City V Southampton post match discussion

The game sort of reminded me oif Bolton away last season.
We always looked well capable of winning it but the odd mistake and sharp finishing by our opponent made us happy to get off the pitch with all 3 points!
The next game after Bolton was IIRC away at a tough ground (Spurs). Hope we can repeat that performance at Anfield.

While Rodwell did well overall and was unlucky to be so severely punished for his mistake I hope Milner replaces him at Liverpool.

Silva and Balotelli both looked a bit off the pace probably due to lack of preseason but should recover soon.

Dzeko made some nice link-up passes in his game as well scoring.another vital goal. He also missed most of preseason with knee injury. People calling him "carthorse" doin't know the game well.
I wish that Dzeko would improove his technique at running the clock down though. That is a weakness he has.
Nasri did a great job of that when he had the ball, I noticed.
I really like Nasri. He's smart, skilful and a hard c*nt despite his appearance.

Bring on the Scousers!
 
Exeter Blue I am here said:
It was evident after about 5 minutes that Southampton were pacy and mobile, and intent on exploiting our lack of personnel down the flanks. Zabaleta in particular was completely exposed for the entire 90 minutes, with nobody covering in front of him, as Southampton doubled, and even trebled, up on him. Kompany kept getting dragged over to help, which then left Mr Wooden (Lescott) having to cope with the big lummox up front on his own, something he struggled at, getting backed into and bumped into scuffed half clearances galore. Seriously though, if we can't cope with a team of Premier League journeymen counterattacking, then the Chimps League promises to be a fucking nightmare of epic proportions. Whatever, it took Mancini 85 minutes to introduce Kolarov, and we never saw Milner at all.

Hart 6 - Fuck all to do, but his piss poor sliced clearances down the middle in the last 10 minutes allowed Southampton to run the ball back at us repeatedly.
Zaba 6 - Did his best, but had no fucking chance defensively.
Clichy 6 - See Zabaleta. Much better crossing than usual I'm pleased to say.
Kompany 6 - Mediocre at best.
Lescott 5 - See Kompany, only painfully slow.
Nasri 9 - Man of the Match by a country mile and even won a few tackles.
Silva 4 - Dreadful. Clearly not fit. The penalty was a joke. Anyone who takes an almost perpendicular run up to the ball, drastically reduces the chances of controlling its placement, and so it proved. If I was Mancini I would have fried his nuts in oil for that one incident alone. Give him two or three games to get that sharpness back and he'll be buzzin' again I'm sure.
Ya Ya 8 - Increasingly ran the game.
Rodwell 6 - Some nice touches initially, but grew progressively more crab-like as the game possessed. May have been acting under orders in that regard, or may have been feeling the pace, but either way unless he's prepared to unleash his attacking instincts now and again, then he'll be little more than a taller version of De Jong. There were enough flashes of skill to make me optimistic though and it's a shame his one bad pass proved so costly.
Tevez 7 - Typically bustling, scored and won a pen.
Dzeko 5 - A carthorse. Looks like he's put on a stone in weight, and clearly can't be relied on to convert even the simplest of chances. Unfortunately, at 120k a week and 25m quid, he ain't going anywhere. Moaning about being on the bench is fine (it demonstrates hunger if nothing else), but he was put clean through in the Charity Shield and lumbered after it like a Lada towing an anvil, and yesterday he adjusted his feet with all the dexterity of Arthur Mullard ballroom dancing to miss from 3 yards.
Mario 7 - Also joined the "missed an open goal" club, but touch and movement was light years ahead of Dzeko.

If we play like that on a regular basis, a top 3 finish will be the best we can hope for. There were positives - good going forward (apart from the dire finishing) and crossing much improved, but there were significant negatives as well. For the third competitive fixture in a row (QPR, Chelsea and Southampton) the opposition had 2 shots and scored 2 goals. We were a fucking shambles at the back, but much of the trouble there stemmed from the midfield failing to protect the defence, particularly down Zab's flank.
The injury to Aguero killed the mood for me, and I'll be absolutely gutted if he's out for the season. A pox on the cunts in the away end booing him and chanting "She fell over". Bottom line though? We were way below par and still won. The hallmark of champions
Click to expand...


Dzeko held the ball up well and scored........ Some people just love to have a go at him..... He doesn't do the pretty stuff but he does the essential thing and scores
 
Exeter Blue I am here said:
It was evident after about 5 minutes that Southampton were pacy and mobile, and intent on exploiting our lack of personnel down the flanks. Zabaleta in particular was completely exposed for the entire 90 minutes, with nobody covering in front of him, as Southampton doubled, and even trebled, up on him. Kompany kept getting dragged over to help, which then left Mr Wooden (Lescott) having to cope with the big lummox up front on his own, something he struggled at, getting backed into and bumped into scuffed half clearances galore. Seriously though, if we can't cope with a team of Premier League journeymen counterattacking, then the Chimps League promises to be a fucking nightmare of epic proportions. Whatever, it took Mancini 85 minutes to introduce Kolarov, and we never saw Milner at all.

