What is attractive football to you ?

[ArcticJambo]

7 minutes ago, Pasquale for King said:

They sell players constantly and seem to keep bringing more in and more crucially have a manager that develops them. 
The only poor decision they seemed to make was that strategic partnership with Hibs 😆. 

haha, hibs!  Similar, I think to Southampton, though perhaps those down the Dell were relying on the old skool way of developing players through the academy, whereas B&HA seem to be scouring the globe for the newest hot young thing!

[ArcticJambo]

12 minutes ago, Cruyff said:

Aye they were but I always preferred the era of - 

 

                   Cole - Yorke 

Giggs - Scholars - Keane - Beckham

   Irwin - Johnsen - Stam - Neville 

                    Schmeichel 

 

Relentless winners, they literally sucked the ball into the net. 

 

But aye, any Fergie post 94-95 team played at a ferocity and tempo that was rarely unmatched.

Chuck the brilliant Saha in there too, such a pity his time was blighted by injury. Absolute top class forward, who didn't look out of place whatsoever playing with WR, CT and CR. His movement and intelligence were of the highest level.

[Bazzas right boot]

So in summary, we just need to build a team similar to a peak Fergi  Man utd team.

 

 

At least expectations are in check post Bob and no one is getting  carried away.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[TexasAndy]

Its funny coz for years I argued that I hated watching Spain or Barcelona circa 2008-2012 as I found their constant passing a turn off.  Great teams, great players but it just never got me out my seat.  So I hate the current trend of slow build up from the back, actually very few teams can do it successfully.  I like watching the game played at pace.    A good tempo can make even lower league football watchable.  I've seen some great games on a Friday night in championship.  The quality is not great but it's often fast and interesting to watch.    Nothing wrong with building from back but you need defenders that can break over the half way line the way Davie McPherson did.  My ideal football doesn't need to be too silky but just a bit of pace and tempo makes all the difference.

[periodictabledancer]

Working as hard as the opposition and making a tackle occasionally. 

My aspirations are as low as this current team. 

[lost in space]

ATTACK, ATTACK, ATTACK ATTACK ATTACK.

I did like the appointment of Stendel as, after watching Levein/Neilson, I was desperate for a more attacking team.

I like the idea of the "high press".  It is just a pity that Stendel couldnt wait until he had the right players to perform it - and tried it with players who didnt fancy it and just weren't good at it.

A manager has got to be able to alter tactics, depending on the game they are about to play and which players are available to play.

So we need a manager who wants to play attacking football but who can adapt.

Basically, Hearts need me!!!

 

[Tom Hardy’s Dug]

Look , we are unlikely ever to be able to replicate it again, but Burley’s team is how I want to win games.

 

Win first and foremost.

Clean sheet if possible.

Goals spread throughout the team.

 

Ironically the main criticism of Burley’s team (which was near silent as it didn’t matter) was that it only played for 45 mins. 90% of the time the game was done by then but I would like a team to consistently play on the front foot for 90 mins.

 

To be honest it might not be impossible to get near it. Need the right manager and much better recruitment.

Edited April 17, 2023 by Tom Hardy’s Dug

[1971fozzy]

3 hours ago, Selkirkhmfc1874 said:

Winning football is the most important thing but good to see high tempo football with the team on the front foot ! There's nothing better than seeing a winger beating men and having that final moment to create a goal

this x 100

[Pasquale for King]

1 hour ago, ArcticJambo said:

haha, hibs!  Similar, I think to Southampton, though perhaps those down the Dell were relying on the old skool way of developing players through the academy, whereas B&HA seem to be scouring the globe for the newest hot young thing!

I think they realised quickly that there was no conveyor belt of talent at East Mains, just the same shit thats always been produced 😂.

[hmfc_liam06]

1 hour ago, Cruyff said:

Aye they were but I always preferred the era of - 

 

                   Cole - Yorke 

Giggs - Scholars - Keane - Beckham

   Irwin - Johnsen - Stam - Neville 

                    Schmeichel 

 

Relentless winners, they literally sucked the ball into the net. 

 

But aye, any Fergie post 94-95 team played at a ferocity and tempo that was rarely unmatched.

Yeah all his sides played good stuff. The front 3 I mentioned, I can recall it going from the GK to the back of the net in 3 passes, exactly the sort of fast paced, high energy football im after.

