Leeds (H) | Post Match Thread

[WickyWain]

Pity I think he would’ve done well yesterday

I think he played against Liverpool on Friday

 

[bluemanchester]

BBC saying an inspired defensive display by Leeds but it was anything but conceding 29 shots. Any of team with those stats would put 4-5 past them.

We lost because we have the same failings we have had for years, we cannot put chances away with poor decision making in the final third. Our strikers can only score if they are literally on the goal line to tap in and i have never seen a team so wasteful in front of goal as us. We have the ball most of the game and make so many chances we often take a few and win but we have dropped points when we are in total control but miss all our chances.

Do we practice finishing in training? Our weakness is finishing shows with our penalties, you are never confident of us scoring one. I was watching the EFL highlights last night and some of the finishing was fantastic, how can our team of international players be so awful at shooting.

And name another team that concedes as many goals as us from the only shots on target by the opposition. Again its nothing new, been happening for years, 1 shot 1 goal etc

The finishing practice comes after the penalty taking practice which comes after the tackling practice which is just before the balanced nutritonal lunch for professional athletes. Maybe pudding chips peas and gravy would be better. ;-)

 

[chickaroon]

Mendy has to go. Never takes a man on space has to be created for him to get a cross in. He has list any pace he had, he is a coward in the tackle and he shows no sense of urgency or heart. A new left back and striker are needed this summer.
If Sterling had taken the chance created for him by Ferno in the first half, then a completely different game Sterling shows a complete lack of confidence right now and we do not have time for him to get it back in the important games to come. We cannot play people trying to hard to impress.

 

[tolmie's hairdoo]

Your memory is misguided our form and play was terrible

It's not even difficult to look up...

We won eight out of our remaining ten Premier League games after the restart, scoring 34 and conceded just four.

We also won home and away against Real Madrid.

We lost a freak game at Southampton 1-0 and conceded the title in 2-1 loss at Chelsea.

Winning 5-0 four times, 4-0 twice, including Champions Liverpool.

We also beat Newcastle 2-0 away in the Cup.

The losses against Arsenal and Lyon were far from expected, and Pep was certainly rotating with the Champions League in mind during this period.

 

[bongsblue]

Herts I agree much of your summary. Profligate in the extreme. You cannot help but enjoy the ball retention and approach play, but, in and around the box we sometimes short circuit woefully.

We have had much to enjoy these last few months but yesterday the failings you highlight, which we generally overcome, as our number of goals scored indicates, came home to bite us.

I find myself shouting at the TV, upsetting the dogs, who leg it for quieter climes and also my wife who, whilst a blue is a bit more cerebral, when I watch a game like yesterday.

The shooting is something which particularly irritates me. When as Leeds did yesterday, not because they were wonderfully tactically astute but because they had no alternative, retreat to the edge of their box en masse then one of the game breakers is accurate long range shooting, which may go in directly, or come back off the keeper to hopefully alert attackers following in.

There was much wrong yesterday but thankfully this season there has been much right.

Lets hope the selection made yesterday is justified by a performance we can all be proud of in midweek

 

[eversince 76]

Ake was solid enough.
Zinchenko is actually a midfielder.
Not bad in defence though...

Zinchenko is a midfielder with Ukraine. And other that he has rarely played midfielder in a City team since he signed for us, I simply can’t phantom Pep studying Leeds for 20 hours only to come up with this: Ake and Mendy, with Zinchenko in front of them. One coming back after a long absence through injury, one that hasn’t played LB due to injuries and other matters, and one in midfield where he has rarely played for City. It just doesn’t make sense. Either he thought it wasn’t that important. If so why bother about the result. But Pep said he studied 20 hrs. 20? Really?

 

[BerkshireBlue]

It's not even difficult to look up...

We won eight out of our remaining ten Premier League games after the restart, scoring 34 and conceded just four.

We also won home and away against Real Madrid.

We lost a freak game at Southampton 1-0 and conceded the title in 2-1 loss at Chelsea.

Winning 5-0 four times, 4-0 twice, including Champions Liverpool.

We also beat Newcastle 2-0 away in the Cup.

The losses against Arsenal and Lyon were far from expected, and Pep was certainly rotating with the Champions League in mind during this period.

That's just stats we were playing poorly and nothing could hidden that fact

 

[bongsblue]

BBC saying an inspired defensive display by Leeds but it was anything but conceding 29 shots. Any of team with those stats would put 4-5 past them.

We lost because we have the same failings we have had for years, we cannot put chances away with poor decision making in the final third. Our strikers can only score if they are literally on the goal line to tap in and i have never seen a team so wasteful in front of goal as us. We have the ball most of the game and make so many chances we often take a few and win but we have dropped points when we are in total control but miss all our chances.

Do we practice finishing in training? Our weakness is finishing shows with our penalties, you are never confident of us scoring one. I was watching the EFL highlights last night and some of the finishing was fantastic, how can our team of international players be so awful at shooting.

And name another team that concedes as many goals as us from the only shots on target by the opposition. Again its nothing new, been happening for years, 1 shot 1 goal etc

Sorry meant to directly post a reply but have inadvertently added something in the thread

 

[Bigga]

Mendy has to go. Never takes a man on space has to be created for him to get a cross in. He has list any pace he had, he is a coward in the tackle and he shows no sense of urgency or heart. A new left back and striker are needed this summer.
If Sterling had taken the chance created for him by Ferno in the first half, then a completely different game Sterling shows a complete lack of confidence right now and we do not have time for him to get it back in the important games to come. We cannot play people trying to hard to impress.

