Crystal Palace (H) - Post-Match Thread

[waspish]

I'll get accused of going OTT with this, but I'm entitled to an opinion.

We won't won a trophy this season, we'll finish top 4 but that'll be our lot (and NO I'm not a Rag/Dipper/Chav - I'm a realist)

We have fallen through the same trap door again - we needed to refresh (Pep said so himself). Instead we signed Grealish, he'll take time to adjust, and did nothing else.

We also have some bang out of form players who, for a variety of reasons, we can't seem to get back to any sort of form.

Just my opinion

Keep the faith it’s still early days

 

[LongsightM13]

The Foden / Grealish dynamic is a concern for me.

Foden had the left wing position completely tied down last season, played brilliantly all season, was a real attacking threat and won a number of games on his own.

We then sign Grealish with money that could have been used on a proper striker, and so far we’ve hobbled him by asking to stick out wide and play a very distinct, disciplined role. This has meant Foden playing in the middle, where I think he’s a bit more inconsistent.

Early days but it doesn’t look quite right to me.

Wouldn’t be opposed to Grealish replacing Kev in the middle for a couple of games

 

[Rammy Blue]

I disagreed with someone on here a few weeks ago that KDB just needed games to find his rhythm. It’s just not happening although he certainly wasn’t on his own today. Some people are mentioning problems with his ankle but would that be a reason he can’t pass a ball 5 yards?

He’s so slow though that his mind is working faster than his body, hence passes are just not on it.

 

[stan bowles]

We were awful , everyone. The truth is teams have worked out how we play now with this false 9. They also know we have no way of changing it so tactically it’s easy for them to prepare to play against us. We have become very predictable.

we dont need 1 striker in January but at least 2.

feel a bit sorry for kdb, Foden and grealish , none of them are strikers yet for vast periods of the game are expected to play that role. It’s affecting their performances now as well.

Doesn't excuse KDB's poor control, passing and lack of mobility - whatever position he's playing. He's miles off it and has been all season. If he needs a rest or ankle surgery then let him have it because at the moment he's contributing next to nothing.

 

[Phoenix900000]

Not seem the same since the second half of Brighton. Too many player out of form at the same time.

Let's hope we can fix the issues and get a performance out of this side :)

 

[alexmcity]

Chelsea are looking the strongest so far though.

We played them off the park several weeks ago. Too early for any generalisations.

 

[super_city_si]

7th already? oof

Its actually 6 and one of those was the charity shield When we had half a team

 

[oldius]

Tough to take.
Palace were solid, aggressive in the press, good at time wasting and pacy on the break.

We began sloppily.
We created little.
We gave away a simple goal.
We had a man sent off.
We had a very close disallowed goal.

The referee allowed too much time wasting and seemed keen on City yellow cards.

Laporte and KDB had poor games.
Cancelo gave it away too often.

Rodri was good. Stones was excellent.

 

[blue ranger]

He’s so slow though that his mind is working faster than his body, hence passes are just not on it.

I agree now he needs to be dropped. Personally I’d tell him to get away from the club for a few weeks, rest and get himself right physically.

 

[Nihilist]

Lost my hope in the title, I know its still early and I know about last season but last season all the big teams were struggling, this season we seem to struggle the most out of the top 3 teams. At times the players seem to lack focus or motivation. Don't think this is our season

 

[Rammy Blue]

Wouldn’t be opposed to Grealish replacing Kev in the middle for a couple of games

It’s got to be worth looking at, I just think Grealish is wasted out wide. He’s not fast enough to skin someone so they just back pedal until he plays the inevitable ball inside. It’s been worked out 100%.

 

[mosssideblue]

3 hours football, no goals. Striker anyone?

Lack of a striker not the problem today. The inability to pass to each other cost us dearly

 

[Tricky_Trev]

I'll get accused of going OTT with this, but I'm entitled to an opinion.

We won't won a trophy this season, we'll finish top 4 but that'll be our lot (and NO I'm not a Rag/Dipper/Chav - I'm a realist)

We have fallen through the same trap door again - we needed to refresh (Pep said so himself). Instead we signed Grealish, he'll take time to adjust, and did nothing else.

We also have some bang out of form players who, for a variety of reasons, we can't seem to get back to any sort of form.

Just my opinion

I agree, we don’t look good enough to win anything this season. And already failed to score 6 times in 16 games this season. It was 6 in 62 over the whole of last season. No trophies are coming from that. Hitting the odd team for 5 has hid the fact that our attack is not reliable.

 

[mosssideblue]

Just got back.

My 2p’s worth…

Pep needs to get on with making some harsh decisions.

Kev just doesn’t warrant a starting berth for now, needs to lose weight and get fully fit, he’s a passenger.

I’d like to see Grealish given a chance to play in midfield, the guy isn’t a winger. But either way, it needs him or Phil inside with Bernie.

Not a fan of Jesus out wide, I actually called it at the game a few minutes before Pep moved him inside. I think Pep needs to tell him he’s playing as a 9 for now as it’s ridiculous we say we haven’t got a striker when we’ve got one in Jesus.

Never been a fan of Laporte, too slow, and again said before game I’d prefer Stones, and thankfully he will now get chance to stake his claim on keeping the starting spot.

Thought Stones was an instant upgrade today

 

[Rammy Blue]

Doesn't excuse KDB's poor control, passing and lack of mobility - whatever position he's playing. He's miles off it and has been all season. If he needs a rest or ankle surgery then let him have it because at the moment he's contributing next to nothing.

