Just a bit of a brain fart here to counteract what you quite rightly point out.
Adapt a way of playing which can get round the 8 man block teams seem to employ and leave wingers/wide men with no room to run into by bringing on the best dribbler we have to either get a penalty or cause havoc, do this constantly right through the middle.
Secondly outside the box take a lot of pot shots at goal using the best striker of the ball we have, it'll make the tactics other teams employ have to adapt.
Probably bollocks but WTF do I know :)
Agreed ;-)
Only joking. As things stand, anything other than what we're doing should be a consideration. However, trying long-range shots against the packed low-block defences we face, would be like blasting a ball at a brick wall, hoping for it to crumble.
None of our wingers are ripping up trees at the moment, which suggests either they're all shit, or the system they're being told to play isn't getting the best out of them. For me, it's the latter.
Our wingers need support from our fullbacks. We saw the devastation Doku & Ait Nouri caused on RAN's debut at the CWC. This had me wetting myself in anticipation for the season ahead, but unbelievably Pep reverted back to the formation & tactics which failed us so badly last season, & we promptly lost to Al Hilal.
This season has continued in a similar vein. I for one wasn't fooled by the win away to Wolves. I re-watched that match twice (three times in total), because I was failing to see what many claimed to be our resurgence.
"CITY ARE BACK!!!"
Wolves couldn't hit a cows arse with a banjo. If they had a decent strike force, they could've scored three against us. My worst fears were further realised against Spuds & Brighton. City are far from being back!
We need a tactical reset, & so far Pep is showing few signs of turning. Judging by Rodri's comments, the players aren't happy & things don't seem well behind the scenes.
Pep Lijnders was brought in as Guardiola's No 2, which many speculated would herald a change in City's style & approach. We saw this to devastating effect during the first three CWC matches.
If you look closely at the bench against Spuds & Brighton, Lijnders seemed strangely disconnected from Pep & the team, with only Kolo showing concern & passion.
Could this be Lijnders mentally checking out because a stubborn Guardiola won't listen to anyone else? Was it Pep's call to sack his entire backroom staff & bring in a totally new coaching team?
I don't think I've heard of a manger making wholesale changes to his entire coaching staff before. BUT I've heard of a club's upper management forcing similar changes on a manager as a final chance to turn things around.
When asked in his post-match presser if he was considering a change of tactics & approach for the season ahead, Guardiola's answer was an emphatic
"NO!".
Guardiola as manager was City's main goal post-takeover. Khaldoon is loyal & supportive of Pep, but ultimately his first & foremost loyalty & concern is to Manchester City Football Club. Continued failure will not be an option for such a high profile business emissary of HRH Sheikh Mansour.
My hope is the international break will give everyone at City the time & space to take stock, reset themselves & to start realising the incredible talent we have at the club.
