United (A) | PL | Post Match Thread

[GaudinoMotors]

It certainly is Blue Monday.

 

[chickaroon]

With 5 subs now allowed the manager should be able to bring on 'specialists' to manage each phase of the game. What we seem to lack is 'specialists' who are capable of 'getting us a point' or 'protecting a lead' when we are not dominant. Yesterday, we were never going to score in a month of Sundays but could quite easily have gotten a point by locking the game down. We lacked those options on the bench which is probably down to squad depth and balance. Pep seems to favour a small squad, which works if only in one competition or if injuries are non existent but not for our current situation. It is also bizarre that the three centre backs who were out on loan are all fit and playing Akanji, Reiss and Alleyne and the ones

Recent or not, that's all history now.

We looked a million miles away from being a great side yesterday, and Pep just looked on cluelessly.

Mid-transition maybe, but Pep's system is tired, his insistence on a small squad, and his continued selection of 'favourites' seems to be burning some players out (as it did with KDB and Gundogan)

Our current squad looks a lot weaker than that inherited by Pep from Manuel Pellegrini.

Our current league position reflects more the poor standard of most teams in the PL this season rather than how 'well' we are playing. That was made abundantly clear yesterday when we were soundly beaten by one of the worst rag sides in memory.

I make no secret that I believe that hat Pep should have left City after winning the CL, 'job done, goodbye'. He is understandably tired and seems to be running out of ideas (or already has). He's unlikely to extend his contract at City for any reason other than money, and as such I suspect that he may go at the end of this season.

We're stale and inconsistent, and need a change. If not tactically by a revitalised Pep, then with a new coach. It doesn't matter if it's someone 'as good' or 'better' than Pep has been (that coach doesn't exist), just someone fresher than he has become.

It's time for change.

Would you have written thus post after the Newcastle game?

 

[M18CTID]

Well said and good drills leaving the shit tip. It's of scant consolation to us but that result needs perspective I feel. We had a patched up, makeshift, never played together before defence. A red not given in our favour by the twat in the middle. A massively raised performance from them, buoyed by a change of manager. One of our worst showings under Pep occured as well. We were abysmal, luckily The Don kept it respectable.
In contrast look at the state of these shitehawks. Club, team, stadium, management, fans all in rag order.

Obviously it depends on where you're heading back to but for me going back into town I find that swinging a left out of the away end and heading down to Hotel Football before turning right and walking down to Bridgewater Way then on into town is more palatable than doing a right and trying to inch your way up Warwick Road and having to put up with all the shite they're spouting. It's not without pitfalls of course as you're still encountering plenty of Rags on the forecourt and there's always a bottleneck on the corner of Hotel Football. Also, after the 4-2 defeat in 2015 and when the crowds had started to thin down after I got past HF, I pretty much walked into a mob of Rags heading the other way who looked like they hadn't even been at the game and were clearly hellbent on looking for trouble. Apart from that, it's been a relatively safe route down the years and it gets me out of there quicker.

 

[chickaroon]

If you think Foden is one of the immediate problems in the suad then you know nothing of football and Id wager your opinion is based on something personal you dont like about him

I can name a number of players within the squad who are holding the team back in terms of their ability and not one of them is foden...

Sav
Bobb
Rico Lewis
Reijnders being inaffective - please dont quote his goals - even in those games he has been a ghost for 95% of the time
John Stones - due to injury history
Nathan Ake - due to injury history
No right back
No left back having been available
No fit first choice centre halves
Haaland being our only forward and run into the ground
Rodri not being fit for most of the season and still struggling.

All of this (or these) are much more considerable issues before Foden's form

Its like the people who blame Bernardo Silva - they know very little about football

Great Post. Exactly this.

 

[MCFC-Carl-88]

Well said and good drills leaving the shit tip. It's of scant consolation to us but that result needs perspective I feel. We had a patched up, makeshift, never played together before defence. A red not given in our favour by the twat in the middle. A massively raised performance from them, buoyed by a change of manager. One of our worst showings under Pep occured as well. We were abysmal, luckily The Don kept it respectable.
In contrast look at the state of these shitehawks. Club, team, stadium, management, fans all in rag order.

