Murfy1

http://www.news.com.au/sport/football/melbourne-heart-pumped-on-david-beckham-signature/story-fndkzvnd-1226518458702

http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/sport/football/melbourne-heart-midfielder-vince-grella-enjoys-low-key-return-in-intraclub-match/story-fndb5nmd-1226516213401

The question I'm wondering is, why do we play with more intensity in some games compared with others? I don't think it's solely a matter of the coach not motivating the players sufficiently, or the players simply not being 'up' for the game. I reckon Heart, and most teams, play with high intensity when all the players know a gameplan that can work against an opposition. We've played best against Victory and Brisbane. In both games the players knew what they needed to do, in these cases frustrate the opponents possession-based football and their build ups from the back. And, I believe, our players played well and with high intensity because we had a good gameplan for both games that our players understood and could execute. I think we sometimes lacked intensity against Perth, Central Coast and Western Sydney in part because they are physical and defensively solid teams, and in part because our gameplan either wasn't clear, good or well executed. I think it mainly was because our gameplans weren't clear and well executed against those three teams. Sometimes we booted the ball upfield from defence and sometimes we tryed to build up from the back. And I reckon we often played the long ball when we didn't need to and probably didn't build up from the back very well. Anyway, the details don't really matter. I think Brisbane Roar played with high intensity over the past 2 seasons and found success because they had the best drilled gameplans and every player knew how the team wanted to play. I reckon if Heart's players continue to perform their roles and stick to a decent overall plan we'll keep our intensity up and keep winning matches.

I wouldn't say all our goals against Brisbane were on the counter. Our first goal came when Brisbane had six players in the box and others around it, as Dugandzic sent in a second cross. Garcia's goal (the second) and William's goal (the fourth) were indeed classic counterattacking goals. I'm not sure I'd call the third goal counterattacking either, as the goal came from Tadic very smartly beating the defence on the edge of the box then Garcia winning a penalty. A defence had gotten back to defend the box, and we beat it. Most of our goals have come from 'counterattacks', but that doesn't overly concern me as long as we are playing good, proactive football. Against Victory we didn't have most of the possession, but we were very proactive and indeed very attacking, pressing incredibly high up and asking questions of Victory's defence. I hope to see us do more with ball and score more goals through possession-based play, but I don't expect or really want all our goals to come from Barcelona-esque intricate possession football. If we keep up the standard of football we've played against Victory, Brisbane and the first half against Wellington then I'll be more than happy.