[ArcticJambo]

34 minutes ago, TexasAndy said:

Its funny coz for years I argued that I hated watching Spain or Barcelona circa 2008-2012 as I found their constant passing a turn off.  Great teams, great players but it just never got me out my seat.  So I hate the current trend of slow build up from the back, actually very few teams can do it successfully.  I like watching the game played at pace.    A good tempo can make even lower league football watchable.  I've seen some great games on a Friday night in championship.  The quality is not great but it's often fast and interesting to watch.    Nothing wrong with building from back but you need defenders that can break over the half way line the way Davie McPherson did.  My ideal football doesn't need to be too silky but just a bit of pace and tempo makes all the difference.

 

That Barca team, and especially the one that brought Manchester United down to a quivering wreck in the CL final of 2011 was pure genius. They destroyed one of Europe's best teams, peak football enjoyment for me. Well, bar 2012 SCfinal.

[LochcarronJambo]

1 hour ago, Carter said:

Our quest hasn't been to overthrow the big two though. It was to build on last season and gain access to European football again next season and try and put a gap between ourselves and the rest. We've failed miserably. We looked like we might've moved on from huge overhaul of squad in each transfer window. This summer is clearly going to be hectic inward and outward. 

 

The league set up in Scotland isn't fit for purpose as you rightly state. What we were setting out to achieve this season shouldn't have been beyond our capabilities. Yet we've totally failed and now need wholesale changes. Pretty dispiriting stuff from such a position of relative strength. 

Very good post…. Agree we had a great opportunity to retain 3rd & build it on last season but we haven’t & the league set up makes Scottish football a laughing- what league system has the possibility of having 3 home or away games to the same team & one home or away for the same fixture -uneven or what…..  plus 4 games each against the OF same makes it even more difficult to topple the OF - I KNOW the authorities won’t change it because of the 4 x OF games but it needs a change big time

[ArcticJambo]

1 minute ago, Pasquale for King said:

I think they realised quickly that there was no conveyor belt of talent at East Mains, just the same shit thats always been produced 😂.

Hence, the beautiful lush green fields they have there!

[Pasquale for King]

38 minutes ago, TexasAndy said:

Its funny coz for years I argued that I hated watching Spain or Barcelona circa 2008-2012 as I found their constant passing a turn off.  Great teams, great players but it just never got me out my seat.  So I hate the current trend of slow build up from the back, actually very few teams can do it successfully.  I like watching the game played at pace.    A good tempo can make even lower league football watchable.  I've seen some great games on a Friday night in championship.  The quality is not great but it's often fast and interesting to watch.    Nothing wrong with building from back but you need defenders that can break over the half way line the way Davie McPherson did.  My ideal football doesn't need to be too silky but just a bit of pace and tempo makes all the difference.

I agree and some of those lower league games are great viewing, especially after watching a slow pace top league game. 
Who knows why Toby wasn’t encouraged to break forward more as he did at ER in the cup, he tried a few times on Saturday..

[vegas-voss]

3 hours ago, Jambo61 said:

What's a cross? And what's a header..........I think I've seen a goal!

🤣

[Pasquale for King]

1 minute ago, ArcticJambo said:

Hence, the beautiful lush green fields they have there!

You would think that their grass at ER would be as lush 🤔🤷🏾‍♂️😆?!?!

[ArcticJambo]

Just now, Pasquale for King said:

You would think that their grass at ER would be as lush 🤔🤷🏾‍♂️😆?!?!

tbf, all I saw there on Sat was pure lush!

 

we're in a temp funk, only!

 

[Pasquale for King]

1 minute ago, ArcticJambo said:

tbf, all I saw there on Sat was pure lush!

 

we're in a temp funk, only!

 

🤞

[way out west jambo]

The season under Jim Jeffries in 98 and the George Burley season is the best football I’ve seen hearts play. Both different styles but both attractive and got results 

[upgotheheads]

4 hours ago, vegas-voss said:

Honestly I think we get far to caught up now on what football should be like.Personslly I quite like pummelling teams getting to the byline crossing in for headers , players banging them in from 20+ yards , players getting stuck in grafting for everything , being able to take corners effectively.Is it's pretty who cares as long as the ball ends in the net then that's pretty to me.

 

That's just some of the stuff that gets me excited 500 passes a game to get 3 or 4 half descents strikes not so much.

