Saturday 19th November, 2016 at 7:42pm
It was an out of sorts Thistle that went down to a 2-0 defeat at Fir Park on Saturday with a very disappointing result and performance for the men in red and yellow. Alan Archibald talked us through his frustrations when he spoke to ptfc.co.uk shortly after the final whistle.
“We started the game very slowly and we looked a team that hadn’t played together in that formation for a long time. They changed their shape and it certainly worked for them. They looked like they were much more comfortable with that formation than we were.
“Their attacking players worked very well together and we just couldn’t handle them. We made it look very simple for them and I thought our three centre back got bullied today.”
The 3-5-2 has worked well for Thistle in recent weeks but something didn’t click for Archibald’s men against the Lanarkshire outfit.
“That shape has certainly worked for us before this season and we’ve had good positive performances using it. When we were on the ball our pace was far too slow and it made it too easy for them today.
“There were too many errors for the first goal and we didn’t make them work hard enough for it. We let them get the cross in and then there is obviously a mix up between Liam and Stuckmann and nobody deals with it. The first goal is so important in this league and it allowed Motherwell simply to sit off us and pick us off. They did that with the second goal which comes from a long ball that we don’t deal with.
“We’ve been fluid and free flowing in recent games and that wasn’t like us today. You have to earn the right to go and play good football and we didn’t do that today. We spoke at length after the game about the players taking charge once they cross that white line. There was plenty of time after the first goal for us to get back into it but we didn’t lift ourselves and that’s one of the reasons we lost today.”
Following a first half that generated almost no chances for the visitors the second 45 did, at the very least, give the travelling support something to cheer about.
“Yea, we had a wee spell where we got a flurry of chances but we didn’t take them. You see how clinical Motherwell were when they got their chances and that’s why they won the game today. If we take one chance, even at 2-0 down, it gives you a foot in the game, something to aim for. We never gave ourselves that today.”
