MNF

[Didsbury Dave]

Definitely 442 at home. The people flapping about the bayern game are forgetting that silva and negredo weren't playing and dzeko kept giving it away.

Having no Nasri means that the role on the right is between navas and Milner and I'd go Milner to give us a bit more protection.

 

[squirtyflower]

Definitely 442 at home. The people flapping about the bayern game are forgetting that silva and negredo weren't playing and dzeko kept giving it away.

Having no Nasri means that the role on the right is between navas and Milner and I'd go Milner to give us a bit more protection.

Milner is suspended

 

[Jack74]

Definitely 442 at home. The people flapping about the bayern game are forgetting that silva and negredo weren't playing and dzeko kept giving it away.

Having no Nasri means that the role on the right is between navas and Milner and I'd go Milner to give us a bit more protection.

Milner is suspended

 

[Chippy_boy]

The other thing is, are Barca going to score a few over the 2 legs, no matter how well we defend? Yes they are.

So the only way we are going through is by scoring more. A dour Mourinho style 1-0 followed by a 0-0 is never going to work, even if we were rock solid defensively, which we aren't anyway. So we need to have our most potent strike force working at home. We really need to score 4 or 5 at the Etihad I think. Something that Aguero and Negredo are well capable of doing - Barca's defence is not that brilliant. Then hang on for our lives in Barcelona.

I think 4 or 5 against barca is a tad optimistic

I agree mate. But I can't see us keeping a clean sheet at home. So let's say we won 3-1. We go to Barca and only lose 2-0 and we are out. We have to get a decent lead on the board after the home game, if we are to have a realistic chance. And optimistic though it may be, Barca are not great defending crosses or set pieces. Get Navas and Kolarov whipping crosses in and let our 2 strikers get at them. Scoring 4 or 5 is not impossible.

 

[Craig]

Even if Milner wasn't suspended there is no way he should start over Navas. Navas works just as hard as Milner but is actually better at tracking back simply because he is much faster. Going forward there is no comparison. Not a dig at Milner but Navas has been superb lately and we need to win at home.

 

[lewis2013]

I agree with Neville
Get Sergio to drop and work get negredo to pressure the back 4

 

[nicko]

any chance this section of MNF could be added for us overseas dwellers?? Cheers

 

[city saint]

The other thing is, are Barca going to score a few over the 2 legs, no matter how well we defend? Yes they are.

So the only way we are going through is by scoring more. A dour Mourinho style 1-0 followed by a 0-0 is never going to work, even if we were rock solid defensively, which we aren't anyway. So we need to have our most potent strike force working at home. We really need to score 4 or 5 at the Etihad I think. Something that Aguero and Negredo are well capable of doing - Barca's defence is not that brilliant. Then hang on for our lives in Barcelona.

I think 4 or 5 against barca is a tad optimistic

I agree mate. But I can't see us keeping a clean sheet at home. So let's say we won 3-1. We go to Barca and only lose 2-0 and we are out. We have to get a decent lead on the board after the home game, if we are to have a realistic chance. And optimistic though it may be, Barca are not great defending crosses or set pieces. Get Navas and Kolarov whipping crosses in and let our 2 strikers get at them. Scoring 4 or 5 is not impossible.

fair point might as well die trying rather than play to stop them

 

[mac]

I want what the boss wants .in pelligrini we trust.

 

[Dribble]

The most noticeable thing I've seen since November is that we play 442 when attacking and a 4231 when defending. A new poster mentioned how deep Dzeko was dropping in one of our xmas matches and that trend has continued up tothe present.

This I think negates the rigid 442 formation that I didn't like and which caused us so many problems earlier in the season especially away when teams pressed our midfield 2, so I suppose what MP has done is to modify his tactics and we are now seriously reaping the benefits.

Just as in Germany we went 4231 from the start, I can see the same formation being applied when we play Barca at the Nou Camp, but I can see the same flexible 442 at home with one of the strikers dropping deep when we don't have the ball.

On a side note Jovetic would have been ideal for this flexible 442 and whilst they say you can't miss what you've never had, it doesn't stop me from wondering what might have been if Jovetic had been fit.