Bodo/Glimt (A) | CL | Post Match Thread

[Enzo's Mascara]

Rodri at the moment reminds me of the return of Colin Bell. He looks like Rodri, has Rodri’s posture, but he isn’t Rodri. Opponents can stroll past him as though he isn’t there and he’s needing extra seconds on the ball which he doesn’t have. Which caused the brain fart of the two yellows last night no doubt. I really hope that unlike Colin it’s only temporary. In the meantime we badly need Nico back asap.

Anderson please

 

[DJBusinesscake]

Man alive, the levels of hysteria are hysterical. City started the game really well, gave up two goals from bad individual errors, and paid the price. You can't gift two goals to the opposition away from home in Europe then expect to get much of anything.

Thankfully the club's run by Khaldoon, probably the most level headed and intelligent chairman in world football. The player churn alone (which everyone was desperate for a year ago) should by this team a little bit of grace. But seemingly not.

Im all for being positive, but come on ffs. We were embarrassing last night. And the team deserve a slagging off. Just like they've deserved all the praise we've given them over the years.

 

[Ajm1985]

Given that we had no wingers available and a shaky back line, playing Aït-Nouri on the right was absolutely the right call. It allowed him to step inside in the build-up, use his stronger foot for passes into central areas rather than down the line, make it harder for the opposition to press, and help protect a slower back line by keeping the team more compact.

I'd have to rewatch but that's not what it looked like to me at all. He kept width on the right and pushed up - the back line wasn't slow, it was just exposed as we built up with a 2 or 3 with a midfielder dropping deeper and the FBs pushing up. It's why Ait Nouri seemed late to the party when defending on counters.

 

[BillyShears]

Im all for being positive, but come on ffs. We were embarrassing last night. And the team deserve a slagging off. Just like they've deserved all the praise we've given them over the years.

I think the senior players have been a disgrace across the last two games. Absolutely no question about that, and I'm all for giving them a good kicking. I also think Pep's made some REALLY bad decisions across the two games that warrant a good kicking.

But I can say all of that and still not think that the sky is falling or that the club are going backwards or that the players don't care or that the manager has lost the dressing room.

 

[oldius]

Semenyo, Gonzalez, Dias, Gvardiol, Stones, Savinho, Bobb, Kovacic, Nunes, Silva.

When you list the players unavailable, it is not the squad that is absolutely the issue. We all know that we could use another physical player in the middle, but we do have that, to an extent, with Gonzalez and Kova, and/or Nunes.

The issue is really that for two successive seasons, we have been riddled with injury in one key area of the pitch - defence and defensive midfield.

We can argue that Pep should adapt to that, but in the midfield and back line we are limited.
I would definitely have played Ait Nouri left and Rico right, and placed Nico O in central midfield alongside Rodri, but many others would not have chosen that.

The problem is that many are out for a sustained period so we need answers quickly. At least Semenyo and Guehi will be available going forward.

 

[AndyP68]

Man alive, the levels of hysteria are hysterical. City started the game really well, gave up two goals from bad individual errors, and paid the price. You can't gift two goals to the opposition away from home in Europe then expect to get much of anything.

Thankfully the club's run by Khaldoon, probably the most level headed and intelligent chairman in world football. The player churn alone (which everyone was desperate for a year ago) should by this team a little bit of grace. But seemingly not.

Youngest ever City CL side last night too I gather…

 

[Roachy]

Man alive, the levels of hysteria are hysterical. City started the game really well, gave up two goals from bad individual errors, and paid the price. You can't gift two goals to the opposition away from home in Europe then expect to get much of anything.

Thankfully the club's run by Khaldoon, probably the most level headed and intelligent chairman in world football. The player churn alone (which everyone was desperate for a year ago) should by this team a little bit of grace. But seemingly not.

