The XI – The team of the season so far

November 18, 2015

Griffiths v donsWe are just over a third of the way through the season and the latest international break, where Scotland were an irrelevance, has been and gone. Darryl Murphy at the European Championships, Sweet Mother of Jesus!

Between this weekend’s games and the fourth round of the Scottish Cup in January there is eight round of games. By then we will have a more translucent picture of what lies ahead in terms of relegation, champions, European places and plain mediocrity.

Now seems a reasonable time to look at the team of the season so far. Usually at Terrace Towers we try to spread the joy, picking a player from each team as well as a manager to represent the 12 Premiership clubs. However, I started thinking. Dundee United, Motherwell, Partick Thistle? A preposterous task. Call me lazy, call me a wage-thief (HA!), call me arrogant but this task did not warrant a brain aneurysm.

So here it is. The best XI so far. There was a bit of movement from my first list and I tried to provide as wide a spectrum as I thought warranted a good team – there are no more than three players from the one team (my maroon specs were off, I swear). And of course, we are playing FOUR-FOUR-FUCKING-TWO.

Scottish Premiership XI - Football tactics and formations

GK: Jamie MacDonald/Kilmarnock – Apart from an interlude in the Championship with Falkirk, MacDonald, in the last few seasons, has resembled a peasant stuck in the stocks in medieval times with all and sundry queuing up to pelt him with eggs, tomatoes and cabbage. Up until the 23rd of October he was facing the highest number of shots per game and was required to save by far the most shots per game (5.09). It resulted in the second highest save percentage. At times it has been slave labour, pure and simple. MacDonald has been so overworked that those behind the building of Qatari stadiums for the 2022 World Cup could actually feel compassion for him.

Thom Watt (STV Sport)

Thom Watt (STV Sport)

 

As with Heart of Midlothian in the 2013-2014 season there is the nagging feeling that being stationed behind a defence more porous than the Titanic post-Iceberg collision suits MacDonald. That way being constantly required to save shots obfuscates his deficiencies; namely his kicking and aerial command. But even those imperfections have not been prevalent in his performances. I once accused him of not producing saves that earn points but he has done just that this season with a point blank stop at the feet of Ryan Dow and an even better one in a win at Dens park where he sprang to his left to tip over a goal-bound header. Even in heavy defeats he has been exceptional, keeping the score down while steam raged from his ears, unable to believe the lack of protection he had been awarded.

RB: Callum Paterson/Heart of Midlothian – The team needed at least one greetin’ faced bastard. I’ll admit, I was reticent to pick Paterson mainly due to the Aberdeen defeat so firmly ingrained in my mind. I compared Paterson to an excitable kid who sees the ice cream van, goes chasing after it and gets run over by a car. Basically, to highlight his rashness. However, that game has been the exception to the rule. Despite his tendency to pick up needless bookings he is maturing as a defender and a football player.

He has talked about the influence of playing English Premiership teams in pre-season and how athletic they were. Pace, strength, power. The last aspect is something which he has added – it’s hard to believe he has only just turned 21. He’s never out muscled and very rarely out paced since his return to the Premiership. He has also talked about one to one meetings with Robbie Neilson to improve himself as a defender. He is superb in the air, easily one of the best headers of the ball in each box and like all modern day full-backs he has the stamina to cover the whole flank and provide an attacking threat. There are no longer gaping holes in his ability, just aspects of his game which need tidying up, such as his crossing, and others which improve with experience, knowing when to commit to challenges, when to cover. One game in particular stood out: the defeat of Ross County with 10 men. Paterson moved to centre back and was flawless, leading the backline by moving them, communicating rather than bawling.

CB: Andrew Davies/Ross County – One of the stand out signings of the season. There have been rumours that Ross County are spraying about dough like a college kid who has access to his trust fund for the first time and heads straight to Vegas. But it was still quite a coup to recruit a player of such quality and experience. If it wasn’t for injuries this is a centre back who would be playing either in the English Premiership or one of those players who has a number of Championship promotions under his belt.