Hart 6 - Fuck all to do, but his piss poor sliced clearances down the middle in the last 10 minutes allowed Southampton to run the ball back at us repeatedly.
Zaba 6 - Did his best, but had no fucking chance defensively.
Clichy 6 - See Zabaleta. Much better crossing than usual I'm pleased to say.
Kompany 6 - Mediocre at best.
Lescott 5 - See Kompany, only painfully slow.
Nasri 9 - Man of the Match by a country mile and even won a few tackles.
Silva 4 - Dreadful. Clearly not fit. The penalty was a joke. Anyone who takes an almost perpendicular run up to the ball, drastically reduces the chances of controlling its placement, and so it proved. If I was Mancini I would have fried his nuts in oil for that one incident alone. Give him two or three games to get that sharpness back and he'll be buzzin' again I'm sure.
Ya Ya 8 - Increasingly ran the game.
Rodwell 6 - Some nice touches initially, but grew progressively more crab-like as the game possessed. May have been acting under orders in that regard, or may have been feeling the pace, but either way unless he's prepared to unleash his attacking instincts now and again, then he'll be little more than a taller version of De Jong. There were enough flashes of skill to make me optimistic though and it's a shame his one bad pass proved so costly.
Tevez 7 - Typically bustling, scored and won a pen.
Dzeko 5 - A carthorse. Looks like he's put on a stone in weight, and clearly can't be relied on to convert even the simplest of chances. Unfortunately, at 120k a week and 25m quid, he ain't going anywhere. Moaning about being on the bench is fine (it demonstrates hunger if nothing else), but he was put clean through in the Charity Shield and lumbered after it like a Lada towing an anvil, and yesterday he adjusted his feet with all the dexterity of Arthur Mullard ballroom dancing to miss from 3 yards.
Mario 7 - Also joined the "missed an open goal" club, but touch and movement was light years ahead of Dzeko.

If we play like that on a regular basis, a top 3 finish will be the best we can hope for. There were positives - good going forward (apart from the dire finishing) and crossing much improved, but there were significant negatives as well. For the third competitive fixture in a row (QPR, Chelsea and Southampton) the opposition had 2 shots and scored 2 goals. We were a fucking shambles at the back, but much of the trouble there stemmed from the midfield failing to protect the defence, particularly down Zab's flank.
The injury to Aguero killed the mood for me, and I'll be absolutely gutted if he's out for the season. A pox on the cunts in the away end booing him and chanting "She fell over". Bottom line though? We were way below par and still won. The hallmark of champions
Click to expand...

You should work for The Sun
 
Dzeko & Hyde said:
Exeter Blue I am here said:
It was evident after about 5 minutes that Southampton were pacy and mobile, and intent on exploiting our lack of personnel down the flanks. Zabaleta in particular was completely exposed for the entire 90 minutes, with nobody covering in front of him, as Southampton doubled, and even trebled, up on him. Kompany kept getting dragged over to help, which then left Mr Wooden (Lescott) having to cope with the big lummox up front on his own, something he struggled at, getting backed into and bumped into scuffed half clearances galore. Seriously though, if we can't cope with a team of Premier League journeymen counterattacking, then the Chimps League promises to be a fucking nightmare of epic proportions. Whatever, it took Mancini 85 minutes to introduce Kolarov, and we never saw Milner at all.

Hart 6 - Fuck all to do, but his piss poor sliced clearances down the middle in the last 10 minutes allowed Southampton to run the ball back at us repeatedly.
Zaba 6 - Did his best, but had no fucking chance defensively.
Clichy 6 - See Zabaleta. Much better crossing than usual I'm pleased to say.
Kompany 6 - Mediocre at best.
Lescott 5 - See Kompany, only painfully slow.
Nasri 9 - Man of the Match by a country mile and even won a few tackles.
Silva 4 - Dreadful. Clearly not fit. The penalty was a joke. Anyone who takes an almost perpendicular run up to the ball, drastically reduces the chances of controlling its placement, and so it proved. If I was Mancini I would have fried his nuts in oil for that one incident alone. Give him two or three games to get that sharpness back and he'll be buzzin' again I'm sure.
Ya Ya 8 - Increasingly ran the game.
Rodwell 6 - Some nice touches initially, but grew progressively more crab-like as the game possessed. May have been acting under orders in that regard, or may have been feeling the pace, but either way unless he's prepared to unleash his attacking instincts now and again, then he'll be little more than a taller version of De Jong. There were enough flashes of skill to make me optimistic though and it's a shame his one bad pass proved so costly.
Tevez 7 - Typically bustling, scored and won a pen.
Dzeko 5 - A carthorse. Looks like he's put on a stone in weight, and clearly can't be relied on to convert even the simplest of chances. Unfortunately, at 120k a week and 25m quid, he ain't going anywhere. Moaning about being on the bench is fine (it demonstrates hunger if nothing else), but he was put clean through in the Charity Shield and lumbered after it like a Lada towing an anvil, and yesterday he adjusted his feet with all the dexterity of Arthur Mullard ballroom dancing to miss from 3 yards.
Mario 7 - Also joined the "missed an open goal" club, but touch and movement was light years ahead of Dzeko.

