A... said:
The issue with Kompany's game is that the genuinely world class defender he became was forged by Mancini's teachings and tactics; the defensive unit defended deeper, narrower, and players were seldom isolated one on one. Under Pellegrini it's every man for himself; the line is unnecessarily high, with too much space between each player. That explains why Nastasic has gone from Rolls Royce to Ford Fiesta under the tactical antichrist.
Watch Kompany's positioning in the key incident when Barca won the penalty; last season the 2 other defenders behind him would have been level with and closer to him. Now, the defensive tactics consist of running up the pitch towards the halfway line, under mad Martin's wavy-armed command, regardless of where the ball/opposition are. Whether it was subconscious or intentional disregard of the naïve man's instruction, it cost us a goal. Another factor is the 'false 5' Demichelis' unreliability. It's as if Kompany can't focus on his own game because he's on standby to dig us out when the donkey-tailed goon finds himself chasing shdows on the left wing. You get the impression Lescott is the only partner he trusts (regardless of the pinball 'mistake' against Barca) He needs to tell Pellegrini, in the same way it appears Terry has had a word at Chelsea about their equally bad-haired, equally AWOL liability Luiz.
One more thing that is undoubtedly to blame for Kompany's perceived decline this season is the absence of Gareth Barry; he was always occupying the space in front of the defence, meaning the opposition were generally forced wide. Now (again thanks to the primitive tactics of the manager) there is a huge gap between the 2 straight lines of 4 in his 4-4-2, oppo attackers are now finding space in there, giving the centrehalves a dilemma; if they go out, it leaves space in behind for diagonal runners to exploit. If they hold their position, it allows the players in possession a free shot on goal from 25 yards.
