Harrogate: Rosler takes positives
leedsunited.com 10/7/15
Uwe Rosler admits he is still "finding out about the players" but says he saw a marked second-half improvement following his side’s 1-1 pre-season draw at Harrogate Town on Friday evening.
The hosts had opened scoring in front of a capacity CNG Stadium crowd, with Cecil Nyoni stabbing in from close-range after a deflected free-kick had fallen kindly into his path.
But United, having made 10 changes at the break, came out for the second half looking to assert their authority on the game and duly equalised within just four minutes of the restart through Steve Morison.
Half-time substitute Souleymane Doukara, who was utilised on the right of a front three, beat his marker before setting up Casper Sloth to deliver an inch-perfect cross for Morison to guide home with a flying header, as the first friendly of the summer ended all square.
Rosler said: "Everybody got 45 minutes with no injuries – that’s a positive thing.
"In the second half we played with a better tempo and created a little bit more. Overall, I’m still finding out about the players.
"The first two weeks were conditioning – that was the main aspect. We have a lot of work in front of us.
"The most important thing was that everybody got minutes and there were no injuries."
Asked what caught his eye during his first game in charge, Rosler replied: "There were one or two performances.
"Sol Bamba was fantastic in the second half, that is how I want my defenders to play.
"I think Lee Erwin showed glimpses of why we got him. He looks an exciting prospect.
"I think he has to learn about the game but there was a lot of positive things.
"I think we were much more positive in the second half – we played with a better tempo and we put the opposition under pressure.
"That’s what you have to do, you have to force mistakes."
United started the game in a 3-5-2 formation but reverted to 4-3-3 following the raft of half-time changes, a move which Rosler felt suited his side better.
"In the 3-5-2, some players were hesitating a little bit," he said. "Some players didn’t feel comfortable playing that.
"But that’s okay – we need to expose players in different positions and hope we can improve game by game."
On Morison’s equalising goal, the head coach added: "Morison was leading the line in the second half very well. Very often he started off the trigger to press and he was in and around the crosses in the box all of the time.
"That is what I ask of my strikers when we are attacking down the sides. Charlie Taylor put some very good balls in."
Uwe Rosler admits he is still "finding out about the players" but says he saw a marked second-half improvement following his side’s 1-1 pre-season draw at Harrogate Town on Friday evening.
The hosts had opened scoring in front of a capacity CNG Stadium crowd, with Cecil Nyoni stabbing in from close-range after a deflected free-kick had fallen kindly into his path.
But United, having made 10 changes at the break, came out for the second half looking to assert their authority on the game and duly equalised within just four minutes of the restart through Steve Morison.
Half-time substitute Souleymane Doukara, who was utilised on the right of a front three, beat his marker before setting up Casper Sloth to deliver an inch-perfect cross for Morison to guide home with a flying header, as the first friendly of the summer ended all square.
Rosler said: "Everybody got 45 minutes with no injuries – that’s a positive thing.
"In the second half we played with a better tempo and created a little bit more. Overall, I’m still finding out about the players.
"The first two weeks were conditioning – that was the main aspect. We have a lot of work in front of us.
"The most important thing was that everybody got minutes and there were no injuries."
Asked what caught his eye during his first game in charge, Rosler replied: "There were one or two performances.
"Sol Bamba was fantastic in the second half, that is how I want my defenders to play.
"I think Lee Erwin showed glimpses of why we got him. He looks an exciting prospect.
"I think he has to learn about the game but there was a lot of positive things.
"I think we were much more positive in the second half – we played with a better tempo and we put the opposition under pressure.
"That’s what you have to do, you have to force mistakes."
United started the game in a 3-5-2 formation but reverted to 4-3-3 following the raft of half-time changes, a move which Rosler felt suited his side better.
"In the 3-5-2, some players were hesitating a little bit," he said. "Some players didn’t feel comfortable playing that.
"But that’s okay – we need to expose players in different positions and hope we can improve game by game."
On Morison’s equalising goal, the head coach added: "Morison was leading the line in the second half very well. Very often he started off the trigger to press and he was in and around the crosses in the box all of the time.
"That is what I ask of my strikers when we are attacking down the sides. Charlie Taylor put some very good balls in."