Now Iv had a couple of days to cool off, I agree with you. It was just the perfect storm and it happens. City are still heading in the right direction, one really bad result doesn’t change the fact we’re 2nd in a season most of us said just get top 4 while we rebuild.

United can pretend they are now fixed, but if they reallly look at themselves then they will see Carrick did nothing except go back to the ole playbook and We all saw how that worked out for ole in the end.
Uniteds always done well vs the top 4, have done for the past few years, but they cant play counter attack vs Fulham at home. Which is when they come unstuck.

Hopefully Carrick does a good job, they are forced to keep him, miss out on the world class managers this summer and we get to watch them continue the cycle of sacking managers mid season.

Just remember this weekend and make sure you enjoy every single minute of our success.

 

[herrock]

So many questions from that game. Why didn't the wingers ever switch sides, why is it as soon as Rico starts right back, we get caught on the break again. Why did rodri have no help in the middle, and why have we gone back to this boring tip tap stuff of earlier in the season.

 

[Roachy]

Obviously it depends on where you're heading back to but for me going back into town I find that swinging a left out of the away end and heading down to Hotel Football before turning right and walking down to Bridgewater Way then on into town is more palatable than doing a right and trying to inch your way up Warwick Road and having to put up with all the shite they're spouting. It's not without pitfalls of course as you're still encountering plenty of Rags on the forecourt and there's always a bottleneck on the corner of Hotel Football. Also, after the 4-2 defeat in 2015 and when the crowds had started to thin down after I got past HF, I pretty much walked into a mob of Rags heading the other way who looked like they hadn't even been at the game and were clearly hellbent on looking for trouble. Apart from that, it's been a relatively safe route down the years and it gets me out of there quicker.

There's no avoiding the arseholes obviously, gotta keep your head down and get out of there. Was in Krakow for the weekend so had to put up with the gobshites in the bar, grrr....

 

[elbearos]

Going to be a hell of a day, dealing with the giddy fuckers, chin up blues, onwards and upwards (i hope) :-)

Had people wanting to talk football , first time for ages

 

[Lavinda Past]

Would you have written thus post after the Newcastle game?

I've been writing much the same for at least two years mate.
I praised the performance against Newcastle but we should take into account that Newcastle aren't exactly prime Real Madrid. They're not very good in reality.

Face facts, we're not playing consistently and are carrying passengers all over the pitch. It's all down to Guardiola.

Time for a change

 

[wolviedinho]

I can't see a control freak like Pep not having any say in which players we buy.

We all know he has a major say in transfers, however when we can’t get said player we settle for next best.

 

[noseve]

i disagree, we can’t keep panicking every time we have a few bad results. The club knew we had to rebuild, it might take two or three years or more, but this is, by far, the best run club in the World.

Studied every other club in the world then, have you? :-)

The complaints on here are not just about the result! The same reservations were had all through the winning run - that we couldn't keep relying upon teams missing the gilt-edged chances that we offer up, game-in, game-out.

Did you query Pep when he cancelled leave after beating West Ham 3-0? Why not, we'd just won easily, hadn't we?

A lot of the complaints are about 'CL-winning, 4-in-a-row-winning, best manager there's ever been' Pep continuing the suicide mission of the high line even after the early warnings, then after the match having the front to concede that United had more energy.

If he'd noticed that, then why on earth did he maintain the very tactic that allowed them to exploit this discrepancy to the max?

The complaints are not just about the result, any more than keeping the players back after the West Ham match was.

 

[heslops barnet]

He gets very little service recently and spends a lot of time running into positions and the ball doesn't arrive, our midfield on Saturday was totally inadequate and let Haaland down quite a bit.
I don't think it's fair blaming him when he doesn't get the service

He is the best striker in the world.

No service, no goals, that’s the way it works

 

[Cellarite]

Had people wanting to talk football , first time for ages

Me too. A senior manager on site came into the office earlier on the pretence that he wanted to show a colleague his breakfast from yesterday. I could see it from a mile away that it was a guise to mention the derby to me, despite telling me for the last two years that he's not interested anymore and can't even be bothered to watch United on telly these days.

