Pep Guardiola - 2025/26

[jrb]

There’s no way Mansour, Khaldoon or Soriano will contemplate sacking Pep at the end of the season. Pep will see out his last season at City if he wants to do that. If Pep, doesn’t, he will leave with the blessing and a thank you for everything he has achieved and done for the club from those 3 and from the fans.

My money is on Pep staying for the last season of his contract, next season, and then leaving.

 

[Shirley]

What are you on about???
Are people allowed to voice opinions? Concerns?
Without you calling them idiots?

Of course they are allowed to voice their opinions and concerns same as I’m doing, the Pep out brigade who wanna see better football are idiots, imho.

 

[jrb]

What you 'Pep out because I'm bored' lot don't understand is that we'll come up against a deep block irrespective of who our manager is.

It's the price of success.

And the next manager will be less adept at dealing with it.

It’s not just the boredom during matches, it’s not changing tactics, making the same tactical mistakes over again, and not changing our style of play when it needs changing during games.

There have been numerous things highlighted throughout the season like City constantly playing the high line which has killed us and costs us wins and points throughout the season, which we are still playing now.

 

[Gumzy97]

Name a PL team that’s entertained by their football right now?

If you can’t (because there aren’t any) then why the hell would you think getting rid of Pep would bring back entertainment?

You’re sick to death of being told to be careful what you wish for but I don’t think you’ve put a seconds thought into why someone new coming in would actually play free flowing entertaining football.

I think it depends on who comes in, Peps football looks boring if they want to say that because his philosophy is control by possession. Other managers have a different idea on how the game should be played

Where as if Alonso came in, his is aggression, winning the ball back in the opposition final third with high flying wing backs with wingers cutting inside so you end up with all attackers in the box.

Same with Kompany most of the game with Bayern is played in the opposition final third aggressive press, Kompanys Bayern want to kill you not by thousand passes but by 3 to 4 goals. Striker drops deep wingers attack fullbacks. Front three is fluid. Defensive line over the half way line. They squeeze the opposition.

 

[Rammy Blue]

Name a PL team that’s entertained by their football right now?

If you can’t (because there aren’t any) then why the hell would you think getting rid of Pep would bring back entertainment?

You’re sick to death of being told to be careful what you wish for but I don’t think you’ve put a seconds thought into why someone new coming in would actually play free flowing entertaining football.

Course I have, I’m not some adolescent teenager posting in fury. The football we have generally played over the last couple of seasons has been turgid shite, and teams set up against us knowing how we play because it is Pep’s style.

I just want to see something different, what’s so wrong with that?

As I’ve said in many a considered post if you’ve followed the thread, he’s going sooner rather than later anyway, and I’m just happy to see a change.

 

[Rammy Blue]

What you 'Pep out because I'm bored' lot don't understand is that we'll come up against a deep block irrespective of who our manager is.

It's the price of success.

And the next manager will be less adept at dealing with it.

And you know this how?

 

[Mr HJ]

For the record I don't want Pep to leave, never have, but one thing I do want is for him to play a formation that gets the best out of the players we have. In his career he has always evolved but of late is stuck in a system and will not change. He would rather play his trusted few who were at their prime 2 or 3 years ago than trust fresh legs & ideas.

I don't want to see him try and turn players who have certain skills into the next coming of Gundogan or prime Silva. Semenyo for example is not blessed with close control in tight spaces, he is a player whose two attributes are driving in from out wide and then being on the end of things. Yet we are now trying to change him into an assist making number 10. Guehi too arrived capable of reading the play but more importantly being able to play quick passes into feet to beat a press. The last few games he has turned into "I must not lose the ball so will take the easier option sideways and back. That is a specific instruction from Pep.

We go from playing our 2 wingers which seldom works because of lack of G/A from Savinho to playing none and being too narrow. Because of trust he picks a semi-fit Rodri and has never given him the protection of Nico G - always preferring Bernie or moving Nico O (who is a bright talent but you can see his form is dipping a bit - it's a big ask on such a young player to not only move from position to position but to maintain form for months)

Overall I want Pep to take off the handbrake and play dynamic, fast play. If he does that we will be both entertained and more of a threat. In other words time for Pep to get tough and look to the future - change the system to the pieces you have and stop reminiscing about a way of playing that is in the past alongside other coaches knowing how to nullify us - happy to let us have the ball because they know we no longer have a Kev type player to split teams apart.

Do that and then sign on for another year to fully complete the rebuild. Oh and play Cherki even if him trying things drives you a bit mad.

 

[waspish]

Would you rule out them finishing above us even this season? I sure wouldnt.

And in my opinion they have bought better than us recently and are nearer ‘getting it right’ than we are.

Yep took them 13 years and they are still miles off , but our rebuild has been all over the shop, to the point that we still need to rebuild

Wow that’s a mad take when there is history of them doing the exact same when Ole at the wheel was there! You know the game they drew was the only time they had 2 games a week! There is zero pressure on the players feet up for a week sometime two! It’s incredible how some fans can’t see the situation as it is! Next season all competitions Champions league! Let’s see by end of next season hey before you go starry eyed at the scum!

 

[waspish]

It’s not just the boredom during matches, it’s not changing tactics, making the same tactical mistakes over again, and not changing our style of play when it needs changing during games.

There have been numerous things highlighted throughout the season like City constantly playing the high line which has killed us and costs us wins and points throughout the season, which we are still playing now.