His lack of mobility is frightening, he’s regressed over the last few weeks when we expected him to be playing himself into fitness. I watched a couple of times when he tried to close a player down and it was painful to see.

 

[ChicagoBlue]

Off the boil, front to back. Palace played a smothering game and packed the danger zone whenever we created any, which wasn’t that often.

Ederson: Thought he should have done better with the first goal. No chance on second. One good save at near post.

Walker: Looked like ge was trying too much and getting caught out at times. Good cover at the back for their pace, but distribution was poor.

Cancelo: Way off his usual performance. Some abysmal balls into the box that were Row Z material. Got caught out defensively a few times.

Dias: Concerning that he goes to ground so quickly. Think coaches and players know they can sit him down now. His pace was a concern against their pacy attackers.

Laporte: Stinker. With two strikers pushing up on him and Dias, any loose ball was going to cause problems…so he played one! Allowed himself to be conned by Zaha on the red card. As last man, should have EITHER got the ball or dropped off a step. Instead, he came with his right foot, which allowed Zaha to spin and put the body on him, which meant Laporte had to grab him as he went down.

Rodri: Strong, solid, hard to get the ball off. Played a few errant passes, but the lines were shutdown quickly and we weren’t giving him too many options. One of the few to come away with any credit.

KDB: Pep needs to tell Martinez he’s not available for the Intl break and give him a holiday! Looks knackered, passing lacking, no creation. Deserved substitution.

Bernardo: Industrious as ever, but nothing to show for it. No space to operate and rarely broke through the press.

Jesus: Worked very hard for what looked like a just reward, only to be denied by Foden’s knee. Got a bit involved with Zaha, but showed passion & drive for no result.

Foden: Never say die attitude, but taking the extra touch while not making the pass or taking the shot was his Achilles heel today. Along with Rodri & Jesus, one of only 3 to play anywhere close.

Grealish: Clearly there’s something there, but it’s not as a left winger. Looks one dimensional, predictable, and the short killer pass just hasn’t shown up. Needs to play inside left, not wide left, with a full back in support and attackers moving ahead of him. If I wasn’t a City fan, I’d be laughing at us paying £100M for him at this point. An obvious sub in many games he’s played this season, but when you see Sterling coming on for him, you wonder how £160M+ talent can look so out of place.

Stones: Gave us good stability at the back, but got turned inside out for their second, even though he recovered. Nothing too bad to say about his performance and with Laporte out of the derby, I hope he gets a run now.

Sterling & Mahrez: They came on. The end.

Pep: Looked devoid of ideas, even though we played about 4 different formations/players in an effort to make something work. MUST splash the cash on an actual striker ASAP.

Win at home against Brugge & beat the Rags and this game will be quickly forgotten. Anything else puts BOTH competitions in jeopardy.

Hope the next week puts this game to bed!

 

[Rammy Blue]

Thought Stones was an instant upgrade today

I understand Pep let Laporte keep the starting berth, but this has been in the offing for a couple of weeks now. He’s dropped a few clangers recently that he’s got away with, today he didn’t.

 

[Churchlawtonblue]

Tough to take.
Palace were solid, aggressive in the press, good at time wasting and pacy on the break.

We began sloppily.
We created little.
We gave away a simple goal.
We had a man sent off.
We had a very close disallowed goal.

The referee allowed too much time wasting and seemed keen on City yellow cards.

Laporte and KDB had poor games.
Cancelo gave it away too often.

Rodri was good. Stones was excellent.

ederson should have saved their first aswell imo. it almost rolled into the net.

 

[Dave Ewing's Back 'eader]

A wearisome game. We didn't play badly, we just didn't play well and we faced another team of athletes with a decent touch and perfect finishing. Did they have more than two shots on target? Kev was off it today, Phil never got on it, Jack was ineffective in the main and that leaves Bernardo 'n Gabby to bring home the bacon. And then there was Blind Andre. Funny how he sees everything that favours the opposition. I shall adjourn to the Ref Watch thread!

 

[Brewster's millions]

Just got back.

My 2p’s worth…

Pep needs to get on with making some harsh decisions.

Kev just doesn’t warrant a starting berth for now, needs to lose weight and get fully fit, he’s a passenger.

I’d like to see Grealish given a chance to play in midfield, the guy isn’t a winger. But either way, it needs him or Phil inside with Bernie.

Not a fan of Jesus out wide, I actually called it at the game a few minutes before Pep moved him inside. I think Pep needs to tell him he’s playing as a 9 for now as it’s ridiculous we say we haven’t got a striker when we’ve got one in Jesus.

Never been a fan of Laporte, too slow, and again said before game I’d prefer Stones, and thankfully he will now get chance to stake his claim on keeping the starting spot.

Completely agree on the need for big decisions, and I think Guardiola has been hoping some of these issues would just go away, but they clearly aren’t.

Whatever the approach has been with KDB, it needs to change. Even if he has a dodgy ankle, there’s no excuse for being as out of shape as he is now and he needs a kick up the arse. We simply can’t afford for his malaise to last as long as Sterling’s. Roll back 18 months and KDB and Sterling were arguably in the top dozen players in Europe - now they would struggle to get into the top 6 or even top 10 teams in England. Something needs to give.

I would also put the goalkeeping issue on the watch list as well.