Some OTT reaction for sure. It was poor, not last Sat poor, but still not good. Putting the mistakes to one side, it's some of the basics which are lacking atm. It's standing out to me now and I've mentioned it a couple of times and that's the lack of fight. Half hearted challenges, players zipping past ours unchecked, 50-50's ending up with the other team regularly. All these things, amongst others, are leading to goals. It's a problem.

 

[Mcfc1.9.8.0]

Given that we had no wingers available and a shaky back line, playing Aït-Nouri on the right was absolutely the right call. It allowed him to step inside in the build-up, use his stronger foot for passes into central areas rather than down the line, make it harder for the opposition to press, and help protect a slower back line by keeping the team more compact.

The back line is in bits. Would O’Rilley in the middle with Rodri play Lewis RB in his position and RAN LB in his position the back line is stronger centre midfield is stronger.

 

[BillyShears]

Some OTT reaction for sure. It was poor, not last Sat poor, but still not good. Putting the mistakes to one side, it's some of the basics which are lacking atm. It's standing out to me now and I've mentioned it a couple of times and that's the lack of fight. Half hearted challenges, players zipping past ours unchecked, 50-50's ending up with the other team regularly. All these things, amongst others, are leading to goals. It's a problem.

I'm wary of getting into conversations about 'lack of fight' and stuff like that. It's an easy thing to say when you've been outfought in a match (which happens even if the players care a lot). But the reality is that teams fight in different ways. I daresay last night, on an artificial pitch, with a current injury/unavailable list of 11 senior players, there was a need for nobody to do anything stupid which would lead to a bad injury. It's a delicate balance and don't get me wrong, I'm not saying that the players couldn't do more. Just that the 'fight' stuff needs to be a bit more nuanced and thought through.

What I'd like to see a little more of, is the courage on the ball and quality on the ball that I've come to expect from the side. There were enough players on that pitch last night who had the nous to play better but simply didn't. Too many bad decisions, safe passes, and a general lack of ideas.

 

[Bozzie]

Im all for being positive, but come on ffs. We were embarrassing last night. And the team deserve a slagging off. Just like they've deserved all the praise we've given them over the years.

To be fair, Bodo/Glimt aren’t the worst team we’ve lost to this week … so far anyway!

 

[Cobwebcat]

I'm wary of getting into conversations about 'lack of fight' and stuff like that. It's an easy thing to say when you've been outfought in a match (which happens even if the players care a lot). But the reality is that teams fight in different ways. I daresay last night, on an artificial pitch, with a current injury/unavailable list of 11 senior players, there was a need for nobody to do anything stupid which would lead to a bad injury. It's a delicate balance and don't get me wrong, I'm not saying that the players couldn't do more. Just that the 'fight' stuff needs to be a bit more nuanced and thought through.

What I'd like to see a little more of, is the courage on the ball and quality on the ball that I've come to expect from the side. There were enough players on that pitch last night who had the nous to play better but simply didn't. Too many bad decisions, safe passes, and a general lack of ideas.

Almost sounds like a confidence issue. The thing which makes me think it can’t be that is that these awful performances followed a great 2-0 victory v Newcastle. I just didn’t see these performances coming at all.

The only thing I can think of, which is almost certainly wrong, is that Pep Lijnders has knackered them with the running and the press combined with the lack of players to pick because of injuries. Maybe they look tired because they are. They couldn’t press a grape right now let alone crush one!

 

[Keith Moon]

I'd have to rewatch but that's not what it looked like to me at all. He kept width on the right and pushed up - the back line wasn't slow, it was just exposed as we built up with a 2 or 3 with a midfielder dropping deeper and the FBs pushing up. It's why Ait Nouri seemed late to the party when defending on counters.

I think he wanted to use Aït-Nouri the way Cancelo was used — inverted in the build-up to add control and help play through the press, then providing width when it made sense.

 

[blue_danube]

Time has caught up with this siystem we play.

This is true.

Pep needs to come up with something way less predictable. The game has changed and he hasn't. I don't want him to follow the rest because we're better than following the pack but he needs to give teams a lot more to think about.

