If the rot continues what happens ?

[robbieh]

Lots of similarities between this season and Pep's first, at least on the pitch. Square pegs in round holes essentially. The reason off it may be different but hopefully the cure is the same and Pep is the guy to lead the charge.

New blood, renewed appetite to win, but a stuttering season to endure first. I'd take top four now.

No way on earth we get top four. Bournemouth, Brighton, Newcastle and Tottenham will all finish above us. Add the 5 already above us. I think 10th is about right.
But to even achieve that we need to start picking up the odd win here and there which at the moment we don't look like doing.

People are saying this is the worst we've been under Pep but I'd say you'd have to go back a lot further to find a City side playing as badly as this.

People seem to be refusing to believe what they are seeing. Yesterday was an abysmal effort. Villa didn't play particularly well as they've been on a poor run themselves but they were better all over the pitch.They seemed to want it more.

 

[daztrueblue91]

Lots of similarities between this season and Pep's first, at least on the pitch. Square pegs in round holes essentially. The reason off it may be different but hopefully the cure is the same and Pep is the guy to lead the charge.

New blood, renewed appetite to win, but a stuttering season to endure first. I'd take top four now.

I think we are much worse now than during Pep’s first season. Like many others, I expected a drop off. In fact, I expected it last year rather than this. But the level of our decline has been astonishing.

A lot of people are downplaying our current form and ignoring just how bad we’ve been over the last two months. We’ve conceded 2 or more goals in 11 of the previous 12 games.

Our play is far too predictable and we look utterly toothless. Gvardiol being and second highest scorer and Nunes our second highest assister sums us up.

It’s not like we don’t have the players. We still have the deadliest striker in Europe with the likes of Foden, Grealish, Doku and Savinho supporting. There is no doubt that injuries, fatigue and general under performance from individuals has played a role.

But when so many players are out of form, we keep conceding the same goal time after time and don’t create much, the tactical set up has to be questioned.

 

[bellsouth]

No way on earth we get top four. Bournemouth, Brighton, Newcastle and Tottenham will all finish above us. Add the 5 already above us. I think 10th is about right.
But to even achieve that we need to start picking up the odd win here and there which at the moment we don't look like doing.

People are saying this is the worst we've been under Pep but I'd say you'd have to go back a lot further to find a City side playing as badly as this.

People seem to be refusing to believe what they are seeing. Yesterday was an abysmal effort. Villa didn't play particularly well as they've been on a poor run themselves but they were better all over the pitch.They seemed to want it more.

People are sleepwalking - expecting it suddenly to turn around. BUT, if this goes on which it may then we could be in the bottom half

 

[Exeter Blue I am here]

We can not go on like this. This will not end with a season out of the top 4. We are in the biggest tail spin I've ever seen from any professional sports team in my life.

We've got four games now to at least stabilise. Everton, Leicester, West Ham and Ipswich. If we don't come out of that little run with at least two wins then we're going to be in serious trouble, cos we've then got a horrible seven game run against Chelsea, Arsenal, Newcastle, Liverpool, Spurs, Forest and Brighton.
The main problem we've got, besides the chronic injury list, is that we have a squad of players, who, courtesy of age and an absence of pace and muscle, are completely ill suited to just about every tactical gambit there is. They can't press, they aren't able to resist when others press them (I've lost count of how many times Gundogan and Lewis in particular have been robbed of possession), and they don't have the legs to either counterattack or get back and cover when we've lost the ball. We've also got calamitous defenders operating up on the halfway line, and who, irrespective of the Rodri sized hole directly in front of them, are time and again undone by simple balls downfield.
Worse still, is that every team on the planet is aware of our collective deficiencies and knows exactly how to play against us. Eleven men behind the ball, nice and narrow, waiting patiently as we painfully pass the ball sideways and backwards at a snail's pace and then, at the first sign of a misplaced pass, breaking downfield like the Jamaican 4 x 100 Olympic relay team and scoring with their first shot. If I'm being honest, I don't expect Everton, Leicester, Ipswich or West Ham to deviate from that script one iota, which makes it very difficult to see where our next win is coming from.....and if Pep can't sort it - and at the moment he doesn't appear to have a clue - then we really are in a dark place

 

[Roachy]

No way on earth we get top four. Bournemouth, Brighton, Newcastle and Tottenham will all finish above us. Add the 5 already above us. I think 10th is about right.
But to even achieve that we need to start picking up the odd win here and there which at the moment we don't look like doing.

