the point further because we are a possession based system that builds from the back.

I'm going to stick my neck out and guess that Mawson, who is generally not perceived to be a 'ball-playing defender', wasn't far behind him with number of passes proportionate to games played, and that on defensive metrics (tackling etc) Ream was our worst defender. Certainly he had the lowest overall rating on WhoScored last year, which was based on all those things in combination.

You're actually wrong, Mawson wasn't behind (at 77.2 passes per 90mins), but ahead of Ream (at 71.8 passes per 90 mins). But, of course your main point was Mawson's passing stats weren't much different to Ream's which is correct.

[RaySmith]

I don't think the stats mean much when Mawson  has played far fewer games than Ream.

[BarryP]

There is one change that will make every single Fulham defender, including the defensive midfielders, look better this time around and that is the fact that Slavisa is no longer Fulham's manager.  I appreciate what Slav did in getting Fulham promoted but his tactics when transferred to the Premier League with a newly promoted squad were naive and left every defender isolated for far too often.

[JimmyBullardsBarber]

There is one change that will make every single Fulham defender, including the defensive midfielders, look better this time around and that is the fact that Slavisa is no longer Fulham's manager.  I appreciate what Slav did in getting Fulham promoted but his tactics when transferred to the Premier League with a newly promoted squad were naive and left every defender isolated for far too often.

This.

[love4ffc]

There is one change that will make every single Fulham defender, including the defensive midfielders, look better this time around and that is the fact that Slavisa is no longer Fulham's manager.  I appreciate what Slav did in getting Fulham promoted but his tactics when transferred to the Premier League with a newly promoted squad were naive and left every defender isolated for far too often.

I like this and I like the OP which I completely agree.

Taking the focus for a minute off Ream, the OP mentions that he could see Hector as the one who could struggle with the league.  I also would agree with the that.  I could be wrong, correct me if I am, but Hector has played zero minutes in the Premier League.  He had zero minutes with Chelsea who loaned him out instead.  So, for me Hector is still an unknown for the upcoming season. 

Lots of great players redevelop themselves during their careers.  Hopefully, Ream and Hector can redevelop themselves into the players that Fulham and Scotty need to get the job done at this level.  So, come Saturday come what may I will support the players that don the shirt and wear the badge.