I agree with that and I don't understand playing right and left footed players on the opposite side anyway, but then why they don't switch during the game is strange.yeah good point but who did Southgate put on the right and move Sterling on the right? Also when foden played the the two games not once did foden get the luxury to by Southgate to switch to the left and move Sterling to the right also didn’t get the luxury of Sancho or Mount of going anywhere they wanted foden was stuck on the right never moved! Southgate for me has his team his player favourites and foden ain’t one!
And when in the coming years he wins more PL titles and individual awards Southgate will still come out with his nonsensical crap.It’s mount or foden and mount is southgates “Guy” seems Southgate has made it pretty clear that it be either Sancho or Saka on the right and if he makes a sub tonight let’s see if foden gets on the pitch if not he is going to a bit part of any for the next few years unless injuries..
On competition, Simple, you drop Rice who isnt very good and you play four attacking players.
Good post. You know your football and I'd agree with every word. Lots of us want to see more of Foden but the truth is you cannot argue with results. I still think he is planned to feature if/when we have a problem and need to chase a game.You present an argument here that I suspect is what is behind a great deal of the frustration with Southgate.
Is it possible that being attacking and not as responsible defensively is a dangerous way to play in international cup tournaments of this stature?
I think the track record for successful teams in the Euros and WC leans towards more pragmatism.
See Portugal who also has had a wealth of attacking talent. See Greece ages ago.
Even Spain or Germany have been at their best when they have the defending or kind of central midfielders who can dictate tempo - the kind England lack in the side.
Remove Rice and you may leave McGuire and his lack of pace exposed.
I will say it strikes me as an interesting take, especially from City fans and even our past critics, who I think are are in this group.
Why? our improvement this season came from Pep's alleged own increasingly "pragmatic" approach focusing more on defending and changing other aspects of our play to prevent being exposed.
This was how he turned to Dias over Laporte (better passing and vision) and away from the intense pressing for longer periods to more selective use, bringing in Rodri, and even dropping him for Dinho more than expected - especially in the biggest games - due to the manner in which Dinho wins the ball back and other attributes.
Again, international footy does not tend to favour the most attacking sides and it is often about matchups perhaps more so than club football, since there is less team cohesion so who is the weakest link and how to exploit this is arguably even more vital as you risk giving up the 1 goal that knocks you out.
See how when we see top clubs in close competition for points in the PL how cagey matches are rather than free flowing. It's too risky.
Add on that the players don't have the time to train together and get games together in any kind of real succession in meaningful games.
The Nations League was designed in part to help with this issue of cohesion in bigger games.
However, the reality is fringe players get games on national teams as we near the Euros or WC to determine the last places but also because the best players are knackered, especially after this season with so many games in a shorter period.
All of this means the idea of playing a high octane attack from the start - see what happened when Pep tried this in the CL Final as additional contrary evidence - is not what we see most intelligent international managers find much success with.
If he saving foden for if we need to chase that’s praise and a big responsibility on foden yep he is that good I believe he would change the game in our favour given the freedom in the side..Good post. You know your football and I'd agree with every word. Lots of us want to see more of Foden but the truth is you cannot argue with results. I still think he is planned to feature if/when we have a problem and need to chase a game.
Simple.You present an argument here that I suspect is what is behind a great deal of the frustration with Southgate.
Is it possible that being attacking and not as responsible defensively is a dangerous way to play in international cup tournaments of this stature?
I think the track record for successful teams in the Euros and WC leans towards more pragmatism.
See Portugal who also has had a wealth of attacking talent. See Greece ages ago.
Even Spain or Germany have been at their best when they have the defending or kind of central midfielders who can dictate tempo - the kind England lack in the side.
Remove Rice and you may leave McGuire and his lack of pace exposed.
I will say it strikes me as an interesting take, especially from City fans and even our past critics, who I think are are in this group.
Why? our improvement this season came from Pep's alleged own increasingly "pragmatic" approach focusing more on defending and changing other aspects of our play to prevent being exposed.
This was how he turned to Dias over Laporte (better passing and vision) and away from the intense pressing for longer periods to more selective use, bringing in Rodri, and even dropping him for Dinho more than expected - especially in the biggest games - due to the manner in which Dinho wins the ball back and other attributes.
Again, international footy does not tend to favour the most attacking sides and it is often about matchups perhaps more so than club football, since there is less team cohesion so who is the weakest link and how to exploit this is arguably even more vital as you risk giving up the 1 goal that knocks you out.
See how when we see top clubs in close competition for points in the PL how cagey matches are rather than free flowing. It's too risky.
Add on that the players don't have the time to train together and get games together in any kind of real succession in meaningful games.
The Nations League was designed in part to help with this issue of cohesion in bigger games.
However, the reality is fringe players get games on national teams as we near the Euros or WC to determine the last places but also because the best players are knackered, especially after this season with so many games in a shorter period.
All of this means the idea of playing a high octane attack from the start - see what happened when Pep tried this in the CL Final as additional contrary evidence - is not what we see most intelligent international managers find much success with.