I have no problem at all with us signing Fred, (I have always wanted a 'Fred' at City ever since seeing a Fred years ago, before even seeing Alan) but if we want a 'replacement' for Fernandinho, then imo we should be looking, all round the world, to find someone who can do what Fernandinho does.
We don't need something different, it works. We need the same things Fern does or someone better, at the same things.
This guy can fight it out with Gundogan etc but he can't do the same job Fern does in the Premier League.
We saw how fucking hopeless Stones & Mangala were on mid pitch headers last night, without Fernandinho helping them.
yhp, that post the other day summing up everything Dinho does defensively, Yaya completely failed to do last night and it made life incredibly easy for Bristol City as they could just hoof it, win the header, run down the wing and get a corner or throw-in. It was all they were able to do but they had an out every time. Yaya destroyed our performance both in attack and defence.
In isolation mate, he was slow and didn't do anything flashy :) world class all the same.Xavi was average????
Did we? What's the norm, and what did we see last night?I have no problem at all with us signing Fred, (I have always wanted a 'Fred' at City ever since seeing a Fred years ago, before even seeing Alan) but if we want a 'replacement' for Fernandinho, then imo we should be looking, all round the world, to find someone who can do what Fernandinho does.
We don't need something different, it works. We need the same things Fern does or someone better, at the same things.
This guy can fight it out with Gundogan etc but he can't do the same job Fern does in the Premier League.
We saw how fucking hopeless Stones & Mangala were on mid pitch headers last night, without Fernandinho helping them.
This again is mostly fantasy.Tbh I don't blame Yaya, I blame the cbs for not doing their job well enough (& Zinchenko but that's not his fault he can't win headers v huge attackers) but Pep's answer to that problem, which happened all the time last season & under Pellegrini, with Otamendi & Mangala, has been Fernandinho, almost playing like a 3rd cb at times, especially in the air.
And we know it works, really well. Both Stones & Otamendi look different players this season, with him taking so much pressure off.
Somewhere out there, is another Fernandinho, & it isn't Fred (good as he is) he's different.
This again is mostly fantasy.
Did we? What's the norm, and what did we see last night?
Was the poor play strictly due to the absence of Dihno or was is it partly due to the presence of a stagnant Yaya, or the absence of a marauding Superman or the pinpoint genius of Ederson's passing?
All 4 probably played a role in our poor play. And for what it's worth, when we add new players, it will always be different. Always.
The attempt to try to replace the old with an identical replica is always a fool's errand. Fred, if brought in, will bring things to the table Dihno doesn't, and wouldn't have things Dihno does. Pep will recalibrate and we'll March on.
So yes, I'd take Fred gladly as Dihno's replacement amongst many others.
You are always high on insults but low on substance. It seems to be your calling card.No it wasn't purely down to missibg Fernadinho (who Yaya replaced).
But it will require a lot more from the team if Fern is replaced by someone who can't do his job, as we saw last night with Yaya. And it will require the cbs to change the way they play, which you will not have noticed as you have never seen a game of top level football.
You are always high on insults but low on substance. It seems to be your calling card.
Scratch out the insults and there is nothing there "there."
Fortunately though, you have the common sense to slyly asmit your wrong in the midst of being insulting. Perhaps it's not all lost yet for you after all. :)