The match was actually not that bad, but some of the comments here makes me feel as if we are a team struggling with relegation. Granted the performance all around the pitch was poor. Hart was on occasion to slow to react, Zaba partly responsible for the second goal, MDM too slow, Otamendi too rash, Kolarov aiming every cross at opposition defenders instead of a blue shirt, Fernandinho having an off day for a change, Yaya anonymus in both attack and defence, Delph's passing left a lot to be desired, Sterling ought to have used his brain more, Silva showing signs of life in the first half but disappearing in the second. Even Sergio should have been more clinical and moved more despite the lack of service, and Kelechi was rather prone to lose the ball. The only one meeting/exceeding expectations was probably Celina whom not many was expecting to feature in the match.
But was it really that diabolical? While they deserve to win for being the more defensive and clinical team, a 1-0 or 2-0 perhaps reflects the overall performance better. It pains me to see them scoring three against us, and that may have been why everyone has been so negative here, but this is by no means the worst match in recent memories. Is it worse than Stoke away? Or West Ham away? Or the second half against Spurs? Our midfield was much more ineffective in those matches than against Leicester. At least against Leicester I still had hope that our players can hold onto the ball long enough to plan an attack, not GIVING IT AWAY straight after receiving in our own half and then wasting the rest of the match either standing or running after the ball like a headless chicken.
At least I see more of that free-flowing city returning. Surely possession can be useless without meaningful attack, but like it or not City is a possession-based attacking team and this will only be emphasized more under Pep. Possession is fundamental in both attack and defence for City, especially with players like KDB and Navas injured and Leicester deadly on counter-attacks, and yesterday City's passing gives me hope that the TEAM as a whole is improving, albeit to little effect. Whether we can put in a better performance next Sunday remains a question, but hopefully the 13 healthy players can step up a plate, regain the lethal edge and get the team through the injury crisis.
HIndsight is a very wonderful thing. Criticize Pellegrini's selection all you want, but given our lack of options, his is a logical one. Delph may be deployed on the left to help Kolarov nullify Mahrez, which was not much of a success. And it is understandable that he started Yaya because he could gave us control with his passing. His plan may backfire, but to say that he was a poor manager and that he did not prepare specifically for Leicester is really unappreciative of what we have. Not everyone is Pep for god's sake. On the injury part, I agree that he may be overplaying senior players in cup games and there might be some problems with the training regime. But hey, we are not the ones managing the team are we?
Same with the players. Of course it is ok to criticize the players for poor performances, but some here just go too far. It is utterly a shame to see some here labelling players "finished" and "lacking desire" and wanting them to be gone. Yesterday I saw 11 players who wanted to win, even for Yaya and Silva. Yaya's case was perhaps arguable, but at one time in second half Yaya was shouting at others, probably to urge them to concentrate, and most of the time it was Silva who initiated the attack. Just because Silva didn't track back a lot doesn't mean he's disinterested. For fuck's sake, he is INJURED enough to fly to Spain to see the national doctor. His presence on the pitch told the story. Tough as he is, he would be mad if he tried tackling and running from one end to the other of the pitch after twisting his ankle. Naturally his form suffered a lot due to persisting injury, but the heavy slagging he received both here and on twitter is simply a DISRESPECT to the player's ability and the service he has given to the club. It only shows how impatient and short-sighted fans can be nowadays. Look at the Iniesta last season and the Iniesta now. You'd be surprised how full fitness makes a difference in players.
Have faith! This season is far from finished. City are known to do it the hard way, but that also means we are capable of miracles.