When Nenad Milijas signed for Wolves in the early summer of 2009, he was arguably the club’s most exciting Premiership signing. Yes it’s true; Kevin Doyle was the club’s record purchase. But it was Milijas that had that hint of the exotic. After all, it was the captain of Red Star Belgrade no less – conjuring images of Dejan Savicevic, Robert Prosinecki and the club that had been champions of Europe as recently as 1991.
However, concerns about the player were there from the outset. The esteemed European scout turned pundit Tor-Kristian Karlsen listed the purchase as one of the worst buys of the summer, describing Milijas as follows:
“Great set pieces but if you want to have a prototype of a player who does not fit English football, you can take out a patent on Nenad Milijas. Classic Balkan playmaker, gifted but about as mobile as a refrigerator.”
There were moments of magic in that first season but, in truth, Karlsen’s assessment proved spot on. The set pieces were there for all to see, never more dramatically than in his appearance off the bench to provide two assists and a valuable point at Stoke City. The gifts were displayed fleetingly but memorably: a thunderbolt against Bolton, a delicious back heel to help win the late penalty versus Aston Villa. And the lack of mobility was evident in abundance – written through every performance he nearly delivered.
And yet the nagging suspicion remained – if the platform for success is in place, Nenad Milijas could still prove an asset. For all the false dawns, the axing and recalls, the bald statistics of Milijas’ Wolves career to date read:
1,532 minutes, 4 goals, 7 assists.
1,532 minutes. The equivalent of 17 games. Extrapolated over a league season it equates to something like 9 goals and 16 assists – a contribution that compares favourably with almost any midfielder in the game.
Nonetheless, it seemed likely that the mercurial playmaker’s days in the Premiership were numbered. Indeed, it was something of a surprise that Milijas was not offloaded in the summer – to France, to Turkey, to Russia … frankly anywhere but England.
And then a funny thing happened. Milijas became useful again. Injury to Adlene Guedioura was followed by the suspension of Karl Henry. Even then, the Serbian man would most likely have been ignored for the visit to Chelsea but for the ineligibility of Michael Mancienne to play against his parent club. As a result, Mick McCarthy was forced to make use of his £2.6m signing – and so he began to talk up the player’s ball retention skills:
“We can’t chase the ball for 90 minutes – we have to keep it. And if we do that, it certainly stops the wave after wave of attacks. Nenad’s a very talented player who can keep the ball and pass it to a shirt the same colour as his. We’ll have to do that because if you just keep giving it back to them by booting it up the pitch, it will keep coming back.”
On the face of it, Stamford Bridge seems the unlikeliest of venues for the Serb to prove his worth. However, he performed admirably and it can hardly have been lost on McCarthy that the player did exactly what was requested of him:
As the Opta data shows, not only did Milijas keep the ball with remarkable ease, he also managed five shots on target as Petr Cech faced what was statistically the busiest afternoon of his Chelsea career. For a team like Wolves, a player who can keep the ball and provide a goal threat is one the club ignores at its peril. It perhaps also requires a re-evaluation of the way Milijas has been used by his employer thus far.
It was always one of the curiosities of Milijas’ 2009-10 season that he was dropped from the side just one game after McCarthy elected to switch to a 4-5-1 formation. The new system proved a success, with fellow left-footed playmaker David Jones to the fore. But after its initial appearance in the home draw against Liverpool, Milijas himself saw just an hour of league action in the remaining four months of the season.
This seems an anomaly for the simple reason that Milijas would appear to be a player made for a 4-5-1 system. The extra man in midfield ensures simple passing options are regularly available and would allow others to do his running. After battling gamely in a 4-4-2, Milijas was discarded just as Wolves began to operate with a formation that may have allowed him to flourish.
Stamford Bridge may have been a false dawn. Nenad Milijas may be out the team again by next week when Henry and Mancienne return. But the weekend was a welcome reminder of the talents of Wolves’ gifted Balkan playmaker with the mobility of a refrigerator.
Is the one on the left hand side a Lowry?
