Crawley Town manager Colin Kazim-Richards has addressed his team's perceived vulnerability to counter-attacks following a 3-1 home defeat to Cheltenham Town last Saturday. The loss leaves the Reds 23rd in the League Two table with just four points from six matches.
Speaking after the match, Kazim-Richards pushed back on the idea his side were being routinely carved open on the break. "So when you say susceptible, was there any goals today from a counter-attack?" he asked. "Apart from the long ball from the mistake, if you call that a counter-attack, that's more of a mistake from us."
Building a new team
Kazim-Richards pointed to the number of new faces in the squad as a key factor in their early-season struggles. He acknowledged the expansive, rotational style he wants to play can leave gaps, but stressed the process of building understanding takes time. "No, it's, you know, like, I think if you look at any team that has obviously had this, the amount of new faces that we have, it is a time period," Kazim-Richards said.
He explained that the approach involves committing players forward to create space, which means recoveries after losing the ball are critical. The manager said defenders Priestley Farquharson and Charlie Barker have been effective at cleaning up, but unforced errors in possession are the real problem. The team is working on organisation and accountability during those transitional moments.
Missed opportunities prove costly
The match itself followed a frustrating pattern for Crawley. Dylan Morgan gave them an early lead in the seventh minute, finishing an assist from Danilo Orsi. But Cheltenham's midfield duo of Charlie McCann and Ben Stevenson took control of key battles. McCann equalised on 32 minutes before Andreas Weimann put the visitors ahead three minutes later. McCann sealed the win with his second just after half-time.
Crawley had 53% possession in the second half and created chances, hitting the crossbar and having one effort cleared off the line. Cheltenham, however, were clinical with their forward runs, registering three shots on target and converting them all. It was the first time this season Crawley have conceded goals from what the manager termed direct breaks following mistakes.
The table tells a stark story
The result is part of a tough start. The recent form reads LLDLW, with just one win in the last five games. They have scored six goals but conceded 11, leaving them with a minus-five goal difference and eight points adrift of leaders Barnet.
Kazim-Richards believes results will dictate the narrative in what he called a "results-based business," but he is focused on the longer-term development of the group. He said the team has shown moments of dominance in every game but must improve at capitalising on them. Consistency, he argued, will come as the new players connect and find their way of playing together.
The immediate focus turns to halting the two-game losing streak. The next chance comes in the league fixture, details of which are on the club's fixtures page. The manager will be demanding a sharper performance both in possession and in those critical recovery moments to climb away from the relegation zone.
