Pep Guardiola - 2023/24

[Craig]

You would have thought we could have come up with a method of breaking them down by now as it has been going on for a good few years.

More often than not we do but it’s very difficult at times. Look how much Spurs struggled today when Liverpool sat in for 20 odd minutes and that was only against 9.

 

[ChicagoBlue]

I will get hammered for saying it, I’m sure, and while last season creates a treasure trove of reasons why I will be called crazy, but I think Pep’s time at City has almost run its course and the lack of bringing in the talent we clearly needed during the off season to replace the level of quality of those who left is only exacerbating Pep’s weaknesses.

He NEEDS the best players in the world to play his “full pitch Rondo” style and, as we have seen with Phillips, if you don’t have that in such a key position, then the whole system suffers.

We also saw it with Dias bringing the ball out from the back and pinging it forward to Alvarez and Haaland, who rarely made the ball stick because the pass was errant or they were under too much pressure to accept the pinged pass.

Lastly, I think some people still don’t understand just how technically gifted a player has to be to play in a Pep team, and when there are decrements in that area, either acutely in one game or chronically over a sustained period, then the player sticks out like a sore thumb and the entire system suffers.

Accepting the ball under pressure, controlling it and accurately, and then passing it into a lane where the player receiving it wants to receive it…over an over and over again (600-700 times a game) is the second hardest thing in football after putting it in the net.

We are, often and perhaps (somewhat arrogantly) expectedly of late, a well oiled machine when the big names are playing and on their game. Over the last 4 hrs, though, not only have we not had the big names, but their understudies have illustrated just how good those big name stars are when trying to replicate the skill and precision required. That doesn’t bode well for the next 2 away games in which Draws might be seen as a good result, leaving City with no wins in 4!

January and Summer 24 are going to be massive transfer windows for City. We have aging stars, stars at their peak and potential stars who need to show more than just their potential.

Without a very deliberate reorganization of who, what and where…which I feel went off the rails this summer and has left us with too many stop-gaps…we may very well fall back into the Top Six pack looking to qualify for the Champions League.

There are teams being built right now to try to replicate our success. It only takes one or two to be fairly successful to create a little chaos at the top…and that’s with Chelsea and United still struggling!

With Pe supposedly only 1 more season from being done at City, the next 12-18 months are going to be a very interesting period, especially given this project was literally built on getting Ferran & Txiki to build the club that Pep would want to lead!

I know it is “hair on fire” stuff yo even suggest it after two bad games, but last season may have been “Peak Man City” for my lifetime, which has included watching the club in person for about 55 years and hopefully another 20 or so!

We are a “defend with a 5-4-1 and break out on the counter” opponent for far too many clubs for us not to have an answer to that by now, but I fear that when “lesser” teams use this tactic against us so successfully, it becomes the norm, yet we haven’t found the answer against far too many of them!

Success has bred these opponents, but it is too productive (1 shot on target and we lose 2-1) to NOT use it!

I’m certainly not a “Pep out!” idiot, but I’m starting to become a little bit of a “WTF Pep?!” at some of what I’m seeing.

 

[Blueroses]

I will get hammered for saying it, I’m sure, and while last season creates a treasure trove of reasons why I will be called crazy, but I think Pep’s time at City has almost run its course and the lack of bringing in the talent we clearly needed during the off season to replace the level of quality of those who left is only exacerbating Pep’s weaknesses.

He NEEDS the best players in the world to play his “full pitch Rondo” style and, as we have seen with Phillips, if you don’t have that in such a key position, then the whole system suffers.

We also saw it with Dias bringing the ball out from the back and pinging it forward to Alvarez and Haaland, who rarely made the ball stick because the pass was errant or they were under too much pressure to accept the pinged pass.

Lastly, I think some people still don’t understand just how technically gifted a player has to be to play in a Pep team, and when there are decrements in that area, either acutely in one game or chronically over a sustained period, then the player sticks out like a sore thumb and the entire system suffers.

