I think you become judged against the game today. What do you do against the standards of this game? I am not bothered. Why should soccer teams play with only one way? They simply wont because not everyone is able to do exactly the exact identical thing. — Sean Dyche
The Burnley boss has long faced criticism of the style of play of the team. For a little while, he railed against it. He seems to have admitted it. However, as his remark aboutthe standards indicates – it is misleading to assert that not everyone can do precisely the identical thing. There is a growing feeling in the Premier League that everyone is doing that.
It had been the subject of a current conversation on Monday Night Football regarding the trend for groups to take their rather than as was once habitual knock on the ball . Any boss now, if they believe in playing like this or not, I think theyll feel forced, explained Gary Neville. If you do not play from the trunk you will be labelled a dinosaur
It is a risk that Dyche is prepared to operate from the expectation of continuing to overachieve with Burnley. When goalkeeper Nick Pope became the first player to hit 100 lengthy moves this year the season was five games old. 80 had not been hit by anybody else in the moment. So far this year, Pope has struck 89 percent of his passes – more than anybody else.
The England international hasnt gone rogue here. Its a component of this plan. Burnley play by far the maximum percentage of long passes of any group from the Premier League – 23.5 percent in total. The maximum by any other group in the competition is 19.6 percent by newly-promoted Sheffield United. There is a noticeable difference in approach between the rest and Burnley.
Dyche is entitled to believe its currently working for them. Ashley Barnes found the net four times in the first three games partnered in attack by the Chris Wood. Both guys are forwards in the Premier League for aerial duels contested. It is a difficulty many top-flight defenders have become habituated to needing to fix.
The design contrast and delve deeper becomes much more apparent. When it comes to maneuver sequences of even more or 10 – the bread and butter of most teams drama – Burnley are bottom, using strung that passes together just 20 times. All but two groups have over twice that. Five teams have brought a century of such sequences up.
The Clarets will be the team have still done it twice, and to muster a shot from a few of those passages of play. Nevertheless, it is simply not how Dyche desires one to become fashioning their openings. The innovative metrics show that Burnley have the least width per sequence of any team but they advance quicker up the field than all but one team.
Vertical soccer not horizontal.
It has its advantages. Dyche has eliminated from Burnleys game by appearing in their very own third. Theyve conceded by far the maximum number of turnovers of any group in the Premier League. Since Burnley do not try to keep the ball in their very own third, the ball can not be won by opponents in their own third.
Of the 14 teams to have been for the past four seasons from the Premier League, Burnley have left the fewest errors leading to shots and the fewest mistakes leading to targets. To illustrate just how damaging it can be to attempt to play football, Fulham made more errors than Burnley consume in 3, resulting in shots in one period. They didnt survive long.
This is the ubiquity of the passing and fighting game, theres also an advantage in the attacking point of view to the uniqueness of Burnley. In a match where everybody else is still currently pressing high, they can fully negate that. Indeed, not just are they not conceding chances from turnovers theyre looking to punish the opponents high defensive lineup.
This was a criticism of Arsenal at the early portion of the season when the side of Unai Emery continued to pass out from the trunk against Liverpool and also Watford – two teams well known because of their high pressing. The distance for Arsenal has been upfield, behind the opposition press, where theyd quality forward in one-on-one situations but did not exploit it.
Dyche once summed up his approach to the battle of accomplishing a goal using a golf analogy that was easy. If youre able to get it from here to the hole in significantly less shots than everyone else, that is what its all about, he argued. The concept of soccer is to try to win. You work backward from winning. But triumph you must. You have to do what you are doing to win.
He knows it would be easier in some ways to go with the flow. But regardless of his insistence that there areno rights and wrongs to soccer along with him pointing out that hed never say it was a disgrace that Manchester City pass so much, another comment on the topic was revealing. All directors would really like to play with 600-pass soccer and acquire all the time, he said.
Instead, Dyche has decided his Burnley staff cannot do this – and because they cannot do it he has a duty. He takes his responsibilities too badly to perform anything other than what he feels is best for his side. When I moved to another club with distinct ability sets, trust me, Id play with a different manner, hes said. A pragmatist that is true?
Whats intriguing is that Dyche is the only person to reach his conclusion that is specific about how best to win. Why do others see it otherwise is Neville right they feel pressured in to the sort of groupthink that encourages them to play into the hands of the clubs. Dyche is only the trainer that is only keen to follow his own logic through.
And what of those who see it? Burnley fans are much from humourless and love chiding the opposition foranti-football – the accusation once levelled at their aspect by David Luiz – whenever an opposition team strikes the ball cynically prevents a counter-attack. They are aware of the perception. They do not need to be reminded of it.
As a result, some will continue to sense that some criticism of their style is unjustified. Theyll look instead and not into the 134 of their 160 Premier League games in which they had less possession to a wise ending by Barnes or some by Dwight McNeil. Maybe they should embrace it. For the proof is apparent. Burnleys soccer is currently unique.

Read more here: http://ledshtech.com/?p=33540