Our Defence

[Champions2012!]

What defence

 

[Scaring Europe to Death]

I fear for City, every time we play a team with energy, resulting in opponents running from deep, and bypassing our high defensive line. In fact, Swansea’s equalizer wasn’t that different to their first attack.

I wouldn’t mind, but it’s virtually the same set of defenders who kept so many clean sheets in 2011-12. Of course, in those days, if City were winning with ten minutes to go, we just defended sensibly, and ran the clock down in the opposition half.

Yesterday, even in the last minute, when Yaya should have taken the ball wide, and won a free kick or throw in, he elected to wait for everybody to charge forward before promptly losing possession.

Yes, we got away with it, but for how long? we can’t keep relying on the Rags to lose.

 

[Sean85]

The way one of our centre backs always runs out to press the ball annoys me. Surely this is the holding midfielders job. It doesn't seem to matter if its on the edge of the box or the halfway line, it looks like they are told to close down but this leaves a huge gap behind when it doesn't work properly causing the other cb to run across and cover. This is probably why our left sided cb ends up on the right so often and vice versa

 

[citymad]

Delph playing as a forward yesterday in the second half .
He was more forward than anybody .
Another weird move by Pellergrini .
That midfield was too easy to bypass in the second half[/QUOTE]

Arsenal will have field day next week. We will get humiliated if Vinny and Sergio are not back for this game.

 

[cleavers]

I think at the moment we have the worst organised defence of all the PL teams it is truly awful.

I don't think they are worse than Villa ;o)

 

[Keepingthefaithsince1976]

One improvement i have noticed is some of the direct passing from the central defensive areas. Its wonderful to see. 30 yard balls played on the ground straight to an attacking players feet. Great stuff.

 

[fatbloke]

It got no better when Delph came on though. In the second half Swnasea scored, had a goal disallowed and Hart had to make two great saves. It the whole team failing to defend. De Bruyne is the worst culprit

Delph was stuck out on the left.

There's another one with Sigurdsson in the second half as well, just watch it and keep your eye on Yaya. Then look at the effect it had on Delph's decision and subsequently Mangala having to launch himself at the pass to try and intercept it.

If Yaya drops 4-5 yard back into position to cut off the angle of the ball which could have been played into the strikers feet when Fernandinho loses possession that chance doesn't happen, it's that simple because Delph drops in and Mangala doesn't need to dive in. Watch it and tell me I'm wrong.

 

[Kinkladze 1]

Zabba, clichy, sagna, Kolarov, mango, MDM and Kompany are either in decline or not good enough - scary how it's got to this without being addressed.

 

[uwe rosler 28]

To be fare our back 4 sat deep with 2 good holding players in front would have the best defensive record in the league but as we don't set up like that it's the reason we look so poor at the back!

 

[Millwallawayveteran1988]

Delph was stuck out on the left.

There's another one with Sigurdsson in the second half as well, just watch it and keep your eye on Yaya. Then look at the effect it had on Delph's decision and subsequently Mangala having to launch himself at the pass to try and intercept it.

If Yaya drops 4-5 yard back into position to cut off the angle of the ball which could have been played into the strikers feet when Fernandinho loses possession that chance doesn't happen, it's that simple because Delph drops in and Mangala doesn't need to dive in. Watch it and tell me I'm wrong.

I'm not having a go at Delph. Just saying that at the moment we are a shambles defensively whoever is on the pitch. Toure didn't play last week and we were awful. It doesn't seem to matter who plays. It's a team thing and the team as a whole doesn't defend well enough unless Kompany is on the pitch.

 

[Sean85]

Zabba, clichy, sagna, Kolarov, mango, MDM and Kompany are either in decline or not good enough - scary how it's got to this without being addressed.

I think you're half right, certainly with Demechelis, he's both in decline and not good enough. As I said in an earlier post, the way they are being told to play makes them look worse than they are. Up until recently Kompany was considered 1 of, if not the best centre back in the world. Has he regressed that much or is it poor tactics that have made him look dodgy?

 

[fatbloke]

I'm not having a go at Delph. Just saying that at the moment we are a shambles defensively whoever is on the pitch. Toure didn't play last week and we were awful. It doesn't seem to matter who plays. It's a team thing and the team as a whole doesn't defend well enough unless Kompany is on the pitch.

Completely disagree.

