Four thoughts from that game...
1) Fuck Me, I Think I Just Had a Stroke. I've never seen us play so direct! There was none of Pep's usual calma-pausa; we were going for Hollywood passes and direct goals all over the shop. And it worked! Obviously the result of two teams going out with set ups that expanded more times than an accordion, and it certainly provided entertainment. Not sure if I'd like it every week, though, as it would be a shame for me to have to install a pacemaker in my 20's.
2) Bangers, Bangers, Bangers. On a similar note, you just have to shout-out some of the incredible strikes we saw today. Not just Grealish's gorgeous curler, but the hat-trick goal from Nkunku and that screamer from Cancelo. Has there ever been a squad in football history with the amount of goal-scorers and creative hurricanes that we currently possess? Even Rodri, who City fans might be most likely to characterise as flat-footed, has a regular screamer in him. Keep your Ronaldo tap-ins and Bruno pens, I want to watch a squad player slam them in from thirty yards.
3) The Return of the King. Kev is back! And although he was a bit invisible in the second half, he looked dynamic as fuck in the first. Every ball he sent in had more whip than a BDSM sex shop. He dribbled past players, created chances, and looked right back at home. I was glad to see it, because he has taken a while to get back to form from injury in the past, I remember some games at a similar stage of the competition last year when he was noticeably rusty. To get our best player back and have him firing on at least most cylinders immediately is so important with the fixtures we have coming.
4) Stop Ruling Out Perfectly Good Torres Goals. I said a fortnight ago that I wasn't convinced of Torres as a striker. I still think he's not quite there against the best defenses, but as a young lad converted to the role, he' s doing a great job. I just feel bad for him that he's had two calm, collected, striker's finished ruled out when I don't think they should have been. That non-existent foul in the build-up the other week, and now an offside when he was level. Those two could really have helped his confidence, and I hope Pep is telling them that he's doing a lot of things right already.
Also, just quickly - I do agree that the midfield had more to do with the pressure we faced than Ake being a bit of out of position. It was a weird match, and clearly Nathan isn't a starting CB, but I don't think this is one to blame him too much. As an entire unit, we didn't contain the opposition the way we usually do. But we also scored six.