Discuss Pellegrini....

[gordondaviesmoustache]

I wouldn't say I don't care about winning all before us this season, but irrespective of what this season yields, I know I will look upon it with great fondness.

As usual with this football club there's never been a dull moment and the football at times has been as good as ever witnessed on these shores and whilst, I repeat , I don't want this season to be a by-word for heroic failure, it's also worth remembering that the losing Holland team of 1974 has withstood the gaze of history much more robustly than the winning German one. Winning isn't everything.

Has this all been down to one man? Clearly not. Mansour's largesse and the infrastructure it has acquired has enabled this to take place, but Pellegrini has got a group of disaffected, underperforming young millionaires to play with the joy and freedom all too lacking last season. He deserves tremendous credit and comments about how he was outsmarted by Mourinho fail to appreciate (or acknowledge) the difficult hand he was dealt on Monday or for that matter that sometimes the better team wins on the night, just like we did in Munich. The way we play means were going to get mugged occasionally by teams that play like Chelsea. It's certainly preferable to having to endure watching it every week.

Whatever happens this season this team will go onto true greatness in the next couple of seasons imo. The age profile of the squad is perfect and the core players have been together for a length of time that can only pay dividends in the next 2-3 years. In the Summer get the likes of Nasri and Milner tied down on extended contracts; buy a world class centre-half and left back; bolster the midfield then light the light-blue touchpaper and sit back and enjoy the show.

It's going to be one hell of a ride and without Manuel Pellegrini I'm not sure it would be anything like as much fun.

You often make me smile but you really should make more contributions like this one. Love the point about one of my most admired teams, the Netherlands of '74.

Thanks, but I enjoy my role as class clown too much to post earnestly with too much frequency.

I can pull the big guns out when I need ;-)

 

[Anonymous]

You often make me smile but you really should make more contributions like this one. Love the point about one of my most admired teams, the Netherlands of '74.

Ahh, but he said "winning isn't everything" which is certainly going to have touched a few raw nerves.

 

[Gillespie]

I wouldn't say I don't care about winning all before us this season, but irrespective of what this season yields, I know I will look upon it with great fondness.

As usual with this football club there's never been a dull moment and the football at times has been as good as ever witnessed on these shores and whilst, I repeat , I don't want this season to be a by-word for heroic failure, it's also worth remembering that the losing Holland team of 1974 has withstood the gaze of history much more robustly than the winning German one. Winning isn't everything.

Has this all been down to one man? Clearly not. Mansour's largesse and the infrastructure it has acquired has enabled this to take place, but Pellegrini has got a group of disaffected, underperforming young millionaires to play with the joy and freedom all too lacking last season. He deserves tremendous credit and comments about how he was outsmarted by Mourinho fail to appreciate (or acknowledge) the difficult hand he was dealt on Monday or for that matter that sometimes the better team wins on the night, just like we did in Munich. The way we play means were going to get mugged occasionally by teams that play like Chelsea. It's certainly preferable to having to endure watching it every week.

Whatever happens this season this team will go onto true greatness in the next couple of seasons imo. The age profile of the squad is perfect and the core players have been together for a length of time that can only pay dividends in the next 2-3 years. In the Summer get the likes of Nasri and Milner tied down on extended contracts; buy a world class centre-half and left back; bolster the midfield then light the light-blue touchpaper and sit back and enjoy the show.

It's going to be one hell of a ride and without Manuel Pellegrini I'm not sure it would be anything like as much fun.

You often make me smile but you really should make more contributions like this one. Love the point about one of my most admired teams, the Netherlands of '74.

I loved watching Holland in both the '74 and '78 World Cups

They didn't deserve to lose both, though my favourite was the '78 team with the likes of Arie Haan, Rep, Rensenbrinck, the van der Kerkhof twins, Neeskens, Ruud Krol. Fantastic team.

 

[OB1]

One reason Pellegrini keeps playing the same way is because he believes, with justification, that his side is better than the opposition. Why should he start by making concessions to the opponents in such circumstances? Chelsea had to adapt their gameplan to try and stop City because City have a better team. The plan worked for Chelsea because they scored first but City's approach could and should have yielded the first goal; unfortunately, City had two narrow misses from great opportunities that Chelsea were powerless to prevent i.e. that Chelsea didn't go behind owed nothing to the genius of Mourinho or fabulous defending by his team.

Chelsea did not have a better gameplan but on the day, the just managed to execute it better than a City side shorn of, arguably, it's three leading contenders for player of the season.

 

[Anonymous]

One reason Pellegrini keeps playing the same way is because he believes, with justification, that his side is better than the opposition. Why should he start by making concessions to the opponents in such circumstances? Chelsea had to adapt their gameplan to try and stop City because City have a better team. The plan worked for Chelsea because they scored first but City's approach could and should have yielded the first goal; unfortunately, City had two narrow misses from great opportunities that Chelsea were powerless to prevent i.e. that Chelsea didn't go behind owed nothing to the genius of Mourinho or fabulous defending by his team.