I can't see us selling Mendy unless it's for a fee that claws back most of what was spent on him.

He has an abundant lack of confidence, overall, but has been more adventurous of late, resulting in a goal and being in positions to attack the goal. Something that Cancelo does and is loved for.

Zin and Walker are similar players when in their respectful positions.

Anyway, if City are going for Haaland, there's hardly a chance to sell a natural left back for an inserted one and leave the team short and without adequate back up.

 

[tolmie's hairdoo]

That's just stats we were playing poorly and nothing could hidden that fact

I'm not sure why you are prepared to die on this hill, but that's up to you, I guess.

We were playing great, hitting teams for cricket scores, conceding just four, beating Real Madrid (deservedly) home and away.

Exactly the reason why it came as such a shock to everybody losing to Arsenal and Lyon in the way we did.

If anything, we were the outstanding team after the restart and Pep fucked up those two particular games by tinkering.

He's not beyond reproach and playing Garcia in both was what got us served our arses on a plate in the counter attacks.

 

[Grassland Blue]

Meh.

Not happy, but 8 points clear even if Rags win games in hand.

Just one of those days nothing quite goes right.

Still massive favourites for league and in all the cups. Onwards!

Question is will moaninho play a weakened team against the rags, bearing in mind the upcoming Carabou cup final?

 

[tolmie's hairdoo]

Question is will moaninho play a weakened team against the rags, bearing in mind the upcoming Carabou cup final?

Not a chance. Spurs are still very much in the hunt for top four and securing that would be bigger than a trophy, certainly for their stretched finances.

 

[Bigga]

Zinchenko is a midfielder with Ukraine. And other that he has rarely played midfielder in a City team since he signed for us, I simply can’t phantom Pep studying Leeds for 20 hours only to come up with this: Ake and Mendy, with Zinchenko in front of them. One coming back after a long absence through injury, one that hasn’t played LB due to injuries and other matters, and one in midfield where he has rarely played for City. It just doesn’t make sense. Either he thought it wasn’t that important. If so why bother about the result. But Pep said he studied 20 hrs. 20? Really?

Not sure what your issues is?

Correct me if I'm wrong, but Leeds scored both their goals from the right; Cancelo's position.

That means Zinny, Mendy and Aké all had pretty solid games relative to positions and injury.

 

[Phil1]

This game will just be a footnote when it comes to looking back next year on how the title was won.
The narrative will be that plucky Leeds grabbed a win after being bombarded for at least 45 mins but in truth meant little.

 

[MillsyTheMosher]

Just read this thread and some of the reactions are pathetic haha.

We rested 7/8 of our best players and got beat with a last min sucker punch in a game we could easily have won. Like spoilt little brats on here some of you if we don’t win comfortably.

Pep rightly was being questioned after the first 10 games of the season but to question him after this defeat is pathetic really.

In the grand scheme of things yesterday doesnt matter at all as the league is practically won anyway. Beat Dortmund next week and it’s a master stroke by Pep to rest them in this game.

 

[eversince 76]

Not sure what your issues is?

Correct me if I'm wrong, but Leeds scored both their goals from the right; Cancelo's position.

That means Zinny, Mendy and Aké all had pretty solid games relative to positions and injury.

Leeds did. But surely you have noticed the danger from the left. With Ederson making a vital safe that wasn’t vital anymore when Leeds did score the 2nd.
And putting Ake, Mendy and out of position Zinchenko in a team that also contained Torres who hardly played the last few months, and Sterling who is totally out of form, with central defenders Stones and Ake who probably have played once together before this, it makes you can’t expect fluently play from the starting 11. As in you don’t take the fame too serious. As in how do you explain Pep studying Leeds for 20 hrs. Either he hasn’t. Or wants to show off vs Bielsa. Or fell asleep after 45 minutes. But it surely can’t explain the starting 11.

 

[SamBlue]

...What I do know is that we are terribly slow in the transition and have been for a while. It does make me think how Haaland would fit in to this system if the team are not more direct.....

Playing slow or fast has nothing to do with Cancelo failing to defend totally innocuous situation twice in two seconds and the second goal actually came out as a result of playing too fast and not too slow, so we lost any semblance of a positional play.

 

[levets]

Sterling is definitely off form but where's the evidence it is from an issue between him and Pep?

In relative terms is Mendy our worst signing ever? Lee Bradbury? Mangala? RSC? Bony?

People giving Mendy shit need to recognise ‘he’ was not responsible for our loss yesterday ffs...
Sterling, Jesus, Torres, Cancelo & Bernardo were. Half the outfield players absolutely garbage was the reason.

 

[eversince 76]

Just read this thread and some of the reactions are pathetic haha.

We rested 7/8 of our best players and got beat with a last min sucker punch in a game we could easily have won. Like spoilt little brats on here some of you if we don’t win comfortably.

Pep rightly was being questioned after the first 10 games of the season but to question him after this defeat is pathetic really.

In the grand scheme of things yesterday doesnt matter at all as the league is practically won anyway. Beat Dortmund next week and it’s a master stroke by Pep to rest them in this game.

I never expected us to win easily on forehand. We are struggling at home. More teams do.
And I grew up a City fan that learned that it’s about supporting the team and winning is just a bonus.

It’s Pep stating he studied Leeds for 20 hours. And comes up with a starting 11 that we all knew was not gonna perform any fluency. He kept going on for weeks that Leeds was the worst opponent in these list of fixtures and in between the CL QF-games.

 

[Zenmanc]

After convincing myself over the past month that our lack of a true striker/ clinical #9 is no longer needed and we're good enough, yesterday's game showed me why that's shortsighted.