82 | Rico Lewis - 2024/25

[Pelegrinni]

Nobody said they played the same position.
Outing your clear tactical and technical acumen in one post is some achievement, well done.
Feel free to check my posting history. I want the lad to do well but he needs a break. He’s making some very bizarre decisions, his positioning to receive the ball is poor and defensively he’s very weak, one slight change of pace and we concede dangerous crosses.
He constantly throws himself to the ground, something I despise of other teams players but he does it repeatedly, I assume because he is not strong enough to shield the ball sufficiently well that he tries to get cheap free kicks. Sometimes it works, other times it puts us under massive pressure, the opposition have an overload because he’s on the deck, holding his hands up to the ref for a free kick he’s never going to get.
Constructive criticism can help a player, blind faith doesn’t. Watch, analyse, absorb and opine, it’s what our video analysts do for a living. Our opinion on this forum matters not one jot but maybe a look at others constructive feedback and you may find you might just be in the minority, rightly or wrongly. That said, we have a lot of supporters that gauge their opinion on what they see rather than what the stats or some social media influencer might say. You’re entitled to your opinion and me to mine.
Just don’t let blind faith take you down a path that is irretrievable.

He throws himself to the ground usually to protect the ball because of his size. It’s his style if you watch him constantly.
Apart from that, please point out the instances in your post during the game today.
Foden left him exposed 2v1 today until James Mcateer came on. Did you slate Foden for his terrible performance today?
Meanwhile, I can point out his contribution for the first goal and his header towards the end of the game which prevented us from conceding a goal.

 

[AshtonBlueMooner]

He throws himself to the ground usually to protect the ball because of his size. It’s his style if you watch him constantly.
Apart from that, please point out the instances in your post during the game today.
Foden left him exposed 2v1 today until James Mcateer came on. Did you slate Foden for his terrible performance today?
Meanwhile, I can point out his contribution for the first goal and his header towards the end of the game which prevented us from conceding a goal.

Wow, your lack of self awareness is astounding.
Read your first sentence out aloud and then repeat it. You are talking about a professional athlete not a Sunday league level player.
Have you ever actually played the game? Genuine question?
Because from your assessment and repeated statements you come across as someone that has played FIFA or Football Manager but never stepped over the white line yourself.
I’m not entertaining you any longer.
I want Rico to do well.
He’s playing very poorly in a struggling team and needs to be given a break.
Other players have struggled too.
Foden is one of them but that doesn’t excuse Rico for his poor positioning, weakness in protecting the ball, poor passing, lightweight tackling and slow reactions and response to dangerous attacks.
Thanks for the two positive contributions he made today. Without your tactical nouse I’m sure they would have been missed.
Sigh.

 

[Blue Bogey]

One of the things I noticed today about his playing style from the beginning was he had a high energy tempo at the beginning but it was more like a nervous energy. I remember Pep advising Foden when he first broke into the team to slow down he was moving around too fast.

Rico was taking up a DM position early in the match receiving the ball from the defenders behind him. He wouldn’t keep still trying to find space to receive the ball. It was excessive and when I noticed it it became annoying because I realised the defenders couldn’t pass to him because by the time their brains made the decision to pass to him Rico had moved from the position. It proved true and in the 5th minute a pass to him further up went astray because he moved even though he was only about 5ft away from the passer at the time. He was literally only holding a position for a split second. It was like blink and you will miss him.

He tired out of that eventually thankfully. Really hope he removes that from his game. Kovacic was beside him and he was a lot more controlled in his movements when he didn’t have the ball.

Other than that I think he had one of his better games.

 

[Tevez City]

I hope he can press better and prevent opponents wingers from crossing the ball easily.

 

[jaiguruKun]

James Mcateer did a better job than Foden defensively. That’s why the attack stopped coming from the right side.

Lewis moved out to the other side when Walker came on anyway.

 

[Lavinda Past]

Too much expected of this lad in midfield. Pep’s insistence on a small squad means too much football for Rico and it's affecting his progress.

He's not a 40+ game a season player yet.

 

[southamptonblue]

Wow, your lack of self awareness is astounding.
Read your first sentence out aloud and then repeat it. You are talking about a professional athlete not a Sunday league level player.
Have you ever actually played the game? Genuine question?
Because from your assessment and repeated statements you come across as someone that has played FIFA or Football Manager but never stepped over the white line yourself.
I’m not entertaining you any longer.
I want Rico to do well.
He’s playing very poorly in a struggling team and needs to be given a break.
Other players have struggled too.
Foden is one of them but that doesn’t excuse Rico for his poor positioning, weakness in protecting the ball, poor passing, lightweight tackling and slow reactions and response to dangerous attacks.
Thanks for the two positive contributions he made today. Without your tactical nouse I’m sure they would have been missed.
Sigh.

Tbf you come across as a self opinionated, self appointed tactical genius. Whilst Lewis is nothing special, he is young, learning, and never hides....and was far from one of the weaker performers today. Whilst Foden (who I believe has off field or fitness problems) was completely wank, and as the other poster said, he left anybody behind him, including Lewis totally exposed....defensively he was an arthritic tortoise, and only marginally better when we had possession.

 

[OrigamiNinja]

James Mcateer did a better job than Foden defensively. That’s why the attack stopped coming from the right side.

That’s some reach.

 

[OrigamiNinja]

One of the things I noticed today about his playing style from the beginning was he had a high energy tempo at the beginning but it was more like a nervous energy. I remember Pep advising Foden when he first broke into the team to slow down he was moving around too fast.

Rico was taking up a DM position early in the match receiving the ball from the defenders behind him. He wouldn’t keep still trying to find space to receive the ball. It was excessive and when I noticed it it became annoying because I realised the defenders couldn’t pass to him because by the time their brains made the decision to pass to him Rico had moved from the position. It proved true and in the 5th minute a pass to him further up went astray because he moved even though he was only about 5ft away from the passer at the time. He was literally only holding a position for a split second. It was like blink and you will miss him.

He tired out of that eventually thankfully. Really hope he removes that from his game. Kovacic was beside him and he was a lot more controlled in his movements when he didn’t have the ball.

Other than that I think he had one of his better games.

Rico moves like a chess piece that can only do certain things. I urge anyone to watch just the opening 90s of today’s game and watch how he instantly just moves into the middle and stands in certain positions, no matter if it is appropriate for the situation or not. Some see this as a high football IQ. I see it as something you can teach a springer spaniel to do in about 10 mins with a gravy bone. A lot of this is the “holistic” approach of the club and it can be great to allow a player to get used to the City way of playing. It can also make them robotic.

 

[lancs blue]

Rico moves like a chess piece that can only do certain things. I urge anyone to watch just the opening 90s of today’s game and watch how he instantly just moves into the middle and stands in certain positions, no matter if it is appropriate for the situation or not. Some see this as a high football IQ. I see it as something you can teach a springer spaniel to do in about 10 mins with a gravy bone. A lot of this is the “holistic” approach of the club and it can be great to allow a player to get used to the City way of playing. It can also make them robotic.

OK, if you're casting Rico as a springer spaniel I'll raise you today's Phil Foden as a timid chihuahua.