“We’ve been found out”

[Stoned Rose]

Our attacking play is what drove on that fear factor for us. I have no doubt we would of won the CL or at least got to the final in 18/19 if Laporte didn’t have a brain fart in that spurs second leg

And that's what Pep is trying to eradicate.

Those silly bits of bullshit cost at the highest level.

 

[decmancity]

Ive calmed down a bit and looking back at the game, once again Pep has been let down by shit finishing. Pep can't stick the ball in the net for them, defensively we look stronger and Pep seems to have resolved some other issues we had.

We need to buy a goal scorer.

 

[Saddleworth2]

We’ve all said it over the past god knows how many months.
Pep has finally changed things, he’s made us much harder to beat and let’s face it, we’ve been very easy to beat for months...
Yeah we are nowhere near our best, especially up front, but look at our goal scorers/makers
Sergio injured, Kev nowhere near his best, Raz the same, Mahrez far too inconsistent to make the difference week in week out, Jesus trying hard but just not happening for him, Bernardo, oh Bernardo.
But surely we’ve gotta give Pep and the team some time to change?
We are not the team of 2 years ago, different players and as we’ve all said “we’ve been found out” so the change had to happen.
I’d rather play the way we have today than the way we’ve played up until recently, we played with a naivety, especially to the counter and were getting beat far too easily.
Pep just needs to find the right balance and making us hard to beat is a great starting point.
Only time will tell if this new approach will work, but right now that’s all we have, time.

I get what you are saying but to win the stuff we want to win we need to beat big teams and I’m not sure this will work unless we become very clinical in front of goal. These players show no sign that they can be.

 

[WNRH]

He's been forced to change it because playing the way that's made us hugely successful isn't possible without the right personnel.

You take out a prime Fernandinho as the holding pivot the whole midfield is built upon, and replace him with a plodder like Rodri who isn't fit to lace his boots, and you have a problem.

Couple that with losing David and we don't retain possession the way we used to, and we don't move the ball we used to. This leads to less opportunities to the front men, and then you take out Sergio and it's all compounded into what we see now.

Then surely you replace a prime Fernandinho for someone like him?

He isn’t forced to play the plodder, he broke the club record to get him.

He’s not been forced, he is the one who’s forced it.

 

[I'm Blue]

I am confident Pep will turn it around as much as I’m sure this season we will end trophyless.

I wasn’t confident he’d turn it round, the stubborn.. : )
But he’s changed, for now at least.

 

[Stoned Rose]

I’ve got a strange feeling we are sacking off the league and going all out for the championship league.
Instead of trying to win it all

I wouldn't go as far as we're sacking everything off but I think it's clear he's trying to get us to play in a more CL centric way.

 

[waspish]

Think Pep has found out these cunts who sit back and hoof it on the break.

 

[I'm Blue]

its not found out exaclty

Pep playing the two out of 3 (Rodri, Gundogan Ferna) more defensive midfielders is part of the issue - why he is doing this is a part of the issue as well

No kun is another issue..Jesus is a good player but needs to play with anohter striker - he cannot lead the line without another goal threat with him

Part of problem is the 3 defensive midfielders you mention, only one of them “was” a midfield enforcer.

 

[Petetheblu]

The way I look at it is when Pep got here we had 5 maybe 6 players who could have walked in his Barca side (Vinny, Silva, Ferni, Yaya, KDB and possible Kun) now we have one that could make that walk and even he's not really in form, the rest would be playing in the reserves.

The players believe they're better than they are and we've never replaced the pure talent we had.

We are a long away from being the centurion's which we once were. It's going to get way more competitive for us.

 

[Phil Mitchell Foden]

Then surely you replace a prime Fernandinho for someone like him?

He isn’t forced to play the plodder, he broke the club record to get him.

He’s not been forced, he is the one who’s forced it.

I don't know why he keeps faith in Rodri, but he's clearly not good enough. Both Pep and Txiki deserve criticism for that.

We've signed a lot of shite in recent years, we've been relying on the spine we had in 2012 for too long.