The Midfield

Is Jacob Wright worth a punt.? I was talking to bloke who watches the academy regularly and he reckons he could do a decent job. Young legs if nowt else.
Very good footballer and technical, would add energy. Possibly lacking a bit of stature and pace would be my main concern.

I'd rather stick Nico in there. He looked so promising in the 8 role on tour and can sit deeper alongside the 6 when needed.
 
A few weeks after Rodri got injured Pep said he was going to come up with a plan of how to compensate the loss, and there were reports of the long hours he was spending in his office trying to plot the solution to our midfield

He hasn’t really done anything different bar play Kovacic, Silva and Gundogan in there, with Rico Lewis inverting into there when he plays and 1 game for Grealish.
He has to change the playing style because we can’t control midfield with our currently available players. Don’t understand why he has not tried 442 with Haaland and Foden up front and a proper deep back four. Surely nothing to lose to at least try this. Teams have broken on us all season through the midfield.
 
We definitely need more energy in midfield. We can't press properly and can't cope with transitions. The players all look fatigued, which I also think is why we're having so many injuries. Need some younger legs in there.
 
With the signing of Marmoush & Erling needing a rest, can we revert back to the false 9. Bernardo & Kovacic sat deeper at Stamford Bridge & it worked
 
We definitely need more energy in midfield. We can't press properly and can't cope with transitions. The players all look fatigued, which I also think is why we're having so many injuries. Need some younger legs in there.
Is there something wrong with the fitness trading regime or even the medical dept?
Or is it just age?
Why can’t Dias get fit?
 
Is there something wrong with the fitness trading regime or even the medical dept?
Or is it just age?
Why can’t Dias get fit?

We have certainly not been able to manage player fitness and fatigue. It is poor management that we find ourselves in this situation. A club with our resources should have enough fit players to cope with injuries.
 
Reis and Stones are the only options at 6 to sort us out defensively for me. I think Pep has doubts about Stones physical condition to play that role presently. At the moment we don't have any legs in that position and are woeful coping with transitions. Reis looks to have pace and energy. He maybe our best option, but it is a risk bearing in mind his experience. I think it is a chance Pep is likely to take if no more signings arrive in that position.
 
Is there something wrong with the fitness trading regime or even the medical dept?
Or is it just age?
Why can’t Dias get fit?
Hard to put a finger on it, but I do think fatigue plays a big part in it. All these players have played a lot of games over the last few years, without a proper break. They are also older. Because we have had a run of injuries, players are coming back too soon.
 
Reis and Stones are the only options at 6 to sort us out defensively for me. I think Pep has doubts about Stones physical condition to play that role presently. At the moment we don't have any legs in that position and are woeful coping with transitions. Reis looks to have pace and energy. He maybe our best option, but it is a risk bearing in mind his experience. I think it is a chance Pep is likely to take if no more signings arrive in that position.
Reis can’t do worse than we are doing at present. I would risk him, despite his youth and inexperience.
Khusanov has electric pace and can play anywhere. I’d put him in too.
Cambiasso would be a huge boost at FB.
 
Pep changed the way we built up by getting Gundo/Kovacic/bernardo to drop deeper and wider. Worked well because Chelsea couldn’t swarm us in the middle and get those turnovers like PSG did in that second half. Can’t see him going away from that now unless we bring in midfielders but at that stage I’m doubtful now think our business is done
 
I don't know the solution but I would like to think the man who is paid millions to find solutions, does.

Saturdays result was positive, with having the same issues, mostly first half of teams running through us with the greatest of ease. It is testament to Rodri that he somehow stops a lot of that just himself.

Our approach can help that though, our normal slow, boring passing a team to death approach gets most of our team in their half. That means the second we lose it and they break with numbers, they have an overload. The route one approach or quicker style approaches should mean our defenders don't have much chance to get too high should we lose the ball.
 
by my reckoning we now have:

Doku, Savinho, Marmoush, McAtee, Grealish (attacking, more wide)

KdB, Foden, Bobb, O'Reilly, Wright (attacking, more central)

Kovacic, Silva, Rodri, Nunes, Gunodgan (deeper/central role)

[Stones], [Lewis]

That's a lot of players. You feel for O'Reilly and Wright trying to push into that. and STILL i think we need a quality central mid.

I put Stones and Lewis, due to their history of either playing in mid or effectively playing in midfield, but they can effectively be ignored. Nunes is a midfielder but might have a future at right-back.....

Are we going to default to 6 midfielders if Haaland is injured/rested? or stick McAtee or Marmoush up top?
 
by my reckoning we now have:

Doku, Savinho, Marmoush, McAtee, Grealish (attacking, more wide)

KdB, Foden, Bobb, O'Reilly, Wright (attacking, more central)

Kovacic, Silva, Rodri, Nunes, Gunodgan (deeper/central role)

[Stones], [Lewis]

That's a lot of players. You feel for O'Reilly and Wright trying to push into that. and STILL i think we need a quality central mid.

I put Stones and Lewis, due to their history of either playing in mid or effectively playing in midfield, but they can effectively be ignored. Nunes is a midfielder but might have a future at right-back.....

Are we going to default to 6 midfielders if Haaland is injured/rested? or stick McAtee or Marmoush up top?

"It's the not knowing that kills you."
 
by my reckoning we now have:

Doku, Savinho, Marmoush, McAtee, Grealish (attacking, more wide)

KdB, Foden, Bobb, O'Reilly, Wright (attacking, more central)

Kovacic, Silva, Rodri, Nunes, Gunodgan (deeper/central role)

[Stones], [Lewis]

That's a lot of players. You feel for O'Reilly and Wright trying to push into that. and STILL i think we need a quality central mid.

I put Stones and Lewis, due to their history of either playing in mid or effectively playing in midfield, but they can effectively be ignored. Nunes is a midfielder but might have a future at right-back.....

Are we going to default to 6 midfielders if Haaland is injured/rested? or stick McAtee or Marmoush up top?
Marmoush can play as a 9.
 
by my reckoning we now have:

Doku, Savinho, Marmoush, McAtee, Grealish (attacking, more wide)

KdB, Foden, Bobb, O'Reilly, Wright (attacking, more central)

Kovacic, Silva, Rodri, Nunes, Gunodgan (deeper/central role)

[Stones], [Lewis]

That's a lot of players. You feel for O'Reilly and Wright trying to push into that. and STILL i think we need a quality central mid.

I put Stones and Lewis, due to their history of either playing in mid or effectively playing in midfield, but they can effectively be ignored. Nunes is a midfielder but might have a future at right-back.....

Are we going to default to 6 midfielders if Haaland is injured/rested? or stick McAtee or Marmoush up top?
Add in Echeverri to the attacking central and Akanji alongside Stones & Lewis Pep said Stones wouldn't be used as a DM due to his injury record so more likely to be Akanji who Pep said he'd also consider if we ever get a full complement of CB's back fit.
 
Ultimately this is what has cost us this season, we're too slow, not passing the ball well enough and don't have the legs to compete.

So, how do we set up the midfield for the next 5/6months?

At the moment in my opinion we have:
-------------Gonzalez
-----?????--------------?????

Gundogan - Legs have gone
Bernardo - Legs have gone
De Bruyne - Legs have gone
Foden - Level has dropped significantly
Kovacic - Not good enough
Rodri - Out until at least May (in my opinion)

At the end of 2016/17 which was our worst season under Pep we finally found a way of playing that worked, I think this is what we have to try and do now and it starts in the middle.

I'd play rotate the lads with no legs in 1 position, no more than 45mins each and get a young lad in there who can fucking run.
 

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