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CORRECT POLL : What is Scotland’s Best Defence?


Guest ElChris04

Our best defence?  

28 members have voted

  1. 1. Multiple Choices Allowed, only pick players who fit the system you think is best

    • Fullbacks: Andy Robertson
      26
    • Fullbacks: Kieran Tierney
      28
    • Fullbacks : Aaron Hickey
      3
    • Fullbacks : Greg Taylor
      0
    • Fullbacks : Liam Palmer
      0
    • Fullbacks : Todd Kane - Potential allegiance switch
      0
    • Fullbacks : Richard Tait
      0
    • Fullbacks: Stephen O’Donnell
      0
    • Centre Backs : Scott McKenna
      24
    • Centre Backs : Stuart Findlay
      4
    • Centre Backs: Ryan Porteous
      4
    • Centre Backs: Declan Gallagher
      1
    • Centre Backs: George Johnston
      0
    • Centre Backs : John Soutter
      11
    • Centre Backs: Liam Cooper
      7
    • Centre Backs: Steve Caulker - Potential Allegiance Switch
      4
    • Centre Backs: Craig Halklett
      1
    • Centre Backs: Mikey Devlin
      0
    • Centre Backs: Liam Lindsay
      1


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Guest ElChris04

Another Day, another discussion poll I feel is worth debating and seeing what others think, it’s probably one of the most debated topics on here. What his our best defence? Is it a back four? Back five? Its the question the goes back in fourth, with how our defence has looked with a back four it’s made a lot of people question (myself included)  our defence and if 4 at the back is our answer, or if a back five is worth trying again. 
 

again it’s a debate until we start showing defensive capability it’ll always answer the question, what is our best defence and what players fit the system to start getting the best out of what we’ve got? I’ve included a poll of our first choice defensive players along with others who have yet to be called up but are showing there class and potential for the U21’s and beyond. 
 

Whatever players you choice please keep in mind the system you’d play them in weather it’s a back 4 or back 5, for example don’t pick four CB’s and no fullbacks. 

and of course after you’ve picked what you think is our best players to suit what you think is the best system, leave a comment and share your thoughts!

Edited by ElChris04
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Robbo-McKenna-Souttar-Tierney (when all fit) but as soon as we have a ready, non-honkin' right back i'd put Robbo and Tierney on the same side, to share left back and left mid role. 

I don't for a second think this is an impregnable defence, a great defence or even an encouraging defence. I think it's the least bad we can muster at the moment. I also think it'll be enough to see us through the next two games and at least the first play off. 

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Guest ElChris04
2 hours ago, ceudmilefailte said:

Might need to put Tierney in as a centre back option too

Not a Grant Hanley fan?

Would have added him but there’s a cap at 19 choices for each poll, and to answer your question, absolutely not anyway like Mulgrew, we need to be moving on from them. 

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Guest ElChris04
1 hour ago, AndyDD said:

Robbo-McKenna-Souttar-Tierney (when all fit) but as soon as we have a ready, non-honkin' right back i'd put Robbo and Tierney on the same side, to share left back and left mid role. 

I don't for a second think this is an impregnable defence, a great defence or even an encouraging defence. I think it's the least bad we can muster at the moment. I also think it'll be enough to see us through the next two games and at least the first play off. 

This was my set up with the defence 

Hickey-Porteous-Cooper-Tierney-Robertson

i feel I five at the back would suit us more, and also with KT covering Robertson I think we would see the best from them. Another thing worth mentioning is overlapping CB’s, it sounds crazy but Chris Wilder implements it at Sheffield Utd and he’s doing an unbelievable job with absolute dross. KT would thrive in similar tactics. And with Hickey who for me will be a top fullback soon along with being double footed and looking as good at right back as he does left I think it’s something really worth trying. 

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30 minutes ago, ElChris04 said:

This was my set up with the defence 

Hickey-Porteous-Cooper-Tierney-Robertson

i feel I five at the back would suit us more, and also with KT covering Robertson I think we would see the best from them. Another thing worth mentioning is overlapping CB’s, it sounds crazy but Chris Wilder implements it at Sheffield Utd and he’s doing an unbelievable job with absolute dross. KT would thrive in similar tactics. And with Hickey who for me will be a top fullback soon along with being double footed and looking as good at right back as he does left I think it’s something really worth trying. 

