Tight, cagey first half, where we were slowed by their 5-5 formation, and struggled to get anything in behind.
Second half, things opened up a little, and they were able to create a few more breaks that led to nothing. However, it’s very difficult to see why Pep plays Sterling on the left when he has so many other options there, when Sterling has shown he is much better at getting in behind from the right. When he’s on the left, he almost always cuts back on himself. The Sterling-Mahrez problem is a good one to have, but playing them both is, IMHO, counterproductive.
The Foden pass was the first incisive pass we managed to get through their lines to a runner, and it was the first time we had a runner not get blocked off or followed tightly, and it was the difference in 90 minutes of frustrating football.
I know others have slagged off the ref, but I wasn’t that arsed by him. For the most part, he got decisions right, made sure the players understood who was in charge, and tried to let them play as much as possible, knowing how damaging a yellow card can be.
That said, given the physicality he let go, I’m always disappointed when a Ref then gives soft yellows, like he did to Jesus and Ederson (although he looked to the linesman for the yellow to Ederson!). We have experienced much worse.
As for the wasted time, he gave ZERO added time in the first half and 2 mins in the second with 6 subs, the Laporte kerfuffle that led to Ederson’s yellow, plus all the time they wasted with dead balls. I think British fans are used to much more for a performance like that.
I hope we get a stickler in Madrid, because if the game isn’t going their way, they are a complete shithouse of a team that needs reining in quickly, especially knowing Wembley is a few days later.
It wouldn’t surprise me if we went through, but had 3-4 players carrying knocks for the FA Cup SF. Meanwhile, Liverpool had THE cakewalk tie of the QFs and treated it as such. That game is over once they score at Anfield, which (given UEFA) will probably be early in the game. Even if they don’t, they won’t lose 3-0 to Benfica!
Tomorrows Chelsea vs Madrid game will be interesting to see which versions turn up. They can both beat anyone on their day, but neither of them have had one of those days recently, having both been smashed by 4 goals recently…but Barcelona and…Brentford!!!
This QF is City’s to lose now, and I would seriously consider playing both Rodri and Fernandinho in the Wanda to try to snuff out their midfield. With Walker back, I’d assume he comes in at RB, with Cancelo switching sides. Ake has been brilliant in the last few games, so that seems harsh on him. That’s football, though, and he knows it!
4-4-2 at their place:
Ederson
Walker
Stones
Laporte
Cancelo
KDB
Fernandinho
Rodri
Bernardo
Sterling
Foden
Still allows us to play with a False 9 with the ball, but adds solidity to the middle of the park, where the game will be fought, IMHO.
With the ball:
Walker..Stones..Laporte
Ferna….Rodri….Cancelo
……KDB……..Bernardo
Mahrez………….Foden
We kept them quiet in front of goal tonight. They have to score, so if we can stop them from doing so, we win! If we go Hell for leather for goals, and possibly leave ourselves open to the counter, they have players who can hurt us…they just weren’t playing them together in their defensive set up tonight.
Here’s hoping we score at least one, play the ball around, don’t get any injuries, and more importantly don’t lose any more players to cards for the SF! Jesus’s stupid yellow for dissent means he’s unavailable for the return fixture, which doesn’t do his City future much good, either!