Yeah that high line as fucked us in the last 10 years..

 

[Quinny851]

What you 'Pep out because I'm bored' lot don't understand is that we'll come up against a deep block irrespective of who our manager is.

It's the price of success.

And the next manager will be less adept at dealing with it.

You do know that we were successful before Pep arrived, don't you?

 

[Quinny851]

Yeah that high line as fucked us in the last 10 years..

It fucked us every time we played Liverpool when Salah was at his peak.

 

[domalino]

I think it depends on who comes in, Peps football looks boring if they want to say that because his philosophy is control by possession. Other managers have a different idea on how the game should be played

Where as if Alonso came in, his is aggression, winning the ball back in the opposition final third with high flying wing backs with wingers cutting inside so you end up with all attackers in the box.

Same with Kompany most of the game with Bayern is played in the opposition final third aggressive press, Kompanys Bayern want to kill you not by thousand passes but by 3 to 4 goals. Striker drops deep wingers attack fullbacks. Front three is fluid. Defensive line over the half way line. They squeeze the opposition.

There are lots of managers in the PL over the last 3 years who have come in with that style of football and completely failed when it comes up against the English football schedule, the hihger intensity of matches and physicality. It's an incredibly german-focused model that often produces very bad results when tried elsewhere.

Striker drops deep wingers attack fullbacks. Front three is fluid.

You'll be selling Haaland then.

Defensive line over the half way line. They squeeze the opposition.

He literally learned this from Pep lol.

 

[Zabbasbeard]

That’s fair comment, some good performances there. I suppose though you could also say nearly all those performances were pre Xmas so why have we regressed? Certainly this year there hasn’t been many decent ones, and far more appalling games.

Don't forget this is a weird season with a short break in the summer after the Club World Cup and there is fatigue since the turn if the year to factor in. There have been some performances where we haven't played to our highest levels, made defensive errors or not taken our chances (like Saturday at WestHam). The only truly appalling games have been Real Madrid last week, Tottenham at home, and the worst by far, rags away.

 

[waspish]

It fucked us every time we played Liverpool when Salah was at his peak.

Hahaha it’s mad how people react to make a point! Oh Everytime we went head to head let in the season we beat them to the title playing that high line! Don’t fans get it the high line is why we won what we have! If you don’t think that sorry your dumb!

 

[Exeter Blue I am here]

Wanna know what happens when your best players get old and you don't have Pep as manager? Take a look at Liverpool.

Wanna know what happens when you buy random players without a plan or for a particular style and you don't have Pep as manager? Take a look at Spurs.

The Pep Out idiots need to be careful what they wish for.

On that basis, I’m not seeing much evidence of a plan in our buying Reijnders, Semenyo or Marmoush (or Haaland come to that). All counterattacking players, who thrive on galloping downfield into oceans of space, yet we face parked buses every week and when we do get a chance to counterattack, consciously slow it down and go backwards and sideways. Meanwhile, the lock picker that is Rayan Cherki gets left on the bench……

 

[Quinny851]

Hahaha it’s mad how people react to make a point! Oh Everytime we went head to head let in the season we beat them to the title playing that high line! Don’t fans get it the high line is why we won what we have! If you don’t think that sorry your dumb!

If you're going to call someone dumb at least know the difference between your and you're.

We won the league but failed in the Champions League. The high line cost us at Anfield and cost in the final against Chelsea.

 

[supercity88]

What you 'Pep out because I'm bored' lot don't understand is that we'll come up against a deep block irrespective of who our manager is.

It's the price of success.

And the next manager will be less adept at dealing with it.

I can understand the fatigue some are feeling with the football we witness.

But I'd ask those people to go and watch some other PL football games and see if they're entertained. There are very few sides entertaining this season. Arsenal are boring their way to the title. Liverpool are like us in that they get in good positions and do fuck all whilst conceding from pretty much every chance they concede.

The rags are probably playing the best football right now, but that's purely because other teams attack them so there's more space to play in. West Ham, Forest, Spurs have all taken points from us by letting us have the ball and sitting deep. We can't change the opposition's style when it's effective against us - even Real Madrid did it. We need to work out how to beat sides that do it, but there were plenty of times even in our best periods where we had to bore our way to a result by playing chess with the opposition. It wasn't always exciting fluid football.

 

[domalino]

I just want to see something different, what’s so wrong with that?

That's not what you said. You said you wanted to be entertained.

If you just want change for the sake of change, fine, but you should be prepared that whoever comes in after Pep does not deliver the exciting football you say you want.

 

[waspish]

If you're going to call someone dumb at least know the difference between your and you're.

We won the league but failed in the Champions League. The high line cost us at Anfield and cost in the final against Chelsea.

Am fine at being called dumb because to be honest I’m at some things! Like what you pointed out! Am fine with that point it out..;)

Just that the highline has been why we won so much so now moaning about the high line to me seems how can I put it hindsight?

Oh it’s very rare if ever I get offended by words..

 

[Ajm1985]

Name a PL team that’s entertained by their football right now?

If you can’t (because there aren’t any) then why the hell would you think getting rid of Pep would bring back entertainment?

You’re sick to death of being told to be careful what you wish for but I don’t think you’ve put a seconds thought into why someone new coming in would actually play free flowing entertaining football.

There is such a dearth of quality football in the PL this season. Just absolute trash all around