Proud of all our players. Everyone was switched on and played their part in this valuable win. I said last week if Tadic keeps his confidence up and keeps performing at the level he did against WSW he'll be immense, and he showed why I said that against Roar. He and Garcia were the standouts, and it looks like Tadic has the goods to fill Babalj's shoes. He provided a superb focal point for our attack and held up the ball very well (something Didulica said he does well preseason) and combined excellently with our attacking players. Some of Aloisi's best coaching IMO has been to ease Tadic into the squad. Aloisi rightly favoured Macallister for the first few games, who was scoring for fun in preseason, and made it clear to Tadic that he'll have to bring his A game to start as striker. Aloisi also gave him minutes when possible to help him adapt to HAL, for instance playing out of position as LW for a half against Wellington. Then Tadic came good against WSW. End result, we have a top 25 year old striker with fine European pedigree who could quite conceivably start in all our remaining season games, and I believe he could be a decisive factor in helping us make the finals. Garica continued to provide quality in midfield. He's been our best player overall this season and easily our most consistent. Great to see him get on the scoresheet and win a penalty. He got forward a lot and combined magnificently with Tadic. I hope to see, and expect I'll see, Tadic and Garcia combining more this season (especially when Grella comes into the sqaud and Garcia can push up in midfield). Gerhardt bounced back very well and was a rock in defence. Thrilled that he scored a good goal and was confident enough to dribble out from the back on multiple ocassions. Colosimo was sturdy in defence as well. All together the defence was defensively solid and played out from the back well, and did so much better than in the past three games, despite Roar's high pressing. Other noteworthy players were Behich, grease lightning, and Williams, who was a supersub and wasn't profligate in front of goal. Kalmar was solid despite playing out of position (he can turn on a sixpence) and Hoffman did enough in midfield. Roar were unlucky to have that goal on the 40th minute disallowed and ruled to have crossed the line. But welcome to the A-League. Also I reckon Roar got a number of favourable calls with regards to fouls. And all up if Roar supporters were to claim this call changed the match they'd be equal to those stubborn English fans who claimed Lampard's disallowed goal against Germany at the 2010 World Cup changed everything. Roar created precious little besides the disallowed goal and their late consolation goal. While I agree that Roar didn't create enough going forward and were far below their best I reckon Heart deserve more acknowledgement in explaining the 4 Heart 1 Brisbane scoreline. This was some of the best football, and certainly some of the most clinical football, I've seen Heart play. It was no coincidence that Brisbane were poor against a very good Heart. Perhaps the thing that fills me with the most confidence is how well we played and won despite missing several valuable players. Playing Kalmar out of position in LW, having Hoffman play 90 minutes in midfield and having youth team player Mitchinson on the bench are clear signs that our squad was stretched. I expect we'll be able to lift a gear when Fred and Grella come back into the squad, and probably into the starting XI. Germano, Mebrahtu, Vrankovic and Garuccio will provide us with strong depth as well. This win should lift a lot of Heart heads up and provide multiple reasons why we can expect to get results and achieve things this season.

Disappointing match. Although we were missing several players, such as definite starters like Fred and Williams, and quality depth like Germano, Garuccio and Vrankovic, so perhaps it wasn't that bad. Grella would really come in handy right now as well. When you have Hoffman starting in midfield, Behich being played as LW, and the new youth team player Mitchinson starting at LB you can't expect too much. First half was rather poor. Our Achilles' heel right now is playing out from the back. Our central defenders, Gerhardt and Colosimo, stop our attacks before they've truly begun by attempting ambitious long balls again and again. I can now understand why JVS fell out with Colosimo, because he simply is a liability when it comes to building up from the back. Gerhardt looks too much like a converted CB and whilst, like Colosimo, he provides good defence he's not much help when we have the ball. Ono was probably lucky to stay on, but as Aloisi said in the post match press conference we have to get on with it. Nonetheless, it is always a headache when new refs don't have the cojones to referee. We got better as we fell further behind. Our best moment was Tadic's excellent goal. Not at all an easy feat for a striker to score when you get such poor service, so credit to him. Tadic had an excellent game all up, making the most out of the meager opportunities he had on goal and he combined well with his teammates the few times we managed to get the ball up to him (his passing was much improved the first couple of games, where it was not good at all). If this match gives Tadic the confidence to go on and have a solid season then we'll get a lot out of this loss. Mitchinson I thought had a fairly good game, but was a bit out of position for the Wanderers' second goal. Dugandzic was surprisingly quiet. Garcia, along with Tadic, were by far our best on field. I reckon we'll naturally get better as our best players come into the squad, and Hoffman doesn't need to start in midfield, Behich doesn't have to play as LW and youth team players don't need to start and play 90 minutes. But at the same time I reckon we could improve the tactics and football we're playing despite several of our best players being out, mainly by improving our possession and build up from the back. One thing for sure is we could have a solid season if Tadic maintains that level of performance, and especially if we provide him with decent service.

