Bernardo was in the middle for the last 20 min and we were still poor.Can't get my head around that. Clearly wasnt working from the start yet nothing changed. Slow sideways shite then spamming crosses and hoping. Bernardo needs to be in the middle
Very well said. We have ran Cancelo to ground but Wilson Esbrand hasn't seen minutes. He potentially cannot be worse than Cancelo at present. Haaland has covered our cracks this season and has taken all the limelight but other wise this has been weakest we have looked in long time. Also earlier we knew a long winning run was around the corner but this season it doesn't look like it will come. Break has come at right time. Pep has 6 weeks to rethink bcoz his planning on next weeks will define our rest of season. Once club football returns, time won't be there to rethink then as games will come thick and fast. Also young fullbacks will have to br trusted over senior CbsHis game management is bad quite often, usually gets brushed under the rug by a late winner here and there.
Also how inform players get dropped for no reason. Foden after 4 goals and an assist in 2 games, dropped. Grealish everytime he plays well and you think he could start building something, bench. Alvarez scoring everytime he starts, 85th min sub.
Gomez potential to take up the width and allow forward players to shine, Cancelo automatic choice despite being utterly terrible recently.
Same with all cbs, we have too many. Ake is the only one that is actually a decent fullback yet it's Stones and Akanji keep being the ones put out wide and they are shite there, but he keeps doing it. I assume he does it at the cost of younger fullbacks simply to keep our senior cbs happy.
Needs to improve in areas this season, we've been ok as we have had Haaland bailing us out quite often, cant happen every game as seen today.
This. This team does not need 5 CBs and none of them (Stones, Akanji, Ake) are good enough at FB.His game management is bad quite often, usually gets brushed under the rug by a late winner here and there.
Also how inform players get dropped for no reason. Foden after 4 goals and an assist in 2 games, dropped. Grealish everytime he plays well and you think he could start building something, bench. Alvarez scoring everytime he starts, 85th min sub.
Gomez potential to take up the width and allow forward players to shine, Cancelo automatic choice despite being utterly terrible recently.
Same with all cbs, we have too many. Ake is the only one that is actually a decent fullback yet it's Stones and Akanji keep being the ones put out wide and they are shite there, but he keeps doing it. I assume he does it at the cost of younger fullbacks simply to keep our senior cbs happy.
Needs to improve in areas this season, we've been ok as we have had Haaland bailing us out quite often, cant happen every game as seen today.
Love the caveats about the possible changes.Starting lineup wasn't what I wanted but it was fine, more than good enough to win, the players simply didn't look up for it. I commented at the match as he made the sub he's asking for us to lose this, mental decision to chase the game so hard when we wasn't losing, gundogan for alvarez was the obvious and still attacking sub, he got that wrong.
Don't blame him for not making more subs though, who's coming on and changing that? Grealish with less goal involvements than John Stones isn't coming on and doing anything to change the game. mahrez, perhaps but hasn't exactly got the form behind him to suggest he would have done something. We needed pace on the wings to help change it from the bench, we don't have any. Today is firmly on the players not Pep.
Indeed why have a managerFucking hell some of the posts on this thread, what a load of bollocks. The players didn’t perform pure and simple.
only last week peps tactical tweaks won us a game with 10 men. The players clearly weren’t at it today and It’s hardly surprising given the World Cup is a career high for most players