The kind of thing that does irk me about Mick is more or less summed up in this quote:
“We can’t chase the ball for 90 minutes – we have to keep it.”
That should be the same for every match, not just Chelsea.
If we get players in the team who keep the ball and use it intelligently, we won’t have to work so hard defensively all the time to get it back.
That’s why we must keep the same team against Man City, with the possible exception of Henry returning for Edwards.
… and Elokobi (or even Mancienne) for Ward?
Well, potentially yes, but there’s absolutely no chance of that happening so what’s the point in mentioning it?
A bit like me banging on about Nicky Shorey. Mick wouldn’t pick him if he had him as he doesn’t rate him ahead of Ward, so I really need to let that one go.
No, keep Ward, he’s our Mr. Consistency this season………………..fuckin’ crap every game!!!!!
He ain’t that good Clive, stop praising him up!
Brilliant blog, crammed with insightful analysis. Thanks for posting this.
I do have to eat crow about Milijas. I was a nay-sayer right up to kick-off yesterday. Indeed, if I’d been aware of the Tor-Kristian Karlsen quote, I’d have argued with it on the basis that my refrigerator does actually move about my kitchen quite a lot (must get that fixed) and made NM look static in comparison!
Those blue arrows are impressive though, even if most of them are sideways or backwards. (Did he really only take one corner?)
Excellent piece with great support from the Opta stats. Absolutely right about 4-5-1 (which we should have stuck with away from home and against top 6 teams at home IMO). Milijas to work as the ‘quarterback’ releasing Jarvis and Hunt down the wings with, again IMO, Mancienne and either Jones or Henry, as the two other midfield players – Jones if we are looking to go forward, Henry if we are looking to defend. Wolves have to learnt to hold on to the ball, work the positions and be patient. The only question is whether Doyle is the goal scorer who makes the system work. Great holding the ball up but enough goals? Would like to see Fletcher given a chance on his own in this formation.
An extremely well argued and written blog, thank you Adam.
The huge fly in the above ointment is of course McCowardly’s obstinance and love of Ward, Berra, Foley and all things Craddock.
We have a very fast pair of wingers, some midfielders who pass well and play football, a front runner who never gives up………………and a current back four who cannot defend or pass out of defense to save their lives.
McCowardly won’t change, unless forced to by injury or suspension, and our defense is too slow to tackle hard enough to get carded, so nothing will change.
Everyone can see the problems and the solutions, and we all know McCowardly can as well, but his stubborness precludes him from admitting his shortcomings, therefore he must go.
Very interested to see his team selection for tomorrow night, if he has any balls at all, he will play a different back four and try to win the match for once.
FOMM
And if he does play the same back four Clive, does that make him McEunuch?
Berra was really good. Foley probably had one of his better games of the season.
Clive from Houston has nominated our problem – McCarthy!
His tactics and use of substitutes amaze almost everyone except himself and when you have someone like Milijas who can distribute a ball correctly, hold up play to wait for space to develop and take free kicks with accuracy and power then it beggars belief how McCarthy can leave him out! But of course he does with annoying regularity because having bought him, to play him would just prove to everyone how the tactics are wrong and that certain players should be playing on merit and not because they are Mick’s favourites!
Fletcher has been brought in to assist Doyle and to score more goals but again, what does McCarthy do, leave him on the bench or play him on the wing where a specialist winger should be!
Personally I have given up trying to fathom out McCarthy’s tactical ‘genius’ and although there will be the odd game when things do ‘come off’, more often than not they won’t and come the end of the season we will see how successful he has been – but I am not ‘counting my chickens’ as they say.
Nice article, Adam!
With 65 out of 67 (97%) passes going to the right adress and 5 out of 5 shots at goal it was an impressive display by Milijas against Chelsea – I totally agree.
The question comes to me if he can do this every Saturday? And if so – of course – if McCarthy is prepared to leave Henry or Mancienne out of the starting eleven.