I always believed Sir Alex Ferguson called it a day because he knew the way football was being played was changing. He was coming up against managers like Pep and probably felt he's probably taken man u as far as he can and probably hasn't got it in him anymore to change and go toe to toe with a new generation, so he chucked the towel in and got out before he got left in the dust in the following years.

Pep is in danger of trailing behind if he feels he can just continue doing what made him successful. It's wearing thin and far less effective today.

 

[chedlee]

What I'd like to see a little more of, is the courage on the ball and quality on the ball that I've come to expect from the side. There were enough players on that pitch last night who had the nous to play better but simply didn't. Too many bad decisions, safe passes, and a general lack of ideas.

It baffles me how many froward runs get ignored for a safe pass back or sideways and then to try some ludicrous back heel when we have players committed in forward positions. Defenders just wait for Cherki or Foden to try something audacious when they ignored a Reijnders run (of which he does many) or Haaland much earlier in the move.

 

[dukyblue]

Lets be honest, we've conceded 5 and could have conceded 10+ in the last two games; 5 goals disallowed, most of them pretty tight for offside, woodwork rattled 3 or 4 times, Donnarumma making a few decent saves.

In all that time we've scored one from distance and had 3 or four powderpuff efforts that any keeper would save.

We are absolutely disgusting off the ball at the moment.

Injuries arent helping but you deal with it and play with the hand you have. Midfiele is non-existant and any side will cause us issues once we've bored everyone to death for 20 mins passing and getting nowhere, then bang, and we are chasing the game.

Hopefully Guehi and Semenyo will give us something extra on Saturday as we need a confidence boosting win before Galatasaray. Two more games in the playoffs would be a disaster, but we've brought it on ourselves with last night and the Leverkusen game.

 

[oldius]

This is true.

Pep needs to come up with something way less predictable. The game has changed and he hasn't. I don't want him to follow the rest because we're better than following the pack but he needs to give teams a lot more to think about.

I always believed Sir Alex Ferguson called it a day because he knew the way football was being played was changing. He was coming up against managers like Pep and probably felt he's probably taken man u as far as he can and probably hasn't got it in him anymore to change and go toe to toe with a new generation, so he chucked the towel in and got out before he got left in the dust in the following years.

Pep is in danger of trailing behind if he feels he can just continue doing what made him successful. It's wearing thin and far less effective today.

We are in the process of that change.
It is not something we have not seen.
The players bought will help to deliver that change.
Progress is hampered by availability.

 

[AndyP68]

As per my message you quote above. Correct, we aren't far behind off NOW, carry on our current trajectory and we'll soon be a long way off, and out of all other silverware hopes. Action needs taking immediately

We’ve just signed a top class winger and CB.

What action do you suggest?

 

[give it to gordon]

Look at the difference man. Pass and move, pass and move, pass and move - all with movement off the ball from players trying to create angles for those on the ball. Night and day to the shit served up now.

Has this clip been speeded up ?

 

[ArniArason]

Karen Carney summed it up perfectly when she said that it was embarrassing to watch, that we just kept doing the same things over and over again with the same outcome and made no changes

 

[waspish]

I think the senior players have been a disgrace across the last two games. Absolutely no question about that, and I'm all for giving them a good kicking. I also think Pep's made some REALLY bad decisions across the two games that warrant a good kicking.

But I can say all of that and still not think that the sky is falling or that the club are going backwards or that the players don't care or that the manager has lost the dressing room.

Pep has said he needs to players to play his football never backed away from that. What I don’t understand why not give the back line a bit more protection seeing as it’s pretty new back four as a four? Maybe pep believes trust the players to do the job? Still think it be around this time next year we be seeing a big improvement. Injuries had have been hampering us a lot especially Dias who will be back next 2/3 weeks..

I still think there is a template for the football like we play for teams now and why we looked so open given chances so easily in transition! This for me is the case last 18 months.. Here’s the thing is it Pep’s system or is it the turnover in players that started around 18 months ago?