Davies was immediately awarded the captain’s armband, which gives you an idea of how highly Jim McIntyre rates him. He has recovered well from inconspicuous start to his County career when he felled Leigh Griffiths minutes into his debut to concede a penalty. Since that opening day he has been the bedrock of a County defence which has looked more assured than any point over the last two seasons. He was superb in the 2-0 defeat of Aberdeen, the second half appeared to be Aberdeen v Davies. Most of the crosses or long balls which entered County’s air space were shot down by Davies, while he was constantly in the right place at the right time to repel attacks. An exemplary defensive performance. With him, Jackson Irvine and Liam Boyce, County now have a spine many in the division would be envious of.

CB: Igor Rossi/Heart of Midlothian – A monster of a man. A defender’s defender. If he wasn’t so passionate and did not display the emotion he does after a win you may think he was an advanced cyborg. Attackers looking into his eyes must suffer the same fate as Harry Potter when looking into those of the dementors.

An under the radar signing, arriving relatively late to pre-season, he seemed nothing more than back up with, especially when he filled in as a safe and no nonsense left-back. These qualities, as well as his physicality and aggression are much more suited to centre back. He has been Hearts best player this season even if there has been one or two blips. Language is still an issue but as that improves he will continue to grow and lead the back line. He relishes the physical aspect of the game and has rarely had to chase a striker, highlighting his positional play, while no stirker has roundly got the better of him in the air. He has been a key component in the Gorgie club’s recent upsurge in parsimonious defending after being played regularly at the heart of the defence – one goal conceded in 585 league minutes.

LB: Graham Shinnie/Aberdeen – Some players’ versatility works against them. Then there are those who don’t just look competent players in the position they are asked to play but excel in the position(s). Shinnie is one of those players. Originally he was stationed in midfield in this line-up but in keeping with his deployment so far this season he was moved.

There may not be a fitter player in the league than Shinnie. His stamina allows him to patrol, cover and conquer the whole flank. But what sets him apart as the best left-back in the country AND one of the better midfielders is his intelligence. In Aberdeen’s last game he made a number of bright runs off the ball to create space for Jonny Hayes. In midfield he plays with a purpose and positivity. A team player who drives the team forward. A leader in how he carries himself as if to say ‘follow me, lads’ without having to bark and scream.

RM: Michael O’Halloran/St Johnstone – A unique talent in Scotland. There is something thrilling about watching the barrel chested O’Halloran in action. He gets the ball, turns, faces up the opposition, sticks out his chest and heads for the bye-line at full speed. That is a very simplistic view point of O’Halloran qualities but it is testament to his speed and control that defenders have failed to stumble on the correct strategy of nullifying the speedster.

O'halloran v Hamilton

He has been terrific for an expansive St Johnstone side (you took a double-take there, didn’t you?). He started the season playing a variety of roles; striker, number 10 and out wide. It is out wide where he has caused most problems; a feature of St Johnstone’s play has been O’Halloran cutting the ball back from the by-line for the likes of Graham Cummins and Steven MacLean. He has now started to add goals to his game, taking up a more central role in a 4-2 win at Hamilton, while in the League Cup at Ibrox he was a constant threat bursting through the centre. With goals and assists he will likely feature in the discussion for the end of season awards.

CM: Ali Crawford/Hamilton Academical – There is an argument to be made that Crawford is the most ambidextrous shooter in the league. This quality makes it a nightmare for defender’s and midfielders closing him down and trying to prevent him from firing at goal. The surprising thing is that he has not scored more. Only three so far this season, although two of them have proved decisive in single goal victories.

But more than a goal threat he has been Hamilton’s talisman and attacking fulcrum. Hamilton have been energetic, combative and aggressive; all characteristics fans can get on board with. Yet, despite the productive from of Dougie Imrie and Gramoz Kurtaj, Crawford supplies the stardust. As with the Hearts match before the international break his absence left a gaping hole in midfield. They struggled to link the play to Carlton Morris. Crawford is diminutive and puts himself about on the pitch but has the ability to put his foot on the ball and give Hamilton’s attack a more measured approach. Not only is he a talented individual but he improves those around him.

