Soulboy said:
Do you want me to give you an answer based on his first 8 games... or his next 4?
That's the problem with your point. You are being selective. Yesterday was shite. Let's not pretend otherwise. And the last few games we've loked tired and in need of fresh inpiration.
But he tried to put it right in the transfer window and failed to get his targets in. His fault? Or the management of the club...
Let me stop you there. The signing of Gago or Mariga wouldn't have changed the shape of yesterday's match, or the tactics. It would've been exactly the same, with one of those two playing in place of either Ireland or Barry...
His first 8 games we defended superbly, we attacked and scored regularly... and we WON games. Even that crap performance against the Rags at home and Pompey saw us win.
You'll find that the system/s employed by Mancini early on were out of necessity. What we're seeing now is the way he actually wants the team to be lining up long term.
He's brought a couple of kids through (Boyata and Inbrahim) at a time when we were up to 6 first team players down... he's transformed Tevez for that 8 game period... and I feel he may have to go back to that formation.
Tevez had regained his fitness and was becoming deadly towards the end of Hughes' reign. The problem is when he's played with alongside Ade...
I was entertained in those first 8 games, something i wasn't before then... even though we were scoring goals it was like watching It's a Knockout such was the amateurish approach being taken.
So after 12 games in charge it's a mixed bag. Good first 8, crappier next 4. Let's see how the next 4 go before we bury him, eh?
Knee Jerkers of the World... Unite and Take Over...
I don't understand why it is that Mancini should suddenly be afforded some sort of bluemoon amnesty where his decisions, some of which are frankly baffling, cannot be questioned. He's obviously a nice guy, and his record says he's a top class coach, but that doesn't change the fact that on the face of it he is making some almighty cock ups in team selection and formation choice.
I asked this in another thread but nobody seems to want to acknowledge it - I guess because we're now talking about Mancini and not Hughes, but can anyone else think of a reason other than price tag, for why Ade and Tevez are continually played together by both manager's we've had this season, when it seems apparent to most laymen that they can't play together.
I also don't understand why it is that neither manager seems to want to play to the strengths of the squad we have, and instead constantly stick square pegs in round holes to play systems which they are comfortable with....make no mistakes, what we are seeing NOW is the way Roberto has always set his teams up. 4312. Little width. But we need players with the technique, agility, and engine of Cambiasso, Viera five years ago, and Stankovich to make the system itself work. It's clear that Barry and De Jong simply don't/won't cut it.
