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The Away Game Debate - is it harder?

But are they even trying to overcome it? Thats where the problem may be.

Its too accepted. I honestly believe the first manager to come in and pioneer a new approach, where away games are no more difficult than home games, and he gets that instilled in his players heads, will be onto something.

All managers believe it too, so they also come out with the "tough ground" excuse.

Why is Swansea beating City ok at home, but would be a worse/better result at COMS? Really...why?

Because City's players sat on a bus? And spent one night in The Hilton instaed of at home in bed? I dont buy it.
 
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Definitely agree with the idea that it's accepted so it happens. It's a self-fulfilling prophecy, players approach away games as "harder" therefore they play a different way. Would be interesting to see a season where every game was played at a neutral venue, see how the results compare (obviously this would never happen though).
 
Technically it shouldn't be harder. But of course it is harder to win away games. Find me one team in world football who have a better away record compared to home games over the past 5 years. Look at our games against the scum when we couldn't beat them for 10 years. The home games were always very closely contested, usually won by the odd goal even though they were miles better than us most seasons, but they give us a good hiding on more than one occasion at their place.

As others have mentioned, refs are always likely to give soft penalties to home teams. We got 3 debatable pens against Twente last season at home, Sunderland got 3 against us two seasons ago at the Stadium of Light. You never see away teams getting 3 penalties.

And you can't tell me that it doesn't make any difference when the home crowd are urging you to score when the game is level going into the dying minutes.
 
Jurgen the German said:
Technically it shouldn't be harder. But of course it is harder to win away games. Find me one team in world football who have a better away record compared to home games over the past 5 years. Look at our games against the scum when we couldn't beat them for 10 years. The home games were always very closely contested, usually won by the odd goal even though they were miles better than us most seasons, but they give us a good hiding on more than one occasion at their place.

As others have mentioned, refs are always likely to give soft penalties to home teams. We got 3 debatable pens against Twente last season at home, Sunderland got 3 against us two seasons ago at the Stadium of Light. You never see away teams getting 3 penalties.

And you can't tell me that it doesn't make any difference when the home crowd are urging you to score when the game is level going into the dying minutes.
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I actually know this. Bury last season got twice as many wins on the road than at home. I know this cos I bet on them as part of my accumulators. Your point still stands cos thats one team out of 92 in the leagues. There may well be a few

I guess its ultimately how you are set up as a team. If you are a counter attacking team then it stands to reason that your game is more suited to away form and therefore you have a higher chance.
 
Jurgen the German said:
Technically it shouldn't be harder. But of course it is harder to win away games. Find me one team in world football who have a better away record compared to home games over the past 5 years. Look at our games against the scum when we couldn't beat them for 10 years. The home games were always very closely contested, usually won by the odd goal even though they were miles better than us most seasons, but they give us a good hiding on more than one occasion at their place.

As others have mentioned, refs are always likely to give soft penalties to home teams. We got 3 debatable pens against Twente last season at home, Sunderland got 3 against us two seasons ago at the Stadium of Light. You never see away teams getting 3 penalties.

And you can't tell me that it doesn't make any difference when the home crowd are urging you to score when the game is level going into the dying minutes.
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Regarding The Scum when they were better than us, I doubt one single player, or playing staff went to The Library expecting 3pts. One point was a f#cking miracle in their heads!!

A good point this raises is that arsenal were actually 100 times the better team, yet if we went to their ground and played like it was WHL we may have had a few more points, and a few less defeats....we proved we were capable of holding them to a draw, despite the gulf in class....was that really down to the noise from the fans? The fact we didnt have to sit on a bus for 5 minutes? The stadium? Or our mentality?

Id say it was the latter.
 
See this Freakonomics study on the matter:
http://www.freakonomics.com/2011/12...advantageous-is-home-field-advantage-and-why/


This data has been collated over a number of years:
League Home Games Won
MLB 53.9%
NHL 55.7%
NFL 57.3%
NBA 60.5%
MLS 69.1%


From the article:
When athletes are at home, they don’t seem to hit or pitch better in baseball … or pass better in football. The crowd doesn’t appear to be helping the home team or harming the visitors. We checked “the vicissitudes of travel” off the list. And although scheduling bias against the road team explains some of the home-field advantage, particularly in college sports, it’s irrelevant in many sports.

So if these popular explanations don’t have much explanatory power for home-field advantage, what does?
In a word: the refs. Moscowitz and Wertheim found that home teams essentially get slightly preferential treatment from the officials, whether it’s a called third strike in baseball or, in soccer, a foul that results in a penalty kick. (It’s worth noting that a soccer referee has more latitude to influence a game’s outcome than officials in other sports, which helps explain why the home-field advantage is greater in soccer, around the world, than in any other pro sport.)
 
Interesting. Im glad there actually a few who agree with me on here, and actual studies into this, which prove at the very least, its worth looking at. Because playing away (domestically) really shouldnt make the difference it seems to.

Its a valid discussion, and I am very surprised that managers dont take it more seriously. Tackling it is a golden ticket to glory.
 
I just happened to hear about this study by chance, when I was listening to the Freakonomics podcast (great podcast for anyone who likes that sort of thing), and was pretty surprised by their conclusion that the referee was the most significant cause of the "home field advantage".

If the studies were detailed enough, then this should be taken into account when training referees and linesmen
 
totman, your right. It shouldn't be a problem. But it is. And your underestimating the importance of what separates the best players and teams... mental toughness and psychology.
An away game is typically given all the cliche's by most pundits and managers.

"ooh its a tough place to go. They'll be bang up for it in front of their own crowd. They're a difficult side at home."

The psychology that goes hand in hand with away games already dictates that it will be tough to come away with 3 points. A team like United has an expectancy to come away with 3 points. Fergie doesn't give a brick if we swear at Rooney or boo Berbatov. 3 points is 3 points whether it is at OT or White Hart Lane.
 
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