I believe that Wolves becomes a better team without Henry in the middle stopping the flow of play up, and the game against Chelsea – and to some extent against the Hammers – proved my point. But McCarthy will never agree upon that.
Henry will go straight back in, but I have a nagging suspicion it will be Milijas or Jones who make way and not the player I think it should be, Dave Edwards.
I expect Mancienne to sit out the City game but will probably come back in at Old Trafford for the league game and Arsenal at home, when Mick will revert to two holding midfielders.
The Refridgerator….wasn’t he an American footballer?
Anyway, “Hotpoint” did have a good game. Just not good enough to be in the thoughts of MM and that is never going to change as long as he has a northern hole in his botty.
One good game doesn’t make him the answer to all our problems. We are still desperately in the West Br*m….infact, the less about them the better.
The only good thing to happen in the weekend was Blackpool losing and that is some serious straw clutching.
Keep the waning Faith.
Refrigerator Perry – Chicago Bears 1985 + Huge lineman used as a running back on goal line plays. I don’t see but a Wolves match every three weeks here in the states, and I’m purely a fan, certainly not a football tactician, but I am amazed at how my analysis is similar to a lot the other bloggers. I appreciate Mick for all he has done, but what do Ward, Berra, Foley and Edwards do in training that make up for all their obvious deficiencies in the games. And it seems one of them makes a crucial mistake at some point, that costs them points. Even before Guediora was injured, I couldn’t figure why he wasn’t playing all the time. You could see and feel how he changed the game when he was in there, playing with more intent. I like Henry’s toughness, but I think this week showed that Wolves can keep an extremely potent team relatively quiet without his lack of creativity and backward passing. Same team next match, but keep Van Damme in, drop Foley. Is Moyokoulo (sp) injured? Why did he not play with Craddock out? It is getting harder and harder to blindly support Mick’s choices.
Cheers Kevin – William Perry – thats the fella!!
We need something to kick start our season. Maybe a win tonight……..?
One other bonus with Mijas is that he is our only midfielder who can actually shoot, or is at least prepared to have a go.
It was a massive surprise to see both Jones and Mijas in the same side, usually only one playmaker starts, however. We are not good enough defensively to play 442, and we don`t have enough pace in the side for 451 to work. I checked and apart from two goals against a very poor Stoke side, we have only managed one goal at best in our other premiership games.
Neither full back can bomb on, Milas and Jones don`t have electric pace, so how on earth is 451 supposed to work when only Edwards breaks from midfield to support a very isolated Doyle.
I`d play Mijas every week, drop Jones, accept Henry will play, but without Zubar and a very quick left back its all sideways and back. I thought Foley was ok on Sat, but there is no end product, and until we deal with our lack of pace and ability at left back, then I sadly can`t see any chance of any improvement or points for that matter.
Whats Martin o`Neils mobile number anyone?
Good article Adam.
Be interesting to see what happens now we have two fit (ish) wingers. I’m pretty sure Mick will stick with 4-5-1 hroughout. My thought is that the key would be to get the ball to Jarvo/Hunt absolutely as much as possible, which will mean we can’t play a three of Mancienne, Henry and Edwards regularly. Milijas or Jones have to play in a 5 man midfield, and whilst I still think Jones offers more, its one or the other, not anybody else Mick can crow bar in before he gives the refrigerator a game.
I can’t see us regularly playing 4-4-2 very often and if we did I think with the wingers Mick will play Mancienne and Henry together, which I dont think would work well in terms of supplying Hunt and Jarvis. That leaves the option of taking out Mancienne for either Jones, Edwards or Milijas, in which case I don’t think our terrible defence is anywhere near protected enough. Lots of food for thought. Lets not get started on who should line up in defence!!!
Long term, I think a midfield three of Henry, Jones and Milijas is perfectly plausible. Especially considering the industry Hunt will bring to the team. It was a joy to watch Jones and Milijas stroke it around on Saturday. We have always looked a better and more dangerous team when we try and play football. We don’t have the players to play an effective long ball game, as Stoke do for example.
