From 3-3 to 3-3, 3 things for Paul Dickov to learn from

Like two perfectly formed book ends there was certain symmetry about Oldham’s 3-3 draw with Carlisle United at the weekend.  Not just in the final score, but with another 3-3 draw 46 league games ago.  Both finished 3-3, both saw late, late equalisers from the opposition and perhaps most tellingly both had seen Oldham race into 3-0 leads playing some of their best football of the season.

One thing Oldham manager, ex-Manchester City striker, Paul Dickov will be hoping is that the two results book-end a poor conventional season of results.  In the 46 games between the 3-3 draw with Exeter City at Boundary Park last November, and the 3-3 draw with Carlisle, Dickov oversaw a period of relatively poor results and football littered with defensive errors and goal-less attackers.  This contrasts hugely with what had gone before when Dickovs’ side started last season in such a fashion they were quickly nicknamed Galadickovs, including previously shot-shy midfielder, Dean Furman scoring the Football League goal of the season, also nominated one of the European goals of the season.

In between these two games, Oldham have gone from Galadickovs at the top of League One  earning over 1.7 points per game, scoring 1.4 goals per game to just avoiding relegation at the end of last season and starting this one as the model of mid-table mediocrity (win 2, lose 2, draw 2).  The overall record for the 46 games in between would have Oldham on 51 points from 46 games, possibly (just) enough to stay up in a conventional League One season (though 51 points hasn’t been enough in the past).

So what can we learn from Dickov’s tenure so far...here’s my own 3-3 draw, 3 positives v 3 improvements.

3 For

Scouting and Signing
Dickov and his scouts have proved they can pick a player.  He’s also shown he has a very useful list of contacts currently in some big clubs.  Some good loan signings last season Oumare Tounkare, Aidy White, Jason Lowe, Cedric Evina (turned to permanent) all unknowns who performed very well last season until the lack of quality replacements took there toll on the youngsters .  He’s continued to show the touch this season with the signings of Smith, Diamond, Simpson, Clarke and Kuqi.  All better known, but all have fitted in well to Dickovs system showing he’s certainly done his homework.  His signing failures have been few and far between. 

Football

Some of the football Oldham has played has been the best since Joe Royle’s legends graced Boundary Park.  High tempo, high pressure games built very much in the image of Dickov, but allied to some beautiful passing is the hallmark of Dickovs side at its best.  He admitted early in his tenure that he had been advised from some very experienced heads that 4-4-2 was the best way to get out of League One, and he has stuck fairly rigidly to this.  However, with players such as Chris Taylor, Fillipe Morais and even youngster David Mellor he has the ability to flex the formation during the game.  He’s also not averse to sending the big centre half up front when chasing a goal.

PR

Dickov has brought the polish of a man brought up in the goldfish bowl that the Premier League has become.  He exudes natural enthusiasm, is clear and concise in his interviews and, despite understandably relying on a few clichés and regular phrases, his honesty whilst still backing his players is clear.  So too his willingness to help promote the club, and get the players involved in promotion and PR, all crucial at League One level where a ‘big name’ like Dickov in a town like Oldham can make a real difference.  PR may sound like an insignificant point to raise, but with fans as sceptical as Oldham’s can be, it makes a refreshing change from what has gone before.

3 Against

Half Time / Full Time

Dickov’s playing style was, let’s say, combative.  Ok, scrub that, it was an all-out assault every time he took to the field.  Non-stop from the 1^st minute until the last, which makes one of his sides biggest failings all the more surprising. 

Since he took the reins, Oldham have developed the disturbing habit of regularly conceding goals in the 5 minutes either side of half time and in the last few crucial minutes of games.  Games the side have been in total control of have swung entirely on a goal just before/after half time.  Even more worrying is the sheer number of goals conceded in the second half of games, with around 60% of goals conceded throughout Dickov’s tenure happening in the second period.  For a side that on the surface seems extremely fit, this trend is difficult to explain.  It does point to a certain lack of concentration, but is it something more?  Just what happens in the Oldham dressing room at half time?

Experience

Dickov’s backroom staff should be complemented on the way they have helped create a team that plays the way it does at it’s best.  Former Leicester City and Bolton centre back Gerry Taggart as Dickov’s assistant brings the defensive experience to complement the striking experience of the manager, and they obviously get on extremely well.  However, what does strike many Oldham fans is the lack of management experience in the coaching team.  Certainly Dickov has admitted himself on more than one occasion that he has got substitutions and tactical changes wrong.

Perhaps some experience around the coaching team, maybe even a Joe Royle type figure would aid Dickovs development.  I’m not advocating a change to the coaching staff, merely the addition of some experience, even just in the form of an advisor which could enhance the team.  Almost in the same vain that the likes of Brian Horton, Lennie Lawrence and Gerry Francis have aided the managers they’ve worked with.  A strong man like Paul Dickov will do things his way, and quite rightly, but adding that experienced voice may just make that crucial difference at key times. 

Set Pieces

Set pieces play such a key part in any game both offensively and defensively that there isn’t a single manager worth his salt that doesn’t put the training hours into perfecting them.  Dickov is no exception.  However, Oldham have suffered almost the perfect ‘negative’ storm over the Dickovs tenure, regularly conceding from set pieces and never scoring from them themselves.

It isn’t an area that Dickov and his team aren’t aware of, and is regularly mentioned by Gerry Taggart in his musings, but still the problem persists.  Certainly this specific problem was a consideration in some of the pre-season signings this summer with height and experience brought in.  However, set pieces are all about concentration and ‘switching on’ quicker than the opposition (see the earlier section on Half Time/Full Time).  It is getting this right that can make a massive difference for Paul Dickov’s side.

3-3

I’ve been hugely impressed with the way Paul Dickov has gone about the job over the past season.  His command of the role and the way he has the side playing has been a joy to watch at times, particularly after many years of stagnation in League One.  As an Oldham fan I’m hoping Paul can stick around for a few more years yet and finally give this old club a reason to smile once again.