MNF

[aguero93:20]

I honestly do not believe this is the best Barca side of recent years and think they can be got at particularly if we get on the front foot. Playing two up top, squeezing them high up (with a two) could prevent their midfielders receiving possession and could prevent them dictating the game.

I think the key for me if we go 442 will be one of Aguero or Negredo sitting on Busquets when we don't have the ball. Pressing him effectively via one of our forwards will give Yaya/Dinho a chance against Xavi and Fabregas or Iniesta.

That of course could just free Pique up to stride forward or Mascherano. You do have a point though. Fact is, without the ball, we will have to be organised and cover both their players and the spaces. Both sides have 10 outfield players each but I have seen plenty of games where it looks like Barca have more than that.

I do feel as though our players are doing a progressively better job of covering for one another when team mates have moved out of their normal zone. Negredo last night was filling in for Navas at one point and, even though he failed to track properly - resulting in a goal - Dzeko was seen filling in for Kolarov on Saturday and a right back in another recent game. It's not quite the same as someone matching up to Busquets but in terms of working hard for the team and defending, it gives me encouragement that we can face up to Barca in the right way.

This is why we need Navas, their defenders won't dare come to the halfway line against him, he's given them nightmares playing for Sevilla before and wasn't surrounded by half as much quality then.

 

[Lancet Fluke]

I thought the discussion between Carragher and Neville put both sides of the argument very well.

since they both used the Bayern home game without acknowledging the Bayern away match

I think people need to re assess the Bayern home game also.

We should have been dead and buried but in the end if Boateng hadn't fouled Yaya and Silvas freekick was 2" lower we could have come away with a draw.

They took their foot of the gas and we came back at them in both legs.

Us getting a bit more of a grip of that home leg against Bayern coincided almost to the second with Silva coming off the bench so how much of it was down to Silva giving us some control of possession and how much was down to them taking their foot off the gas? Would the match have been completely different if Silva had been fit to start? Who knows?

 

[Anonymous]

This is why we need Navas, their defenders won't dare come to the halfway line against him, he's given them nightmares playing for Sevilla before and wasn't surrounded by half as much quality then.

I was just writing a post in reply to OB's - for me with what Bayern did to Barca, they will be much more cautious at the Etihad than people expect. If they try and push high up then they will come unstuck very quickly because they are nowhere near as good at defending as Bayern were against us.

 

[Didsbury Dave]

since they both used the Bayern home game without acknowledging the Bayern away match

I think people need to re assess the Bayern home game also.

We should have been dead and buried but in the end if Boateng hadn't fouled Yaya and Silvas freekick was 2" lower we could have come away with a draw.

They took their foot of the gas and we came back at them in both legs.

Us getting a bit more of a grip of that home leg against Bayern coincided almost to the second with Silva coming off the bench so how much of it was down to Silva giving us some control of possession and how much was down to them taking their foot off the gas? Would the match have been completely different if Silva had been fit to start? Who knows?

Dead right. Silva turned the game. Bayern don't "take their foot off the gas", just like we don't.

I argued and argued with people the day after that game when the prevailing attitude was 'they are in a different class to us'.

 

[OB1]

This is why we need Navas, their defenders won't dare come to the halfway line against him, he's given them nightmares playing for Sevilla before and wasn't surrounded by half as much quality then.

I was just writing a post in reply to OB's - for me with what Bayern did to Barca, they will be much more cautious at the Etihad than people expect. If they try and push high up then they will come unstuck very quickly because they are nowhere near as good at defending as Bayern were against us.

I would probably start Navas v Barca. He works back well and his pace will make them wary. Alba is not slow though.

I agree that they do not defend as well as Bayern.

 

[OB1]

I think people need to re assess the Bayern home game also.

We should have been dead and buried but in the end if Boateng hadn't fouled Yaya and Silvas freekick was 2" lower we could have come away with a draw.

They took their foot of the gas and we came back at them in both legs.

Us getting a bit more of a grip of that home leg against Bayern coincided almost to the second with Silva coming off the bench so how much of it was down to Silva giving us some control of possession and how much was down to them taking their foot off the gas? Would the match have been completely different if Silva had been fit to start? Who knows?

Dead right. Silva turned the game. Bayern don't "take their foot off the gas", just like we don't.

I argued and argued with people the day after that game when the prevailing attitude was 'they are in a different class to us'.

Guardiola was having kittens late on in the game. If Bayern eased up, it was not with their manager's blessing.

I have never been as critical of our tactics in that game as many were: I have always felt the big issue was around pure performance. I don't want to keep going back to old games but we were doing fine until their first goal; a goal that we should have defended successfully. That rocked the team and they were slow to recover on the night.

 

[aguero93:20]

This is why we need Navas, their defenders won't dare come to the halfway line against him, he's given them nightmares playing for Sevilla before and wasn't surrounded by half as much quality then.

I was just writing a post in reply to OB's - for me with what Bayern did to Barca, they will be much more cautious at the Etihad than people expect. If they try and push high up then they will come unstuck very quickly because they are nowhere near as good at defending as Bayern were against us.

I would probably start Navas v Barca. He works back well and his pace will make them wary. Alba is not slow though.

I agree that they do not defend as well as Bayern.

He's not slow, however his positional sense is poor defensively and he's usually winded after his runs forward and doesn't get back that quickly.

 

[Chippy_boy]

I thought the discussion between Carragher and Neville put both sides of the argument very well.

I thought Carragher came off looking like a football remedial. I also thought Neville although better, was equally culpable of ignorance since they both used the Bayern home game without acknowledging the Bayern away match, or in fact the numerous other times this season our forwards have worked hard in midfield to help control games.

Yes, Neville got suckered into that after Carragher's nonsense about Aguero not wanting to help out, based on him glancing at the ground for 0.3 seconds. You only have to watch Aguero for 2 minutes to see that he comes deep all the time.

 

[OB1]

I was just writing a post in reply to OB's - for me with what Bayern did to Barca, they will be much more cautious at the Etihad than people expect. If they try and push high up then they will come unstuck very quickly because they are nowhere near as good at defending as Bayern were against us.

I would probably start Navas v Barca. He works back well and his pace will make them wary. Alba is not slow though.

I agree that they do not defend as well as Bayern.

He's not slow, however his positional sense is poor defensively and he's usually winded after his runs forward and doesn't get back that quickly.

Sounds familiar ;-)

 

[aguero93:20]

I would probably start Navas v Barca. He works back well and his pace will make them wary. Alba is not slow though.

I agree that they do not defend as well as Bayern.

He's not slow, however his positional sense is poor defensively and he's usually winded after his runs forward and doesn't get back that quickly.

Sounds familiar ;-)

ours has a better free-kick though.