Pep Guardiola - 2024/25

Status
Not open for further replies.
mcfcphil said:
Not in my eyes.

His legacy is bulletproof regardless of success from now on.
Click to expand...
Emphasis on "personal".

Ie: From within (himself).

Pep is a winner. He won't want to go out in any other fashion but as a winner.
 
A midfield two of Gonzalez and O’Reilly, with any 3 of Doku, Savinho, Bobb, McAtee and Echeverri playing behind Marmoush could be really fun to watch, but it would involve him dropping all of his favourites and there being an actual element of risk to our play.
 
skillman said:
The Nunes comments are just another in a long line of baffling shit from Pep this season. Doesn’t trust him in midfield but trusts Kovacic and Bernardo - the pivot which was forced to be broken up after such a shit run before Christmas - enough to play them. And without comment about their abilities or ineffectiveness!

He had the chance at the turn of the year to try something different. Bernardo, Kovacic, Gundogan, Kev, Grealish and Foden were all having torrid times (most still are) but instead of trying something new, he stuck with it.

I’m baffled at yesterday still. To send your team out in a derby with the purpose of controlling the game and not really trying to threaten in an attacking sense is criminal and shouldn’t be overlooked. To start with the pivot that strangled our season was another shocking decision - it’s almost as if he couldn’t help himself and thought we’d all forget because it’s been a few weeks since we saw it. A team full of players comfortable to take the ball and play it backwards, not one player in there - aside from Marmoush who he used as a glorified Dickov for his energy instead of playing to his feet - who demand the ball and try to make things happen with Doku and Savinho being the most notable but even Nico tries to pass forward and dominate the game, I’d argue that’s why he didn’t play which is ridiculous in itself.

Love the bloke. Adore him. He’s given us football from dreams and season after season of absolute domination but that doesn’t excuse some cowardly tactics he’s shown all season and doesn’t mean he can plod along for 6 months of a season using his favourites rather than anything new. An example, O’Reilly would be nowhere near the side if Akanji, Ake and Stones were fit. I doubt he’d even be on the bench. And that’s not a slant to NOR, it’s that Pep has his favourites and will only veer from them if he’s forced to.

Somebody above him (Viana) needs to take control of the squad and move a lot of them on because I highly doubt that Pep himself will change his preference to his favourites.
Click to expand...
Pep's head's gone this season. Player's have been in and out of favour all season, from one week to the next.
I think you could make a case that there have only been a handful who have performed reasonably well.

Haaland, Khusanov, Savinho, Marmoush, Nuñes , Gvardiol, Gonzalez in patches and latterly O'Reilly.

Foden, Bernardo, Kovacic, Gundo and Kevin, Lewis have all been average or worse.

Grealish, who knows as he's hardly played.

I can understand why there was so much chopping and changing during the injury crisis but recently there has been the chance to settle on a system. But as we've seen sometimes it's wingers, sometimes none and he appears to be basing it on the opposition.
 
Seen a few comments in the media that Pep cut an exasperated figure on the touchline yesterday. Is it that the players can't do what he wants or what he expects from them - either any longer or just in game ? Seems like he's surprised when the slowest, oldest midfield in the prem can't deliver what he wants. He should be making changes quicker in game with multiple subs at HT rather than hoping that some switch gets flicked and suddenly we're purring like a Ferrari again. If not, he needs to get the starting line up and formation right in the first place.
 
I've said it before, I'll say it again...

Pep should have left City after winning the CL.

Forget the 'four in a row'... the signs were already there; ageing players, poor / inadequate succession plans (players and management).

Everyone ignored the cliff edge that's been there for quite a while.

Pep has faced his toughest ever challenge this season and he's fallen short. He's been let down by the players and yes men around him.

He should have gone at the top. CL winner, mission complete.
 
Lavinda Past said:
I've said it before, I'll say it again...

Pep should have left City after winning the CL.

Forget the 'four in a row'... the signs were already there; ageing players, poor / inadequate succession plans (players and management).

Everyone ignored the cliff edge that's been there for quite a while.

Pep has faced his toughest ever challenge this season and he's fallen short. He's been let down by the players and yes men around him.

He should have gone at the top. CL winner, mission complete.
Click to expand...
He should have gone in july, agreed.
 
Damanino said:
something strange going on with how players go out of favour than all of sudden back into favour.
look at Rico Lewis overplayed than out of the running since some time. same with Khusanov. same with Gundo after the horror shows he was benched quite a lot during Jan/February now back into the fold starting games.
Nunes also benched for long period now starting RB for the rest of the season?
Savinho came to life around December Pep praised him too, now kind of benched lot more.
Nico Gonzalez treatment is a bit odd too. Doku and Grealish same...

its like whatever Pep is trying doesnt work for more than 2/3 games and he keeps changing and chopping.

I think Pep is underperforming just as much some of our players.

really hope he can somehow deliver the top5 places in league and maybe the FA cup. sadly there is a chance we do neither we do need to play much better than yesterday against some better sides than rags to reach our targets.
Click to expand...
The Savinho one was odd - he started to get some rhythm and look a much better player off the left & then he got shunted around
 
Gumzy97 said:
Just want us to play exciting football again. This system how we play is just boring. There's no risk or special quality
Click to expand...

Excitement has been seriously lacking since Leroy Sane left City.

Obsessive possession based football is risk averse and kills entertainment. Most games under Pep against 'lower quality opposition' have been glorified training exercises.
 
