Didsbury Dave said:
Tevez is an exceptional player, but there's a grain of truth in your post. One of the reasons why our play became so scintillating at the start of last season was that we suddenly started playing pass and move, one and two touch football, breaking and attacking at pace. Everything was going through silva, aguero and that was the way we overpowered teams. Watch the 6-1 and you'll see it, possession and penetration, the opposition chasing shadows. One and two touch fast football. It was partly because we had no Tevez slowing things up.
With Tevez it's all or nothing. He can score some brilliant solo goals and he works his bollocks off. But his natural game is not one touch pass and move. He receives the ball and often runs at people. Sometimes it comes off and he creates himself or someone else a chance. Sometimes it doesn't and he loses possession. He's a better player than nasri, and brings a lot more to the table, but like nasri he loses us something as well. Fluency and speed. When both of them are in the team you get what we got on Tuesday and at west ham: lots of possession but slower build up player and less razor sharp penetration.
It's a conundrum because I believe he and Aguero are our best strikers. He gets goals. But he does affect us too and in some ways nullifies what can be our biggest weapon.
I completely agree, Tevez whilst being a world class individual player ruins the fluidity of the team. Our problem is that Aguero and Tevez do not work together and I don't care what anyone says, Aguero when fit starts. Yes people will point to the West Brom and Norwich games at the end of last season but that's two solitary games, since those two games we haven't played well and in the games they have played together I haven't seen one bit of link up between the pair (one ball through in pre-season if I remember correctly).
With Tevez in the team we don't score team goals, they're all individual goals or set pieces and it's because he doesn't play with any intelligence. By that I mean he plays like a schoolboy who thinks he's the best player in the team so just puts his head down and tries to win the game on his own. In terms of dribbling, strength, fighting spirit, chasing defenders down and finishing you cannot say a bad word about Tevez. You can't knock his effort and commitment either but his lack of awareness and vision stifles us especially as our whole attacking philosophy is based on that passing and movement. It makes him look like a superstar but to the detriment of the team as a whole. While his individual talent may win you the odd game like Swansea, it's teams that win leagues titles and we look a better team when Tevez isn't playing in my mind.