Is left back really a problem?

[Greenjob]

Having a natural Left Back would certainly bring balance to the side. If you look at the games in which we were over-run (Spuds (2 - 0) Leeds, Leicester etc) it was because of the gaps that presented chances for the opponent and not having a 'natural' LB was the cause. Zinch does ok but he as a tendency to want to drift infield and forward leaving the LHS Centre Back exposed. That Gosens fella looks the bollocks for me, get him in ASAP!!

 

[citymad]

Yes it is. If Zinc gets injured then we have Mendy has back up and thats not a good situation. We need a top class left back like we always have.

 

[LongsightM13]

Hmm, dunno that I'd write off a 24 year old on that basis, mostly because I remember something similar with Bale between 2008 and 2012. He had a whole string of problems after leaving Cardiff, almost disappeared completely before coming good.

Mark Hughes tried to get him on loan in the winter transfer window after the takeover. Didn't see much action that season, but by the end of the next he was regarded as world class.

Hughes might have heard from his Welsh connections that the injury problems were over and he'd developed physically into the freak of nature he was.

Tierney isn't the biggest, has a young look about him. It wouldn't suprise me if he's still developing physically.

We had already signed Wayne Bridge before that first post-takeover window, deal went through the day it opened and he was presented to the crowd ahead of the Forest cup tie.
Bale had injuries but his problem was that he wasn’t very good at left back. He became a bit of a standing joke/meme after failing to be on the winning side in his first 25 games at WHL and was about to be sold to Forest in the Championship for £1m until an injury crisis meant he was thrown in as a winger. The rest is history

 

[Summerbuzz]

We had already signed Wayne Bridge before that first post-takeover window, deal went through the day it opened and he was presented to the crowd ahead of the Forest cup tie.

No wonder it went so badly for him.

What a season that was.

We'd already had Tal Ben Heim puking up during the match.... then Didi Hamann goes and takes a shit on the pitch in an FA Cup tie we should have walked.

 

[LongsightM13]

No wonder it went so badly for him.

What a season that was.

We'd already had Tal Ben Heim puking up during the match.... then Didi Hamann goes and takes a shit on the pitch in an FA Cup tie we should have walked.

Haha yes, that game was cursed. One of the mist dismal days watching City in recent memory. I washed my hands of Hughes that day and was only disappointed it took us almost another 12 months to finally pull the trigger

 

[BlueMoonAcrossThePond]

LB is our weakest position. Too, we lack a midfield destroyer. And to the extent that Pep wants to play with a striker - with the departure of Aguero - we're weak there too.

Yes LB is a problem - but other positions are a problem as well.

 

[blueparrot]

LB is our weakest position. Too, we lack a midfield destroyer. And to the extent that Pep wants to play with a striker - with the departure of Aguero - we're weak there too.

Yes LB is a problem - but other positions are a problem as well.

We don’t play with a midfield destroyer and if Fernandinho extends won’t be buying a central midfielder this summer, not expecting us to buy a left back either really, unless Mendy goes but don’t think he will so both those positions are for next summer I’d guess.

 

[BlueMoonAcrossThePond]

We don’t play with a midfield destroyer and if Fernandinho extends won’t be buying a central midfielder this summer, not expecting us to buy a left back either really, unless Mendy goes but don’t think he will so both those positions are for next summer I’d guess.

We don't play w/ a destroyer on most occasions b/c the only destroyer we have is 36 years old (and yes, I think Pep favors a bunch of gifted passers above traditional player skill sets, DM included and striker, LB/RB in the mix as well)!

A 36-year old, box-to-box destroyer?! As good as Fernandinho is, father time has caught him up - he's still very good - but he's also 36-years old - and he's not a world class destroyer, at all, in this stage of his career.

As for our success w/o a destroyer - we've done exceptionally well. But we'd do even better with a solid old-style DM IMO. Witness the C/L final.

Fernandinho - if he extends - trust me - isn't being signed as a first choice, most games, DM. Rather he's going to be signed as a squad player - able to step in as needed.

Mendy is hopeless. But yes, he's a drain on our salary. That shouldn't stop us from upgrading at LB though.

 

[blueparrot]

We don't play w/ a destroyer on most occasions b/c the only destroyer we have is 36 years old! A 36-year old, box-to-box destroyer! As good as Fernandinho is, father time has caught him up - he's still very good - but he's also 36-years old.

As for our success w/o a destroyer - we've done exceptionally well. But we'd do even better with a solid old-style DM IMO. Witness the C/L final.

Fernandinho - if he extends - trust me - isn't being signed as a first choice, most games, DM. Rather he's going to be signed as a squad player - able to step in as needed.

Mendy is hopeless. But yes, he's a drain on our salary. That shouldn't stop us from upgrading at LB though.

Wouldn’t call Fernandinho a destroyer, he has much more to his game than that. Pep will never sign an old style defensive midfielder No Fernandinho won’t be first choice Rodri will so we haven’t room for another player. Similarly if Mendy doesn’t leave we don’t have room for another left back.
If Fernandinho and Mendy are with us next year there isn’t room in the squad for anyone else.

 

[BlueMoonAcrossThePond]

Wouldn’t call Fernandinho a destroyer, he has much more to his game than that. Pep will never sign an old style defensive midfielder No Fernandinho won’t be first choice Rodri will so we haven’t room for another player. Similarly if Mendy doesn’t leave we don’t have room for another left back.
If Fernandinho and Mendy are with us next year there isn’t room in the squad for anyone else.

Any player in Pep's side will need to be gifted on the ball - but yes, Fernandinho has been a destroyer while also meeting Pep's demand for a skilled passer. As I've said - we will likely extend Fernandinho as a squad player - not a first choice DM destroyer.

Mendy is a drain on the squad as a whole - he's a liability whenever he plays. That we won't upgrade at LB simply because we can't move Mendy isn't realistic - we might be able to move Zinchenko or Cancello. Or in the worst case, we simply sign a class LB and await developments - players of the caliber of Zinchenko and Cancello will want to move on - Mendy might not, so we're stuck with him if so. But an upgrade at LB is certainly possible and IMO would benefit our side.