If we play like that on a regular basis, a top 3 finish will be the best we can hope for. There were positives - good going forward (apart from the dire finishing) and crossing much improved, but there were significant negatives as well. For the third competitive fixture in a row (QPR, Chelsea and Southampton) the opposition had 2 shots and scored 2 goals. We were a fucking shambles at the back, but much of the trouble there stemmed from the midfield failing to protect the defence, particularly down Zab's flank.
The injury to Aguero killed the mood for me, and I'll be absolutely gutted if he's out for the season. A pox on the cunts in the away end booing him and chanting "She fell over". Bottom line though? We were way below par and still won. The hallmark of champions
Click to expand...

A 7 for Mario who missed an open net? And a 5 and a slagging for a guy who scored a goal you needed for 3 pts rather than 1? That's gratitude for ya. Did you boo when he scored?
Click to expand...

Of course not. Never boo a Blue. And for the record, on a personality basis I quite like Dzeko. There are also elements to his game that were good last season; running the ball into space he generally picked decent options, played some killer passes and scored some important goals. However, with his back to goal he's pants, his first touch is woeful for a 27m player, and that, coupled with a lack of pace, make him an ill-considered fit for the way Mancini's teams play. The difference between Dzeko and a real top drawer striker was evidenced in Naples, where he looked like a pub player compared to Cavani. You can disagree, as your name tag suggests you will, but I have little doubt that Mancini has long realised it himself and was hoping to offload Dzeko this summer to make way for Van Persie. That there were no takers doesn't surprise me.
And there's more to a performance marking than whether or not someone scored or missed from 3 yards. First touch? Movement? Balotelli's streets ahead, whatever his own shortcomings
 
Exeter Blue I am here said:
Dzeko & Hyde said:
Exeter Blue I am here said:
It was evident after about 5 minutes that Southampton were pacy and mobile, and intent on exploiting our lack of personnel down the flanks. Zabaleta in particular was completely exposed for the entire 90 minutes, with nobody covering in front of him, as Southampton doubled, and even trebled, up on him. Kompany kept getting dragged over to help, which then left Mr Wooden (Lescott) having to cope with the big lummox up front on his own, something he struggled at, getting backed into and bumped into scuffed half clearances galore. Seriously though, if we can't cope with a team of Premier League journeymen counterattacking, then the Chimps League promises to be a fucking nightmare of epic proportions. Whatever, it took Mancini 85 minutes to introduce Kolarov, and we never saw Milner at all.

Hart 6 - Fuck all to do, but his piss poor sliced clearances down the middle in the last 10 minutes allowed Southampton to run the ball back at us repeatedly.
Zaba 6 - Did his best, but had no fucking chance defensively.
Clichy 6 - See Zabaleta. Much better crossing than usual I'm pleased to say.
Kompany 6 - Mediocre at best.
Lescott 5 - See Kompany, only painfully slow.
Nasri 9 - Man of the Match by a country mile and even won a few tackles.
Silva 4 - Dreadful. Clearly not fit. The penalty was a joke. Anyone who takes an almost perpendicular run up to the ball, drastically reduces the chances of controlling its placement, and so it proved. If I was Mancini I would have fried his nuts in oil for that one incident alone. Give him two or three games to get that sharpness back and he'll be buzzin' again I'm sure.
Ya Ya 8 - Increasingly ran the game.
Rodwell 6 - Some nice touches initially, but grew progressively more crab-like as the game possessed. May have been acting under orders in that regard, or may have been feeling the pace, but either way unless he's prepared to unleash his attacking instincts now and again, then he'll be little more than a taller version of De Jong. There were enough flashes of skill to make me optimistic though and it's a shame his one bad pass proved so costly.
Tevez 7 - Typically bustling, scored and won a pen.
Dzeko 5 - A carthorse. Looks like he's put on a stone in weight, and clearly can't be relied on to convert even the simplest of chances. Unfortunately, at 120k a week and 25m quid, he ain't going anywhere. Moaning about being on the bench is fine (it demonstrates hunger if nothing else), but he was put clean through in the Charity Shield and lumbered after it like a Lada towing an anvil, and yesterday he adjusted his feet with all the dexterity of Arthur Mullard ballroom dancing to miss from 3 yards.
Mario 7 - Also joined the "missed an open goal" club, but touch and movement was light years ahead of Dzeko.

