#17 | Kevin De Bruyne - 2020/21 Performances

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The best football we’ve played in this, and for a few games perhaps, any other season was when Kev was sidelined. The almost mythical concept of total football was there before our eyes in sky blue. I don’t know if it’s a tactical thing or if the other key players feel slightly inhibited and less likely to express themselves when Kev is playing but since he’s been back we haven’t hit those heights again. His individual contribution after the first two or three dodgy games of his return has been fine and there have been moments of top class but we arent as fluent as we were without him. Coincidence maybe but I wouldn’t pick him tonight.
 
The best football we’ve played in this, and for a few games perhaps, any other season was when Kev was sidelined. The almost mythical concept of total football was there before our eyes in sky blue. I don’t know if it’s a tactical thing or if the other key players feel slightly inhibited and less likely to express themselves when Kev is playing but since he’s been back we haven’t hit those heights again. His individual contribution after the first two or three dodgy games of his return has been fine and there have been moments of top class but we arent as fluent as we were without him. Coincidence maybe but I wouldn’t pick him tonight.
You make some very good points. I think blue moon will implode if Kev is left out. This point has been argued at length. The city team this season is at its best when the collective is chosen over the individual. Kev has found his form over the last few games and his place in the team is secure. You may be right but In champions league games the big players will decide the matches. Kev will drive us into the semi imo.
 
The best football we’ve played in this, and for a few games perhaps, any other season was when Kev was sidelined. The almost mythical concept of total football was there before our eyes in sky blue. I don’t know if it’s a tactical thing or if the other key players feel slightly inhibited and less likely to express themselves when Kev is playing but since he’s been back we haven’t hit those heights again. His individual contribution after the first two or three dodgy games of his return has been fine and there have been moments of top class but we arent as fluent as we were without him. Coincidence maybe but I wouldn’t pick him tonight.
It's kind of like the striker debate. What do you want? A striker that scores goals galore even if at the expense of the team's full potential (not saying they'd hinder the team, just hold it back from it's peak), or a striker that isn't amongst the best statistically but benefits the team beyond others?

With De Bruyne, you have a guy that is insanely gifting at creating opportunities in a multitude of ways and also is a strong scorer. But it's been seen that with Bernardo in that position, there's generally a bit more fluidity.

In theory, you'd prefer the players that bring the most out of the team. However, most theory falls apart when you realise the game is won and lost on goals. Normally you can sacrifice individual talent over team potential, but at the level City play at, any player who's getting in on talent alone is going to be world class. De Bruyne's numbers are elite. Every game he plays in, good or bad, he's likely to pop up with multiple goal creating contributions. Individually, he contributes more than the whole team without him on this front, so it's worth the sacrifice. At least sometimes.

It would be the same with a striker. It's important we have a forward that makes everything tick for us. But, if we could have a striker that's guaranteed a goal a game, then all of a sudden it might just be worth sacrificing that fluidity.


A less obvious example would be with Dias. On paper Laporte and Stones is still our best CB partnership if we're thinking about how the team plays as a whole. You have a left and right foot combination. You have two big defenders who at their best are both superb at defending. You have two of the best CBs at playing the possession game in the world. They're both better than Dias at defending high up the pitch when they're on it.

But Dias is just a better defender overall. Not only that, but he makes others around him defend better. And his mentality is superb, and it rubs off onto others. He's not anywhere the level of the other two in possession really, but the team is better with him in it just because he is better at preventing goals conceded, just like De Bruyne is better at ensuring goals are scored. The fluidity is sacrificed for the goals.


It's a difficult balancing act, because too many of these players and all of a sudden the cohesion is gone, and it's not a Pep team. But having 3 or 4 of them available in whatever position you can think of can be huge difference makers.

Unfortunately it's very rare to have players who can both be world class difference makers statistically (in the goals columns) and true system players at the same time. For Pep teams I can only think of Messi and Neuer. So you have to "struggle" with the mix of perfect system players and world class difference makers.
 
