20 | Bernardo Silva - 2024/25

[King Jay]

I think he still is good. Problem is just that he is one of the pillars of this obsession of control even during counters and also the fact that he is an absolute zero threat. The team was able to cover it due to a bunch of goalscorers especially during the time of false 9 but now it unacceptable and when players like Reijnders are available we need to go for them. The other problem is that pep will choose him no matter how good or bad he plays.

 

[jimharri]

According to OPTA, apparently.

 

[Paul1970]

You aren't that kean on Pep are you?

Tbh mate atm I don’t know what to think of pep because for years he was like a god with some of what he did but this season some of his decisions have been crazy and his attitude lack of trust to our young players and him sticking with his system even though it’s not worked has pissed my off but I will still stand by him next season .

 

[Luddite_Blue]

Possession is good when we have the right players and end product to show . Over time he last few years we have been able to achieve our goals but not anymore and before you say yes atm we have strung some results together but we have also been smashed are times this season as our players are too old . Next season we need to play to haalands strengths and attack at speed and let him run into balls and I’m sure with him and Mamoush we will start to smash opponents again .

I agree that a way has to be found to build the team around and to get the best out of Haaland. However, if it's just a case of getting the ball forward quickly then we'd have to end up with a midfield like Klopp's Liverpool with bags of energy to deal with counters but not much craft. I'd also point out that the 4 CL semi finalists are all possession based so it's still very much a valid way to play.

The issues this season have been mainly due to the injuries to Rodri and the central defenders, the fact the players are shattered after the last 4 seasons and there was always going to be a drop off at some point after winning 4 titles in a row which is why no one has ever done it before.

 

[Luddite_Blue]

According to OPTA, apparently.

If Bernardo is in centre mid he wouldn't really be required to run flat out in a way that a defender or forward would.

This reminds me of what Mancini is reputed to have said when some people were raving about Phil Jones diving into tackles, which was essentially if Jones was in the correct position he wouldn't need to dive in to tackles.

So if Bernardo is popping up in the right positions, knitting things together why would he need to be running flat out? This also applies if in the right position defensively as midfielders trying to dribble past other midfielders occurs far less often than attackers trying to dribble past defenders.

And Makélélé who was probably the best defensive midfielder of his era wasn't quick.

 

[De Bruyne Supremacy]

If Bernardo is in centre mid he wouldn't really be required to run flat out in a way that a defender or forward would.

This reminds me of what Mancini is reputed to have said when some people were raving about Phil Jones diving into tackles, which was essentially if Jones was in the correct position he wouldn't need to dive in to tackles.

So if Bernardo is popping up in the right positions, knitting things together why would he need to be running flat out? This also applies if in the right position defensively as midfielders trying to dribble past other midfielders occurs far less often than attackers trying to dribble past defenders.

And Makélélé who was probably the best defensive midfielder of his era wasn't quick.

considering the amount of fast transitions we have conceded throughout the entire season, where our midfield were left scrambling try to catch up with play, I'd like to think he was trying his best to run as fast as he can to catch up with the opponent a couple of times at least...

 

[sh249]

Life in the (not so) old dog yet …

 

[chris85mcfc]

Proper shithouse performance

Love it

 

[pbueno16]

Life in the (not so) old dog yet …

One of his best performances all season. Needs to be playing in the middle instead of this nonsense experiment of putting him on the wing.

 

[OrigamiNinja]

He rolled back the years there, especially in the 1st half. He has to play in the middle, it’s crazy sticking him out on the wing.

 

[Chak19]

He rolled back the years there, especially in the 1st half. He has to play in the middle, it’s crazy sticking him out on the wing.

I still think he's past it but if you're going to play him, play him in the middle, still has some flashes of brilliance.

 

[MCFC1993]

Drops his best performance of the season after the rumours, that was his 'I'm going nowhere' performance.

Carried our attacking performance by getting the ball off of the defenders. Get your technical players on the ball.

 

[jollylescott]

Bernie played very well. He was everywhere and fought so hard.

 

[DMA's]

When he plays cm he is still brilliant. I’d keep him but I think the decision has been made

 

[balotelli's back pocket]

Ran the game.

 

[borassic]

He’s got some serious spuds on him. Great performance from the little man

 

[stan bowles]

Much better than against Everton. Worked really hard and was a visible presence on the pitch.

 

[Bluewonder]

Best performance of the year by him.

 

[silvasdreamyfringe]

Best performance for ages, much better in midfield than out on the right wing for me

 

[meltonblue]

I still think he's past it but if you're going to play him, play him in the middle, still has some flashes of brilliance.

He’s 30, he’s nowhere near past it. He’s just played a shitload of football in the last few years and in varying positions pretty much every game, he’s had a period of being off form but he’s still got a shedload to give.