Last week Fernando dived in like a schoolboy twice on Shaqiri, missing his challenge and letting him walk through straight at our back four. It's all individual mistakes because our midfield (Fernandinho, Delph and Navas excluded) don't always do the basics of following runners, closing down quickly and aggressively or if they don't think they can get there dropping off and shielding the defence.

 

[Millwallawayveteran1988]

Completely disagree.

Last week Fernando dived in like a schoolboy twice on Shaqiri, missing his challenge and letting him walk through straight at our back four. It's all individual mistakes because our midfield (Fernandinho, Delph and Navas excluded) don't always do the basics of following runners, closing down quickly and aggressively or if they don't think they can get there dropping off and shielding the defence.

We will just have to disagree then. I think the whole team don't defend we'll enough with the exception of 2/3. Starts up top and works its way down.

 

[cheddar404]

Effort. A lot of it is down to effort. If we defend as a team then we will improve defensively. Our defenders do make individual mistakes but someone needs to tell our players to put a shift in.

 

[Kinkladze 1]

I think you're half right, certainly with Demechelis, he's both in decline and not good enough. As I said in an earlier post, the way they are being told to play makes them look worse than they are. Up until recently Kompany was considered 1 of, if not the best centre back in the world. Has he regressed that much or is it poor tactics that have made him look dodgy?

I don't think VK has regressed it's just that I think Kompanys injury record of late means his best years are now behind him. It would be wrong for anyone to say his best years are still to come.

 

[fatbloke]

We will just have to disagree then. I think the whole team don't defend we'll enough with the exception of 2/3. Starts up top and works its way down.

Who do you believe are the 2/3?

 

[decmancity]

We set ourselves up for it so it no longer surprises me when we concede shit goals.

Not one defender ever seems to open their mouths, we have Otamendi who is new to the league, Mangala who doesn't come across very imposing or commanding, Sagna a reliable RB but not a world beater or someone to rip someone apart like Zaba and Kolarov/Clichy just go about their jobs and have good and bad games.

Zaba and Kompany are cornerstones for our team, no matter what money is spent.

Kompany alongside Ota or Mangala will bring our defence back in shape, Zaba if he gets his fitness and sharpness back will push our defence even further.

 

[Sean85]

I don't think VK has regressed it's just that I think Kompanys injury record of late means his best years are now behind him. It would be wrong for anyone to say his best years are still to come.

I don't think VK has regressed it's just that I think Kompanys injury record of late means his best years are now behind him. It would be wrong for anyone to say his best years are still to come.

If his best years are behind him does that not imply he has regressed? Either way, he's still one of the best defenders around, however the way we set up defensively, especially the way our cb's are told to run out to try to win the ball doesn't do him, or any of our other defenders any favours. Now I'm not saying Mangala is is 30 odd million quid defender, far from it, but I'm sure he's not as bad as he's being made to look playing in this ridiculous set up Pellers is insisting on playing. It's no coincidence Mangala, Kompany, Otamendi and Demechelis are made to look ordinary at times. Whether they are past their best or not, there's no way all 4 of them have regressed the same amount at the same time, it's down to the tactics and the manager needs to wake up and sort it out

 

[Wanchope n me Dickov]

We set ourselves up for it so it no longer surprises me when we concede shit goals.

Not one defender ever seems to open their mouths, we have Otamendi who is new to the league, Mangala who doesn't come across very imposing or commanding, Sagna a reliable RB but not a world beater or someone to rip someone apart like Zaba and Kolarov/Clichy just go about their jobs and have good and bad games.

Zaba and Kompany are cornerstones for our team, no matter what money is spent.

Kompany alongside Ota or Mangala will bring our defence back in shape, Zaba if he gets his fitness and sharpness back will push our defence even further.

We do miss Vinny's leadership skills. The 4-1 capitulations and Stoke debacle happened when he was out injured. I suggest in the meantime we defend deeper, especially away from home so that we can play to Otamendi & Mangala strengths.

 

[Dax777]

We do miss Vinny's leadership skills. The 4-1 capitulations and Stoke debacle happened when he was out injured. I suggest in the meantime we defend deeper, especially away from home so that we can play to Otamendi & Mangala strengths.

Both Otamendi and Mangala are natural front foot defenders, defending deeper doesn't play to their strength. Pressuring better up top does. The problem with our defending often occurs long before it gets to our CBs.

For example, the real problem with Swansea's pal this weekend wasn't that Mangala was beaten by Gomis that happens, even to the best defenders, the worse problem was the total lack of pressure on the guy who slid the pass in. This happens way too often.