Walker and Otamendi were both guilty of the same thing yesterday: taking the ball towards a player who is face on. Both players did so through poor touches and both errors could have been costlier. It’s not the first time Walker has done this in recent weeks. He is encouraged to drive infield before laying the ball back, but he simply cannot do that when the opponent is facing him rather than adjacent to him. If he does, then the likelihood is that his touch will see him over hit the ball and he’ll end up throwing himself in to recover it.
In the last few weeks, we’ve had Delph sent off as well as Kompany and Walker carded for throwing themselves recklessly, sometimes repeatedly, into challenges. In all cases, the decision was marginal, but a red card could have been shown. So, unless players stick to the system, it’s almost inevitable that we’ll lose a player in a key game. They either stick to the script and pass it in the first and secon thirds of the pitch, or Guardiola either benches them or waits for the inevitable, and thereafter it’s going to be difficult to regain his trust.
