Kudos to Mancini "takes blame for City's Defeat"

[Gelsons Dad]

It's certainly true that we started 442 but i thought we changed to 433. The formation was definitely the mistake as we were overrun in the middle. As for why he chose to start 442. Well that's anyones guess. I recon he's been reading your advice Didders.

The mistake was not 4-4-2. It was the players in that system. De Jong is critical. And Silva is critical. Take the latter as a critical example. Milner offers nothing on the left. He doesn't have a football brain. Industrious yes, but not a top player. Add to that he is naive. He wants to play more centrally we all know that, but he isn't technically minded or tactically gifted to understand the nuances of fluid formations. As a result, he wasn't occupying space between the lines (of a 4-4-2 - cutting just inside from the left), rather he wandered around like a headless chicken. Silva would have done this better, and subsequently, made Lucas and Spearing sit deeper, and exposing a youth team player tactically

I'm not sure how you play NDJ in a 442 unless it's a diamond. After Teves went off we had Yaya sitting in NDJ's position for a short while and it steadied the ship just enough for us to press forward and get caught on the break with Boyata out of position. I believe the team selection was based on the formation which was the wrong one for an away game at liverpool.

 

[gio's side step]

The mistake was not 4-4-2. It was the players in that system. De Jong is critical. And Silva is critical. Take the latter as a critical example. Milner offers nothing on the left. He doesn't have a football brain. Industrious yes, but not a top player. Add to that he is naive. He wants to play more centrally we all know that, but he isn't technically minded or tactically gifted to understand the nuances of fluid formations. As a result, he wasn't occupying space between the lines (of a 4-4-2 - cutting just inside from the left), rather he wandered around like a headless chicken. Silva would have done this better, and subsequently, made Lucas and Spearing sit deeper, and exposing a youth team player tactically

I'm not sure how you play NDJ in a 442 unless it's a diamond. After Teves went off we had Yaya sitting in NDJ's position for a short while and it steadied the ship just enough for us to press forward and get caught on the break with Boyata out of position. I believe the team selection was based on the formation which was the wrong one for an away game at liverpool.

We played a fluid 4-4-2 against Sunderland at home with NDJ playing instead of Barry and Silva playing instead of Milner and it worked tactically and technically. It would also have worked far better than that last night.

 

[Gelsons Dad]

The mistake was not 4-4-2. It was the players in that system. De Jong is critical. And Silva is critical. Take the latter as a critical example. Milner offers nothing on the left. He doesn't have a football brain. Industrious yes, but not a top player. Add to that he is naive. He wants to play more centrally we all know that, but he isn't technically minded or tactically gifted to understand the nuances of fluid formations. As a result, he wasn't occupying space between the lines (of a 4-4-2 - cutting just inside from the left), rather he wandered around like a headless chicken. Silva would have done this better, and subsequently, made Lucas and Spearing sit deeper, and exposing a youth team player tactically

That's it in a nutshell, as I'm posting on another thread where the blame is being laid squarely at my door ;-).

It was the personel not the system which was the problem. I started getting texts from the minute the team was announced about it. Every blue I know saw this problem.

So why didn't Mancini? Last night beggars belief. I've thought he was incompetant for a long time but even I was shocked.

And De Jong on for Balotelli? Why?!?!?!?!?!?[/quote]

This was damage limitation. Balo was starting to mope and needed to come off before he did anything daft given that Teves is out and Dzeko is shite.

 

[ST Coleridge]

It baffled me to be perfectly honest. We should be the one team in the division in terms of form on this tactically, who were capable of making sure Liverpool did not set a high tempo. Whilst giving them credit in how hard they worked and pressed us, we never created any space to settle and composure ourselves in posession. I can't recall Kompany and Lescott having the ball at their feet for more than twice in the first half - in terms of being able to spread the play, allow Barry to come and pick it up off them. It was as you say, quite direct, and a lot of naive, emotionally unintelligent rushing, trying to subtly win the second ball with no intent. Very frustrating to watch, and you could see Liverpool's tempo increasing and us getting pushed back.