 

Big bad Hearts 

 

Wingers for sure, blame Sir Alf for starting the rot.  Big centre halfs, big centre forwards, clever inside forwards, full backs who defend first and attack second, basically the football I was watching when I was 12 in 1962.

 

 

Mind you, a lot of that was 5h1te too.

[stevie1874]

6 hours ago, DS98 said:

Zurich at home for the first hour. That was brilliant. High tempo, front foot, crisp passing, aggressive. Against a very good team relative to Scottish standards. 
 

That should have been the standard set for the season. Where has that gone? It’s basically the same players bar 1 or 2.

Well said, some of they players who were happy to take the ball and make things happen now look as though they don’t want the ball and are happy to pass the buck. People on here saying we should get rid of loads have short memories. A manager with new ideas where everyone knows their role on the pitch playing their proper positions would be good. We actually have a decent squad for a new manager to work with. 

[stirlo]

3 hours ago, Tom Hardy’s Dug said:

Look , we are unlikely ever to be able to replicate it again, but Burley’s team is how I want to win games.

 

Win first and foremost.

Clean sheet if possible.

Goals spread throughout the team.

 

Ironically the main criticism of Burley’s team (which was near silent as it didn’t matter) was that it only played for 45 mins. 90% of the time the game was done by then but I would like a team to consistently play on the front foot for 90 mins.

 

To be honest it might not be impossible to get near it. Need the right manager and much better recruitment.

 

Ultimately though there was one overriding factor in the ability of that team to win football matches, often playing great football: it was packed full of very good players. That's why for all the chat about the manager, tactics, style of play etc. the recruitment and the academy are the two most important things we need to get right.   

 

[vegas-voss]

3 hours ago, upgotheheads said:

 

Wingers for sure, blame Sir Alf for starting the rot.  Big centre halfs, big centre forwards, clever inside forwards, full backs who defend first and attack second, basically the football I was watching when I was 12 in 1962.

 

 

Mind you, a lot of that was 5h1te too.

My dad used to say before he passed that's no ****ing Fitba now about the modern game 🤣

[PTBCAL]

After Levein and Neilson I have genuinely forgotten as to what attractive football looks like.

 

I actually enjoyed Stendel - he tried to play football with tempo and purpose. But he couldn’t get us to do this week in week out 

[Absolute Scenes]

7 hours ago, Agentjambo said:

I’m sure being a more valuable player doesn’t make you any more clever.

You don’t have to be world class to carry out this style of play,just being able to understand tactical instructions is probably 70/80% of the criteria.

Bodo Glimt play the same style and their team aren’t worth hundreds of millions of pounds.

They are worth 28 million though compared to us just over 18 million

[damo]

1 hour ago, stirlo said:

 

Ultimately though there was one overriding factor in the ability of that team to win football matches, often playing great football: it was packed full of very good players. That's why for all the chat about the manager, tactics, style of play etc. the recruitment and the academy are the two most important things we need to get right.   

 

Good post. Exactly why any manager can walk into the Celtic and Rangers manager roles and steamroll opponents.  Do we honestly think Ange Postecoglou would have this Hearts team well clear in 3rd ? 

[Agentjambo]

19 minutes ago, Absolute Scenes said:

They are worth 28 million though compared to us just over 18 million

We have international class players within our squad,they should be able to grasp and carry out simple tactics.

[Naisys Tackle]

Burleys team.

[Absolute Scenes]

7 minutes ago, Agentjambo said:

We have international class players within our squad,they should be able to grasp and carry out simple tactics.

But the squad is valued significantly less than Bodo so it’s not a good example of a team to use as a comparison to hearts

[Cruyff]

Call me a purist but I like 4-4-2, I like a stopper and a sweeper at the back, a #8 box to box playmaker and a #6 ball winner, two wingers and a #10 and a #9 upfront. 

 

Also numbers 1-11 please

[Pasquale for King]

1 hour ago, PTBCAL said:

After Levein and Neilson I have genuinely forgotten as to what attractive football looks like.

 

I actually enjoyed Stendel - he tried to play football with tempo and purpose. But he couldn’t get us to do this week in week out 

Definitely, the two wins against Rangers where we squeezed the life out of them were fantastic. 