I'd no throw my toys out the pram about that line-up, for sure. 

It's going to be very interesting to see how Hickey actually turns out. I think he has a big future ahead of him, but I'm not entirely sure where or how he'll end up being utilised. I doubt anyone is at the moment, including his current club and his many alleged suitors. Everyone can see he has really considerable potential, but nobody really knows in what regard, nor to what extent he will fulfil it. Fingers crossed. Will be watching the Semi-final on Sunday with a particular eye on him and where he plays.

Agreed about getting the best out of Robbo and Tierney, but that's why my ideal option would be putting them on the same side, full back and wide midfield. I'm afraid i'm not convinced by Cooper (he seemed really surprisingly slow watching him in the flesh, slow even to start running, nevermind when he got moving) but think Porteous could really come good. 

 

Edited by AndyDD
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Just now, ElChris04 said:

Would have added him but there’s a cap at 19 choices for each poll, and to answer your question, absolutely not anyway like Mulgrew, we need to be moving on from them. 

 

Paterson, Cooper Tierney and Robertson.

Got to be building a defence that would have some hope against Serbia in the play offs and England and lets say Switzerland in the finals.

I would say defence is the positions were you have to have experience. I cant have half the players listed as they have next to no experience and even less against decent opposition. Much as I would love to take shot with Porteous and Hickey this is not the time.

Go's against what a lot of people say on here but I would pick players that have done well at club level over players that might do better than those players in the future.

Rest of my 11 would players who offer the most defensively for their positions which would leave out the likes of Forrest, Griffiths, Shankland and who ever else our forward options are out, with the exception off McBurnie who can win the ball in the opposition half as well as defend set pieces.

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4 hours ago, ceudmilefailte said:

 

Paterson, Cooper Tierney and Robertson.

Got to be building a defence that would have some hope against Serbia in the play offs and England and lets say Switzerland in the finals.

I would say defence is the positions were you have to have experience. I cant have half the players listed as they have next to no experience and even less against decent opposition. Much as I would love to take shot with Porteous and Hickey this is not the time.

 

You wouldn't take a shot with Hickey or Porteous but you would with Paterson?

As much as i love Paterson he ain't a defender, he was good in the Championship season for Hearts when he wasn't exposed but was found wanting when we played the bigger teams and the same has happened in his few appearances for Scotland.

My first choice would be Tierney, McKenna, Souttar and Robertson but then Souttar isn't going to be playing much football anytime soon so i really don't know.

From what i have seen from Halkett so far at Hearts he is isn't the answer either. 

Hickey is such an exciting talent, one of the few bright spots in a pretty disappointing 2019 being a Hearts fan. He has played all across the back 4 in the last 6 months and has looked comfortable wherever he has played, he is going to be a big player for Scotland in the future so be as well getting him involved for the next set of games. 

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21 minutes ago, hannibal smith said:

You wouldn't take a shot with Hickey or Porteous but you would with Paterson?

 

Paterson has 12 caps and he gets a bonus point for going to Peru and Mexico. 

He has played a fair bit of top flight football admittedly not at left back, but in what I would call our best two performances by far since Strachan left he was the right back. He managed to give Forrest enough defensive cover to score five goals. 

Wouldn't be playing Forrest now in the build up to harder games but I do think Paterson is under rated for his defensive contribution. 

As far as one of the full backs listed above Todd Kane got dropped for a 36 year old Spaniard at QPR tonight

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10 hours ago, ceudmilefailte said:

Paterson has 12 caps and he gets a bonus point for going to Peru and Mexico. 

He has played a fair bit of top flight football admittedly not at left back, but in what I would call our best two performances by far since Strachan left he was the right back. He managed to give Forrest enough defensive cover to score five goals. 

Wouldn't be playing Forrest now in the build up to harder games but I do think Paterson is under rated for his defensive contribution. 

