Barca v City Post Match Thread

[wythenshaweblue£££]

Funnily enough even though we got beat badly I don't feel to bad This morning. Barcaelona can put 4 past anytime on a good day. We just got to move on now and smash Southampton on Sunday and all will
Be forgotten. We should still qualify for second position.

 

[blue by birth]

We matched Barca for the majority of the game and when it was 11 v 11 i think we were better than them but nothing like as clinical as we need to be.
Fern slipping was a disaster as the other players were moving forward expecting a pass from him which left Messi free to round the keeper and score.
After that we played a bit iffy for 10 mins then started to take the game to them and we looked better again.
Then Bravo doesnt do what he should have and inexplicably dinks a pass to Suarez and the game is over once we go down to 10 men.
Last night i was fuming with Bravo because he cost us the chance of getting at least a draw and probably said a few things i shouldnt, but in all honesty he passes the ball better than Joe but hes nothing like as good a keeper as Joe.
I reckon we have nothing to fear against these at home and if we play the way we did with a few tweaks then we wil beat them ( depending on injuries etc obviously)

 

[Blue Mooner]

That performance was a world away from what we have seen previously against Barca - note the way we were ripped to shreds when Joe performed his heroics. It was individual mistakes that cost us and Pep simply can't legislate for that.

Hugely encouraged by what Pep has done and it was a shame that we didn't get the result that the performance deserved.

 

[argyle]

We we're very good last night, especially Sterling. I really don't see the need for panic. Look beyond the score and you'll see a game in which we more than matched them, and for large parts were the better team.

Can't wait for the weekend.

We lost 4-0.

Pretty hard to look past that.

Too many individual mistakes are killing us.

 

[wilky]

Office rag came up to me and said he was still laughing this morning. I told him I was surprised he had awoken from the slumber of Monday night. I've just posted in the Guardiola thread that the myopic pundits will only comment on the scoreline rather than see the bigger picture of how we played. Yes individual mistakes and a couple of passengers make games like last night very difficult. However I would take that as a starting point for the next 3 years over our performances at this level for the previous 4 seasons.[/QUOTE on my facebook last night from deluded red. Sent my reply, didn,t here from him again
Strangely enjoying CL football even though we are not involved. And you wont be involved next season either. You might just stay up

 

[argyle]

Talk about luck, errors, plucky performances, boots, etc all you like; we just don't have enough players, technically and mentally up to competing with the elites and even determined, quality oppositions ...... yet.
Last night and Tottenham serve as salient wake up calls to the task ahead. The good start has once again clouded a few judgments.

The way I see it too.

We've improved leaps and bounds but we still have players this season who just aren't good enough for what Pep wants.

 

[Ric]

Got to love the Catalan press. Mathieu gets a higher rating than Sterling!

 

[argyle]

Fine margins compounded by appalling performances from Fernandinho and Silva.

Silva, in particular, at this supposed level, goes missing too easily when it's clear the ball won't be dominated by us.

His passing was poor, pressing and passiveness, equally so.

Same goes for Gundogan and KDB, for such technicians, we don't have a single player who can hold the ball up with their back to goal.

It's a fundamental faultline, which is exposed when you need to beat the press with a ball which needs to go a little longer.

Sterling was the shining light again at this level.

Yep, thought Silva and Gundogan (for the most part besides his chance) were missing last night. Gundogan is getting back to full fitness though so he has an excuse.

 

[Mike N]

I have two questions from last night.

Did Otamendi really suggest to the ref that the ball had hit Bravo on the head? And has Dino got up off the grass yet?

 

[C-E-L-FBlue]

Bit of an off topic post but what sort of footwear to our players chose?? It might be my one eyed viewing but how many of our players lost their footing compared to the Barca players!! Fernandinho being the prime example of this!

I've noticed that, not just during last nights match, this seems to happen to our players more than the opposition!