[Pasquale for King]

23 minutes ago, damo said:

Good post. Exactly why any manager can walk into the Celtic and Rangers manager roles and steamroll opponents.  Do we honestly think Ange Postecoglou would have this Hearts team well clear in 3rd ? 

Yes he would, hes won the league in 3 different countries with 4 different teams and the sooner he ****s off the better. 

[RudiSkacelsLeftPeg]

Attractive football = winning regularly. 

[Agentjambo]

17 minutes ago, Absolute Scenes said:

But the squad is valued significantly less than Bodo so it’s not a good example of a team to use as a comparison to hearts

😵‍💫

[BackOfTheNet]

I genuinely get the “Win! Regardless!” attitude, but I do want more. A derby of a cup final or important big game, fine, however the hell you want to win a game. But when we watch dirge after dirge after dirge, even if it’s wins it’s actually shite to watch to be honest.
 

Also, our cup winning sides in recent years were generally attractive footballing sides. There is a plus to that other than nice to look at sometimes.

[Watt-Zeefuik]

Football played with energy, skill, and joy.

 

I do like really effective passing triangles, where a pressing defender gets left wrong-footed and the ball pings about a few times before getting bolted up the pitch to an attacker running into space.

 

But I also can really get into a gutty performance of a team sitting deep and hitting on the counter, totally frustrating an opposing side into making mistakes. Not saying that's my preferred look, but there's a gritty elegance to it that I can appreciate.

 

Probably the most hypnotized I've ever been by football was when Pirlo, late in his career, totally took the US national team apart while barely looking like he was breaking a sweat doing it. His long passes just tore some relatively good defenders apart.

[OTT]

High tempo aggressive football. Quick counter attacks, pace & energy. Pressing hard when we lose the ball and trying to win the ball back high up the pitch. 

 

A hard working team is always good to watch. Slow lethargic possession based football is terrible to watch. It becomes like chess and if I wanted to watch that, i'd go and watching ****ing chess. 

[Ulysses]

13 hours ago, vegas-voss said:

Honestly I think we get far to caught up now on what football should be like.Personslly I quite like pummelling teams getting to the byline crossing in for headers , players banging them in from 20+ yards , players getting stuck in grafting for everything , being able to take corners effectively.Is it's pretty who cares as long as the ball ends in the net then that's pretty to me.

 

That's just some of the stuff that gets me excited 500 passes a game to get 3 or 4 half descents strikes not so much.

 

Big bad Hearts 

 

 

I like high-energy football, and I like getting at the opposition when we don't have the ball.  I also like thoughtful (and I admit data-driven) football where you keep a lot of possession, though you need good players to make that work effectively.

 

But on any day of the week, the most attractive football for me is always when the other lot score less than we do, and we win.  I admit that when that happens I almost always get happy and almost never give a thought to how it was achieved. 

[Skacelsid]

14 hours ago, lost in space said:

ATTACK, ATTACK, ATTACK ATTACK ATTACK.

I did like the appointment of Stendel as, after watching Levein/Neilson, I was desperate for a more attacking team.

I like the idea of the "high press".  It is just a pity that Stendel couldnt wait until he had the right players to perform it - and tried it with players who didnt fancy it and just weren't good at it.

A manager has got to be able to alter tactics, depending on the game they are about to play and which players are available to play.

So we need a manager who wants to play attacking football but who can adapt.

Basically, Hearts need me!!!

 

Good points. Stendel gets a load of stick, right or wrong who cares, but I would prefer a more pressing game to what we have been watching since. Fitness and training ( younger legs ) needs to be a priority, not passing drills, the ability to pass a ball should be a given anyway. Players need to be fit to play it, walking football cannot help with general fitness. You need to be able to vary and switch the press on and off during a game as teams will know it is coming and counteract it, as with any system it  becomes  predictable. I also think the size of our pitch would suit a more direct approach, getting the ball back to front quicker, drive forward, carry it forward, pass it forward quicker. 

[Sherbet]

the complete opposite of how we play!!!!    stop the incessant needless passing.  Move the ball quickly, forward not sideways or backwards. Stop every player back defending set pieces. How often do we see the opposing keeper kick it long, quickly into space ,after defending.  On the odd occasion we are in and around the opponents penalty area, look to shoot and not pass 

[Australis]

Wingers attacking fullbacks.

Making the by line and putting in crosses nobody wants to defend and everyone wants to attack.

