Margins and Mentality in Both Boxes

[City Raider]

I sense you've been itching to post this

Some really good points especially in identifying patterns. As has been said our improvements in the last year have been immense. I trust the manager is aware of issues that keep repeating and will make changes again in the summer.

We've reduced the average age of the team and sometimes it shows. It's been a difficult week not helped by the prems ridiculous scheduling of a derby around the CL quarters.

 

[nellyonthewing]

I said it before that Sterling's body shape when in key positions is awful.. He is leaning backwards leading him to scoop the ball over. Now even as a kid playing school football the mantra get over the ball was gospel. I had a pocketful of toffee cigarette player cards showing how Charlton or Alan Oakes shaped to shoot. I would have thought a Professional such as Sterling and his coaches would have figured out this obvious flaw- the only other conclusion is he can't do it.

 

[Damanino]

Conceding goals in high pressure moments within a 20 minute period is a real tendency we should have dealt with. Mental problem too we concede the first and after that if there is a shot at our goal that is probably a goal or a save with the ball ending up at the striker who wont miss second time.

The lack of leadership from Kompany or Otamendi in those moments is awful. They are jumping everything, rushing out of box with ending up on the ground with the opponent not even disturbed one bit from passing, shooting, crossing.

Imo Sterling will be dealt with as soon as we sign another attacking winger type player (Alexis, Mahrez bids prove its a target) as Sterling will be forced to deliver consistently or he will sit on bench much more. Stones was making mistakes after his injury he still kept playing then we bought Laporte activating his buyout fee and now Stones find himself being 4th choice even if he is better passer maybe than Kompany and Otamendi.

Can heppen to Sterling too next season, 3-4 games where he is missing sitters and has to work his way back to start again after that. Now we only can rotate him in a 433 with Bernardo who is not really an inside forward player with strong scoring ability. He can score 10 goals a season if he plays 50 games starting most of them. Like at Monaco. Not what we need upfront.

If Alexis ends up here earlier every bit of bad form from Sane, Sterling would have cost them serious game time. Now they may be a bit comfortable given we also only have two strikers at the club.

 

[ono]

May I respectfully suggest that you are overthinking and I’ve analysing the minutiae of everything this team does. Ffs sit back and enjoy the spectacular ride we are on. Accept shit happens. But reflect on a brilliant season of joyous football with plenty more to come.
I still pinch myself when watching this team - to pick apart the bones of every single aspect of each game is crass. This is a ridiculously fast paced and potentially chaotic game we follow. We are spoiled by how easy this team makes it look most of the time. Perspective, respect and a minor amount of awe due. I for one will not criticise this manager our squad. Absolutely fucking brilliant in victory or defeat (which is ridiculously uncommon by the way).
Stop being hyper critical, enjoy and give full credit.
Rant over. Carry on with the whingeing.

Respectfully this is what I find weird about this forum. Critique at any level is met with "You don't how lucky you are"....

We turn a blind out to anything that is sub standard and then act all confused when we don't quite reach the heights.

It goes without saying that we are fantastic, lucky, privileged etc. But it is also ok to talk about where we can improve. In fact, it's exciting to talk about.

 

[scousemanc]

May I respectfully suggest that you are overthinking and I’ve analysing the minutiae of everything this team does. Ffs sit back and enjoy the spectacular ride we are on. Accept shit happens. But reflect on a brilliant season of joyous football with plenty more to come.
I still pinch myself when watching this team - to pick apart the bones of every single aspect of each game is crass. This is a ridiculously fast paced and potentially chaotic game we follow. We are spoiled by how easy this team makes it look most of the time. Perspective, respect and a minor amount of awe due. I for one will not criticise this manager our squad. Absolutely fucking brilliant in victory or defeat (which is ridiculously uncommon by the way).
Stop being hyper critical, enjoy and give full credit.
Rant over. Carry on with the whingeing.

You are missing the point of this thread

 

[Marvin]

Conceding goals in high pressure moments within a 20 minute period is a real tendency we should have dealt with. Mental problem too we concede the first and after that if there is a shot at our goal that is probably a goal or a save with the ball ending up at the striker who wont miss second time.

The lack of leadership from Kompany or Otamendi in those moments is awful. They are jumping everything, rushing out of box with ending up on the ground with the opponent not even disturbed one bit from passing, shooting, crossing.

Imo Sterling will be dealt with as soon as we sign another attacking winger type player (Alexis, Mahrez bids prove its a target) as Sterling will be forced to deliver consistently or he will sit on bench much more. Stones was making mistakes after his injury he still kept playing then we bought Laporte activating his buyout fee and now Stones find himself being 4th choice even if he is better passer maybe than Kompany and Otamendi.

