Madrid v City CL semi final 2nd leg

[Terra Passenger]

At the moment the best teams in Europe are Barcelona, Bayern and Real. Barcelona were eliminated because the quarter finals coincided with a period of very poor form for them. Atletico come fourthin my book (despite beating Bayern) and then come City and Paris. There is a clear gap between the first three and the others. This is the gap City failed to close. Real are in their best form of the season: we have been playing well recently until Sunday. What has been clear from the semis, and long before that, is that City, in common with other teams, do not move the ball anywhere near as quickly as Barca, Bayern or Real. I think it is this which makes much of our team look static, not to say statuesque, when we play top teams - and our groups have ALWAYS included at least one top team. I don't think the problem is lack of effort - last night's BT statistics showed we actually ran further than Madrid, but they pass more accurately and more quickly. They also play better without the ball - they reorganise to get the ball back much quicker than we do and they hunt in packs. Our players found they were surrounded by three whites or we had to play longer and risk giving the ball away. Noe, in circumstances such as these it is easy to look "timid", as though you're not getting "stuck in", "not going for it". In fact it's very frustrating and you feel as though you're always running up a dead end. That was what it was like against Bayern at the Etihad in 2013 and in the Nou Camp last season. It's not that we are a disgrace, it's not that we are lazy and it's not that our team needs binning - it's simply that we have to accept that for the moment Real are better, just as Barca were better last season. And more perspiration never maks up for inspiration.

The good news is that a lot of what is being said in the papers this morning is nonsense. City do not have the problems identified. "This team" is not a mile away from getting to the final as Keane assures us. There is no point talking about "this team" any more, there is no point talking about "City's problems". "This team" and "those problems" were Pellegrini's and he isn't going to be able to solve them. Next season we'll begin to see Pep's team and they will play in a very different way. I don't know what our formation or tactics will be, I don't know whether they'll be the same two weeks together, but I am convinced we'll be very different and very much better. Whether we'll break the stranglehold the Spaniards have got on the CL is a different question.

Atletico, Bayern, Madrid and Barca are all clearly a cut above anyone else.

Juve, City and PSG are next tier.

And at the moment, Atletico are the best team in football for me. They simply don't concede and when "better" teams eventually get careless sending too many players forward, they are punished.

I expect that Atletico will win the UCL this year - although in a one-off, anything can happen.

 

[Marvin]

At the moment the best teams in Europe are Barcelona, Bayern and Real. Barcelona were eliminated because the quarter finals coincided with a period of very poor form for them. Atletico come fourthin my book (despite beating Bayern) and then come City and Paris. There is a clear gap between the first three and the others. This is the gap City failed to close. Real are in their best form of the season: we have been playing well recently until Sunday. What has been clear from the semis, and long before that, is that City, in common with other teams, do not move the ball anywhere near as quickly as Barca, Bayern or Real. I think it is this which makes much of our team look static, not to say statuesque, when we play top teams - and our groups have ALWAYS included at least one top team. I don't think the problem is lack of effort - last night's BT statistics showed we actually ran further than Madrid, but they pass more accurately and more quickly. They also play better without the ball - they reorganise to get the ball back much quicker than we do and they hunt in packs. Our players found they were surrounded by three whites or we had to play longer and risk giving the ball away. Noe, in circumstances such as these it is easy to look "timid", as though you're not getting "stuck in", "not going for it". In fact it's very frustrating and you feel as though you're always running up a dead end. That was what it was like against Bayern at the Etihad in 2013 and in the Nou Camp last season. It's not that we are a disgrace, it's not that we are lazy and it's not that our team needs binning - it's simply that we have to accept that for the moment Real are better, just as Barca were better last season. And more perspiration never maks up for inspiration.

The good news is that a lot of what is being said in the papers this morning is nonsense. City do not have the problems identified. "This team" is not a mile away from getting to the final as Keane assures us. There is no point talking about "this team" any more, there is no point talking about "City's problems". "This team" and "those problems" were Pellegrini's and he isn't going to be able to solve them. Next season we'll begin to see Pep's team and they will play in a very different way. I don't know what our formation or tactics will be, I don't know whether they'll be the same two weeks together, but I am convinced we'll be very different and very much better. Whether we'll break the stranglehold the Spaniards have got on the CL is a different question.

I agree with your hierarchy: Barcelona, Bayern, Real Madrid and Atletico.

Next you say comes City and PSG. City and PSG have sank back into the morass and we're possibly behind clubs like Spurs now and in with the West Hams, Man Utd and Liverpools. Let's not kid ourselves that we're making progress or standing still. We are not. We have gone backwards and progress to the CL semis does not disguise that.

Pep managed to transition Bayern and maintain their success because he was taking over the dominant, or a dominant team. At city we are in transition. I had assumed a couple of months ago that only minor tinkering was required but maybe more transfers will be required.

we ran further than Madrid because they had the ball. That's not a positive. And if you are focussing on running, its not so much the km run that matters, but the capacity to run at high speed that is a measure of effectiveness. That's where some of our players fall down (defensively and offensively).

 

[citymad]

Be interesting to be at the training ground next couple of days to see the response and also to hear what the players felt after last night. Hopefully they give at least a little bit of damn.

 

[Peter Doherty]

I've seen pensioners choose their own coffins with more enthusiasm than what we shown tonight. It'll be the same against Arsenal.

 

[Peter Doherty]

I said when Kompany was subbed that the players would use it as an excuse to lose. Unfortunately, they didn't disappoint. Strange mentality at the club for a long while now.

 

[blueinsa]

I said when Kompany was subbed that the players would use it as an excuse to lose. Unfortunately, they didn't disappoint. Strange mentality at the club for a long while now.

Since the final whistle I've thought long and hard on this and yes, they might not like or respect the gaffer and his tactics, hence the poor performance but it was a semi final and it appeared that they didn't even want to play for each other and the pride of reaching a CL final.

Complete apathy it looked like.

 

[prof-taf]

It was obvious we tried not to be wide open and hopefully nick a goal. Those saying rather have list 4 nil would not have been saying that if 1 of the 2 close efforts had gone it,with Fernandinho and Auguero. We stayed in the game until the end, although should have gone direct with 10 to go.
To be fair though Madrid were better and deserve to be there but our time will come.

 

[andyhinch]

Since the final whistle I've thought long and hard on this and yes, they might not like or respect the gaffer and his tactics, hence the poor performance but it was a semi final and it appeared that they didn't even want to play for each other and the pride of reaching a CL final.

Complete apathy it looked like.

That's what I find hard to fathom tbh

 

[Goater=Legend]

This just highlights how badly the coaching has become.
It's schoolboy stuff

 

[OB1]

Wasted opportunity. Real were average and we only needed to nick a goal. Thought we would throw the kitchen sink at them. KDB and Sergio didn't do anything. Had they done so, it might have made the difference.


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I really don't get this Real were average talk: they are not average at all; they remain one of the very best and most able sides in the world and they have been in good form recently. They have more talent at their disposal than City but over both legs they played with a huge amount of respect for City and if they looked beatable, it was because City are not as bad as people make out. That does not mean we should not be disappointed in City's performance or ignore the need for change.