Accepting the ball under pressure, controlling it and accurately, and then passing it into a lane where the player receiving it wants to receive it…over an over and over again (600-700 times a game) is the second hardest thing in football after putting it in the net.

We are, often and perhaps (somewhat arrogantly) expectedly of late, a well oiled machine when the big names are playing and on their game. Over the last 4 hrs, though, not only have we not had the big names, but their understudies have illustrated just how good those big name stars are when trying to replicate the skill and precision required. That doesn’t bode well for the next 2 away games in which Draws might be seen as a good result, leaving City with no wins in 4!

January and Summer 24 are going to be massive transfer windows for City. We have aging stars, stars at their peak and potential stars who need to show more than just their potential.

Without a very deliberate reorganization of who, what and where…which I feel went off the rails this summer and has left us with too many stop-gaps…we may very well fall back into the Top Six pack looking to qualify for the Champions League.

There are teams being built right now to try to replicate our success. It only takes one or two to be fairly successful to create a little chaos at the top…and that’s with Chelsea and United still struggling!

With Pe supposedly only 1 more season from being done at City, the next 12-18 months are going to be a very interesting period, especially given this project was literally built on getting Ferran & Txiki to build the club that Pep would want to lead!

I know it is “hair on fire” stuff yo even suggest it after two bad games, but last season may have been “Peak Man City” for my lifetime, which has included watching the club in person for about 55 years and hopefully another 20 or so!

We are a “defend with a 5-4-1 and break out on the counter” opponent for far too many clubs for us not to have an answer to that by now, but I fear that when “lesser” teams use this tactic against us so successfully, it becomes the norm, yet we haven’t found the answer against far too many of them!

Success has bred these opponents, but it is too productive (1 shot on target and we lose 2-1) to NOT use it!

I’m certainly not a “Pep out!” idiot, but I’m starting to become a little bit of a “WTF Pep?!” at some of what I’m seeing.

I can’t believe what I just read. Have some shame man it was one game ignore the Newcastle result.

The average age has been reduced and it’s gone under the rador we have slowly built squad that is perfect balance.

This is overreaction and unfair comments.

 

[Damanino]

I know there werent much starts between them so far and its early too, but total of 2 goals in PL between Doku, Grealish, Bernardo, Kova, Nunes, Foden is not something that can go much longer in terms of average (combined 21 starts between them in 7 rounds)

this is he big task for Pep to get these player firing goals and assists as we lost a lot of goals with Gundo, Mahrez, KDB and it would be harsh to expect Haaland to hit 35 again. does well if he delivers 27-28 which is what I would expect this time.

Gundo, Mahrez, KDB pulled of 30 assists between them just in PL.

so if Haaland scores 5-10 less this time, Gundo, Mahrez averaged around 15 goals per season last 3 years together, than Doku, Grealish, Bernardo, Kova, Nunes, Fode really has to pull off good numbers. Alvarez will help out, but my worry is the rest, Bernardo, Grealish cannot see them magically pulling in 10+ PL goals while Kovacic, Nunes aint too strong on scoring. 3-4 goals each is imo realistic from them rahter than 7-8 each.
Foden didnt start too well in scoring 1 goal in 6 starts, but he had 11 in 22 starts last season, so he can do 10+ he just needs to improve his form. Doku will add some, feels like will be closer to 6 than 10 in his first season. has one already but not sure he will be a starter that often once Grealish, Bernardo are fully fit. but these two deffo will be closer to (or under) 6 than 10.

had we brought in someone like Bellingham with his scoring record so far at Real is pretty sick, but that ship has sailed, so now we need to turn Grealish to get numbers like Salah or Son .:)

 

[TonyM]

Barca had it right. We need to bring in some refs for "consulting". Then our goal scoring will return.

 

[neel]

I will get hammered for saying it, I’m sure, and while last season creates a treasure trove of reasons why I will be called crazy, but I think Pep’s time at City has almost run its course and the lack of bringing in the talent we clearly needed during the off season to replace the level of quality of those who left is only exacerbating Pep’s weaknesses.

He NEEDS the best players in the world to play his “full pitch Rondo” style and, as we have seen with Phillips, if you don’t have that in such a key position, then the whole system suffers.