http://www.tribalfootball.com/articles/melbourne-heart-inching-closer-kewell-agreement-3615861

http://www.smh.com.a...l#ixzz2ArpvWfh3

Deflating match. Our 4th 1-0 loss to Central Coast (and 3 of those 1-0 losses involved CCM scoring from a set piece). Suffering 3 injuries really didn't help us, especially coupled with the fact that minuscule HAL benches mean we couldn't have like for like replacements. The first half was boring, but I was satisfied that we were keeping the ball. Now we just need to learn how to do something with it. Colosimo and Gerhardt don't pass out from the back well enough, and players like Marrone and Thompson both take too many touches and both dwell on the ball too long. Once again, like last week (and arguably like much of last season), losing Fred was a real spanner in the works. We are significantly less able to build up plays without him. The Mariners played as expected. Stubborn and defensive. It's really obnoxious to lose to an opponent that plays in that manner (who play like that time after time after time... like I said, our 4th 1-0 to CCM [and we've only played 7 games against them]). I'd rather lose to Brisbane 3-0 or 4-1. Tadic needs to pull his socks up. He hasn't fought enough to be our starting striker, and the few times he's played he's looked lost. I'm starting to lose my patience with him. Maybe it's partially excusable given how few chances we've been creating lately, but he needs to give us more (I think there is a good player in there somewhere, but for whatever reason he hasn't shown quality). Sadly, like last week, the one real positive was the starting debut of a young gun, this time Ben Garuccio. He kept running all game long and was overall one of our more lively players. He showed good touches and smart work with his feet as well. Tough times for Aloisi. Especially if Fred, Macallister and Thompson stay injured, Aloisi will have to show a lot of smarts as a coach to prevent this season from going awry.

http://au.fourfourtwo.com/news/254753,experience-no-issue-for-coach-foxe.aspx

Our squad: MHFC XI: Bolton (GK), Marrone, Colosimo, Gerhardt, Behich, Thompson, Garcia, Fred ©, Williams, Garuccio, Macallister. #mhvccm #goheart MHFC bench: Redmayne (GK), Vrankovic, Tadic, Dugandzic. #mhvccm #goheart

All A-League clubs sign, or try to sign, Socceroos in the twilight of their careers. It's the only time they wish to come and play in Australia. Aloisi has only signed 2 Socceroos, so I wouldn't say we are THE club Socceroos come to (we've got the same amount as Sydney, who also have 2 veteran Socceroos in Emerton and the injury plagued Culina). The only thing that matters is whether the players we sign, Socceroos or otherwise, can do a job. Garcia has been our best player so far, and Grella could add real class and quality to our midfield. So, as far as I can see, the signings we've made have been solid. Compared with the Maycons and Heffernans that are out there, I think the club has been smart and justified in signing the Socceroos we've signed. I don't see what there is to complain about, and we should appreciate that our new club with a pretty modest budget has been able to lure the class of Skoko, Aloisi (our joint top scorer in our first season), Garcia and Grella.

http://www.smh.com.au/sport/football/aloisi-keen-for-heart-to-recapture-early-form-20121027-28cb0.html#ixzz2AVVsnIBY

http://www.news.com.au/top-stories/all-the-squads-ahead-of-the-fourth-round-of-the-2012-2013-a-league-season-this-weekend/story-e6frfkp9-1226503207875#ixzz2AI2J6hFj

http://www.sportal.com.au/football-news-display/preview-melbourne-heart-v-central-coast-205405

I was surprised reading that blunt statement in The Age ("we are a counter-attacking team"), because I watched the whole video of that press conference on the world game (http://theworldgame.sbs.com.au/video/2295420573/Heart-unveils-Grella) and I didn't hear him make that statement. So perhaps it was a misquotation. I heard him say about counter-attacking what another article wrote, namely: "We're a good counter attacking team at times because we've got quick players going forward, but not always can you catch teams on the counter. "Vince will help control the game a lot better so that when we do need to keep the ball we can keep possession and wait for the right time to penetrate the opposition and when we can counter we will counter." I want to see Aloisi show his coaching skills in making us build up play well with the ball, and use possession and passing to create chances. Aloisi has already shown that he can coach the team into playing superb defence, like against Victory, so I just want to see him make Heart's attack good and possession based. The Mariners this Sunday will force us to keep the ball, and I doubt we'll be able to counter-attack and get behind them often. So I'm going to reserve my judgement on whether Aloisi can bravely take the game to opponents and make us play possession based football until this Sunday's match. I think we'll all know what sort of football he wants to play by then.