Can heppen to Sterling too next season, 3-4 games where he is missing sitters and has to work his way back to start again after that. Now we only can rotate him in a 433 with Bernardo who is not really an inside forward player with strong scoring ability. He can score 10 goals a season if he plays 50 games starting most of them. Like at Monaco. Not what we need upfront.

If Alexis ends up here earlier every bit of bad form from Sane, Sterling would have cost them serious game time. Now they may be a bit comfortable given we also only have two strikers at the club.

Losing games of football is hardly a regular occurrence for City.

We have at last had a bad spell, and bad luck (refereeing decisions) have played a big part. Salah's goal was crucial at Anfield. Jesus's goal would also have been crucial. Fine lines

I agree Sterling's finishing is unreliable. Occasionally brilliant, frequently shocking. He has to improve. But I doubt competition will force the improvement. It will give us an option, but it wont necessarily improve Sterling's finishing. His problem is not workrate. I don't think it is as simple as putting pressure on the player to get more out of him.

 

[Dave Ewing's Back 'eader]

I agree that none of our players is the complete and finished product. None of them. And probably never will be. Neither Silva nor de Bruyne nor Aguero. Human rather than machine. There are weaknesses that will be apparent on occasion when we play the style of football we have seen this season. Football consists of thousands upon thousands of variables. We create dozens of chances and miss many that just quite ordinary journeymen pros would put away with consummate ease. We have defenders who have moments of madness and don't appear to do the simple thing that screams at the assembled throng on the terraces. But taking last Wednesday and yesterday as examples the greatest variables that were present were those over which no one at the club has the slightest control. Wednesday: Dipper goal offside and given, City goal onside not given, foul on Sterling not given. Had we had those we come away with a 2-2 - might not be seen by some as deserving, but fuck that, it's goals that count! Yesterday, those variables over which we have no control played a major part in the result. Wayward, incredulous officiating cost us in the final result. Yes, we should have defended better, yes we should have had four or five by HT, but we have not had what the officials should have delivered. The only thing I can say about Atkinson's performance yesterday was that, unlike Corporal Panic, he didn't book Sergio for diving.

I feel mightily sorry for the City players. Week in, week out, PL in and PL out, CL in and CL they ply their trade with craft, artistry and sheer beauty, out we are getting shafted one way or another. Have we ever had a rub of the green from a ref since Sterling took the ball the other side of the Ashton Canal in the Semi v EFC and it wasn't called? I can't recall one! Compare that to the number of instances where we have been well and truly fucked over.

 

[Bayblue]

A good thought provoking post.

On the points you put in about our clinical ness in front of goal I really agree. We’ve been so much better this season but Pep has consistently said that in the biggest games you have to take your chances “when we arrive in the box” (that phrase always makes me smile). Sterling has improved massively this season and I’d expect him to keep doing so but I think it’s inevitable and correct that we will strengthen our attack this summer.

On the defensive points then the stats you’ve put in about these goal clusters are really interesting - basically 36 minutes of mayhem across this this season have taken the top level of gloss off what has been a remarkable campaign.

I wasn’t too sure what your conclusion was to this - as you say it’s not fair to blame Fern and Ota - but as these clusters have happened with a degree of regularity then it’s a great question to ask. There’s also the issue that there is another team, the opposition, that are a part of this and the answer could also be in what they see and do in such moments.

 

[jay_mcfc]

We love Guardiola, we love his approach and style of play and it's helped us to have one of the greatest seasons of any team in the last generation. But we won't reach peak level until we add another dimension, which is learning to close up shop, even if it's just for ten minutes in a game to take the sting out of a situation. The Liverpool game was ridiculous to leave ourselves so open in the first 30 minutes of a 180 minute game. In that case, it's difficult to analyse and criticise 11 players because we know we have a brilliant team of individuals so when so many under perform you have to question the tactics. Over the past two games there have been plenty of individual errors, some of which are reoccurring and need resolving but there has been bigger issues from a team perspective.

 

[Millwallawayveteran1988]

I sense you've been itching to post this

Some really good points especially in identifying patterns. As has been said our improvements in the last year have been immense. I trust the manager is aware of issues that keep repeating and will make changes again in the summer.

We've reduced the average age of the team and sometimes it shows. It's been a difficult week not helped by the prems ridiculous scheduling of a derby around the CL quarters.

The scheduling was ridiculous and that could have been the same for United and was the same for Liverpool. Absolutely ridiculous for English teams to get no help from their own league