People are saying this is the worst we've been under Pep but I'd say you'd have to go back a lot further to find a City side playing as badly as this.

People seem to be refusing to believe what they are seeing. Yesterday was an abysmal effort. Villa didn't play particularly well as they've been on a poor run themselves but they were better all over the pitch.They seemed to want it more.

Mmm, a damning post but unfortunately quite accurate. The aim now is top 4 but much more of this carry on and it starts to become a tall order. There is, as you say, people in denial. I think there has been a bit of a change though in some peoples views lately in relation to our predicament. There's not much of the "1 or 2 players is all we need" statements around anymore.

 

[Kippax Street 1880]

We've got four games now to at least stabilise. Everton, Leicester, West Ham and Ipswich. If we don't come out of that little run with at least two wins then we're going to be in serious trouble, cos we've then got a horrible seven game run against Chelsea, Arsenal, Newcastle, Liverpool, Spurs, Forest and Brighton.
The main problem we've got, besides the chronic injury list, is that we have a squad of players, who, courtesy of age and an absence of pace and muscle, are completely ill suited to just about every tactical gambit there is. They can't press, they aren't able to resist when others press them (I've lost count of how many times Gundogan and Lewis in particular have been robbed of possession), and they don't have the legs to either counterattack or get back and cover when we've lost the ball. We've also got calamitous defenders operating up on the halfway line, who, irrespective of the Rodri sized hole directly in front of them, are time and again undone by simple balls downfield.
Worse still, is that every team on the planet is aware of our collective deficiencies and knows exactly how to play against us. Eleven men behind the ball, nice and narrow, waiting patiently as we painfully pass the ball sideways and backwards at a snail's pace and then, at the first sign of a misplaced pass, breaking downfield like the Jamaican 4 x 100 Olympic relay team and scoring with their first shot. If I'm being honest, I don't expect Everton, Leicester, Ipswich or West Ham to deviate from that script one iota, which makes it very difficult to see where our next win is coming from.....and if Pep can't sort it - and at the moment he doesn't appear to have a clue - then we really are in a dark place

I can't see us winning another game all season with the current players and set up. We don't create anything, it's so easy for the other team, a few direct passes and they are straight in.

Nobody has any confidence to beat a man or try a risky pass. Its all backwards and sideways at a glacial tempo. Everyone is fucked we can't even get 11 fit players on the pitch at the same time.

Every other game I watch there's a kid who used to play for us tearing it up while we watch the old guard struggle through the last years of their mega contract. Pep looks like he's ready for the asylum. We have to suffer the absolute embarrassment of looking at the pure joke of a human Walker flail around like a goldfish out of water whilst defaming our captains armband.

Haaland and Rodri must be looking at the new deals and thinking yeah fuck that.

That's even before I start to entertain the possibility we might have to consider the 115 case not going completely in our favour.

We need serious investment immediately in January to have any chance of rescuing anything from this season. And yes they are going to have to be panic buys, because we're in a situation which should be making everyone involved with this club panic!

 

[Kippax Street 1880]

Lots of similarities between this season and Pep's first, at least on the pitch. Square pegs in round holes essentially. The reason off it may be different but hopefully the cure is the same and Pep is the guy to lead the charge.

New blood, renewed appetite to win, but a stuttering season to endure first. I'd take top four now.

Peps first season was nothing like this. Even the loss at Goodison we battered them and were the better team. Bravo was a horror show and the defence was old and struggling with the demands of a Pep system but we were great going forward and you could clearly see the roots of something great developing. It's why everyone gave it time to work because it was obvious good things would come of it.

 

[simon23]

Mid table at best.....without recruitment lower

 

[cookster]

Some proper loons in this thread. Usual suspects.

 

[Brewster's millions]

Mid table at best.....without recruitment lower

The next three games will be very illustrative.

If we can’t scrap against proper mid/lower table fodder and get at least six points from the three fixtures then there’ll be no hiding from the predicament we’re in.