We also saw it with Dias bringing the ball out from the back and pinging it forward to Alvarez and Haaland, who rarely made the ball stick because the pass was errant or they were under too much pressure to accept the pinged pass.

Lastly, I think some people still don’t understand just how technically gifted a player has to be to play in a Pep team, and when there are decrements in that area, either acutely in one game or chronically over a sustained period, then the player sticks out like a sore thumb and the entire system suffers.

Accepting the ball under pressure, controlling it and accurately, and then passing it into a lane where the player receiving it wants to receive it…over an over and over again (600-700 times a game) is the second hardest thing in football after putting it in the net.

We are, often and perhaps (somewhat arrogantly) expectedly of late, a well oiled machine when the big names are playing and on their game. Over the last 4 hrs, though, not only have we not had the big names, but their understudies have illustrated just how good those big name stars are when trying to replicate the skill and precision required. That doesn’t bode well for the next 2 away games in which Draws might be seen as a good result, leaving City with no wins in 4!

January and Summer 24 are going to be massive transfer windows for City. We have aging stars, stars at their peak and potential stars who need to show more than just their potential.

Without a very deliberate reorganization of who, what and where…which I feel went off the rails this summer and has left us with too many stop-gaps…we may very well fall back into the Top Six pack looking to qualify for the Champions League.

There are teams being built right now to try to replicate our success. It only takes one or two to be fairly successful to create a little chaos at the top…and that’s with Chelsea and United still struggling!

With Pe supposedly only 1 more season from being done at City, the next 12-18 months are going to be a very interesting period, especially given this project was literally built on getting Ferran & Txiki to build the club that Pep would want to lead!

I know it is “hair on fire” stuff yo even suggest it after two bad games, but last season may have been “Peak Man City” for my lifetime, which has included watching the club in person for about 55 years and hopefully another 20 or so!

We are a “defend with a 5-4-1 and break out on the counter” opponent for far too many clubs for us not to have an answer to that by now, but I fear that when “lesser” teams use this tactic against us so successfully, it becomes the norm, yet we haven’t found the answer against far too many of them!

Success has bred these opponents, but it is too productive (1 shot on target and we lose 2-1) to NOT use it!

I’m certainly not a “Pep out!” idiot, but I’m starting to become a little bit of a “WTF Pep?!” at some of what I’m seeing.

???

 

[waspish]

I will get hammered for saying it, I’m sure, and while last season creates a treasure trove of reasons why I will be called crazy, but I think Pep’s time at City has almost run its course and the lack of bringing in the talent we clearly needed during the off season to replace the level of quality of those who left is only exacerbating Pep’s weaknesses.

He NEEDS the best players in the world to play his “full pitch Rondo” style and, as we have seen with Phillips, if you don’t have that in such a key position, then the whole system suffers.

We also saw it with Dias bringing the ball out from the back and pinging it forward to Alvarez and Haaland, who rarely made the ball stick because the pass was errant or they were under too much pressure to accept the pinged pass.

Lastly, I think some people still don’t understand just how technically gifted a player has to be to play in a Pep team, and when there are decrements in that area, either acutely in one game or chronically over a sustained period, then the player sticks out like a sore thumb and the entire system suffers.

Accepting the ball under pressure, controlling it and accurately, and then passing it into a lane where the player receiving it wants to receive it…over an over and over again (600-700 times a game) is the second hardest thing in football after putting it in the net.

We are, often and perhaps (somewhat arrogantly) expectedly of late, a well oiled machine when the big names are playing and on their game. Over the last 4 hrs, though, not only have we not had the big names, but their understudies have illustrated just how good those big name stars are when trying to replicate the skill and precision required. That doesn’t bode well for the next 2 away games in which Draws might be seen as a good result, leaving City with no wins in 4!

January and Summer 24 are going to be massive transfer windows for City. We have aging stars, stars at their peak and potential stars who need to show more than just their potential.