 

Pace, pressing the opposition and players running the channels, and aggression when it's needed. Pride in wearing our club jersey.

 

We currently have the complete opposite.

[H2]

Scoring more goals than the other team.

 

[Sherbet]

2 minutes ago, H2 said:

Scoring more goals than the other team.

 

never catch on

[Armageddon]

20 hours ago, DS98 said:

Zurich at home for the first hour. That was brilliant. High tempo, front foot, crisp passing, aggressive. Against a very good team relative to Scottish standards. 
 

That should have been the standard set for the season. Where has that gone? It’s basically the same players bar 1 or 2.

 

Yip, best I've seen us for a long long time.  Creating chances, dangerous, winning the ball, pace, silky movement.

 

One thing I will give Naismith huge praise for was his use of Mackay at the weekend, pulling him out to the touchline for that long diagonal ball, shame we just couldn't win the ball to play that pass.

[upgotheheads]

11 hours ago, Naisys Tackle said:

Burleys team.

 

Burley's team was full of football players who were way above our natural budget. We couldn't get near to signing players of the quality of Fyssas, Skacel and Jankauskas now.  And it was one of the reasons we went bust.

[jim747]

The end result.. the ball hitting the back of the oppositions net, and a sea of maroon going daft - for me it's about the fans, and always will be.

 

 

 

[DS98]

45 minutes ago, upgotheheads said:

 

Burley's team was full of football players who were way above our natural budget. We couldn't get near to signing players of the quality of Fyssas, Skacel and Jankauskas now.  And it was one of the reasons we went bust.

All true but I think the general approach Burley used could be replicated, maybe just not the exact same execution. We need a complete change in identity and recruitment.  

 

Have no fears about what the opposition do or how they line up, just start fast and catch them cold. Very similar to what Ange is doing at Celtic right now. Basically try and smash the opponents within the first 30 mins. In 05/06 so many games would be won in the first half as we would just run over the top of them. 
 

As you say it’s a lot easier with, not just the calibre of player we had but the sheer physicality we had in the team. But that comes down to recruitment. We’ve purposely recruited specific players for our style of play over the last 3 years. Which (purposely or not) is to start games at walking pace. Keep the ball, slow things down. Figure out the opponent and ease ourself into the game. Playing right into the hands of long ball merchants like Hibs. How many times on Saturday did we keep the ball for a minute or two but get nowhere near their box? They just launched it every single time and got something from it. Every throw-in in our half went straight into the box and they’ve created a chance within seconds. 
 

There’s so many issues right now and questions that mean to be answered but they start and end with recruitment.

[Bret the Hitman Hearts]

Ideally Hearts would play the way they played in 97/98 under JJ

[upgotheheads]

2 hours ago, DS98 said:

All true but I think the general approach Burley used could be replicated, maybe just not the exact same execution. We need a complete change in identity and recruitment.  

 

Have no fears about what the opposition do or how they line up, just start fast and catch them cold. Very similar to what Ange is doing at Celtic right now. Basically try and smash the opponents within the first 30 mins. In 05/06 so many games would be won in the first half as we would just run over the top of them. 
 

As you say it’s a lot easier with, not just the calibre of player we had but the sheer physicality we had in the team. But that comes down to recruitment. We’ve purposely recruited specific players for our style of play over the last 3 years. Which (purposely or not) is to start games at walking pace. Keep the ball, slow things down. Figure out the opponent and ease ourself into the game. Playing right into the hands of long ball merchants like Hibs. How many times on Saturday did we keep the ball for a minute or two but get nowhere near their box? They just launched it every single time and got something from it. Every throw-in in our half went straight into the box and they’ve created a chance within seconds. 
 

There’s so many issues right now and questions that mean to be answered but they start and end with recruitment.

 

Ironically  starting fast and catching us cold is what the opposition were doing to us from early in the season, after they had sussed that we started slow playing keep-ball. After we were a goal down opposition teams had something to defend and our slow keep-ball tactics were useless against that. I also lost count of the times that, when, if we managed to get a goal ahead at any time the opposition would throw everything up, and we were often hanging on by our fingernails, giving the ball away left right and centre.

 

[upgotheheads]

2 hours ago, Bret the Hitman Hearts said:

Ideally Hearts would play the way they played in 97/98 under JJ

 

But not the way we played in 98/99.