Pep: I would have been sacked at Barca or Bayern.

[edinburgh123]

Hahaha this comment is gold.

What is the purpose of defending? To keep the ball out of your own net.

If you concede 0 goals all season and achieve that by 100% possession, you still have the best defence.

Best defensive record - it is completely different. So we have the 4th best goalie and the 4th best right back and the 4th best left back etc etc. Is that what we are saying? Pretty sure we aren't. If we had 100 percent possession (illogical as that is) and it was all in their half then my Gran could play in net. The argument is about the actual quality of the defenders themselves not about the team as a whole. In your argument Tottenham and Chelsea have better attackers than us - and up until the last game you would have to say Liverpools attack was as good as ours.

 

[domalino]

Best defensive record - it is completely different. So we have the 4th best goalie and the 4th best right back and the 4th best left back etc etc. Is that what we are saying? Pretty sure we aren't. If we had 100 percent possession (illogical as that is) and it was all in their half then my Gran could play in net. The argument is about the actual quality of the defenders themselves not about the team as a whole. In your argument Tottenham and Chelsea have better attackers than us - and up until the last game you would have to say Liverpools attack was as good as ours.

What is the purpose of defending?

 

[JWBlueman]

I think the point about the 4th best goals conceded is that this has been achieved with what we all agree are past their best full backs, a poor goalkeeper in bravo, an injured kompany, and a young John stones, and a rash (when kompany not there) Otamendi.

If we buy two full backs, a goalie, and a central defender, especially early in the window, the goals against next season should reduce.

Keep Gundo fit and maybe buy another midfielder and next season is looking very positive.

 

[edinburgh123]

What is the purpose of defending?

The point originally made isn't about the overall value of defending as a team being numbers 1 to 11, that's obvious - the point is about the last line (or defenders and goalkeeper) not being good enough. If you think they are then so be it - you are in good company along with Pep from everything he says. Slightly lonely company cos I am not aware of a single "paid football expert" who agrees our defence is suitable - and give Zaba And Clichy are leaving I am thinking maybe even Pep thinks they aren't up to it so you are possibly even more isolated in your thoughts

 

[KnaresboroughBlue]

The point originally made isn't about the overall value of defending as a team being numbers 1 to 11, that's obvious - the point is about the last line (or defenders and goalkeeper) not being good enough. If you think they are then so be it - you are in good company along with Pep from everything he says. Slightly lonely company cos I am not aware of a single "paid football expert" who agrees our defence is suitable - and give Zaba And Clichy are leaving I am thinking maybe even Pep thinks they aren't up to it so you are possibly even more isolated in your thoughts

The way we play though is always going to leave our defenders exposed at times whoever we play. So the defenders are always going to look bad at times.

Stick 11 behind the ball when you haven't got it and you'll maybe let in less but we aren't going to do that. Our approach to defending is that by not letting our opponent have the ball, they have less chance of scoring. Basically the Mourinho approach vs the Guardiola approach. I know which I prefer.

 

[domalino]

The point originally made isn't about the overall value of defending as a team being numbers 1 to 11, that's obvious - the point is about the last line (or defenders and goalkeeper) not being good enough. If you think they are then so be it - you are in good company along with Pep from everything he says. Slightly lonely company cos I am not aware of a single "paid football expert" who agrees our defence is suitable - and give Zaba And Clichy are leaving I am thinking maybe even Pep thinks they aren't up to it so you are possibly even more isolated in your thoughts

Your original post did nothing but show off how you completely fail to understand possession football. Or how football is a game of results.

The purpose of defending is to stop goals being scored. If you stop goals being scored by having the ball, that is a form of defence and a perfectly good one - it's one which has seen Guardiola do very well.

Having a team of 6 foot 5 thugs launching into last ditch tackles for 90 minutes with 10 men behind the ballis not a better form of defending just because you think it is, or because you think that's the only valid form of defending.

Having a back line with the 4 best individual defenders in history isn't the best defence if 4 inferior players can keep the ball from going in their net less often through posession.

To to recap:

Doesn't mean we have the fourth best defence because only 3 teams let in less.

Yes, that is quite literally the exact meaning of it.





And finally for your little snipe at the end...

give Zaba And Clichy are leaving I am thinking maybe even Pep thinks they aren't up to it

Yes you're right - they aren't up to it - they've often been one of our weakest links in possession, and whoever replaces them will be much better at making sure we keep hold of the ball, and keep it in the opposition half.

 

[Dribble]

My take on it is Pep was saying that Germany & Spain are both 2 team leagues, so yes, if he finished 3rd with no trophies there would have been few excuses.

However, we've been chasing Pep since 2012 and considering the shambles of a team he's taken over, the sensible position is to give him the chance to reverse our previous 3 years of decline....

Notwithstanding that, this is the Premier League where any one of 6 clubs is equally capable of winning the league. The Premier League is a totally different scenario to most leagues in the world, and City's emergence has made it more unpredictable than ever, not to mention Spurs and Leicester's surprise win last season.

 

[Dribble]

Yes you're right - they aren't up to it - they've often been one of our weakest links in possession, and whoever replaces them will be much better at making sure we keep hold of the ball, and keep it in the opposition half.

I always preferred Clichy over Kolarov and so have our managers since Clichy came here. He's not a world beater like Roberto Carlos, but imo he's been the best LB at the club since he's been here.

Actually, in recent times can anyone think of a better LB we've had?

 

[Father Paul]

I think the point about the 4th best goals conceded is that this has been achieved with what we all agree are past their best full backs, a poor goalkeeper in bravo, an injured kompany, and a young John stones, and a rash (when kompany not there) Otamendi.

If we buy two full backs, a goalie, and a central defender, especially early in the window, the goals against next season should reduce.

Keep Gundo fit and maybe buy another midfielder and next season is looking very positive.

The goalie and two full backs theory is one I largely subscribe to but it won't solve the puzzle.
The main problem this season was that when it came to the telling big games we were just not up to the task. A lot of folk
believe it was bad decisions by the officials which cost us but I have argued against that on a number of occasions before.
With Vinny not available most of the time we badly lacked steel when it came to the crunch encounters.

Now the big question which we will have to await the outcome of next seasons endeavours is whether these shortcomings
can be placed at the door of the manager. I remain to be convinced that Pep is the magician some on here believe he is
but I am willing to wait until the early new year before I will pass judgement. We failed badly in the league during Dec and Jan
months which I believe are crucial to do well to win the title. The last two seasons we have blown great starts by poor performances
during the mid winter period.

 

[steviemc]

Worse than last season though !

I disagree that this season has been worse than last season. Too much emphasis is being placed on winning a domestic cup for that to be considered.

2016/17 Finished 3rd in PL, 78 Pts Total, Goal Difference +41
2015/16 Finished 4th in PL, 66 Pts Total, Goal Difference +30

That's a suitable improvement on last season, despite the hyperbole that we had a shit defence and struggled to score. Include the overall age, progress and potential of our recent/new inclusions and there's plenty to be cheerful about for next season. I'd much rather be where we are at the end of this season than where we were at the end of last. Don't fall into the trap that winning a domestic cup is a foundation for a bright future. Just look towards the rags if you need any confirmation of that.