Without a very deliberate reorganization of who, what and where…which I feel went off the rails this summer and has left us with too many stop-gaps…we may very well fall back into the Top Six pack looking to qualify for the Champions League.

There are teams being built right now to try to replicate our success. It only takes one or two to be fairly successful to create a little chaos at the top…and that’s with Chelsea and United still struggling!

With Pe supposedly only 1 more season from being done at City, the next 12-18 months are going to be a very interesting period, especially given this project was literally built on getting Ferran & Txiki to build the club that Pep would want to lead!

I know it is “hair on fire” stuff yo even suggest it after two bad games, but last season may have been “Peak Man City” for my lifetime, which has included watching the club in person for about 55 years and hopefully another 20 or so!

We are a “defend with a 5-4-1 and break out on the counter” opponent for far too many clubs for us not to have an answer to that by now, but I fear that when “lesser” teams use this tactic against us so successfully, it becomes the norm, yet we haven’t found the answer against far too many of them!

Success has bred these opponents, but it is too productive (1 shot on target and we lose 2-1) to NOT use it!

I’m certainly not a “Pep out!” idiot, but I’m starting to become a little bit of a “WTF Pep?!” at some of what I’m seeing.

Fcuk me when pep actually leaves you be wanting to get rid of our manager every season because what Prp has done for us will never be achieved in the next 25 years + if ever!

 

[Txiki Txiki Bang Bang]

I will get hammered for saying it, I’m sure, and while last season creates a treasure trove of reasons why I will be called crazy, but I think Pep’s time at City has almost run its course and the lack of bringing in the talent we clearly needed during the off season to replace the level of quality of those who left is only exacerbating Pep’s weaknesses.

He NEEDS the best players in the world to play his “full pitch Rondo” style and, as we have seen with Phillips, if you don’t have that in such a key position, then the whole system suffers.

We also saw it with Dias bringing the ball out from the back and pinging it forward to Alvarez and Haaland, who rarely made the ball stick because the pass was errant or they were under too much pressure to accept the pinged pass.

Lastly, I think some people still don’t understand just how technically gifted a player has to be to play in a Pep team, and when there are decrements in that area, either acutely in one game or chronically over a sustained period, then the player sticks out like a sore thumb and the entire system suffers.

Accepting the ball under pressure, controlling it and accurately, and then passing it into a lane where the player receiving it wants to receive it…over an over and over again (600-700 times a game) is the second hardest thing in football after putting it in the net.

We are, often and perhaps (somewhat arrogantly) expectedly of late, a well oiled machine when the big names are playing and on their game. Over the last 4 hrs, though, not only have we not had the big names, but their understudies have illustrated just how good those big name stars are when trying to replicate the skill and precision required. That doesn’t bode well for the next 2 away games in which Draws might be seen as a good result, leaving City with no wins in 4!

January and Summer 24 are going to be massive transfer windows for City. We have aging stars, stars at their peak and potential stars who need to show more than just their potential.

Without a very deliberate reorganization of who, what and where…which I feel went off the rails this summer and has left us with too many stop-gaps…we may very well fall back into the Top Six pack looking to qualify for the Champions League.

There are teams being built right now to try to replicate our success. It only takes one or two to be fairly successful to create a little chaos at the top…and that’s with Chelsea and United still struggling!

With Pe supposedly only 1 more season from being done at City, the next 12-18 months are going to be a very interesting period, especially given this project was literally built on getting Ferran & Txiki to build the club that Pep would want to lead!

I know it is “hair on fire” stuff yo even suggest it after two bad games, but last season may have been “Peak Man City” for my lifetime, which has included watching the club in person for about 55 years and hopefully another 20 or so!

We are a “defend with a 5-4-1 and break out on the counter” opponent for far too many clubs for us not to have an answer to that by now, but I fear that when “lesser” teams use this tactic against us so successfully, it becomes the norm, yet we haven’t found the answer against far too many of them!

Success has bred these opponents, but it is too productive (1 shot on target and we lose 2-1) to NOT use it!

I’m certainly not a “Pep out!” idiot, but I’m starting to become a little bit of a “WTF Pep?!” at some of what I’m seeing.

