Fulham (A) | PL | Post Match Thread

[Citizen of Legoland]

The kind of football that led to the opening goal is what this team and indeed squad of players is capable of producing. However, they are young, and young teams lack both physicality and stamina, meaning they are inconsistent. Guardiola is producing another very special team but one that will take time to come to fruition. It’s going to be worth the wait if we have patience.

I honestly don’t know what people are expecting. We’re second in the league even though we’re going through a rough patch.

People calling for Pep to walk in the matchday forum because we almost let a lead slip? Good god.

 

[waspish]

We look badly coached. Awful transitions, defending, players unfit and no shape/press to our team anymore. Perhaps the players have stopped listening to Pep, though I wish they would stop listening to what ever he says at every half time with our constant 2nd half collapses. Even after a lucky 4th then 5th we still did the usual total collapse today. Other managers now out thinking Pep?

We were awful second have but apart from that clearance of the goaline when it went to 4-5 we took back control better! It be a total collapse if we lost or Drew! But is worrying that when we subbed Gonzales we fell to pieces

 

[waspish]

You could still keep Nico G on at least a little longer

Do you agree?

Maybe that's the reason we nearly drew or lost the game there

Very poor subs and game management from the entire team

Sick to death for not having a proper ball winner on the field and one that that can win and put their foot on the ball and calm things down

So at 2-5 when pep subbed Gonzales Doku with 30 mins left did you actually think fuck we could be in trouble here? I didn’t

 

[IrishBloodEnglishHeart]

Dont think he played any worse than a number of our players today.. yet hes the one who the flack comes to... previous games .. whole teams a sack of sh** and whos to blame savinho and bobb... these people with this mentality are the same people who were on at ederson every week. Just seems he will be the one to blame untill we force him out and then we will find someone else no doubt..

Again, absolutely no one on here has said, "we nearly lost that because of Savio". He came on and played crap and was half arsed - people are allowed to point that out.

Perhaps if he played well people wouldn't give him stick.

 

[Benarbia’s Backheel]

Again you keep embarassing yourself...

Because he said that Savinho’s shit?

 

[Benarbia’s Backheel]

How old are you ? 15/16

Ah yes so you are a Savinho defender, calling other people out for having a valid opinion on him.

 

[flook]

His philosophy has always been by keeping possession the opposition can't hurt you.

Now we have a group of players that aren't anywhere near as technically gifted as what we previously had seasons gone by.

If anything we are our own worst enemy, we can't keep possession for long periods of time anymore and give the ball away so carelessly in dangerous areas.

Pep is too stubborn to change it.

Agree with all of this, I would add that the problem is made worse by having just 2 natural defenders in the team (3 if you include Nico G), this works when you have control of the ball for 70% of the game, but not so much when your midfield isn't strong enough physically or technically to achieve that.

I'm not knocking Nunes or Nico O, they're both doing fine, but neither has the defensive instinct of a natural defender

 

[Sk@mcfc]

The last two games nico hasn’t been the same don’t know if tired, if Rodri isn’t anywhere near In January we need a midfielder
Also worrying in last 12 months is how soft we have become we just let teams through us so easily I never felt comfortable even at 5-1

 

[AirbagsOptionalTheReturn]

Wow what can you say we managed to get over the line. We are caught it seems between two ways of playing - high press and sitting back - and failing at both.
The players do not seem to be using their brains and none on the pitch is setting an example other than Nico Imo. How many of their goals came from a cross being knocked down and us not reacting quickly enough or even being in the right place? Not sure what Pep can do, I don’t want him to go back to the slow boring football we have seen for ages, but on the flipside I can’t take many matches like that front health. When Rodders comes back I would love a double pivot with Cherki in front (will push Phil wider) as he can play balls that no one else can Joško’s chance. Anyway, I complained about boring but I did not want bedlam!

 

[shemnel]

What a game of football!! I was a shaking mess until midnight. Surely, hopefully, we've witnessed an extremely rare thing.

After their second goal ('57) the match completely got away from us. Even in the run up to that goal Fulham were showing very positive signs. I don't recall ever seeing a team 5-1 down playing with such fervour. Either credit to Fulham or poor City for enabling such belief at that scoreline.

After 5-2 we were very passive and the subs were a response to a midfield collapse. Nico looked gone but I wouldn't have gone for Stones. Doku was responsible for giving the ball away all game, as well as attacking threat, but I wouldn't have gone for Savinho.