Chelsea did not have a better gameplan but on the day, the just managed to execute it better than a City side shorn of, arguably, it's three leading contenders for player of the season.

More importantly Pellegrini regularly got his unfancied Villareal and Malaga sides to beat teams with apparently better players playing with the same attacking philosophy. To me it seems crazy that he'd suddenly start messing with it now he actually has world class players.

 

[Gillespie]

One reason Pellegrini keeps playing the same way is because he believes, with justification, that his side is better than the opposition. Why should he start by making concessions to the opponents in such circumstances? Chelsea had to adapt their gameplan to try and stop City because City have a better team. The plan worked for Chelsea because they scored first but City's approach could and should have yielded the first goal; unfortunately, City had two narrow misses from great opportunities that Chelsea were powerless to prevent i.e. that Chelsea didn't go behind owed nothing to the genius of Mourinho or fabulous defending by his team.

Chelsea did not have a better gameplan but on the day, the just managed to execute it better than a City side shorn of, arguably, it's three leading contenders for player of the season.

I think there are similarities between Pellegrini and Wenger.

Both have a belief and a system of play which they refuse to compromise in the face of cynical opponents.

They are purists and idealists. We should be glad of people like them. Our game would be poorer without them.

The game needs these romantics more than the philistines like Mourinho.

 

[prestonibbo_mcfc]

I for one, am not complaining. I think the football we are playing is bloody great to watch
Of course we're going to have off days (Chelsea game imo was one) but practice makes perfect.
Not saying we'll ever be perfect, is there such a thing, but you get my drift.

 

[Chippy_boy]

It's given me great heart reading this. I have been quite down after Monday, as I am sure many of us have.

I have been thinking we may very well not win the league now and next season Mourinho's been making all these noises about how next season his will be the full Monty, firing on all cylinders side. I don't doubt it. He's also said we will all understand why he didn't buy a striker in January when we see what happens in summer. This can only mean some big shot is joining. Please God, don't let it be Messi he's got lined up.

But then I remembered, we have played devastating football this season. No-one can live with us when we are all present and fit and fully on it. I truly mean no-one, not even Bayern. If we do strengthen by bringing in a top quality partner for Kompany, and a backup for Fern and Yaya, then I don't give a stuff what Maureen does, we will reign supreme.

 

[silvasleftleg]

Why not Demichelis in defence - he's a better defender than he is a defensive midfielder especially against a player of Hazard's ability .
Do you think Hazard could have shrugged off Vinny as easily as he didMDM ? If Hazard is subdued , their midfield is not nearly so potent and I would say that they might not have even scored had we taken that step. It's not a crazy idea to nullify your opponents best player , after all Silva spent a lot of time on the turf in the first 20 mins or so.
Jovetic had played about 50 mins at WHL the previous week , and presumably had trained full on since then , so you're right - it's a bit of a mystery why he didn't appear earlier.

Do you remember our game at Stamford Bridge ? Do you remember Chelsea's first goal ? Do you know who was responsible for that goal ? Demichelis !

VK commands the back line, it makes absolutley no sense to move him into midfield and replace him with Demichelis.

I think Jovetic could only play for 30 minutes. He did come back from a long injury. MP probably didn't want to risk him.

Do you get so furious with Pellegrini every time he selects MDM in defence , because it seems to me that he thinks he can play there quite adequately.
Our back line had to deal with aged Eto'o on his own while our midfield had to deal with Hazard , Willian , Ramires etc so you can see where the pressure points were , and where action was necessary.

Mourinho's thugs will target MDM , regardless of where you put him, in defence or in midfield, it doesn't matter, they will find him and bully him.<br /><br />-- Wed Feb 05, 2014 11:26 pm --<br /><br />

It's given me great heart reading this. I have been quite down after Monday, as I am sure many of us have.

I have been thinking we may very well not win the league now and next season Mourinho's been making all these noises about how next season his will be the full Monty, firing on all cylinders side. I don't doubt it. He's also said we will all understand why he didn't buy a striker in January when we see what happens in summer. This can only mean some big shot is joining. Please God, don't let it be Messi he's got lined up.

But then I remembered, we have played devastating football this season. No-one can live with us when we are all present and fit and fully on it. I truly mean no-one, not even Bayern. If we do strengthen by bringing in a top quality partner for Kompany, and a backup for Fern and Yaya, then I don't give a stuff what Maureen does, we will reign supreme.

Don't be down. This saturday Arsenal will travel to Anfield. They will drop points. We will win against Norwich and get back to the summit.

 

[TonyBookEnd]

I don't remember that Holland team (before my time) but the team that sticks in my memory is the Brazil 82 side. It was the first World Cup I could remember but that team was magical, pure fantasy. I can remember the great goals and could still name the lineup. The only thing I can remember about the eventual winners is Paolo Rossi. History remembers these magical sides that inspire and fire the imagination, not the pragmatic, organised and rather dull sides.