CM: Jackson Irvine/Ross County – Once or twice I have labelled him the white Yaya Toure. To go down another line, watching him play is like seeing 21 men running with a bull in Pamplona. Crash! Bang! Wallop! Players are sent each and every way. But then the bull stops, performs a drag-back and dances past a couple of mere humans. That has been Irvine.

The 4-4-2 works exceptionally well for Ross County. It allows them to play two wide men who can move infield and cross from wide as well as having two targets in the box; Liam Boyce and Craig Curran or Brian Graham. But the man who pulls the team together and makes it tick is Irvine. His lung-capacity allows him to attack and defend, covering ground, keeping the balance in midfield when going up against a three man midfield. Even when County have shifted to 4-1-4-1 the striker has rarely been isolated due to Irvine’s athleticism in allowing him to support.

LM: Niall McGinn/Aberdeen – McGinn wasn’t originally in the first XI. Instead his place went to Jonny Hayes. However, this writer was swayed by Hayes’s two most recent performances. When Aberdeen were flying at the start of the season it was McGinn who was fundamental in breaking teams down. This led me to label him the best player outside of Celtic. Now, I am not one to change opinion so his early season form and constant attacking presence means he finds a place.

The apex of his season so far, international accolades notwithstanding, was his performance at Tynecastle in Aberdeen’s 3-1. He was a class above anyone on the pitch, providing a moment to savour when he chased down a ball into the corner, made fools of two Hearts defenders before ploughing the ball into the top corner. It was McGinn at his best. Deceptively quick, skilful with an end product. He has an unusual running style but it appears to effect defenders more than himself as he glides past players on either side such is his conformability on both feed. David Goodwillie and Adam Rooney are well supplied with him on one wing and Hayes on the other. McGinn is perhaps most dangerous when cutting in from the wing and linking or crossing towards the back post. While, as Craig Cairns points out, he has supplied seven assists so far, six of which have been from set pieces.

ST: Osman Sow/Heart of Midlothian – In keeping with his style of play it has been an unhurried adjustment to the top flight for Sow. After an easy introduction to life in Scotland in the Championship questions were raised if he had the determination to succeed in the Premiership with a number of indifferent performances at the start of the season. Moments of magic were fleeting as he drifted in and largely out of games. That may have had something to do with playing in a wide position.

But a move to a central role has signalled an upturn in form. It has coincided with Sow looking fitter and sharper. He may not be ruthless or overly aggressive and, despite being six-foot-plus, he is not a threat in the air. But in all other aspects of forward play he is a sultry talent. With the long strides of a giant he eats up ground, using his body to protect the ball expertly away from frustrated defenders. He is a threat behind the defensive line and can run the channels but it is with the ball at his feet where he is most dangerous. He can appear to have Velcro on his boots as he dances between defenders – his goal at Ross County was sublime. He can also drop off, take the ball into feet and release team mates. As with many in this list his inclusion in their respective teams make their team mates increase their performance level.

Sow v RC

ST: Leigh Griffiths/Celtic – The most obvious inclusion in the list. The league’s top goal scorer and the player of the season so far. When Ronny Deila first walked through the door he did not take to Griffiths. Some home truths were told and Griffiths has had to work not only on his game but his approach to football. Rather than sulk and perhaps move to Hibernian, Griffiths’s professionalism improved and in turn so did his performances.

So far he has 13 league goals this season, seven of which have been the decisive first goal of the game. He has had to adjust, refine and evolve as a player. From the type of striker who would get the ball, turn and shoot or head straight for goal, he is now playing against deeper, more compact defences, closer to goal. He has had to be more cute with his movement, work in tighter spaces and combine with his midfield. His first touch and lay-offs are measured and his movement may be the best in the country as he slips between centre back and full-backs. He looks fitter and more powerful which can be seen in his aerial ability. Against Aberdeen and Hamilton he has notched exquisite headers, while on the deck he bamboozled the Hearts defence in the League Cup. There are still aspects of his game to work on however. At times he needs to use a putter rather than the driver, especially when faced with one-on-one chances, such as the one missed against Aberdeen at Celtic Park. This is a player who has one hand on the player of the season award already.

Griffiths v Aberdeen

 


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