Sparta Praha (H) | CL | Post Match Thread

Gordyola said:
Agreed but why has it taken so long to come up with it?
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Teams in the prem will take the point they came for. Look at the 4th goal, you give up space and in 4, 1 touch passes you concede.
 
mattcity5 said:
Actually thought it was there for a right foot volley at first, but yeah, maybe header the best option.

Leftfoot backheel volley would probably have been my third choice, but what do I know....

Should have headed the one v Dortmund for certain, but he's over reliant on his left. Nice to see the team goal finished with his right foot, and finished well.
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His instinct is always to get his left foot on it.

I wonder if the coaches have tried to work on his decision making, heading vs right foot vs left foot.
 
AirbagsOptionalTheReturn said:
I found it interesting last night when Akanji started standing on the ball and not progressing it forward to try and lure them out, at first I thought it was odd and time wasting but after 15 seconds or so I think it got into the opposition heads and they started to press and come out of the 11 at the back they were settled into. Not sure if this was a Pep instruction or just very clever by Akanji, but it worked as Haaland's second came from luring them out and hitting at pace. However, is this a tactic we can use in the PL? I am not sure, we are facing more and more 11 behind the ball and long clearances to fast players, so it could be used but I am not sure the PL teams would come out of their defensive setting. Could be a pretty boring spectacle if we are 1-0 and just stand on the ball waiting on the opposition to try and press :)
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I don't think it's really an option on a regular basis. Pep pretty much said as much after the Wolves game. It's incumbent on teams to make a spectacle of it. Football is entertainment, among other things. You'd just have two teams standing off each other, idly passing the ball around at the back. It goes against everything that football's supposed to be, but we have seen over and over and over that other teams are prepared to do it. If they're not behind, they actually think, most of them, that taking a point against City is a triumph. Whether at home or away. That is the ogre that we've become.
I wouldn't see Pep or the lads adopt it as a regular thing. They've just got too much pride in their way of playing the game.
When people say City are boring to watch, what they actually mean, without appearing to realise it, is that the other team is making it boring. Not us. What are we supposed to do, when the opposition have eleven players in the last third of their turf for something like 80-85% of the game?
 
The deliberate flick of his leg leg in mid-air tells you all you need to know.
It was laugh out loud insane.
Watch it back and see Bernie’s reaction if you get the right camera.
 
AirbagsOptionalTheReturn said:
I found it interesting last night when Akanji started standing on the ball and not progressing it forward to try and lure them out, at first I thought it was odd and time wasting but after 15 seconds or so I think it got into the opposition heads and they started to press and come out of the 11 at the back they were settled into. Not sure if this was a Pep instruction or just very clever by Akanji, but it worked as Haaland's second came from luring them out and hitting at pace. However, is this a tactic we can use in the PL? I am not sure, we are facing more and more 11 behind the ball and long clearances to fast players, so it could be used but I am not sure the PL teams would come out of their defensive setting. Could be a pretty boring spectacle if we are 1-0 and just stand on the ball waiting on the opposition to try and press :)
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What was interesting about that goal is that Pep went absolutely mad with delight and ran over to the bench congratulating someone. It was a predefined move that worked.
 
AirbagsOptionalTheReturn said:
I found it interesting last night when Akanji started standing on the ball and not progressing it forward to try and lure them out, at first I thought it was odd and time wasting but after 15 seconds or so I think it got into the opposition heads and they started to press and come out of the 11 at the back they were settled into. Not sure if this was a Pep instruction or just very clever by Akanji, but it worked as Haaland's second came from luring them out and hitting at pace. However, is this a tactic we can use in the PL? I am not sure, we are facing more and more 11 behind the ball and long clearances to fast players, so it could be used but I am not sure the PL teams would come out of their defensive setting. Could be a pretty boring spectacle if we are 1-0 and just stand on the ball waiting on the opposition to try and press :)
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Stones has been doing this for years
 
Pep mentioned it the other day. Said how no one would enjoy it if we just stood there with the ball and didn't move. But clearly they've decided to try it. It's something that would be effective away from home in particular. No way will home fans allow their team to just watch us keep the ball at the back under no pressure. And their whining from the stands would inevitably lead to someone pressing and moving out from the low block.
 
The 'press baiting' by Akanji was orchestrated to make a mockery of Sparta's bus parking. I actually think Pep's half time gesture was at their bench for the ridiculous play - they had 11 in their own area at times.

When De Zerbi arrived at Brighton, this was one of the techniques they used to attract pressure and then quickly play through it, which is exactly what we did for the fourth goal.

However, the key bit is putting your sole on the ball. It's almost magnetic to then drawing players to rush in.

I enjoyed it, thought it was a great way to show it up. Certainly would only be restricted to when we're 3 or 4 nil ahead.
 
Pretty sure no PL side would give 2 hoots about us standing on the ball 40 yards out. Just consider it job done.
Probably the worst side we've ever played in the champions league, no ambition whatsoever, just trying to keep the score down. How did they get 4 points?
Really wondering whether its worth bothering with these games, poor opponents and having to leave early to make our trains due to maintenance at Piccadilly. Oh theres a champions league game on tonight, lets shut part of the station down early. Wankers.
 
paulchapo said:
How many times has this got to be explained??? Games decided on a penalty shootout are not considered a loss for the record. You and others might not like it, or technically think we lost, but the records say otherwise. 26 games unbeaten.
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There's no use knocking if there's no one in the house. When a game is decided by penalties, you'll usually see something like....


Manchester City 7 - 7 Real Madrid
(Manchester City win 3-1 on penalties)
 
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