I think having Aloisi as a coach might help us get the most out of Grella, in the same way Garcia has been one of our best players, if not our best player, so far into this season. Also, it's good to hear Aloisi speaking ambitiously about our intentions for this season.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2012-10-23/heart-in-no-rush-to-play-grella/4329826?section=vic

Latest on Grella, from Melbourne Heart's twitter account: Tweets made in the last 15 minutes.

Yep, three games in a week, and all at AAMI Park. 2-1 loss on Sunday, that shock 1-0 loss to the Mariners on Wednesday and a 1-1 draw to Brisbane on Saturday. Tough games to have all in one week, but some pretty decent performances against strong teams.

This was the status of our injured/out players on Saturday: Outs: 4. Simon Colosimo (Suspended – one week), 14. Golgol Mebrahtu (fitness – one/two weeks), Jonatan Germano (Fitness – undisclosed), 19. Ben Garuccio (international duty – Qantas Young Socceroos) http://www.footballaustralia.com.au/melbourneheart/news-display/Preview-Thommo-expects-tough-time-in-Perth/50816 Against the Mariners we've lost 4, drawn 1 and won 1. 3 of their wins though were lucky 0-1 wins (and 2 of those 0-1 wins had their winning goals come from corners). The only bad loss we've had against the Mariners was that 1-3 loss in Gosford, where some shocking refereeing from Gerard Parsons allowed them to get 2 illegitimate goals (one from fouling the keeper, another from a BS penalty). At AAMI Park we've lost 2 (our first game 0-1, and a 0-1 loss with a late Kwasnik goal), drawn 1 (1-1) and won 1 (1-0). IMO we've always held our own against the Mariners, and we should have got more points out of our games against them. That 0-1 loss due to Kwasnik's goal was the biggest smash and grab game I've ever seen, where we thoroughly outplayed the Mariners and came away with nothing. The Mariners have had an indifferent start to the season, standing equal with us on 4 points drawing in round 1 (0-0 against WSW in Sydney), winning in round 2 (1-0 against Perth in Gosford) and losing 1-2 in round 3 against the Jets in Newcastle. I think we can gets points, maybe 3, from this game. But it depends which Melbourne Heart team turns up.

I reckon this is the probable line up. The only possible differences IMO are that Tadic could sneak into the starting line up in place of Williams or Macallister, and Kalmar could be on the bench instead of Hoffman. If Vrankovic and Gerhardt don't make mistakes and perform decently in defence I reckon we have a good chance of coming away from Perth with points. Then it's a matter of whether our forwards, Williams, Macallister, Dugandzic and Tadic can take their chances. Going off our first two games we have the luxury of not needing to worry about our midfield and whether we'll create chances. IMO it is much better to have the problem of needing to finish enough chances, rather than needing to actually create chances in the first place (a problem we've had before). I reckon we'll win 2-1, Williams and Tadic to score.

http://www.news.com.au/sport/football/perth-raised-melbourne-heart-midfielder-richard-garcias-family-hedging-their-bets/story-fndkzvnd-1226499906629

I'm happy with us not rushing Grella. We rushed Skoko and Fred and both times it was costly. Grella will take our midfield to another level, and I think it might become the best in the league. But our midfield is pretty good as it is currently, so I don't mind us not bringing in Grella for 2 to 4, or even 6 weeks. He'll be an asset if he can play for most of the last 20 games, and if we make the finals Grella could be a real difference maker. Can't wait to see him in Red and White, though.

http://theworldgame.sbs.com.au/news/1125119/Heart-in-no-hurry-to-play-Grella/?_nocache=1