As far as one of the full backs listed above Todd Kane got dropped for a 36 year old Spaniard at QPR tonight

He boo boo'd pulling out of Kazakhstan

Hasn't been in contention since

Whilst he probably doesn't give a fuck

Players should think about these things more

Could be the difference between playing in a major finals or not

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Not only is Hickey currently very inexperienced in general football terms, he's only sometimes played as a right back. That versatility is a good thing in general and will be of value to him in his career, but at the moment, from a Scotland perspective, we are looking at a guy who has played a low number of games at all and a very, very low number of games in that particular position.

That's really no fair on the guy. 

I accept that I'm one of the many advocates for playing another left back, Tierney, at right back, but that's obviously very different... 

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2 hours ago, Bino's said:

He boo boo'd pulling out of Kazakhstan

Hasn't been in contention since

Whilst he probably doesn't give a fuck

Players should think about these things more

Could be the difference between playing in a major finals or not

He started the following game after Kazakstan. Got injured and only can back at the start of the season.

I think what goes against him is his versatility, definitely good to have around the squad if fit.

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Guest ElChris04
3 hours ago, AndyDD said:

Not only is Hickey currently very inexperienced in general football terms, he's only sometimes played as a right back. That versatility is a good thing in general and will be of value to him in his career, but at the moment, from a Scotland perspective, we are looking at a guy who has played a low number of games at all and a very, very low number of games in that particular position.

That's really no fair on the guy. 

I accept that I'm one of the many advocates for playing another left back, Tierney, at right back, but that's obviously very different... 

As the saying goes - If your good enough, your old enough. And Hickey is very much good enough to be giving a call up. 
 

For example, England called up Aaron Hudson-Odoi who hasn’t played a single 90 minute match in the top flight but they know his potential so they called him up and put in a fine shift, I feel aaron Hickey is in a similer boat, he’s played many games for the full 90 minutes and looked class. I feel when we have rising stars who are showing there class, we call them up, even more so when we have a crisis position. England done it with Hudson-Odoi, wales done it with Ampadu, why can’t we with Hickey when he’s played more minutes and put in fine performances than both of those guys ever did when they got called up.

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1 hour ago, ElChris04 said:

As the saying goes - If your good enough, your old enough. And Hickey is very much good enough to be giving a call up. 
 

For example, England called up Aaron Hudson-Odoi who hasn’t played a single 90 minute match in the top flight but they know his potential so they called him up and put in a fine shift, I feel aaron Hickey is in a similer boat, he’s played many games for the full 90 minutes and looked class. I feel when we have rising stars who are showing there class, we call them up, even more so when we have a crisis position. England done it with Hudson-Odoi, wales done it with Ampadu, why can’t we with Hickey when he’s played more minutes and put in fine performances than both of those guys ever did when they got called up.

Is he, though? 

His performances have been good, but I would say  we are in danger of exaggerating things here. Man of the match against livi in a 0-0 draw... at left back. Inexperience telling, twice, in the goal that cost his team a win against Rangers. I'm not in any way looking to have a go at him; Hickey looks like he is on his way to being a fine, fine player. He isn't a fine, fine player at the moment. He is putting in mostly good performances in the scottish premier league, for a team circling the drain on current form. I will be very keen to see how he gets on this weekend in a cup semi final and hope he plays right back (we don't really get much out of him playing left back at the moment). I'll be very keen to see how he does throughout the season, but it's worth keeping in mind the level he is playing at. 

Don't get me wrong, I'd not be in any way against him getting a call up this early, but he has put iin decent performances at full back (sometimes left, sometimes right) in the scottish prem. So does Stephen O'Donnell and a whole host of other guys. I'm not convinced he is showing class at the moment. He definitely IS showing potential, but I don't think it would be right to point to any performance thus far and say 'class'. 

 

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3 hours ago, Rab The Crab said:

He started the following game after Kazakstan. Got injured and only can back at the start of the season.

I think what goes against him is his versatility, definitely good to have around the squad if fit.

Don't think he's played for us at all since Kazak pull out debacle

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