I don't think its that bad tbh. The main reason why we seem so predictable now is because well...our new style of play is a bit predictable. Over the weekend, I took some time out to watch some of our highlights from the early to mid pep era and something that really stood out was how the goal came from the most unpredictable build up (the 29 pass goal with Bernie being the goal scorer).

The false 9 style of play is when we play at our best and Pep might want to revert to that style of play, obviously haaland can't play across the Frontline and then fall into the AM position like Kun / GJ and to some extent Alvarez but he has to be a bit more fluid with his style of play.

Right now the immobile big target man thing is really predictable and his play while backing the defender isn't good enough (to be fair the only two very notable players to have perfected this are Drogba and Suarez, even a big guy like Ibra wasn't very good with playing with his back leaning on defenders)

The game against wolves showed a build up play where doku worked the play perfectly from the right, passed towards Alvarez with the hope that Haaland would make a run to pull the defenders and then create some space for Alvarez but Haaland broke the play down by controlling the ball instead of letting the pass get to Alvarez, you could clearly see the frustration in Doku and Alvarez when this happened and it's not totally Haaland's fault as by default he believes we are playing the target man formation.

In the centurion and fourmidable seasons, our play was filled with dummy runs, fakes, wide movement and quick transition play, all of this led to an unpredictable style of play. Right now it seems very lethargic and overly elaborate.

I mentioned this yesterday and I'll say it again, Haaland is more powerful, younger and faster than Kane. Staying upfront all the time is a complete waste of his ability, if a slow player like Kane can perfect the CF/AM link up play then I see no reason why Haaland shouldn't adapt his game to that style of play, no need going wide but he should drop in a little bit deeper sometimes to help with the link up play similar to Son / Kane / Benzema.

Notice most of the time these players score from the edge of the box when they drift outside the box giving the wide player the chance to get the ball, run at the defenders and while the defenders are runnint back to protect the post, they free up the target man and all the winger has to do is pull the ball back for the target man to strike

 

[ChicagoBlue]

Fcuk me when pep actually leaves you be wanting to get rid of our manager every season because what Prp has done for us will never be achieved in the next 25 years + if ever!

No, I just am watching the arc of his tenure at City and see this season as one of the most difficult since his first.

Make no mistake, I have been watching the highest quality football of my life for the last few years, and it’s all due to the way Pep has advanced the game at City, in the Premier League, and across the globe. Before Pep, NO-ONE pulled their CBs wide and pushed their FBs down the line on a goal kick. NO-ONE regularly dominated possession by at least 2 to 1. NO-ONE regularly scored more, gave up fewer, and reached 100pts!

Pep is original, unique, a genius. But, I just feel like his arc at City has reached its zenith and with the end in sight, this season…transfers, both in and out, and injuries included…make me feel like we are watching a different City and a different Pep.

I don’t relish saying it. I want nothing but the ABSOLUTE BEST for the team and the man, and the last decade have been the best years of football in my 60 years.

I just smell something in the air, and I hope a “fresh air” Pep and City can emerge over the next few months and clear out the stench.

I hope.

 

[TonyM]

No, I just am watching the arc of his tenure at City and see this season as one of the most difficult since his first.

Make no mistake, I have been watching the highest quality football of my life for the last few years, and it’s all due to the way Pep has advanced the game at City, in the Premier League, and across the globe. Before Pep, NO-ONE pulled their CBs wide and pushed their FBs down the line on a goal kick. NO-ONE regularly dominated possession by at least 2 to 1. NO-ONE regularly scored more, gave up fewer, and reached 100pts!

Pep is original, unique, a genius. But, I just feel like his arc at City has reached its zenith and with the end in sight, this season…transfers, both in and out, and injuries included…make me feel like we are watching a different City and a different Pep.

I don’t relish saying it. I want nothing but the ABSOLUTE BEST for the team and the man, and the last decade have been the best years of football in my 60 years.

I just smell something in the air, and I hope a “fresh air” Pep and City can emerge over the next few months and clear out the stench.

I hope.