It’s an obvious point, but the more we have the ball, the less we have to win it back. Hopefully this will be Mick’s thinking as well.
That pre supposes McCowardly actually thinks, instead of his knee jerk “gotta put Ward in, somewhere, anywhere”
How about a radical 3 man defence, with 5 in midfield, and 2 up front???
Can’t do any worse than we are at the moment, can we?
For your info, Mark, Martin O’Neils number is 1 800 not in a million years!!!
FOMM
I had not liked Milijas previously for his lack of effort and willing. But at the opposite end of the scale you have Edwards. I think in this league you need to go with the quality which Milijas clearly possesses. Get him in the team and keep him there.
But do we stay 4-5-1? And if so should we play Fletcher up front, probably more likely to score than Doyle?
4-5-1 for me all day long and definitely Doyle up front.
There’s no way Fletch would offer the same sort of hold-up play and industry which is key to making the system work. I think he’d need to play with a partner to be effective, but certainly he needs to be given a chance to show what he can do in his proper position.
We’ve got to go back to what we were doing tail-end of last season, keeping it tight at the back and grinding out results.
Teams that concede very few goals never go down. You can get away with not scoring many and still do enough, as we showed last season.
That’s not to say we can’t get more goals playing 4-5-1, particularly with Hunt back, Milijas in the side and Fletcher offering another option up front.
I think that Fletcher and SEB are fantastic off the bench (and as back up if Doyle should get injured, lose form). Either one (or both) coming on if we’re chasing a game. Fletcher coming on if we’re drawing/winning for Doyle is a pretty devastating combination, especially if Hunt and Jarvis are firing.
I know what you mean t’OM but £7 million is a lot to pay for someone to warm your bench!
Also see Rich’s point that Fletcher looks more likely to score than Doyle does at the mo.
I concur with your assessment of Milijas. I really do think McCarthy needs to actually make his team more competitive, by fielding in good players, even when there isn’t an onus to do so because of the injury list. I’d say that if Milijas got more games, we’d see more results from him, he shows inspiration when he plays even if you don’t see him bombing around the pitch.
To go off on a tangent about our last match I do have to say that McCarthy needs to give his tactical substitutes more time to make an impact on the play, ten minutes, or five minutes, is simply not enough.
didnt he bring hunt on at HT?
and JVD at about 65mins last wk? everyones saying 4-5-1, 4-5-1 on here, yet if were 1-0 down u want to change to 4-4-2 after say 60-75 minutes, as it seems SEB and Fletcher would need to be on in a partnership? Not trying to pick holes but there is a difficult contradiction which cant always be satisfied
SMM
do agree though!
…but also dont.
For mine it’s interesting that the 2 balls he did give away were in the final third looking for the killer ball. Shows such good ball retention deeper. Must play.
I wouldn’t mind playing 4-5-1 which is really a 4-2-3-1 with Henry and Milijas sitting, Jones at the top of a midfield three with the wingers and Doyle up front. Henry to sit and break up play and pass to Milijas, who will distribute.
Love it Fergie!
What aspect? I’ll take it that you agree with the team selection?
that’s the team for me too t’OM.
Excellent blog Adam. If we had players with the same quality we’d be in the champion’s league next year!
When i hear Mick explaining to us that you shouldn’t keep giving the ball away( like it’s a fantastic new idea he’s had) and that Milijas can actually pass to a player in the same colour shirt (which infers that the others can’t) i really do start wondering how much better we could be with under a bright new coach.
thanks, yes i thought the same!
and the way he stressed the importance of keeping the ball against Chelsea – the implication being that against other teams Hahnemann can happily boot it up to Doyle in the knowledge that the opposition will give it us back soon enough anyway!
hope mick learned something from saturday. we looked anything but relegation strugglers. i’d love to think it was an epiphany for him and now we’ll pass all the crap teams off the park… but i doubt it.
Adam – I’m glad you agree with my team selection. I’d say the best option is somewhere in between the long ball dross (physical, hard to score against, can be devastating on the counter) and the football we played at Chelsea. The team selection above will allow that.