Brewster's millions said:
What an absolutely dreadful take about people feeling they’re entitled to constant success. Dreadful and tedious, to be frank.

Like many others on here I started watching City in the very early 80s, and so had to wait nearly 30 years and experience hundreds of truly terrible games before we lifted a trophy, and I’m eternally grateful that I was at Wembley that day to see it.

After the run we’ve had in the fifteen years since, I really couldn’t complain if we don’t win another trophy for years, but I sincerely don’t want that to happen.

I don’t think that wanting to see City continue to win and remain at the top makes anyone entitled. I think that’s a daft thing to say. The idea that people shouldn’t express their opinion or criticise the club and manager during what has been a very poor season is equally daft, but that’s what some posters on here appear to believe.

We all knew that at some point we would fail to win the league, fall below our usual standards and need to rebuild the squad, whether Guardiola was still here or not. Everybody knew that and everyone accepts it. But people can still express their opinion on why we’ve experienced such a downturn, the factors behind it and crucially what we need to do about it. And that doesn’t make them entitled.
Click to expand...
Excellent post.
 
Need to go back to the 17-19 style of football. Signing players like Haaland and Marmoush who love the ball over the top only for our midfielders to decide to play it safe instead is just a waste of time.

Also it's too easy an excuse when people say teams park the bus against us, they are able to do that because we waste so much time getting the ball forward.
 
Lavinda Past said:
Excitement has been seriously lacking since Leroy Sane left City.

Obsessive possession based football is risk averse and kills entertainment. Most games under Pep against 'lower quality opposition' have been glorified training exercises.
Click to expand...
All ties in with lack of top drawer attacking/overlapping fullbacks too.
 
Goater=Legend said:
Need to go back to the 17-19 style of football. Signing players like Haaland and Marmoush who love the ball over the top only for our midfielders to decide to play it safe instead is just a waste of time.

Also it's too easy an excuse when people say teams park the bus against us, they are able to do that because we waste so much time getting the ball forward.
Click to expand...
That's a chicken and egg thing isn't it,theres no doubt though teams adapted to stop that Sane/Sterling thing. Are people really saying they haven't enjoyed watching us since 2019, that's mad.
 
Seems to be two separate conversations being conflated in this thread. The first one is the WHY of this season. The second is about style of play. The two really aren't connected.

City have won 4 titles on the bounce because our system trumped all the others in the league. This season isn't the first season with intense, high pressing teams in the top half of the table. There have been teams like that throughout Pep's time at City, and we have come out on top of all of them. People are entitled to not like it, but saying that Pep's possession based system isn't or can't be successful is just plain wrong. Guardiola will buy new players this summer and IMO we'll challenge for the title again next season. If it bores you, then I can't help you either.

In terms of the WHY of this season. Guardiola more or less said it in his interview with Warnock on Sky a couple of months ago. He said that he knew people wanted him to take the old players out of the team, but he couldn't. "These guys gave me everything". He's loyal and he loves his players. Maybe to a fault. That's why he didn't want the club signing TOP players, because he trusted his guys to keep going to the well for him. This season is a season too far for all of them.

I'm alright with Pep doing that because he's earned the right to do that. In a weird way so have the players. The reality is you don't fluke 91 points in a Premier League season. You don't fluke the run after our defeat to Villa in December 2023. After that match we played 24 PL games, won 20 and drew 4. That shows the levels this team (and manager) were at just 12 months ago. Yes they've fallen off a cliff, yes there'll be a rebuild, but yes we will be back. I've seen people write Pep off throughout his tenure here, and he has always bounced back.
 
blueparrot said:
Except some understand the reasons,and there are many, and discuss them sensibly and discuss what they think we should do about the rebuild Fair enough. There are others in here that come out with stuff like Pep's lost it, been overtaken by others, and shouldn't be given any credit to rebuild another team, they are the entitled.
Click to expand...
Just as you feel “entitled” to disparage Blues with a different view from your own.

How the fcuk can it be “entitled” to think Pep’s been overtaken by others? Or to worry that he’s past his best? Those are valid opinions whether they meet your own high and mighty approval or not.

Take the blinkers off and give others a bit more room. Blind loyalty, hidden behind multiple scathing judgements, butters no parsnips.
 
BillyShears said:
In terms of the WHY of this season. Guardiola more or less said it in his interview with Warnock on Sky a couple of months ago. He said that he knew people wanted him to take the old players out of the team, but he couldn't. "These guys gave me everything". He's loyal and he loves his players. Maybe to a fault. That's why he didn't want the club signing TOP players, because he trusted his guys to keep going to the well for him. This season is a season too far for all of them.
Click to expand...
I agree with your post, but nothing whatsoever explains yesterday’s utterly abysmal selection and performance.

He’s left all of the “top players” out plenty recently, yet chose yesterday of all days to play every single one of our slow, out of form midfielders. Fucking mental.
 
sir baconface said:
Just as you feel “entitled” to disparage Blues with a different view from your own.

How the fcuk can it be “entitled” to think Pep’s been overtaken by others? Or to worry that he’s past his best? Those are valid opinions whether they meet your own high and mighty approval or not.

Take the blinkers off and give others a bit more room. Blind loyalty, hidden behind multiple scathing judgements, butters no parsnips.
Click to expand...
Others can post what they like, as I will too
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Unread Posts

Don't have an account? Register now and see fewer ads!

SIGN UP
Back
Top