It's kind of like the striker debate. What do you want? A striker that scores goals galore even if at the expense of the team's full potential (not saying they'd hinder the team, just hold it back from it's peak), or a striker that isn't amongst the best statistically but benefits the team beyond others?

With De Bruyne, you have a guy that is insanely gifting at creating opportunities in a multitude of ways and also is a strong scorer. But it's been seen that with Bernardo in that position, there's generally a bit more fluidity.

In theory, you'd prefer the players that bring the most out of the team. However, most theory falls apart when you realise the game is won and lost on goals. Normally you can sacrifice individual talent over team potential, but at the level City play at, any player who's getting in on talent alone is going to be world class. De Bruyne's numbers are elite. Every game he plays in, good or bad, he's likely to pop up with multiple goal creating contributions. Individually, he contributes more than the whole team without him on this front, so it's worth the sacrifice. At least sometimes.

It would be the same with a striker. It's important we have a forward that makes everything tick for us. But, if we could have a striker that's guaranteed a goal a game, then all of a sudden it might just be worth sacrificing that fluidity.


A less obvious example would be with Dias. On paper Laporte and Stones is still our best CB partnership if we're thinking about how the team plays as a whole. You have a left and right foot combination. You have two big defenders who at their best are both superb at defending. You have two of the best CBs at playing the possession game in the world. They're both better than Dias at defending high up the pitch when they're on it.

But Dias is just a better defender overall. Not only that, but he makes others around him defend better. And his mentality is superb, and it rubs off onto others. He's not anywhere the level of the other two in possession really, but the team is better with him in it just because he is better at preventing goals conceded, just like De Bruyne is better at ensuring goals are scored. The fluidity is sacrificed for the goals.


It's a difficult balancing act, because too many of these players and all of a sudden the cohesion is gone, and it's not a Pep team. But having 3 or 4 of them available in whatever position you can think of can be huge difference makers.

Unfortunately it's very rare to have players who can both be world class difference makers statistically (in the goals columns) and true system players at the same time. For Pep teams I can only think of Messi and Neuer. So you have to "struggle" with the mix of perfect system players and world class difference makers.
Good post. Its a nice problem to have but a difficult one for Pep to address. Disagree on a couple of points though, I think we create more without Kev - to use a boxing analogy he will come up with one or two massive punches every game that can change the course of it but the total football of earlier this season saw punches coming from all kinds of different angles and I think it’s easier for opponents to defend against a threat from one main source than to cope with unexpected attacks from all over the place.

Totally agree with your striker analysis, Haaland won’t ever be as agile as Jesus and he’s such a giant that by his mid 20s he may be as immobile as Kane is now but he’s like Edin Dzeko on acid so he’s indispensable I think.

Stonesy has had a wonderful season and Laporte is a very good defender albeit one overrated by blues I think but i agree with you on Dias - if I needed a clean sheet to save my life I’m going with Dias every time, great on the ball, phenomenal anticipation, hard as nails, decent pace.
It’s easy to see how Pep “overthinks” things. Only an idiot or a journalist with no understanding of the game wouldn’t need to consider these questions in great depth.
 
A lot of these are criminal. I had to stop watching after half-way
I did exactly the same. Couldn’t watch any more after about half way through.

Ive been critical of Kev when he throws his arms in the air moaning at everyone, but when you watch videos like that it makes you sympathise with him massively.

The poor bloke has to put up with some appalling finishing playing for us.
 
I did exactly the same. Couldn’t watch any more after about half way through.

Ive been critical of Kev when he throws his arms in the air moaning at everyone, but when you watch videos like that it makes you sympathise with him massively.

The poor bloke has to put up with some appalling finishing playing for us.
As a hatful of chances are created, City still score goals. We know this.

One doesn’t expect the team to put away every single chance but some of those missed chances were put on a plate with a napkin, fork and knife along with a hot towel on the side :)

It’s one of the reasons I don’t look at highlights of certain games. It’s not good for the heart. Makes for an interesting watch but still bad for the heart haha.
 
Tonight was a great example of a world class talent trumping the need for a "perfect" system.

What a player.
 
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