When Tevez went off, there was no defending from the front whatsoever. Dzeko and Balo very rarely split their centre halves and full backs, made it far to easy for them to play it into Lucas, - at one point in the first half, Carragher had the ball, and it was Yaya who was our furthest player forward pressing. Ridiculous.

Also, tactically naive - in the sense, that Johnson got fouled and Aurelio booked after 30 mins. That means, he is only one/two late fouls away from a sending off. As a result, we should have been patient in posession and isolated Johnson one and one more against Aurelio. With Boyata overlapping. This never happened more than a couple of ocassions. Aurelio as a result, never looked in danger of committing another foul

Wholly agree with the naive/unintelligent hunting for second balls, and the poor pressing from the forward line (when Liverpool had the ball in defence, I noticed Barry and Milner continuously jogging backwards from the halfway line, so frustrating).

Re: Our CBs having time on the ball, and 'patient play' to try and work AJ in - you have to admit it that Liverpool made it so tough for us. The pressing was as good and frantic as I've seen from a PL team this season. De Jong, of course, would have helped us weather that a bit, but maybe Tevez (or Balotelli up front, as opposed to the wing) could have played on the shoulder and a few balls over the top might have forced their line back a wee bit. Johnson was stupidly deep in our half at times in the second half.

But, again, the most frustrating thing was the lack of movement post-Tevez/pre-Silva. Once we actually had the ball on the deck in Liverpool's half, we were poor.

 

[the goats backside]

there was me dreaming the other day, only a possible 9 games left, the players all had a good rest, the chance to win the FA Cup, finish possibly 3rd, the excitement inside me took me back to our better days, ok im 48. I thought about our squad, our manager and the desire, hunger that must be inside them too. Another game gone, can i still dream , un believable that last night, took all my hopes away so i have to dust myself again and start praying

 

[Gelsons Dad]

I'm not sure how you play NDJ in a 442 unless it's a diamond. After Teves went off we had Yaya sitting in NDJ's position for a short while and it steadied the ship just enough for us to press forward and get caught on the break with Boyata out of position. I believe the team selection was based on the formation which was the wrong one for an away game at liverpool.

We played a fluid 4-4-2 against Sunderland at home with NDJ playing instead of Barry and Silva playing instead of Milner and it worked tactically and technically. It would also have worked far better than that last night.

From the 307 the Sunderland formation was not 442. There's fluid and there's fluid but it's a real stretch to call it 442.
Sunderland at home isn't Anfield away either.

 

[AntonDonJuan]

We played a fluid 4-4-2 against Sunderland at home with NDJ playing instead of Barry and Silva playing instead of Milner and it worked tactically and technically. It would also have worked far better than that last night.

Even a broken clock is right twice a day.

How long has Mancini been here and yet still he was naive enough to try and play at anfield away like that

It was fuckin embaressing tbh

 

[gio's side step]

We played a fluid 4-4-2 against Sunderland at home with NDJ playing instead of Barry and Silva playing instead of Milner and it worked tactically and technically. It would also have worked far better than that last night.

From the 307 the Sunderland formation was not 442. There's fluid and there's fluid but it's a real stretch to call it 442.
Sunderland at home isn't Anfield away either.

We have all debated that point to death. No point in going over it all again. Ultimately, it was different last night, due to the omission of two significant players. Anfield away isn't Sunderland at home. Of course I agree. Hence read the points made in relation to the way to start the game at Anfield.

 

[Didsbury Dave]

We played a fluid 4-4-2 against Sunderland at home with NDJ playing instead of Barry and Silva playing instead of Milner and it worked tactically and technically. It would also have worked far better than that last night.

From the 307 the Sunderland formation was not 442. There's fluid and there's fluid but it's a real stretch to call it 442.
Sunderland at home isn't Anfield away either.

Oh God, not this again.

It was 4-4-2 against Sunderland and we started with it last night.

 

[Scully]

A complete and utter shambles and embarrassing to watch. Damn right he should take the blame. Another crucial game and he f**ks it up, completely! He has never won a crucial game yet. No point going over all the mistakes as we all know what they were. We needed a platform for Saturday and the rest of the season, and we've been screwed. I'd still put Kiddo in charge for the rest of the season, starting today.