If we play like that on a regular basis, a top 3 finish will be the best we can hope for. There were positives - good going forward (apart from the dire finishing) and crossing much improved, but there were significant negatives as well. For the third competitive fixture in a row (QPR, Chelsea and Southampton) the opposition had 2 shots and scored 2 goals. We were a fucking shambles at the back, but much of the trouble there stemmed from the midfield failing to protect the defence, particularly down Zab's flank.
The injury to Aguero killed the mood for me, and I'll be absolutely gutted if he's out for the season. A pox on the cunts in the away end booing him and chanting "She fell over". Bottom line though? We were way below par and still won. The hallmark of champions
Click to expand...

A 7 for Mario who missed an open net? And a 5 and a slagging for a guy who scored a goal you needed for 3 pts rather than 1? That's gratitude for ya. Did you boo when he scored?
Click to expand...

Of course not. Never boo a Blue. And for the record, on a personality basis I quite like Dzeko. There are also elements to his game that were good last season; running the ball into space he generally picked decent options, played some killer passes and scored some important goals. However, with his back to goal he's pants, his first touch is woeful for a 27m player, and that, coupled with a lack of pace, make him an ill-considered fit for the way Mancini's teams play. The difference between Dzeko and a real top drawer striker was evidenced in Naples, where he looked like a pub player compared to Cavani. You can disagree, as your name tag suggests you will, but I have little doubt that Mancini has long realised it himself and was hoping to offload Dzeko this summer to make way for Van Persie. That there were no takers doesn't surprise me.
And there's more to a performance marking than whether or not someone scored or missed from 3 yards. First touch? Movement? Balotelli's streets ahead, whatever his own shortcomings
Click to expand...

Balotelli is usually better than Dzeko, I admit. But he wasn't on Sunday.
 
Edin hardly put a foot wrong on Sunday. We had the lions share, but we didn't react well enough to them putting 2 and sometimes 3 players on Zab. We need a win on Sunday at the dippers to truly get the season started and we are capable of getting it.
 
Bilboblue said:
Saint said:
Bilboblue said:
A pretty good assessment Saint, except we should have been about 3 or 4 up at half time!

Thought you acquitted yourselves well, you broke quickly but I do think part of that was to do with our players thinking all they had to do was turn up to win.
Still, you can take great comfort from your display, cdertainly impressed a few of us in East lvl 3, you were very loud when you scored, we were quiet yesterday, maybe everyone was still spent from May 13th!

Was it you that started singing that stupid song 'Where were you when you were shit?' That really is a joke, I think all KNOW where we were when we were shit!

Good luck for the rest of the season, obviously except the return at St. Marys.

What part of Southampton do you live in fella?
Click to expand...

Yeah we certainly looked dangerous on the counter-attack. First-half I didn't think we'd score, but at 3-2 I had every confidence we could nick another.

The "where were you when you were shit" was probably more tongue in cheek than anything else, in response to the usual "small town in pompey" crap. Thought our fans put on a good show and not having the fear of losing helps that. Little surprised by your fans as you made quite a racket at the Community Shield last week. I see the Poznan didn't exactly catch on around the ground either.... not universally loved by City fans then?

With regards to the Aguero injury you'll obviously get a few idiots that cheer, but it certainly was a relief that we didn't have to face him for another 85 minutes!

I live about 10 miles from Southampton, near Eastleigh.

Saint
Click to expand...


Glad you enjoyed the day out fella, what did you think of the stadium, the facilities?

I'm over in Totton, not too far away!
Click to expand...

Yeah well the stadium is a far cry from somewhere like Yeovil, so it was nice to be back in the big-time.

Very impressed with the Etihad overall, stewarding seemed fair and there was plenty of food/drink outlets. Although £2.50 for a coke was taking the piss a bit...
 
VOOMER said:
Edin hardly put a foot wrong on Sunday. We had the lions share, but we didn't react well enough to them putting 2 and sometimes 3 players on Zab. We need a win on Sunday at the dippers to truly get the season started and we are capable of getting it.
Click to expand...
Dzeko had a good game I thought. made some good runs, and of course scored.

14 from 28 league apps (many as a sub) last season, and 1 from 1 this season. There's not a lot more he can do
 
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