 

[Jefferson Airplane]

Should have worked from home. First rag bastard in the kitchen this morning said "Morning, should have been 10." I just replied "Yep should have been 10 men, but well done in your cup final." Then my ear pods went in. Fuck em, they've had nothing to celebrate for years.

 

[BillyShears]

Think being a little reactionary there mate. Saturday we had no real back line, a half fit Rodney, a big game 4 days ago and a Rag team up for it. I agree that team identity/style of play is lacking but that is being developed as the new team is put together. Yet despite this we are taking steps forward (and back) as expected. Anything we manage to achieve this year will be a bonus, next season more likely to see the step up we all all want when team full of players on same goal, not half thinking about where they will be next season.

I think there's obviously a real lack of patience from some people as witnessed by the number of essays written about Pep in this thread. Ultimately, as bad as Saturday was, within the proper context of the season as a whole, City are miles ahead of where the Bluemoon moaners expected us to be. I actually think we'll properly click before this season is over. We've not been far away the last couple of months. But injuries/fatigue caught up with us a bit.

 

[blue cigar]

I've been writing much the same for at least two years mate.
I praised the performance against Newcastle but we should take into account that Newcastle aren't exactly prime Real Madrid. They're not very good in reality.

Face facts, we're not playing consistently and are carrying passengers all over the pitch. It's all down to Guardiola.

Time for a change

Oh is it? We win at Madrid and we win at Newcastle where few others do. We had a back 4 of strangers and an injury list which any club would struggle with. You want pep gone you fucking idiot..shall we get frank Clarke back?

 

[Father Paul]

Oh is it? We win at Madrid and we win at Newcastle where few others do. We had a back 4 of strangers and an injury list which any club would struggle with. You want pep gone you fucking idiot..shall we get frank Clarke back?

I think Pep deserves the benefit of the doubt regarding the shit show on Saturday but only just. I think his selection and tactics in a lot of matches could be better. Playing Lewis in that position is a bad decision, indeed after what happened on Saturday I would say that playing him again there in a big match would be suicidal. Likewise, the highline really only works when we have control of the midfield and move the ball quickly and precisely. From the opening minutes it was obvious to all City fans from 10 years up that we were deficient in these areas. With that back four more of an Arsenal early season approach was required. If we played that game again giving them more of the ball and defending deeper, I believe the result would have been different. We have players who can play on the break and we should use them if the situation demands. I think tactical flexibility is an emerging characteristic of the modern game and this is something I think our manager would do well to reflect upon.

 

[the blue panther]

I think Pep deserves the benefit of the doubt regarding the shit show on Saturday but only just. I think his selection and tactics in a lot of matches could be better. Playing Lewis in that position is a bad decision, indeed after what happened on Saturday I would say that playing him again there in a big match would be suicidal. Likewise, the highline really only works when we have control of the midfield and move the ball quickly and precisely. From the opening minutes it was obvious to all City fans from 10 years up that we were deficient in these areas. With that back four more of an Arsenal early season approach was required. If we played that game again giving them more of the ball and defending deeper, I believe the result would have been different. We have players who can play on the break and we should use them if the situation demands. I think tactical flexibility is an emerging characteristic of the modern game and this is something I think our manager would do well to reflect upon.

Agree - I said similar post match. It's difficult for me to accept that our management didn't think that United would revert to the hell for leather counter-attacking game they all love (The fuckin' DNA!) and set ourselves up deeper so that we could turn the tables on them.

 

[Jwoody19]

Never let them tell you that Liverpool are their main rivals ever again. The levels of giddiness this morning prove exactly who and what we are.

 

[Micky Blue]

Just watched the Dalot assault on Doku again and the sky studio and Mike dean reaction.

How the fuck is it not a red?
How can VAR deem it to only be worthy of a yellow.
Then we compare what our players get yellows for.
Rodri got one and he didn’t even touch the player.

There’s surely a conspiracy against us by PiGMOL.
Teams constantly get away with kicking us off the park.

No excuses for our performance. They were bloody awful, but it’s every game where the refs and VAR fuck us.