Brentford (A) | PL | Post Match Thread

Le Havre Oswald said:
captain of our treble side and 1st city captain to lift the champions league. He’s clearly not the same player he was 2 years ago but legacy FURTHER damaged? Why because he’s not as good as he was? He could be even shiter for us but that wouldn’t affect his legacy one tiny bit let alone further.
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It's not completely Gundo's fault and we have to acknowledge this before making the accusations that poster did. He came in as an addition to help, but it's turned out that he's needed more than we expected and in the 6 where we hadn't hoped he would be playing. This is squarely on Pep and the board really, they've needed a true 6 backup for years and failed on it. If Rodri is fit, Gundo would not look out of place in his usual position imo.
 
Matt Diablo said:
If you look at all the games we have started over last couple of years (not just this season) with Ake and Akanji as our 2 C/Bs, we struggle defensively. Fantastic servants but together WITHOUT Ruben or Stonesy they are simply too "nice", too passive, not dominant enough and simply too fukin weak in the air, as almost all the team are!

Still pissed off about that throw away last night but as some say we are lucky to have got a point. Peps subbing has been shit no more so than yesterday.
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Ake still really good, Akanji has been well below par for most of the season.
 
shevtheblue said:
It's not completely Gundo's fault and we have to acknowledge this before making the accusations that poster did. He came in as an addition to help, but it's turned out that he's needed more than we expected and in the 6 where we hadn't hoped he would be playing. This is squarely on Pep and the board really, they've needed a true 6 backup for years and failed on it. If Rodri is fit, Gundo would not look out of place in his usual position imo.
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Only place for gundog on pitch is around opps penalty area. Outside ours we are there for the taking
 
callumcity said:
All defenders look crap when the system is failing.

We’ve largely won and defended well by keeping the ball and being able to avoid counter attacks over the years, with an array of defenders including average players like Zinchenko.

It’s not that our defenders are shit, it’s that our midfield and forward line is slow and can’t halt counter attacks, or even tackle or press well.

There’s no pace or legs in the side anywhere.

So our defenders aren’t suddenly shit and tbf neither are some of the midfield and forward players, if they had legs around them, I’m sure the likes of Gundo, KDB, Foden, Bernardo would be playing a lot better too.

I can understand buying a centre half due to injuries but we cannot go this month without midfielders.
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I can't understand Pep's position on our style of play at the moment. He said he wouldn't change what worked for 4 years, but he has. We're not pressing with the same intensity and aggression as we used to. Often we're sitting off the opposition to be more compact. Whilst we didn't always press, it was a hallmark of our approach defensively. We keep the ball and control the game, when we lose it we win it back quickly or commit a foul to get everyone back into position.

Injuries were an excuse. But we now have Doku, Savinho, Foden, Bernardo, De Bruyne, Haaland, Grealish, McAtee as attacking options who can rotate. They should be pressing - not like mad men, but to block certain passing lanes. That would help the whole team defend better.

Pep would never usually allow players to trot about the way they did last night.

But if we're not going to be a side that looks to play with the same control and intensity off the ball, why then keep the same foundations of that approach? Why not throw on someone like O'Reilly who can run all day long, is physical and would cover the ground?

As you say, if we're going to keep playing the way we are then the signings we're being linked with do nothing to fix the problems.
 
Matt Diablo said:
Only place for gundog on pitch is around opps penalty area. Outside ours we are there for the taking
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Gundo tracking back or being asked to cover spaces is just pointless, he doesn't have the physical ability to do it. We pushed it out of him when he still was able to do it a few seasons ago but it's asking too much. My biggest fear is we are getting all these defenders in to shoehorn Akanji or Stones into the 6 until Rodri is back. It's not the answer imo.
 
Jocks Y-Fronts said:
Saw that. Around the 90 minute mark, Akanji was playing pass around with Nunes near their penalty area. Madness to have a defender so far forward that late in the game, especially when none of them have recovery pace.
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It is absolutely baffling to me and the biggest indictment of Pep (this season). He keeps encouraging things that blatantly aren’t working. Bizarre.
 
The problems still exist.

Press not really effective.
No midfield to stop counters.
No midfield to control games.
Players still seem a yard off.

Some of the attacking counter play when running not passing was great. The times we slowed it down nearly resulted in a Brentford counter every time we lost the ball around their box.

I get the need for young CB’s due to injuries and age and Walker. Also we need another forward incase anything happens to Haaland.

I still can’t fathom why we have not spent the money on a proper midfield baller.

We clearly have it as the marmoosh fee will be high.

So either we are after someone who is very hard to obtain or we are still struggling to find the right player, worried we will end up with a nunes/phillips type.

It’s all very much self inflicted.

2 weeks gone, no midfielder is depressing.
 
Not sure what we are expecting with Kovacic playing DM, Nunes at RB and Gvardiol having nightmares defending week to week. There’s a total absence of control in games and we’ve entirely lost our air of invincibility. We look less fit than most teams and I don’t believe anyone is worried about playing us anymore. Midfield needs power and aggression asap.
 
Went to the game not expecting anything to change in our game and we were lucky we ended up with one point. I listened to their manager saying it was the first time they were able to compete with us for 90 minutes and that says it all about us.
This is furthest Pep has ever been from his football approach and it seems to me he's been there on the touchline only in body, I don't want to know where his mind is. Every time he says he needs to find to solution he makes (or does not make changes) things stay the same or get even worse.
NO fullbacks, no DMs, no alternative to a CF....it is all on him. Finally ran out of his 9th life.
 
Sorry to raise this again, but what the fuck is going on with the away tickets????

I was in Row 27, and there were at least 5 empty seats next me and four behind me. 5 mins into the game, a Malaysian man turned up and stood in the middle of the empty seats. He then took out his iphone and filmed most of the game, whilst talking to his mates back home. At multiple times he turned around to video himself.

I tried to ask him where we got his ticket, and he suggested he didn't speak English. About 10 mins later, two London Tarquin’s appeared in the row behind, and I overheard a conversation where one said the other 'I know it was expensive, but I have never seen City before' - to which his mate replied 'yes, me too, but I am an Arsenal fan really'.

What the fuck???? I wasn't alone in noticing, and chatting to a proper Blue next to me, who struggles to get away tickets on 28,000 points and can never take his Dad - who through illness, had to give up his Season Ticket - we were both almost as angry as when we then and went let in two goals!!

I also have the photos of the empty seats and of my Malaysian friend.

What on earth is going on?????
 
bondsman said:
Not sure what we are expecting with Kovacic playing DM, Nunes at RB and Gvardiol having nightmares defending week to week. There’s a total absence of control in games and we’ve entirely lost our air of invincibility. We look less fit than most teams and I don’t believe anyone is worried about playing us anymore. Midfield needs power and aggression asap.
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We used to look like conceding when the opposition got a breakaway. Now, we don't retain the ball; the opposition attack us much more, and we look like conceding on every attack.

Looks like we need to score three to be sure of a point - we got lucky last night.
 
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