Anyway, simple stuff like corners being bombed on the keeper and no one marking men on the edge, not being able to put a foot on the ball (apart from Cherki) and not winning many challenges high up the pitch all need to be examined.

In the end we cleared one off the line and got the win. We need to embrace the 3 points and collectively, players and fans, move on from the madness.

 

[oldius]

The morning after the night before.
I think you must learn from these games, and I am sure that we did.

I have thought this for a while, but I think that keeping Erling on for the full game in such circumstances is something we need to consider. Yes, he can always get a goal, but in terms of keeping the ball and seeing out the game, it is not in his skillset - he is isolated and wanders a little.

I think it is time, in those circumstances, to move to a false-nine, with more physicality in central midfield, and to bring on an additional midfielder/attacker who has more energy.
The switch to Nico O in central midfield was a little late last night. Had that happened earlier, with the introduction of Cherki for Erling, or Marmoush for Erling, I think we would have seen the game out far

more comfortably.

I don't think you can leave these things too long because the agitation starts to increase and the confidence of the opponent too. Shutting the game down is something we are very familiar with from our recent past. In the event that Gonzalez has to come off for injury, then Foden drops in to the central midfield and his place in that lineup goes to one of our other attacking talents.

 

[waspish]

Bullied all over the pitch, and half the team not good enough technically to overcome that. Worrying as that has always been Pep’s trademark.

It’s mainly when we don’t have a 6 pep teams are built around the 6 Rodri how he kept fit for so long was unbelievable but occasionally when he didn’t play we had Gundo from last season we have had Gonzales who has only just clicked in how to play that position this season! He went off we lose all control

 

[Roachy]

Pep can't win.

People on here were moaning that the possession based football was boring and no fun any more.

Now there's moaning that we don't play possession football.

Not really. Haven't seen any real moaning about our possession tbh. Maybe a bit about the lack of an end product at times but that's about it.

 

[avoidconfusion]

Almost feels like a loss to me because the 2nd half after we went 5:1 up was so unbelievably bad and Pep is starting to really infuriate me with his absolute lack of game management.

 

[Le Havre Oswald]

Are you sure we didn’t get Savinho to work in the club shop?

 

[Brendan110_0]

Because he said that Savinho’s shit?

I say he's shit. Shits the bed when an opposition player comes within 5ft of him and loses the ball, he's not getting past any players to even hit the first defender with a cross. Weak minded unfortunately, not what we need.

 

[give it to gordon]

The bit that worries me is that Fulham brought on subs which improved them. We brought on subs that made us worst.

 

[IrishBloodEnglishHeart]

The bit that worries me is that Fulham brought on subs which improved them. We brought on subs that made us worst.

I think taking Nico G off, when we just needed someone to come on and play alongside him, was the biggest mistake.

 

[Rossyuk]

Good first half, awful second half. Some observations applicable to all our games after 65 min o’reilly always looks knackered, always seems to play well up until that point. Reijnders apart from the goal last night, the games pass him by in midfield needs to be further forward to have any effect, and not seen huge ammounts from him. Wayward passing from Diaz and Guardiol. GOnzalez is coming good but needs some support. Love Bernardo but he isn’t a defensive type of midfielder. Doku can be hit or miss but a necessity. Savhinio we should get rid, he offers nothing.

 

[surprisedbygrass]

What a game of football!! I was a shaking mess until midnight. Surely, hopefully, we've witnessed an extremely rare thing.

After their second goal ('57) the match completely got away from us. Even in the run up to that goal Fulham were showing very positive signs. I don't recall ever seeing a team 5-1 down playing with such fervour. Either credit to Fulham or poor City for enabling such belief at that scoreline.

After 5-2 we were very passive and the subs were a response to a midfield collapse. Nico looked gone but I wouldn't have gone for Stones. Doku was responsible for giving the ball away all game, as well as attacking threat, but I wouldn't have gone for Savinho.

Anyway, simple stuff like corners being bombed on the keeper and no one marking men on the edge, not being able to put a foot on the ball (apart from Cherki) and not winning many challenges high up the pitch all need to be examined.

In the end we cleared one off the line and got the win. We need to embrace the 3 points and collectively, players and fans, move on from the madness.

We could have done with Jack Grealish off the bench to see the game out , or a fresh legged Bernardo to play keepy ball and draw fouls .